self employed and pregnant

[Nikitasol]

Hi all, I'm newly pg but have been trying to grow my self employed work since I had DS 2 years ago which is starting to pay off finally. I've been offered a freelance contract for a new role starting in jan 2016 and due in July 2016. I didn't really take any mat leave last time but worked at home during nap times, after bedtime etc and then built this up to 3 days a week which is where I am now. I'm just worrying about how to tell the charity I'm getting the contract with, and also juggling the work with 2 DC. We're skint so have to take it but also want to for my sanity and career. Any advice welcome!

How pregnant are you? If only a few weeks you'll have 12 week scan mid january and then be due around the end of july?
If that's the case then go for it. You'll have started work before you need to tell anyone and you'll be working through your pregnancy but finished by your due date.
I finished my last project at 38+5 weeks and then had ds at 39+2 so it was tight! I knew that if he'd been early I'd have had to finish up with a newborn which would have been awful but I had emergency plans in place.

I can't tell from your message if you have childcare for your 2yr old two days a week?

if you're not due till august then you could offer to work more days in june/july and finish up early??

I'm due mid July I think. Only 4 weeks at the mo. The contract is a two year one so I won't get it done before DC arrives hence the worry. We juggle childcare at the mo for DS between me 2 days, DP 1 day, parents 1 day, nursery 1 day that's the only way we can afford to do it currently.

oh sorry, your message sounds like it's the work that's due in july 2016.

what i did with my one long-term contract was take 3mo off entirely then work evenings and weekends while dh had the baby until he went to nursery at 6mo. But that was only a few hours a week. Can you do similar?

Thanks Museummum. how were your contractors about you 'taking three months off'?

they were concerned about how things would manage without me, but id din't tell them till i had lots of plans as to how things would manage. it was 15weeks in the end before i could sit them down, break the news, and then present all my suggestions for managing the three month period. I had been with them for nearly two years by then and they didn't have the money to replace me so they just had to survive. and they did. :)

Thanks MM. It's quite hard being self employed sometimes!