Juggling a remote job with kids running around the living room is no joke. You’re trying to nail your professional responsibilities while also making sure the younger children haven’t turned the kitchen table into a slime factory. It’s a reality for so many, and figuring out this new way of living is one of the biggest, unique challenges we face. For many, this is the central challenge of how to structure a day working from home with kids.
The dream of a perfect work-life balance can feel totally out of reach. But here’s the good news: it is possible to get your necessary work done and still be present for your family. It just requires some serious planning, a whole lot of flexibility, and a great idea or two in creating a work at home mom routine. As a fellow working parent in the trenches, I’ve compiled a list of tips and strategies that actually work. This isn’t about perfection; it’s about finding a system that gets you through the work day with your sanity (mostly) intact.
Let’s dive in and build a daily schedule that works for you and your crew by figuring out how the steps to build a work from home schedule with children work.
Table of Contents
- First Things First: Lay the Groundwork for Success
- Building Your Daily Battle Plan (I Mean, Schedule)
- Mastering the Art of the Work Block with Kids Underfoot
- Navigating the Digital Dilemma: Screens, Calls, and Social Media
- You Can’t Do It All: Asking for and Getting Help
- Still seems overwhelming?
First Things First: Lay the Groundwork for Success
You can’t just wing it when your home life and work space are in the same place. The first step to conquering your day is setting up a solid foundation. This is all about clear boundaries and realistic expectations.
Create a Dedicated Work Zone
Even if you don’t have a spare bedroom, carving out a dedicated space for your home job is crucial. This tells your brain, “This is where I work,” and tells your kids, “This is where Mom/Dad is doing their important call.” It could be a corner of your bedroom, a closet desk, or even a specific chair at the kitchen table. The key is consistency. Do a quick background check on your video call background…make sure it’s not too embarrassing!
Communicate with Your Team
Open communication with your team members and boss is non-negotiable. Be upfront about your situation. Let them know you have young kids at home and that you might be occasionally interrupted during a video call by a tiny human looking for a snack. Most people are understanding, especially now. Setting this expectation early prevents stress and builds a supportive support system at work.
Embrace a Flexible Work Schedule
If your job allows it, abandon the traditional 9-to-5 mindset. The best time to tackle your most important meetings or deep-focus work tasks might be during nap time for your small kids, or during quiet hours in the early mornings or late evenings. Talk to your employer about flex-time options. Those early mornings before everyone wakes up can be pure gold for productivity.
Here are some other work life balance tips for moms who work remotely.
Building Your Daily Battle Plan (I Mean, Schedule)
Structure is your new best friend. Kids thrive on routine, and honestly, so do we. Having clear structures for your work day and your family schedule helps everyone know what to expect. This is the core of any successful Work At Home Mom Routine.
The Power of the Visual Schedule
For school-aged children and even older kids, a visual schedule works wonders. Use a whiteboard or print out a simple chart with pictures for younger children. Block out time for their different activities, meals, your work blocks, and family time. When they can see that “quiet time” comes after lunch, they’re more likely to cooperate (fingers crossed!).
Sync Your Calendars
Live and die by your Google Calendar or planner. Block out your work hours just like you would in an office. But also, block out your family responsibilities. Schedule time for making lunch, for reading to your kids, and for that ever-growing pile of household chores. Seeing it all in one place helps you visualize your day and avoid over-scheduling. This is one of the best ways to protect your free time and ensure you’re not working through precious moments.
Divide, Conquer, and Tag-Team
If you have a partner who is also home, tag-teaming is the only way to get through some days. Split the day into shifts. One of you handles the child care from 8 AM to 12 PM while the other works, then you switch. This ensures you both get chunks of uninterrupted work time. For single parents, this is where building an external support system is essential…think about swapping playdates with another family or calling in grandparents for a few hours.
Mastering the Art of the Work Block with Kids Underfoot
This is the real nitty-gritty. How do you actually get work done?
Nap Time & Quiet Time: Your Productivity Power Hours
For parents of toddlers, nap time is the holy grail. Guard this time fiercely! Use it for your most important meetings or tasks that require deep concentration. For older children who have outgrown naps, implement a mandatory quiet time in their rooms or a play area. This isn’t a punishment…it’s a chance for them to enjoy screen time, read, or play independently at their own pace, giving you a solid block of work time.
