How to work from home when you have a three year old demon

Since November of last year, I’ve been working from my bedroom doing tech support for a security company and I love the fact that I don’t have to leave the house, but boy did I underestimate how hard it would be to do being a mom who is always home with kids. Especially my threenager. If you are a dedicated reader, you’ll remember a post I did months ago about the Pros and Cons of working from home. I love that I get to be around my daughter more but being around her more makes me want a break more. This post is more as an update from my previous one. So, my daughter knows that I work from home and knows my hours and when to be quiet, for the most part…but sometimes, she’s an absolute demon and will find any reason to scream like a banshee when I am on the phone with a customer. I’ve had to seriously prepare like it was the zombie Apocalypse on my work days when dealing with her. I don’t have a babysitter, because I don’t want to pay one, if you’re wondering. Here’s what I do:

SNACKS SNACKS SNACKS

If you really can’t get a babysitter or don’t want one like me, make sure you stock up on snacks at your work station so if your kid is in the room with you, you can keep them fed easily. I work early in the morning, so my daughter will wake up when it’s breakfast time and I can’t always just get off phones to get her cereal. I keep granola bars, fruit snacks, and any other healthy breakfast-like snack near me during work hours. I now have a mini fridge in my room, so I can keep a small glass of milk and juice in there too. Oh, a tv tray is a great thing to keep in there too.

Child gates

Since my daughter is only three, there is no way in hell she can roam the house alone. She will destroy it. So, I put a child gate up in the hallway blocking off the living room, making so she’ll only be able to go into my room or her room. She hates the gate but doesn’t fight me about it too often. I just tell her if she goes in the living room by herself, the cats will eat her. Don’t judge me, it works.

Entertainment

I don’t know if tablets are your thing, but that’s what keeps my daughter the most occupied. I also bring coloring books and crayons in my room as well to keep her entertained. Since I have the rest of the house blocked off, my daughter can only go in her room or mine so if she gets bored in mine, she’ll go play with her toys in hers.

WIRELESS

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If you work from home and are attached to your computer by a headset, I HIGHLY recommend getting a wireless headset or a headset with a really long cord so you can wipe your kids butt. No joke, it was a nightmare before I had a super long cord.

I’M SOOO THIRSTY

Stock up on juices and water in your work space, because kids are always so thirsty and want drinks when you are in the middle of something. For whatever reason, when my daughter says she’s thirsty, she does not stop saying it until I give her something. So I keep waters mainly, right next to me for that reason.

Working from home is awesome, but it can be difficult when you don’t have a babysitter or when your kid is a demon like mine, but these tips are how I handle it and it turns out alright like 90% of the time.