One of the toughest things about being a working parent is the strain of juggling your work and childcare. It is tough enough going back to work, but trying to make your routine work can often lead to frustration, as well as being expensive.
Through all the chaos this can bring, it s important to remember that people make this work every day, and you can too. It can take time for a routine to fall into place, but you will get there eventually.
Take a look at these great tips for juggling work and childcare:
Adjust Your Working Hours
One of the first things you can try to help make work and childcare more manageable is to adjust your working hours. You could go part-time, ask for condensed working hours, or even adjust your shifts to make sure you can make the school run. Asking for flexible working arrangements is becoming more popular, and can be a simple way of balancing both aspects of your life. Discuss with your employer, then consider the other options you have to make this work.
Create A Family Schedule
A family schedule can be a game-changer. It can help everyone be where they are supposed to be and on time. Creating a weekly schedule that helps you account for parent-teacher conferences, soccer games, and anything else that comes up can help you split the work between you and your partner. An online family schedule can be even better to give you those much-needed reminders throughout the day. Even the most organized of families can fail from time to time, so do not let it get to you if things occasionally slip, you can only do your best!
Make The Most Of Before And After School Programs
Before and after school programs are ideal for helping you to manage your childcare around work. This gives you the chance to be there for the drop-off and pick-up and gives your children some fun activities they can do outside of school. While after school programs can cost money, they can be more affordable than a babysitter, and means you do not have to cut down your working hours or miss crucial meetings to be there for pick-up.
Have An Emergency Contacts List
Some things can happen out of the blue and it is difficult to be prepared for that. To help you out in case of an emergency, have a list of people you can contact. Whether it is a friend, a relative or another parent at the school, it can put you at ease to know there is someone you can call to help out when you need to be in two places at once.
Juggling work and childcare is one of the many difficult things you could face after having a baby. Going back to work after maternity leave is daunting enough, without worrying how you are going to make it all work. Finding a routine and becoming more organized will help you manage, and things will soon fall into place. Life can be unpredictable and sometimes full of chaos, but is not that part of the fun?
Pingback: Going back to university? 3 advantages of being a mature student - ABC Money