Says-it-like-it-is mum blogger Constance Hall has given a shout out to all mums who work from home while taking care of kids – and the responses to her post have cracked us up.
Let us start by saying that anyone who think freelancers or self-employed people are ‘lucky they get to work from home AND look after their kids’ needs to spend a day trying to get work completed to a deadline for a client, while having a toddler demand they entertain them EVERY SECOND OF THE DAY.
We have a feeling they will change their minds within hours of ‘double-jobbing’ because that’s essentially what it is, working two full-time jobs at the same time.
“My respect is going out to all the mums who have been told to just work from home, it's “easy” yep... Really f******g easy,” Constance posted on her Facebook page, with an accompanying photo of her toddler sitting on her head.
My respect is going out to all the mums who have been told to just work from home, it's "easy" yep... Really f*****g easy.
Posted by Constance Hall on Friday, 19 February 2016
And we just love the cathartic tongue-in-cheek responses mums who work from home left on the post.
“Stuck under this human every nap time,” said one witty mumma. “I cannot move or she wakes up. And then she acts like a witch. So I stay here. Thank God for box sets. And see that hand. That hand digs into my skin, and stabs my voice box.”
While another posted a picture of her son standing behind her and captioned it, “So f******g easy to run my advertising agency from home!”
“My head is under there somewhere, said another. “One of the few 100 breaks I have to take from getting work done because my twin just won't shut the f up and amuse themselves for 5 whole mins haha.”
One work-from-home mum put it brilliantly and succinctly when she said: “I seriously want to punch anyone who thinks working at home with kids is a breeze. The constant distractions, interruptions, wiping asses, screwing sippy cup lids while taking conference calls & trying to send an intelligible email is effing brutal! It's the reason I take pills.”
And another mum spoke about her struggle with working from home, calling the mums who do “super mums”.
“I'm struggling working full time with 3 boys under 7,” she commented. “Hubby works nights and wk ends. My wk ends aren't long enough swim lessons, sports, shopping cleaning and trying to give my boys one on one quality time at times I feel like I'm a s**t mum lol but at least I get a break by going to work. All the mum's out there that work from home I admire you... SUPER MUMS!!!! I love my children with all my heart but it is nice to get some time to myself and be able to complete a task without 50 interruptions! Best bit I can go to toilet and I don't have anyone banging on the door demanding my attention.”
While another is happy to work from home, yet admits she finds it incredibly tough.
“You know what?” commented the honest mum. “I wouldn't have it any other way. But...... Holy s**t what a head f**k! I've been running my own business from home for the last three years and now have a nearly three year old and a 19 month old, plus my 9 year old. I've had no holidays and I'm going insane. I'm about to draw the line and put them in daycare 1 or 2 days a week before I fully lose the plot. I realised early on that I needed to keep my days for kids and my nights for work. Sleep? That's a thing of the past haha! Plus there's inevitably things that need to be done during the day while my 3 year old stands behind me on my office chair and puts every clip she owns in my hair while my 19mth old makes quick work of destroying everything. I would rather endure this and be my own boss though. I'm still figuring it out but it's only gonna get easier.”
We suppose the point to take from this is that undermining ANY mum is wrong. All mums are up against challenges, whether they're working mums, stay-at-home mums or working-from-home mums – and each and every one of them deserves serious kudos and respect.
Can you relate mums? Have you worked from home while looking after the kiddiwinks? And have you had people tell you it's an easy gig? We'd love to hear your experiences on this!
