Adjusting to A Work From Home Mom life

For the parents of elementary and middle school students, there is no full-time job comparable to homeschooling a child, especially if you are a parent who is trying to juggle that with working from home at the same time.

As a mother of a toddler, our homeschooling regimen looks very different than those enrolled in elementary or middle school, and that’s even with the assistance of our daycare that has set up distance learning for the students. Our school day regiment has structure but is obviously less intense than that of school-aged children. With those of us who have pre-preschool kids, this might not come with the school workload, but it certainly has its own set of challenges.

For parents of all ages, if monitoring your child’s school day and their progress isn’t enough, you have to keep them occupied and entertained throughout the day with the only real outlet being your home or neighborhood. Oh, and on top of that, you are trying to complete your own workload at home.

So how can we all adapt to the new normal and become sane SAHMs in the process?

Maintain a Schedule

Keep the flow of the day as familiar and routine as possible. Get the day started by having breakfast at the same time your child is used to. This sets the tone for the structure of the day. Break the day into blocks. One can include schoolwork for school-aged children, time outside, free-play, lunch, snacks, crafts, listening to music, reading, you get the idea. Whatever usually fills your child’s time, try to stay with that and make adjustments when needed. It’s also helpful to keep the bedtime routine consistent, again the familiarity will make this process as close to normal as possible.

Don’t Freak Out Over Screen Time

We all know what’s suggested and encouraged when it comes to the amount of time your child stays in front of a screen, but this is also a time unlike any other when you as a parent might be pulled in many directions at once. It’s ok if your child gets more screen time than you are used to allowing in order for you to keep your work and sanity on track as much as possible. There are so many great, educational resources you can dig into during this time at a discounted price or even for free. If you have a child like mine whose energy is commented on by numerous parents with children of the same age, lucky us I know, sometimes education-based tools that he can watch or interact with on a screen allows him the chance to unwind and play safely. The alternative is him flying around the house with no real thought of keeping his limbs intact…. so screen time it is.

Figure Out New Ways to do Things

If your kids are used to playing with friends, enjoying in extracurricular activities, or even attending church weekly, find ways to adjust those events and keep them on the calendar so children can still reap the benefits of what they bring. If you’ve perused social media over the last couple of weeks, you’ve seen at least one post with a picture of a laptop screen and multiple boxes filled with people. This is the way a lot of schools, families, church members, and friends have embraced social distancing. Zoom and Google Hangouts work great for this purpose and can be the perfect way to virtually play with friends or conduct playdates. If you want something to keep the activity-level up, check out Cosmic Yoga or Go Noodle for some great alternatives. 

Plan for Interruptions

You can follow your schedule to a tee and have unlimited resources available to keep your child on track and entertained throughout the day, but anyone with children knows nothing ever goes as planned. If you find yourself on a work call and your little one’s life is coming to an end unless they get a snack or a specific toy, have the mute button on the ready and expect to use it. You’d be surprised at how many people on the other end of the call are hovering over mute in the exact same situation. Did you give your child a box of crayons paired with endless sheets to color on so that you could jump on your laptop to complete some work? Your next interruption might come in the form of scrubbing the walls down if you’re rocking this SAHM role like me.

You’re Not Alone

We are all in this together. The number of parents around the country and world who have been put in a situation where they are now balancing parenting roles, homemaker roles, and professional worker roles all at once is in abundance. Allow yourself to take a few deep breaths whenever you need, follow some awesome social media accounts like ScaryMommy or Peanuts to give yourself a laugh or much needed support boost, and reach out to fellow parents, family members, or friends whenever you can use a WAHM pat on the back.

If you are staying at home you are the model of responsibility for all Moms, so keep it up.