Anybody else struggle with working from home?

[staranise]

As in, I'm meant to be working right now and am paying a fortune in childcare to enable me to do so but just can't get motivated, especially when I work sitting on my bed plus keep jumping up and down to put another load of washing on, tidy up some toys etc etc.

I normaly ban MN on work days but feeling weak today...

Wouldlove some colleagues to keep me focussed...

well ds back at pre school - but he's now whining that he doesn't want to stay for lunch or wraparound care - so I end up picking him up at 12 - hardly bloody worth his while going in. So am defo having to work from home and not drive to the office each day.

I did make him sit quietly and watch me finish off a payroll run for 30 mins in the hope that tomorrow I can threaten him with the same boredom if he comes home from school early!

Hello from 'the other side'. We're here. We've been here a week today. DS1 started school yesterday in reception class and was ok yesterday but today did not want to go at all. DS2 is having a nap so I am working using a stick thing for internet access as we don't have broadband yet. It's a real pain as it keeps crashing Outlook and I spent 20 mns this morning trying to get it to work and ended up in tears of frustration! Ahhhh. The new house is lovely though and I'm trying to resist spending time putting up pictures and rearranging furniture!

debating whether to find a nice childminder for DS2 in the mornings. Not sure it is worth it for 6 months (until he can start the local preschool here).

Welcome back BeckyBL. Technology is great isn't it - when it works!

ds stayed at school till 1 today without a murmur - I really must have bored him yesterday!

Had to drive to the office as the auditors are in and I had stuff to look out for them.

Must say - I hardly spend anything on petrol nowadays - only 1 or 2 trips into an office makes a diff.

I'm back on Broadband now! Hoooray! No more relying on the annoying little 3G stick that kept crashing my email. I had a phone call this morning from DS1's school saying he refused to let the school nurse check his height, weight and hearing. Apparently he got really distressed. So I'll have to go in with him on Thursday when they want to try again. He's such a sensitive little soul.

I need to get to the bottom of ds' reluctance to stay at pre school for lunch. He 'says' they're not allowed to talk when having lunch and I reckon they have to sit at the lunch table for almost an hour before they can get outside to play.

Is being 'bored' enough of a reason for him to refuse to stay for lunch? or do I just make him and then feel mean.

It's really annoying as I have to pick him up at 12 if he won't stay for lunch - which is far too early to get anything done!

Perhaps he has been told off for talking while having lunch or something and that's made him not want to stay? It might have been something that seemed really trivial to the staff. Sometimes I've noticed with mine that something that might seem really trivial to an adult can build up into something huge in a their minds. My DS1 had a phobia about doing PE at preschool (he used to scream and refuse to participate) and I never found out what had triggered it in the first place, the staff didn't know either.

At DS1's old preschool they used to have to sit and wait for everyone to finish their lunches and there were some really painfully slow eaters. Perhaps your DS is really bored waiting! It must be hard for a child that age to sit so still for so long.

If it were me though I'd probably persevere and try to make him stay. Could you perhaps suggest to the staff you come for lunch at preschool a couple of times (as a surprise to him - without telling him you're going to do it!).

Thanks Becky - I thought the same that maybe they were all rowdy one day and were told to be quiet and he's interpreted it as 'not allowed to talk at all'. I know the staff have a daily debrief at the other side of the room - so maybe they need to concentrate.
One of his friends stays for lunch on a Friday - so may try and tempt him with that this week.

I hope you are all out there in the sunshine and not on MN feeling guilty about not doing any work! We're off to the seaside as soon as school is out. We're picking up DS1 and driving straight there for a fish and chip on the beach supper. Can't wait.

You ARE joking aren't you BBL????
It's dry but overcast here and only about 13 degrees - is it hot down your way then?

Still- am off to Marbella next week - so hope to see some sun there.

Blimey. I am so pleased I found this thread. I'm in the same boat - have recently decided to try and find an office with a couple of friends who are in a similar position as I, too, find EVERYTHING more interesting than my work and visit the fridge more times a day than my children have tantrums. It's not good for the soul, this home working lark.

