working from home when school is out

Shew…what a couple weeks it has been. First, I’m going to pretend that it didn’t take a pandemic to get me to blog. Second, how are you doing? Over the last nearly two weeks, my mind has gone from total disbelief to panic, to “we’ve totally got this”. I always circle back to “we’ve got this”. And we do. Y’all, one day we are going to look back and see beautiful things that came from this. It’s going to be hard. And harder for some than others, but we will make it through. I’m already seeing so much beauty come along in all those who are giving their time and their gifts to guide, educate, support, and comfort our world that has been flipped and shaken around.

So many of us are finding ourselves working from home for the first time ever while we also have to somehow navigate a rough draft version of homeschooling. One thing I have had to navigate as a momma who does most of her work from home is how to balance working and momming…and all the things…at the same time. Here are a few things that help me and may help you as well.

1.Separate the two as much as possible. I’ll admit that I avoid working when I’m momming as much as possible. That’s easy when Steff is in school. I just work while he’s at school and mostly focus on him when he gets home. Any extra work is either done before he wakes up in the morning or after he goes to bed at night. But, in our temporary “school at home” world, that’s not an option. This is going to be different for everyone. My husband is at home and we are able to take turns who is mostly parent and who is mostly work. So, when Bret is focused fully on work, I am focused fully (well, mostly…he is a little more independent as an 8-year-old) on Steff. Then in the afternoon, I get a few hours to focus fully (eh…mostly) on work. Then I am getting up a couple hours before everyone else wakes up so I can get a little extra done and then do a little bit of work after Steff goes to bed. I try really hard to separate everything because it’s the way my brain works best. This may not be an option for everyone.

2. Create a routine. Y’all routine is king in our house. We three thrive with a good routine. It is taking us some adjusting to find what works best for us, but I feel us getting closer. So don’t be afraid to adjust something you’ve created, just don’t go adjusting too often and too much or it won’t feel like a routine at all. Here’s what’s mostly working for us.

• 5am- momma gets up to work

• 7am-9am- quiet morning time (reading, meditating, moving our bodies, breakfast, brush teeth, get dressed)

• 9am-11am- school time (school announcements, packet work, journaling, PE)

• 11am-12:30pm- lunch, chores, and family time

• 12:30pm-1:30pm- in-room play

• 1:30pm-3:30pm- finish up any left-over school work, art, serve someone else, reading

Once he’s finished with everything then it’s free time to have screen time, etc. He also usually finishes all those things up before their time period is over and then he gets to play outside, etc. Our side schedule is from 8-11 in the morning, Bret is focusing on work (though he’s available all day and checking in), while I’m with Steff. Then from 1-4 in the afternoon I am working, while Bret is focused on Steff. And both of us do a little bit of work off and on all day.

3. Be flexible. We are going to have to adjust. Find what works best for us and know that it’s not going to be the same every day. Some days Steff is going to be all about playing by himself and other times he’s going to want more attention. Some days I am going to need to be more focused and other days Bret’s going to need to be more focused.

4. Fill those buckets. Have you read the book “Have You Filled a Bucket Today?” Basically the buckets are like our hearts. Certain things we do fill buckets and certain things empty buckets. I can tell when Steff’s bucket doesn’t fill full. He gets cranky and doesn’t feel connected to us. I’ll have to admit, by the end of most days recently, it has felt like his bucket needed to be filled and sometimes we reach a point where it’s harder to fill than others. The best way to fill it for our boy is just play time. I am especially not always good at this, but it’s the fastest way to fill his bucket. Everyone is different. For yours it may be cuddles (that’s what it is for me :)).

5. Keep perspective. We are all in the same boat here and we are all doing the best we can with it. Let’s enjoy our time together the best we can. Take a deep breath and remember everything is going to be okay. Our kids are going to be okay. At this time we have to do what we have to do to keep ourselves and our families safe and healthy…mentally, emotionally, and physically. Sometimes that may look like rocking out a successful school routine and sometimes it is going to look like a lot of screen time, popsicles for breakfast, and forced early bedtimes. It’s all about balance and doing the best we can. We’ve got this!

Here are a few of my favorite resources that we have taken full advantage of during the last couple weeks.

• Lunch Doodles with Mo Willems

• PE with Joe

• Insight Timer for free meditations (they have super short ones for kids)

• Bre Design Co coloring book for grownups for a little coloring meditation 🙂

And because I am really hoping we still get to visit our favorite place this year…here are a few of my favorite pictures from our past trips to our favorite place.

Y’all we’ve got this. Let’s stay calm, informed, healthy, and find the joy and beauty in the chaos.

I am so thankful for each and everyone of you!

So much love,

Cilla

PS…Have you booked a session for later this year? All of my spring sessions are being moved to summer and fall. Spots are going to fill up quicker than usual, so now is the time to reserve your love filled session for later in the year. I promise if something happens and everything goes on longer than anticipated we can reschedule as needed. I cannot wait to photograph all of my people with lots of hugging 🙂 If you would like to reserve your spot for this year, you can take the first step by contacting me HERE. Big hugs!