If you work at home with small children, chances are that you know the value of time. In my world, I know that there’s never quite enough of it. Deadlines loom while snacks, diapers, and phone calls from my editor demand my attention – often at the same time.

A Day in the Life of a Stay-at-Home Parent

I work more than full time from home, with a 2 year old and an infant in tow. My husband works full time outside the home. Oh, and did I mention that we started homeschooling this year on the preschool level? (I know, I know, glutton for punishment and all that…)

At any given minute, my home, work, and personal life are in varying states of chaos. On a good day, we all have clean laundry, a balanced meal, and I get some work done. Bad days are more likely to find me rocking inside the closet humming the Dora the Explorer theme song, while a toddler with marker tattoos runs rampant just outside the door.

In reality, we manage pretty well. I tend to try really hard to get up before the girls do. If I manage it, the day goes much more smoothly. In fact, I really need to make this a priority. (mental note: do not to hit snooze button in the morning!). Once I’m up, I check email, start a load of laundry, pick up the house, and begin my day. Getting organized first thing in the morning really helps.

Throughout the day I juggle work, preschool, and “mamamamama!”. At three, my husband comes home, and I try to spend the evening attempting to get in any “focused work” for the day. If it’s a really bad day, I leave the house completely and hide at the local coffee shop, bookstore, or anywhere I can find Wi-fi.

Balance and a Kitchen Timer

It can be hard to find your work at home groove when your toddler is jumping on the couch, your baby needs a new diaper, and you just realized your Blackberry is floating in the toilet (don’t ask me how I know – just trust me on this one).

One of the best things I’ve ever done was to buy a kitchen timer. I set it for 15 minute segments. Then, I start knocking things out. Ding! 15 minutes of focused writing. Ding! 15 minutes with the girls – juice, diapers, switch toys, etc. Ding! Start dinner. Ding! 15 more minutes of writing. And so my day goes. One day, I’ll live life more than 15 minutes at a time. Today, however, is not that day.

The Slow Cooker is My Friend

There are days that we wouldn’t eat if it wasn’t for my slow cooker. Okay, we’d eat, but it would be from a drive-through window. All. the. time.

To stop that from happening, I try to plan my meals about a week in advance. On days I know things will be especially hectic, I throw a meal in the slow cooker and turn it on early in the day. Come dinner time, we have a relatively healthy meal prepared and all I have to do is make side dishes. There are whole websites devoted to slow cooker recipes – and there are weeks that I use mine every day. Hey, it’s better than the Golden Arches, right?

I’ve been working at home for a year now, and the balancing act gets slightly easier every day – that, or I’m slowly becoming immune to the chaos. Either way, my kids are happy that I’m home, and I enjoy not having to wear heels (or shoes, for that matter) to work.

[Photo by ||!prliignore1||]