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Motherhood

Learning to Say No as a Work At Home Mom

May 29, 2012

by Danielle Christopher

The phone is warm in my hand. My cheeks feel warm. I have a euphoric feeling. My other hand is still hovering over the keyboard.

I am in awe of what I just did on that phone call. I said no to a job that would have been summer long.

Currently I have a modest work load on top of being a mom. I do as much as I can when my daughters are occupied at school or therapy.

I know why I said no and why it feels so good.

1. Fear of taking on too much that I cannot deliver. I mistakenly did too much when my personal life was under despair. I messed up a job badly. I took a lot of time off from work to get well.

2. Summer is a month away. Everyone needs to kick back when it is backyard season.

3. My oldest daughter is transitioning from kindergarten to Grade 1. I will need to work on some writing and reading exercises with her to allow her to start school well.

4. My youngest daughter will continue to have therapy lessons. That takes time for me to take her.

5. Time is too short. My girls are getting older so quick. I never want them to have their summer memories of mom glued to a computer.

My youngest comes over to me demanding to be picked up. I scoop her up and give her a big hug.

I will always have work opportunities. Being here to raise my daughters is worth everything. Being honest with myself and potential clients is worth it.

Danielle Christopher is a stay-at-home mom of two daughters and a freelance writer. Her teen story is in the collection “Parent/Teen Stories: Without Judgement”. She lives with her husband of seventeen years and her girls in Langley, B.C.. Follow her on Twitter.

parenting

Work at Home Moms Should Be Work Anywhere Moms

October 18, 2011

by Danielle Christopher

I caught the tail end of a conversation on Twitter with @vancouvermom and @TwellMedia on changing WAHM to WAM (work-anywhere-mom.) I agreed that I am a Work Anywhere Mom, since I am writing this in the car while my two-year-old is taking a car nap.

Rarely do I actually work-at-home when my two daughters are running around me and needing me. It’s challenging to say the least to make tight deadlines. So, I do it outside the home.

My youngest is happily playing at pre-school now. My oldest is in Full-Day kindergarten. For the first few weeks I followed a small schedule for myself to enjoy the five hours I get kid-free a week:

Go out for coffee with cell phone close by and enjoy a hot cup or two in peace.
Get some articles outlined while sitting alone.
I saved my phone calls for that time. To have an uninterrupted phone call was such a pleasure.
Go window shopping.
Enjoy some non-kid T.V. at home with an open couch.

And please, DO NOT do housework for the first while.

I am sure when both girls are in full-time school I will be working more at home. It is amazing how much I can get done when alone.

I update my calendar, filling in my family’s schedule and it shocks me. Christmas break is in over two months. I look back to my sleeping preschooler. I predict I might get a chance to quickly go through the drive-thru nearby for some coffee before she wakes up. I might as well sneak some time while I can. And that is okay.

My name is Danielle. I am a WAM!

Danielle Christopher is a stay-at-home mom of two daughters, ages one and three. She blogs for The Momoir Project and writes book reviews for Women’s Post. Her teen story is in the collection “Parent/Teen Stories: Without Judgement”. She lives with her husband of seventeen years and her girls in Langley, B.C.. Follow her on Twitter.

Featured

A Day in the Life of a Work-at-Home Mom: In Numbers!

November 19, 2010

TGIFF!

Thank God it’s F*cking Friday!

Why am I excited that it’s Friday?

Although I work from home, it’s still work! Yes I’m grateful to work in the comfort of my home but juggling kids, home and work all at once can be daunting.

For some Friday fun, here’s a quick day in my life of a work-at-home mom in numbers:

Number of words I swore in my head because I had to wake up at 5am: 3 (F*ck, mother-f*cker and f*ck this

Number of extreme sports I witnessed: 5 (including The Destroyer doing somersaults off the couch; The Boss running and sliding on knees to see how far he could go; both jumping off the bed.)

Number of times I had to re-heat my damn coffee: 3

Number of bums I had to wipe: 2

Number of emails in my inbox: 132

Number of times I said “STOP IT!”: 15

Wrestling moves I observed: 7 (including The Boss jumping on top the Destroyer; the Destroyer puts the Boss in a tight headlock; both kicking each other simultaneously)

Number of Tweets I wrote: 75