The Work At Home Mum Dilemma

Happy Mother's Day Loves!

I'm a working mum. But the thing is I work at home.

When you go away to work everyday and come home, it's easy to shed the work mantle and focus on family. However, if your work is in your home, it can be hard to switch off.

While I was on maternity leave, I'd have the house clean, lunch and dinner ready and the laundry put away by noon everyday. But then Boss Lady came and brushing my hair became a luxury. In the middle of all these adjustments, I decided to start a business and everything just went to heck.

I was pulling my hair out trying to look after the baby, my husband, my house and my business without dropping any balls. I was trying to achieve the same flawless standards I'd had before. This led to lots of half finished or hurriedly completed projects around the house, staying up literally all night to complete orders, a grumpy husband whose wife was always too busy and a few physical breakdowns.

It was very hard for me to accept that I could not do everything in one day but I had to prioritize and compartmentalize. I would get so upset because at the end of the day, I hadn't done half of what I wanted to do. It's hard to stick to a schedule with a nursing baby but little by little things are starting to fall into place.

What I do now is have separate days for everything. Rather than slotting things in where I can, I give everything a day. So on Ollie's Studio days, I don't do housework. And on housework days, I don't do Ollie's Studio stuff. And whatever the day, Boss Lady's needs are always met and I shut everything down by 7pm and focus on my family.

As a result I'm far less stressed, my house is cleaner and my family is happier. I've also figured out quick ways to prepare meals that save me time in the kitchen.

Maybe mums CAN do everything well... just not at the same time.