I work from home too and find it hard some days to get motivated. TBH Mumsnet really does not help! I have spent hours on it before now admittedly it is quiet at the moment, so not rushed off my feet. There are huge advantages to working from home but some disadvantages too. I kind of miss the office chat sometimes, but then I remind myself of the bitching that I have experienced in the past. The worst part is during the school holidays, I try to take most of my leave during the school holidays but they don't stretch that far! It is difficult working when my 8yo DS wants to play!

I am always surfing the net when I get bored though and do most of my Christmas shopping online during work time [blush} plus lottery online and mumsnet, if only my boss knew the truth........

Christmas shopping??? You're talking generally I hope and not about this coming Christmas. I'm horrified that Asda et al have Hallowe'en stuff on their shelves already. For God's Sake! What is this world coming to? Sorry, having a bit of a rant! Had a Bad Hair Day (lost DS2 in Asda - DS1 and I found him again but for the few minutes (felt like hours) we lost him my stomach was in my throat).

We had a lovely time at the seaside last weekend and I even swam in the sea on Sunday much to my DSs horror!

Is this still going? Anyone around to MAKE me work. I just don't like working from home - at all. But then I talk to friends who have horrendously complicated commutes and childcare arrangments to get to the nearest big town (we are in stix) and I think I should really be grateful.

It's just the lack of feedback and contact I can't stand. I doubt myself a lot anyway and when I am subcontracted to a third party to write stuff - I am sending my work into cyberspace and never hearing back.

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Oh hello, I think I started this thread yonks again (have been on maternity leave since!) and yes, I still struggle with working from home... Am back doing 1-2 days a week with one day of childcare and the rest hanging over me to do in the evenings, when baby naps etc etc, very tedious. Like you, I send stuff off and often don't get feedback, have no colleagues, no boss etc. The only thing that really stops me from feeling super-sorry for myself is, exactly as you say hatty, the alternative of a horrendous commute/childcare complications.

Hang in there I guess and be glad you don't have to go out into the frost!

I love working from home, I needed to get a child to have an excuse to quit the rat race. My previous partner worked for home and I really envied him but was busy on the greasy career pole.

My current DP became a convert when we had our DD, he wanted to see her more. When he was busy I worked less and now that I'm busy he can look after her. Our DD has been at home all the time and she is nearly 3. Of course we had to downsize our lifestyle to make this work and we have savings. Still, we want to buy a property so the savings won't last forever.

You two are lucky, I get lots of feedback from virtual bosses and they impose tight deadlines at times, so I have neglected all my online activities of late.

You're right goldenpeach - when I'm really bored at home I remind myself how much I hated working in a bitchy office - there are advantages to not having colleagues as well.

It would just be nice to be able to work without having to squeeze it in around the school run and also without being surrounded by constant reminders of housework/laundry/admin etc etc. Sometimes the only time I get to leave the house is to do the school run (a brisk walk along a very busy road, not very interesting).

Ohhh hello! I'd forgotten about this thread. I'm on maternity leave at the moment and sad to say but I MISS WORK SO MUCH!!!! I can't wait to start up again in April (freelance editorial project manager). I love looking after my new baby boy (number 3) but I miss the chaotic madness that was my life before with work and children and juggling and moaning about deadlines and emails and panic.

By the way, I have time to do the housework/laundry etc nowadays but I still don't do it! I find myself sitting watching This Morning instead!

Congraqtulations on your baby Becky ! My number three was a boy too.

I do like working again but hate that return to having something hanging over you the same time. DC3 is about to start nursery one day a week so hopefully I'll be able to get more work done at a reasonable hour instead of waiting and waiting for nap time. Tomorrow's his first day in nursery so my first day of 'proper' work...will have to ban MN on Thursdays...

Hi girls
I'm still bitching too about how hard it is to work from home.
dh gets up, walks dog round block, has shower and drives to work.
I've got to get up, get ready, get ds up and ready and to school, come home, tidy, do work, walk dog properly, pay bills etc, get shopping, get ds and entertain all afternoon, make dinner, iron shirts/uniform for next day, put ds to bed, do some more work etc etc.
Sooooooo much easier to pop off to the office for an easy day and come home to a nice meal made, slump in front of TV and go to bed!
Guess I can't complain too much ds earns 4 x I do. Just seems like a less stressed life.

