As a wife, mom, and remote worker, I find myself constantly trying to find the balance between being 100% with the kids and 100% with my work. Pro tip: not possible! But, it is possible to have work-life balance even when work has snuck into our houses.
With two young kids at home and two working parents, my husband and I had to make major changes when it came to how we were living each day when we transitioned to fully remote.
I strongly believe that taking care of my family and myself while making money is doable and something worth working towards. With both my husband and I working remotely we can leverage our time to make sure we get our kids taken care of as well as our work, a real blessing.
Here are a few things we do that work for our life. My hope is that you take what you need from it for your family. First, though, you need a plan. We had to get organized with our day, meaning blocking out time for things we have to do. Here’s how it goes down!
- Waking Up Early: I try to wake up around 5-6 am so I can get my to-do list ready for the day without any distractions from anybody.
- Plan Ahead: Both my husband and I share our work calendars with each other, this way we can make sure we can get our work done while also giving our kids all the attention they need. Planning ahead also gives us the opportunity to take control of our day and get the most out of it.
- Me time: Working out is a huge part of me being energized for the day. I believe moving my body for at least 30 minutes a day is enough to help me stay energized and it is “my thing”, something that I’ve always done for myself. Whatever your thing is, don’t forget to do it!
- Kids Time: This is the time when I focus on spending time with the kids. In 2020 this means driving to the nearest elementary school to play on their playground and track. It’s a great way to wear out the kids so they are ready for a nap and I can focus on some work!
- Hydrating: Drinking water constantly keeps me hydrated and fueled, my go-to is half of my body weight in ounces. PS: Did you know that wine is not water?
- Healthy Eating: I am very strategic when it comes to meals, I make sure to schedule my cooking and meals, in between zoom calls, waiting for email responses, etc. We have recently implemented meal planning and getting the grocery shopping done Sunday night so we go into the week all prepped to cook – this keeps us from wanting to order take-out, we save a ton of money and on top of that, we save time by not having to think about what we will eat!
There are days when my plate is full and believe me there are times where I struggle to keep everyone happy. But having everything in perspective and realizing that not every day is going to be perfect allows me to not let work stress leak into my relationship with my husband and kids and allows our family to grow together.
