Confessions of a Work-from-Home Mama

I started my journey into motherhood and working from home at exactly the same time. Three years later, I’ve added another baby to the mix and more to my plate when it comes to working from home. While working from home is what many believe to be the best of both worlds, all is not what meets the eye.

These are my confessions of a work-from-home mama.

I constantly feel guilty. I’m sure this is something that all working moms feel, whether they work in an office or from home (I actually do work FT in an office, but my job is flexible and I mostly work from home now). When I’m working, I feel bad that I’m not with my kids. When I’m with my kids, I feel bad that I’m not working. Because of this, it’s hard to give it my all to either “job,” and that also makes me feel guilty.

I’m not as patient with my kids as I’d like to be. I can’t really blame work completely for this, as patience is something I need to work on regardless of my circumstances. However, I do always feel like I’m in a rush to get to the next task. I quickly put my kids down for a nap and to bed so I can get to work, rather than savoring the routine and slowing it down.

I have a rule where I don’t work when the girls are awake, yet I break it more than I’d like to admit. My girls take ridiculously long naps (3 hours usually…but don’t be jealous, they wake up constantly at night and are up by 6 am), so I really try to shut off the computer when they’re awake. However, this doesn’t always happen as there are times where I have to respond to an email or meet a deadline. It’s a work in progress, what can I say.

I absolutely love having something “just for me.” As much as I struggle with guilt, I know that if I didn’t have my own thing, I’d go nuts. I also love that I’m able to bring in an income for my family.

A good part of why I’m able to “do it all” is that I work really fast. Like, super fast. My office job is 40 hours a week, and I make an additional $1000-$1500 per month blogging and freelancing. Contrary to popular belief, I really don’t work all that much. If I had to put a number on it, I’d say I spend 5 hours per week on my blog and another 5 freelancing. I wake up early if I have to, freelance/blog for 1-2 hours in the evening, and again for 2-3 hours on the weekend when the girls are napping (if I need to). I watch TV and spend time with my husband every night, my house stays clean, and I cook and bake regularly. One thing I don’t really have is a social life…maybe that’s my problem LOL

Despite it all, I secretly feel like I’m living the dream. As you can see, working from home is not all roses and sunshine. I get stressed out, I’m overtired basically every day, I’m in a hurry more often than not, and I feel guilty literally every day. However, I truly would not change this for the world. I’m able to watch my kids grow up and be there for every milestone, every soccer game and every performance. I love that we basically don’t have to be on a budget whatsoever because we are so financially secure. And I love that once the girls are in school and God forbid moved out of the house (though we have a pact that they’re living with me forever!!), I will have something to focus my time and energy on.

If you’re interested in working from home, you can read more about my journey basically on any other page of my blog (try this or this). The best thing about working from home is that you really can work as little or as much as you’d like. You don’t have to strive to make thousands of dollars per month, but could aim for $300 just to give you a little more wiggle room in your budget. And, if you end up not liking it, you can always quit. I always remind myself of that when I’m having a tough day. I don’t have to do this, but at the end of the day I always come back. Maybe it’s the friends I’ve made and the little blogging community that I’ve joined, or perhaps it’s the fact that I can make $100 an hour writing from my couch in my PJs, but all I know is I plan on sticking around for a while. If you’re interested in doing the same, I encourage you to browse around my site! And you can always email me with any questions you have!

Now it’s your turn – I want to hear a confession! Leave one in the comments!

PS I just made a Facebook page for my blog and would love it if you could show me some love!! Thanks!