Phew, sad but relieved to hear it's not just me!

I think it's the isolation that gets to me most. We live in the stix anyway so there's basically very little contact unless you get in the car and go somewhere. I'm not a natural "stay at homer" - pre-children I would be up and out every weekend after breakfast just seeing stuff, doing stuff, even just people watching. So just having a walk up the lane to look forward to at lunchtime bothers me.

However am taking positive steps now DD3 is old enough for DH to cope with teatime/bathtime etc and am going to try and visit each client I work for - just to try and get out and back into the business world at least once a month. At the moment I've been lucky enough not to have had to travel whilst I was breastfeeding etc but now I really need to go a bit further afield to keep my sanity!

How do your DP's feel about it? Do they envy you? Mine is less sociable than me and would adore to work at home - which means the one adult I see every day isn't very sympathetic to my boredom and isolation!

However, as you all say it is so flexible - fitting work around school run etc is complicated but much more complicated to have to arrange pre-school childcare and then a long commute twice a day. Must think positiive!

I don't think my DP envy's me - he used to work from home (not child caring though) - and he enjoyed it up to a point - but missed his socialising in an office. He was very disciplined though and would be at his desk in pj's at 7am every morning and not stop till mid morning and then right back in at it till 5 or 6 ish.

I've stupidly said I might be interested in another client - 2 days work - but it will be a pia. I just hate saying no to work! Hopefully - I'll be too expensive for them and they'll find someone else.

Same as you Tracey - Dh earns so much more than me that his work/hours/commute etc takes priority. So I do all the school running/food/organise childcare & housework etc and then squeeze out a measly few hours to attempt some work. DH used to work from home when we lived abroad and he went stir-crazy pretty quickly!

Anyway, shouldn't really moan as I might actually get some work done today - it's DC3's first day at nursery (9.30-3.30) - he's only 15 months so I'm feeling a little queasy about the whole thing but he went in happily enough this morning and I left him playing, banging saucepans with spoons. And he's (finally!!) finished breastfeeding hurrah, the same week that I've given away all my baby clothes, so I feel we have turned a corner!

Must add, I also turned down the offer of a full-time job this week - I'm not really ready at all to cope with that level of commitment and/or childcare...

I SHOULD be getting work done while ds is at school - but wasted 2 hours already and haven't started!
Walked dog for an hour (in the bloody snow) - so hopefully that'll be her for the day and I can work right up till 2.50.
dh is in London till Friday night - so am on my own re the dog walking stuff.
I don't mind doing all the day time stuff - it's just that it never lasts - I do it one day and then it all needs doing again the next day - it's a blooming grind!
I'm not ready for that commitment either Star - it leaves me frazzled if I take on too much work - cos the other house stuff still needs doing (or not!!) and then we live in a tip and we all get grumpy!
So if I take on too much work, I end up having to pay for after chool care, dog walker and cleaner - and that's my earnings gone... so whats the point?

And so many of the mothers I know envy me my flexibility and ability to earn around the children (but then, I think they would be shocked if they knew how little I actually earn!).

Right, that's my last post til lunchtime - the trouble with freelance is that the clock is always ticking...

Best of luck Tracey...I too have to stop at 2.50.

Hope your maternity leave is going well Becky

It's better to be at home. I have been freelance most of my working life but had to go into offices and get bitched about for being thin (really!), being a foreigner, being 'too clever' (so trying to impress a client/employer can backfire), anything really. Some of my 'temporary' bosses were very mean and I was once reprimended really harshly because I checked my emails (which was how I got booked for work so totally unfair to other people who were having conversations on the phone all the time). The good thing was that I could decide never to work again for them but there is a limit...

Even nice places had me grit my teeth when the sun was shining and I wanted to stay out more that the allotted one hour at lunchtime (also difficult if I had interviews, dental appointment..). Now I can choose, if the weather is nice I pop out and enjoy it and make up for it in the night. I can fit in all doctor's appointments, take it easy when I'm ill as I can work in my pj.

Plus you get heaps done at home, office life has too many distractions.