I’ve worked from home since May of 2007…and I’ve loved every minute of it. Sure, I’ve had to hide in the closet for phone conversations and I’ve spent one-too-many-nights up waaayyyy past my bedtime, but – I don’t really mind the chaos. I wouldn’t trade this scenario for anything.
Here are 8 things that I love about working from home:
I don’t have to pack or buy lunches. It’s healthier, cheaper, and easier to eat right here at home.
I don’t have to drive anywhere. No gas. No car seats. No long commutes (this coming from a girl that had a 1.5 hour one-way commute in the Phoenix metropolitan area pre-kids).
I can wear my pajamas or my Aerpostale sweats or my favorite jeans…with a messy updo and lipstick (I like wearing lipstick).
I can change my schedule at-will. If I want to go out-of-town or volunteer somewhere or take my girls to the park, then…I do.
I can “take time off” if my girls are sick or need snuggles...or if I’m sick or need snuggles. Of course, I’ll come back to 1,000 e-mails afterwards, but still…
I can be home whenever he’s home…and if I haven’t mentioned it before, he is amazing and we’re the best of friends.
I can play games, read books, ride bikes, and “pretend that we’re going to Disneyland” (That’s her newest imaginary game…and we play it all of the time. I’ve been on Pirates of the Caribbean, Dumbo, and Peter Pan almost every day for the past two weeks!) with my favorite 3-year-old in the whole wide world.
I can hold the sweetest, smiliest, snuggliest 10-month-old ever…and nurse her any ol’ time throughout the day.
YOUR TURN: What do YOU like about working from home/staying at home? If you work outside of the home, what do you like about that?
The thing I love the most about being home is that I get to watch my kids grow and change. I don’t miss any new words or any other milestones my kids have reached. I get to be here for all the funny things my boys do or say. I guess the only thing I wish is that I could bring in some money…but raising my kids is priceless.
I love working from home for most of the same reasons. I think my favorite reason right now is being able to nurse whenever Lily wants to. I’m sure I would have given up nursing a long time ago if I had returned to work.
Everything you’ve listed. Working from home is awesome.
Oops – Sugar clicked submit while I was distracted… anyway, I love being with my kids – seeing all their “new” things for myself, being able to take pictures every day – watching them play and interact. I wouldn’t trade that privilege for anything.
Also it’s so nice to not have to get out and drive on the yucky weather days, and I’m glad I don’t have to pack lunches anymore and not having to deal with workplace politics, gossip and drama is so nice!
I love working from home because I get more done (no getting stopped to visit on the way to the restroom or to get water), I can start my day early and in pj’s. My girls can come up and say hi to me whenever they want. And I get a better sense of how the nanny is or isn’t doing.
The challenge for me is that I’m supposed to be in the office more days than I’m supposed to work from home. I often get the guilt trip if I’m working from the home office.
And on days like today and yesterday, when I really should have been in the office, I’m working from home while juggling Ivy and getting Jade to her lessons because the nanny called in sick.- Days like this, I should probably just take a vacation day- but then the next week back in the office is painful- on so many levels.
I love working from home for all of the reasons you mentioned! I love hanging out with our son, while our daughter is in school. I take breaks to play Hungry, Hungry Hippos, memory, the Wii and many “hunting” adventures. I love the freedom of being able to stop working for a few hours, and then I just make it up when they go to sleep.
As a mom of school-age kids, I can say that one of the biggest perks is being available all day, every day. If the school nurse calls? I’m there. Teen forgot her gym clothes? No problem. Orthodontist appt? Check.
Another thing: a lot of people think that once your kids go to school, they don’t need you anymore and you can head off to the office. NOT TRUE. Tweens and teens need you as much as your toddler did. In different ways, of course. But it’s nice being able to be here when they get home from school and need to talk about something big.
I used to work from home doing sales. It was a great set up. I loved it for all of the same reasons you do, however because of the nature of my job, once my first child got to be around 9 months, it got harder and harder. While my job was easy, most of it was phone and email related and I couldn’t go into a closet to talk to a customer or leave the house for too long so as not to miss con-calls, emails etc. I felt like I was actually missing out on time with my girl. The only time I was able to get out of the house was to do errands around lunch time. Once she started crawling and getting into things it made sticking close to my desk hard. So, we made the difficult decision for me to quit. It has been VERY tough financially since then, but it has been so worth it. I definitely don’t miss the corporate world at all. I would love to be able to work from home with a more flexible schedule and bring in some income for our family.
Same goes for me for the great reasons you listed above – but my kids are older now, so no more nursing! It is great to be here when they get home from school. I find it is a good time to talk and connect with them, help with homework, etc.
Those are some of the same reasons why we homeschool…..freedom. We have had so many wonderful opportunities arise for the kids to experience and have not had to say no!
Love your new pics on your side-bar :)
Being my own boss.
Being home with the kids.
Not having to hope or beg for a raise … I can up my own income whenever I want.
So many good things!
Nell
Cats on my desk!
I have not locked myself in the closet to talk on the phone, but I have locked myself in the bathroom to talk on the phone :)
I love being with my kids…LOVE LOVE LOVE it. I like being able to do a bunch of things at once (talk to a vendor while chopping veggies for dinner, all the while wearing a superhero cape so I can be the queen with my 2 & 3 yr olds). I also love that my kids (and my) schedule stay consistent because I don’t have to go somewhere – their sleep doesn’t suffer :) Oh, & I concur with Stephanie on all her points, too.
I love working at home for many of the same reasons! Plus, when the kids start school, I can volunteer, be there to get them to and from school (no buses!) AND when they are sick, I can snuggle them. I can also take my time through the day to clean or do chores, so I steadily keep up with everything instead of being stressed at the end of a hard day to THEN clean the house. I love it and wouldn’t want to work any other way.
What is it you do? I write for a marketing company.
ahhhhhhhh! i’m so jealous! i wish i could work from home!!!
you are so blessed.
You are good for me! This past week I have a hard time working at home it was getting hard for me. I needed to read this :)
I love that I don’t miss anything with Levi. When he does something cute, I’m there. When he hits a milestone, I’m there…at least as long as I haven’t ducked my head in the dryer or turned my back to respond to an email. I love that when he needs me, he has me. I’ve been able to work primarily while he’s asleep interspersed with my mom keeping him for a few hours here and there. This has worked fabulously for us, and although, I too stay up way past my bedtime more often than I’d like to admit, I feel very blessed to be able to work from home.
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I love working from home. I don’t miss having co workers who gossip and I love to be able to not rush to have my coffee. Enjoy time with my pets and save money on gas!