LL - I am a lawyer and a patent attorney (do things like register inventions & brand names, as well as a bit of court work when someone's brand gets infringed, advise people on how to stop someone using their brand name as a domain name etc). So from that point of view it has been easy for me to do work which generates an income. I can charge about one third of what big firms charge, and still do well out of it.
I have not missed formal employment at all. I get up early and work while DS is sleeping. DH works from home too. We all have a long drawn out breakfast together, then my mum (who lives closeby) takes DS away for music/gym and his afternoon nap etc. I work while DS is away with mum. They come back for dinner time and we all have the evening together. If I am really busy, I work while DS is sleeping in the evening too.
Some days I take time to take DS to the pool or playground (although energy has been a bit lacking lately). I try to do something fun with him at least every second day (the whole point of working from home was to spend more time with him than I would otherwise have). If the weather is good, sometimes DH takes an afternoon off and we go to the beach (but then we work most Saturdays). The difficult part is trying to get down to do the work (and finding time to market to bring the work in). Also there are no holidays as the clients might need me at any time.
I also do 9 weeks of law lecturing for a local college (spread throughout the year, with a maximum of two weeks at any one time - am actually in the middle of a two week stint right now).
I do not miss the politics or the working hours of a big law firm. Surprisingly, I don't miss the human interation either. I occassionally get to go and see clients, so I do have some contact. But the flexibility of being able to NOT work when DS is unwell has been wonderful. It was a huge risk to set up on my own, but has been well worth it. Financially it is not quite as rewarding, but I factor in that I don't have to buy smart office clothes, no travel costs (and a saving of 2 hours a day that I used to waste commuting), no stress (other than that I place on myself). Of course the income fluctuates, but having an office in my own home means I have low overheads so if I don't do well some months, it is not the end of the world.
I decided to give it a go and not be too stressed if it did not work (I could always have got another job in a law firm at a later stage if I needed to). But the incentive of knowing that I will be able to spend time with my family if I do a particular work task, means that I am pretty productive when I do work. The transition into my own business felt like the most natural thing in the world. My only regret has been that I didn't do it sooner.
BTW my dream has always been to write novels, but I've never managed to finish any, and now with this business it might be years before I have another go. I really admire your drive for getting down to it! All the best with it. If you are able to work from home, and it suits your personality and your circumstances, then I can realy recommend it. (And if it does not work out you can always go back to working at a later stage)