As a work-from-home parent, it can be challenging trying to balance all of the things. Not only do I run a household for a family of six, but I also homeschool my youngest and of course try to make sure I meet all of my writing deadlines as a freelance writer.
It’s definitely not easy, of course, but I know that I’m very fortunate to have this amazing opportunity; to watch my son flourish and grow, be there for my adult kids when they need me and earn an income doing the one thing I’ve longed to do my entire life – write for a living.
There are now more parents working from home than ever before. Living through a global pandemic has changed the way we work. As parents, we’re all essentially in the same boat – the common ground we all share is that we’re all trying to juggle everything, maintain balance, and honestly just continue to do the best we can.
Karissa Tunis and Shari Medini know firsthand what it feels like, trying to juggle working from home while simultaneously managing their homes and being there for their families. They are parenting experts and owners of the Adore Them Parenting website. I recently had the opportunity to review their book, Parenting While Working from Home where the co-authors each share their insight, wisdom, tips, and strategies to help parents like me work from home and keep the house running and keep up with homeschooling and, literally everything else.
One thing that I struggle with is consistency, and Parenting While Working From Home helps parents work toward being more consistent. It’s not just juggling work, home, and kids; it goes much deeper than that. If you feel like you’re just running around in circles, Parenting While Working from Home will help you make small changes each month that add up to significant changes overall for the betterment of your family, yourself, and your career.
You’ll start to get better at time management, have a more productive home, and create an environment where your kids can grow and thrive. Additionally, Shari and Karissa have included one of the most important aspects, I feel, necessary to make everything run like a well-oiled machine.
They’ve incorporated a self-care component that really helps you get at the core of who you are, your goals, and motivations and helps you recognize what’s most important to you, so you can stop spinning your wheels and live the life you’ve envisioned.
When I opened this book, I was so excited for several reasons. Often when we pick up books that are designed to help us work through a challenge or impart some sort of wisdom or knowledge unto us, we’re bombarded page after page of text. And while, I love reading and especially enjoy novels, if I’m working through a book that is designed to help me do something, learn something, or glean information, it’s easy to get overwhelmed.
Trying to read through a book, take notes, highlight and process the information can be challenging, especially when we’re juggling all of the things – home, kids, work, caregiving. What I love about Parenting While Working from Home, and what I’m so grateful to Karissa and Shari for including, is an all-in-one approach.
For example, sometimes you’ll find an amazing book that pinpoints the exact pain point you’re trying to fix. But not only do you have to buy the book, but you’ve got to purchase the workbook separately. Karissa and Shari have the journaling or workbook portion built into each section, so there’s no extra expense, no trying to find the extra blank notebook. You can get to work right away and begin processing and implementing the strategies and advice they offer.
But, they don’t stop there with this one! If we’re doing all the things, chances are, our time to ourselves is in short supply. So, what Shari and Karissa have done is broken each idea down by month. You can pick up the book at any time of the year, jump in and keep it moving! Because as they say, December parenting is much different from January parenting – or as any homeschooler will tell you, September learning is vastly different from December learning.
You’ll be able to read the month at your leisure and work through the three sections of each month in a way that works for you and in a way that works around your work and family responsibilities.
Once you jump in, they’re all set up with the same format, so you can truly get to the heart of what’s important. The first section of each chapter is for you; helping you find balance, find time for self-care, work on time management, etc…
The second section offers suggestions and ideas for making your home kid-friendly and creating an engaging and fun environment for everyone.
In the third section of each chapter, you’ll encounter strategies to help keep you focused and productive in your work while ensuring you’re able to give both your career and your family the attention they deserve.
Finally, the Reflect and Plan portion of each chapter include a Monthly Intentions section at the beginning of the month and a Monthly Reflections at the end. These journal prompts help you set the tone for your month and then before moving on, you can reflect on what’s gone on, how you’ve adapted, changed, and incorporated the principles within the chapter, and process that information.
If you’re looking for a book you can add to your morning mom basket, this is definitely a good option for moms who want to make gradual changes and create habits that will stick!
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