Ok I’m not an expert nor do I have a piece of paper to qualify me as any sort of “Working Mum Extrodinare” however I do have one very valuable thing up my sleeve, experience of it!
Let’s face it, for some people returning to work after having children isn’t what they had planned. It most certainly wasn’t what I had imagined. Yet there was no way financially I could afford not to work (unless I either win the lottery or get paid a lot of money to sit at the computer blogging!)
So here I am, 14 months down the line since I returned to work after having Ethan & still not really enjoying it but most importantly surviving it!!
There have been a few ups & downs along the way, but I adapted & you will too! So here are my top tips for surviving being a working mum :
- Planning – This is a huge part of how I manage to even get out of the door in the morning. I have a calender, diary, things pinned to my fridge & lists! I even plan time to make lists 🙂 In seriousness though, plan your day. Plan your weekly meals so you’re not panicking when you get home what to cook, plan some family time, wind down time & some you time! Also don’t forget your partner, its nice to have a “date night” even if it’s just watching your favourite show on the telly for an hour together.
- Preparation – If you can prepare something when you have a spare 5 minutes, do so. Even if its only packing a bag for the morning. Those extra 5 minutes can feel like a lifetime when you’re rushing around in the morning!
- It’s ok to cry – Yep this may seem like an odd one but I can assure you there will be times after returning to work that you will feel like you just want to have a good cry. Go for it, its much better out than in! It’s a mixture of hormones, fearing your missing out on something exciting with your child & stress. You’ll feel a little better once you get it out.
- Don’t think about the what if’s – This will eat you up & spit you out I can promise you! I used to always think about whether I was missing something, what if I didn’t have to work, what would I be doing with them at this minute in time. It’s not doing anyone any good especially not you if you over think this. Life unfortunately doesn’t pan out as we might expect but like I said before, you adapt, you get into a routine & most importantly the time you do have together becomes even more magical.
So I’m sitting here as proof that you can be a working mum, if you have to (or maybe want to be) and still have that magical bond with your child plus survive a working day 🙂 It’s not always an easy road but where’s the fun if it was?!
I’ve applied to become a working mums blogger, this site is a little haven of advice for working mums. So why not take a look if your stuck or just fancy a change in career,