The morning rush. We've all experienced it. Encouraging the kids to get dressed, eat, brush their teeth and hair, and leave the toys and the TV alone; stressing to get out the door so you’re not late for work and also so you're not untimely with their daycare provider’s schedule; saying your quick good-byes at daycare drop off to make it as easy as possible. Okay, so you work all day and what happens at 5:00 P.M.? It’s rush hour again. In an effort to maintain a good rapport with your childcare provider, you try not to run past the pick up time, yet you still have a pile of deadlines on your desk that are screaming "if you could just finish one last task today!"

The kids are picked up from daycare; you arrive home to a house (not to mention a child or two) that needs attention. Keeping the children occupied while preparing dinner is not an easy task, nor is keeping up the housework through this whole process. And so it goes: going through the mail, feeding the cat, eating dinner, quality time with the children, bath time and bedtime. All of this just to get up in the morning and do it all over again! It seems like nothing more than a losing battle. But there are ways to ease the stresses.

Hire a maid. Even if it’s only 2-3 days a week, it will be money well spent. Just think of it as buying more time with your children.

Use your crock-pot. Throw a package of frozen meat, veggies and a bouillon cube in your crock-pot before you head out the door in the morning. When you get home you have your main course. Now you just need to whip up some mashed potatoes to go along with it. Other nights try soup and sandwiches. Dinner doesn’t have to be a 5-course meal. Keep it simple.

Leave work at 5:00 P.M. Tomorrow is another day and the work will be right there waiting for you. Think of the important people who are waiting to spend some time with you.

Start a childcare journal that both you and your childcare provider can write in. Have your provider write down the details of your child’s day that are important to you. Look forward to reading it each evening. This may leave you feeling more connected with your child even though you're away from him or her for 8+ hours a day.

Take time for yourself. Light a candle and take a hot bath after the kids go to bed. Begin a new relaxing hobby: crafts, sewing, or whatever you like. Go to the movies on Wednesday night to break up the week.

Maintaining a balance between life and work doesn't have to leave you feeling hopeless. The Internet offers hundreds of thousands of parenting sites that contain tips and advice for working parents. Visit them and start conquering the battle today!

Recommended Reading: Getting it Right offered me exactly what I was looking for at just the right time. It gave me insights into what other career-minded mothers who strive for better balance in their lives are going through. The book combines research findings and helpful step by step guides and self-help questionnaires that gave me a great new perspective. Best of all it gave real, hard, current figures about Stanford women MBA's in the workplace. I was amazed to read that 47% are working part time. This is the fifth book I've bought and read in hopes that I would be able to resolve my conflicting feelings about work and raising children. And unlike so many of the books about getting it right with respect to family and work this book has absolutely no religious slant. Real research and really insightful ways to analyze your current desires and needs as they relate to balance. I highly recommend this one!(courtesy: Amazon)

About the Author
Jodi L. Marvin is a mother of two, childcare provider, co-founder of WayCoolFlares.com and author of Childcare Journal For Parents & Providers, a one-year childcare journal that allows parents to track their children’s well-being while at childcare.

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