Rebecca Garland My fellow WAHM, have you ever noticed just how ridiculous certain aspects of our life can be? I, for one, rode around today with my youngest’s chocolate pudding cup in the front of my truck next to a plastic container full of worms my oldest determinedly collected yesterday. But this pales in comparison to the other pieces of my WAHM life that just slap me
I’m fully convinced that the most hilarious, deep-seated irony of the universe revolves around freedom of choice. Think of those teenage years when you struggled, fought, threatened, snuck out and wore horrible clothing to express yourself and gain true independence from the overbearing monsters we call parents. For most of us, now that we have free will, we live with gusto. We stay out all
I’ve been certified as an English as a Second Language (ESL) teacher for at least six years (I’ve lost track of the official date on that certificate), and in that time I’ve worked primarily with those whose first language is Spanish. I’m not bilingual, which is a common misconception about ESL teachers. Instead I use special methods along with the English language to help students
Not only is it hard for people to articulate what I do, but they often don’t believe it’s a worthwhile undertaking. I’m a freelance copywriter – a “real job” by most people’s standards once they know what it actually is, but it’s often referred to as “that writing thing you do.” Whatever. I can handle the confusion, but for every person who can’t seem to
To continue in my (very short) series of common questions asked of a freelancing mom, I’ll now reveal my true personality. It’s not very pretty – really, I know that. But this mom isn’t really that soft and gentle when she’s not dealing with her own children. It’s the most common question asked of freelance writers around the world that gets under my skin. “Will
It has been my experience that as soon as “regular” people, or those that don’t have their own online businesses, find out what I do, they always want to know two things: “How do you do it all?” -and- “Can you show me how to do what you do?” Usually the second question is accompanied by some information about how great he was at writing
It’s a funny thing really, but looking back on pregnancy it seemed like a blessedly simple time. Of course, that was before the baby came out of the tummy and started vehemently disagreeing with me all constantly, so it’s probably a matter of course. I also remember distinctly thinking during pregnancy that it was so much more challenging to work while manifesting another human than
I have two under five. I’ve survived one toddler and have just a few months until my second bout of toddler-motherhood expires. It’s a trip; it’s a pain; it’s outrageous; it’s a blast. I love my toddlers, and I love to watch them learn, explore and grow at such an outrageous pace. Unfortunately, it didn’t take much to learn that when you’re watching a toddler
I know now what I didn’t know then. I spent quite a bit of time working up to a full-time income freelancing while keeping the day job during pregnancy so that after my baby arrived, I could stay home and spend more time with him and do the mommy thing the way I wanted to. I was thrilled that it seemed to be working out
Want to make money? Watch an enterprising 4-year-old. Granted, my kids have watched two parents work from home and have been to the bank more times in their short lives than most kids go in a few decades, but they’re fun to watch and have taught me quite a bit about making money. Maximize Productivity If I have a project that takes about two hours
Anyone with a home office needs an arsenal of tools and tricks of the trade. Parents, however, need not only the basic office supplies, but other essentials as well to balance their obligations to family and professional lives. The needs of each individual and family can vary, but here are a few of my essentials as a work-at-home parent. Your Own Computer If you’re sharing
It’s funny, really, that the toughest year of my maternal life was the one I thought would be the easiest. I spent a year finishing my Masters, teaching every day and writing every night. In my spare time I raised a toddler while I worked on growing his younger brother. That was the year before the hardest year. During those seemingly hard months, I dreamed
If you ask a mother who has transitioned to working at home what she misses the most, you’ll get a variety of responses, but a similar theme throughout would be the lack of freedom that she enjoyed working in an office — ironic to the those desperate to leave the office, but very real indeed to the women who have made a private sacrifice to
Every freelancer needs a real work space –a place to tackle your projects and assignments without wrestling with your child’s latest play dough creations and free from the risk of any crayon incidents on important contracts. It can be a trick to find the ideal space for a work-at-home mom or any other freelancer as many of us don’t have the luxury of our own
In the many categories society assigns to mothers, the freelancing mommies have the envy of other mothers for the supposed flexibility of their schedules. Yet those envied work at home moms have another story to tell – especially when there are young children involved. Being a working mother of any caliber is tough, but when the balancing act of working at home is a free-for-all,