I’m sure that I am not the only parent that felt mixed emotions on 4^th January 2021.  The evening that it was announced we were having another National lockdown and that our children would be at home until at least the end of February 2021.

I cried a little at the thought of doing it over again.  As happy as I was that we were doing what felt like the right thing, remembering how hard it was before, scared me. I was selfish, sometimes we all are.

Working from Home with Children

Trying to work from home with children around is not easy, especially when we need to think about them learning, too!  Workplaces try to be supportive and understanding.  But the reality is, we have a job that we are paid to do.  In my job role, things just can’t wait. 

My two kids are completely adorable 99.9% of the time and I’m so extremely grateful.  But, they still need food (lots of it!), clothes, help with their work and like most kids, they need entertaining. 

Maybe the worst thing I have done as a parent is to be the most interactive mum that there could be, my kids literally think I’m their little friend!  But I’ll take that.

The first week of lockdown 3.0, was atrocious, I won’t even try to sugar coat it.  I wasn’t ready for it, we were unorganised, my work schedule was crammed with video calls, I argued daily with Carl about him ‘not getting it at all’ and I was hugely peeved that I had ironed uniforms for the full week, that the kids didn’t even need!!

On my next day off, I got us into a good position to make life easier and I remembered all the good practices that helped me through the last time!  Because once we found our way, it did get easier. 

Into week three, we are in such a different place and most importantly, happy! 

I wanted to share my top tips to try and help other parents!  While there is a natural slant to working parents, this is just because it is relevant to my own journey, but there are tips here that any parent will benefit from, I promise!

5 Top Tips for Working from Home and Home Schooling

1)  Get Organised

• Clothes – Each night, prepare and lay out clothes for the next day, as if it were a school night.
• Food – Make packed lunches, drinks and snacks available in the fridge as well as in a cupboard for the kids to help themselves if needed.
• Schedule – Plan your own calls as much as you can around school calls, to avoid interruption for either party.  Not always possible, but mostly.
• Rules – set certain rules so the kids no what to do if…if I’m busy, if they get stuck, if they are hungry, etc.
• School Work – I always take a look at the school work in advance, so I can firstly, Google what it is and then also be prepared to explain what they need to do and be ready in case they ask me any questions on it.

2)  Have a Routine

Routine is everything when trying to juggle.  Knowing when things should be happening and doing them, really helps the day go like clockwork.  For me, I am up before the kids, I get ready, quick tidy, sort the dogs and start up my laptop, then come the kids and before we know it, Carl is home from work!  Sounds a bit like Groundhog Day – but it really works.  The days when we have strayed from our usual routine, have been so much less productive!

3)  Always Have a Plan B!!

I would love to stay on plan, but the truth is, there will always be a time where this can’t happen.  Usually, it will be that I receive an unscheduled work call which lasts a lifetime!

To cope with these times, I have a back-up plan.  We have a stack of easier tasks in the middle of the table.  If the kids get stuck and I am on the phone, they know to stop what they are doing and pick up a different task.  Or they can watch BBC Bitesize, read a book, even watch a move.  We keep it flexible so that they do not get stressed when they need help, and I don’t feel under pressure when I can’t help them.

The main thing is that they know what they need to do in that situation, so they are not waving paper in my face while I am on the phone!!

4)  Don’t Overload

It is so easy to put ourselves under pressure to be doing everything!  School work, PE with Joe Wicks, crafting posters and window signs to match the neighbours, baking, booking onto Zoom lessons which we find on Facebook, oh and re-decorating our complete home…arghhhh!  My advice, STOP! 

Honestly, I got myself into such a state trying to keep up, but now, I just keep things simple.  I spoke to the school and agreed when I was able to submit the school work online – I changed it from daily to weekly.

I stopped trying to keep up with all the latest craft and baking fads and stepped away from the other resources that were being thrown at me and just kept our commitments manageable.  We are a household with two adults, two kids, two dogs and a cat – simple is more than enough!!

5)  Be Kind (to yourselves and your children)

This is a unique experience that we were never prepared for and will hopefully never live through, again.

There are no experts and no rules.  We are all just finding our way, mostly winging it and hoping for the best.

Every parent, carer, teacher and child amongst many others out there, are doing the best they can.  Is it perfection?  Of course not.  But it is enough.  You are enough.

Our children are trying hard and we are trying just as hard to support them.  Employers are trying to understand, and we are trying to work as hard as we always have, sometimes maybe working harder and outside of our core working hours.

Some days we will feel like we are winning, others, we might be sobbing at our lack of productivity. 

Celebrate the Good Days and Forgive the Bad Days. 

We need to ride this storm, maintain the knowledge our babies have and most of all, keep spreading the smiles, the love and the laughter.

In a world full of uncertainty, we can be certain of one thing.  Our children love us, and we love them. 

Good luck.  See you on the other side!!