Are you a working mom dealing with school drop off?
This is the second part of an article written and inspired for you.
I didn’t start off by doing all these steps thinking “ I’m taking control of my morning and developing a routine.
I was just trying to do my best, keep things together and keep sane.
The Sigh of a Working Mom – After the Last School Drop Off
{READ PART 1 – MAKING MY MORNINGS EASIER}
I realized I had a routine when I had a family visit. Someone else looking into how I did things. From the feedback they gave me. Apparently, I was doing something right.
The more practice I got the more things became easier and second nature.
We continue reflecting on the questions from part one of this posts.
ASK YOURSELF THESE QUESTIONS – and take control of your mornings.
- How can you make your morning schedule/routine easier for YOU and your kids? [covered in part one]
- Can you ask for help?
- What can you hire someone to help you with?
- What’s most important for You to hold on to?
- What can you let go?
The second question to reflect on to help you take control of your morning routines.
CAN YOU ASK FOR HELP?
I took charge of dropping off our girls at daycare since our first daughter started. They were occasions that I had an event or late meeting that my husband would pick her up. Otherwise, I took care of both drop-offs and pickups.
I kept doing the drop-offs and pickups when we had our youngest. I was very stressed when I started working a new job in the City/Washington, D.C. along with doing two drop-offs and two pickups every day.
Feeling additional pressure from work.
I felt additional pressure by starting a new job. I was asked to lead a project that was not in my expertise. This meant I had to do additional preparation each day.
I had to ask my husband for help.
He had spoken to his employer when he started his new job about telecommuting two
days a week. I didn’t even give him a chance to help.
As the mama bear, I just felt that I had to do it all. 
My husband started working from home twice a week and took care of drop-offs and pickups those days.
This was such a blessing for our family.
I had two days of the week that I went to work early and didn’t have to rush
like a crazy woman across town to pick up the girls on time.
My stress level decreased.
My husband got to be more involved with the girls. I wasn’t giving the man a chance prior.
He also got a glimpse into my world.
And the girls got direct daddy-daughter time.
Over the years, I realized there were other areas I could ask my husband to help.
That not only help me but also him and our girls.
Try asking your husband for help. He may not have the ability to do drop-offs, however, he may have another solution for you.
As moms, we need to be better with allowing others to help us.
We weren’t meant to do it all alone. It truly takes a village!
The third question to reflect on to help you take control of your morning routines.
WHAT CAN YOU HIRE SOMEONE TO HELP YOU WITH?
I felt like I was midway through the day or at the end of the day – depending on the morning we had by the time I dropped both girls off to school/daycare.
I had to constantly be mindful of Working Smarter, not Harder and making our mornings as seamless as possible.
I needed enough energy for all the people I supported at work and all the roles/hats I wore at work.
And then find the energy to play with my kids, make dinner, feed the family, get the girls ready for bed, clean up, prep to do it all over the next day – oh and get time to say ‘hi’ to my husband.
I think my heart rate just went up as I relived that time.
THINGS I HIRED SOMEONE TO HELP ME WITH:
- I hired a cleaning service to help me keep my house clean.
This made a world of a difference for the entire family.
There is something about coming home to a clean, fresh and tidy home that’s priceless.
Yes, I took care of the everyday clean up. However, I hired someone to
help me keep my house clean, so I could save my energy and time to
be with my family.
- When I got pregnant with my second daughter I started exploring different options for grocery shopping.
This was my husband’s idea. (Remember to share the challenges and come up with solutions together.) - We used Peapod for awhile. We ordered our groceries online and had them deliver it to our house.
- We then discovered Amazon Fresh and Amazon Pantry for most of our grocery shopping.
This saved us hours each week. I think we actually spent less on grocery when we shopped online.
Cleaning my house and grocery shopping were two things or tasks that took a lot of my time and energy.
I was willing to pay for the convenience and assistance so that I could spend that time with my children and husband or just rest.
Think about what tasks you can hire someone to help you with.
The fourth question to reflect on to help you take control of your morning routines.
WHAT’S MOST IMPORTANT FOR YOU TO HOLD ON TO?
OR WHAT CAN YOU LET GO?
It was very challenging for me to leave work at 5:00 pm and race across town in D.C. traffic to make it to both pickups before 6:00 pm.
My three-year-old was in preschool and my newborn was in daycare. Thankfully the school and daycare were close to each other, however, it was still a struggle.
I asked the owner of the daycare if she could pick up Kennedie from preschool and keep her at the daycare.
Kennedie attended the daycare before going to preschool. So she knew the owner and staff.
Kennedie got to be with her baby sister, ‘help out’ and practice her Spanish.
Letting go of this part of my pickup routine helped to decrease my stress level.
I went from two pickups to one.
Rushing to pick up my girls while fighting D.C. traffic before closing time gave me a Heightened level of anxiety and stress!
I’m very thankful to have passed this stage and season.
Getting some help with pick-up made a tremendous difference.
Have you asked yourself these questions yet? I hope by sharing I can give you ideas of how to make your morning routine easier.
YOU HAVE MORE CONTROL THAN YOU MAY REALIZE.
How we start our days sets the pace for the entire day.
And also the pace of our children’s day.
I’m even more aware of this at this stage with my daughters. My oldest, Kennedie is currently in second grade and my youngest, Kendall is finishing up pre-k and will start kindergarten next August.
I try to let them have pleasant mornings. I see the difference when we don’t.
Where I may or may not have to raise my voice as I have repeated myself “100 times”.
Getting up earlier than the girls, not only allows me to prepare all that we need such as breakfast but also to mentally prepare.
I think about how I want to ‘show up’ for them. From how I’m going to wake them up to how I’m going to react when they decide to change the outfit we picked out the night before or I have to ask 100 times for them to put on their shoes, jacket or brush their teeth.
Taking hold of our mornings – makes a difference for our children and the type of day they have.
Oh, and they’re watching and learning from every move we make. My girls will start preparing for the next day on their own, without me.
They will pick out their entire outfit for the next day and put whatever books or toys they will be taking to school in their backpacks.
Seeing that mom taking that deep long sigh and the look on her face took me back to my days as that Working Mom hustling. Hustling to have a Career and Be a Great Mom.
Wondering if I can Have a Career and Be a Great Mom.
Yes, I Can! And I Have! And So Can You!
We each have to find our own Rhythm. Find what works for us.
You Can Have a Career and Be a Great Mom. A Rockstar Career Mom.
How we start our day will dictate the course of our day.
And each day adds up to our week, month and year.
And then our norm.
Life is fast and time keeps moving. Think about how you want to live your life and the life you want to create for you and your kids.
Seeing that working mom’s sigh inspired me to write this post. It just happens to be on how we start our day and morning.
What else is happening in your life that makes you have those deep long sigh of relief – when it’s over.
What frustrates you and makes you question
“if you can have a career and be a great mother”?
YOU CAN REFLECT ON THE SAME QUESTIONS TO HELP YOU TAKE CONTROL.
- How can you make things easier for you and your kids?
- Can you ask for help?
- What can you hire someone to help you with?
- What’s most important for you to hold on to?
- What can you let go?
I hope this will help you Find Your Rhythm and Become a Rockstar Career Mom.
Please do comment and share how you’re able to have a career you love and
be a great mom. Or let us know what questions you have.
Let’s continue to share, support and learn from each other.
I look forward to hearing from you!