Get Creative with Activities
A little prep goes far in the long run. Have a basket of special toys, coloring pages, or puzzles that only come out during your work blocks. This novelty buys you more time. For school-aged children, set them up with their own “office space” next to you with their homework or a book. Modeling focused work can help them focus, too.
Embrace the Power of the Pivot
Some days, the best-laid plans fall apart. The care of a sick child will derail your entire work schedule. When this happens, take a deep breath and pivot. Communicate with your team, reschedule what you can, and accept that some days, just keeping everyone alive and fed is enough. Give yourself grace during these hard times.
Navigating the Digital Dilemma: Screens, Calls, and Social Media
Let’s talk about the elephant in the room: screen time. It’s a tool, not a failure.
Strategic Screen Time is a Great Idea
Using educational apps or a favorite movie to buy yourself time for an important call is not only okay, it’s a great way to ensure you can actually have that call. The key is to be intentional about it. Don’t just default to screens all day, but strategically deploy them during your key work hours.
Mastering the Mute Button and Video Call Etiquette
Every work-from-home parent has a story about a kid bursting in on a video call. It happens. A quick, “Hey team, sorry for the interruption, I’ll be right with you,” is usually all it takes. Use the mute button liberally. For your most critical, important meetings, a “do not disturb” sign on your door (if you have one) and a promise of a special treat for not interrupting can work wonders.
Don’t Let Social Media Steal Your Time
It’s so easy to fall into the scroll hole during a break. But that social media time can quickly eat into the lot of time you could be spending on family time or actually finishing work. Try to limit your own screen time for leisure until after your work day is officially over.
You Can’t Do It All: Asking for and Getting Help
Trying to be a full-time employee and provide full-time childcare simultaneously is a recipe for burnout. It’s just not sustainable.
Exploring Child Care Options
Even if it’s just for a few work hours a day, some form of child care is a game-changer. This could be a day care a few days a week, a nanny share, a mother’s helper (older kids from the neighborhood who can play with your younger kids while you’re home), or trading off with other parents. It is the best option for many to get their necessary work done effectively.
Outsource What You Can
If your budget allows, outsource! Hire a cleaner every other week, use a grocery delivery service, or even delegate small tasks to virtual assistants. Freeing up mental energy from household chores means you have more to give to both your job and your kids.
Lean on Your Village
Your support system is everything. Whether it’s family, friends, or other remote workers in the same boat, lean on them. Set up virtual social time for your kids with their friends so they get interaction, and you get a break. Don’t be afraid to ask for help. This is a common thread among successful Working Mums.
Now, I know that many people don’t have a village to speak of, and that’s okay. Many Millennial parents, especially, feel like they don’t have the same familial networks as those of years past, so you are not alone in that struggle. In those cases, even finding a “virtual” village to lean on mentally is a HUGE help.
Remembering the Why: Balancing Work and Family
At the end of the day, the important thing is connection. This setup, while chaotic, offers incredible opportunities for quality time.
Be fully present when you’re “off”. When you close your laptop at the end of your work hours, be done. Be mentally present for your family. Get down on the floor and play, go for a walk, have a dance party in the living room. This dedicated family time is what makes all the juggling worthwhile.
Give Yourself a Break
You are doing a great job. Seriously. This is incredibly hard. Some days will feel like a national park adventure, and others will feel like a survivalist challenge. Celebrate the good things…the extra snuggles, the lunchtimes together, the ability to be there for your kids. You are managing a home environment, a career, and a family all under one roof. That’s amazing. This is All About Mom finding her balance.
Finding your rhythm takes time. Experiment with these top tips, see what works for your family’s unique rhythm, and adjust as you go. Be kind to yourself, communicate openly, and remember that this chaotic, beautiful mess is just a season. You’ve got this. Crafting the right Mom Schedule is a personal journey.
Still seems overwhelming?
Let’s be honest: even with all the tips and tricks, some days it can still feel utterly overwhelming. You might be reading this, thinking, “This is great, but my situation is chaos. Is there really a way to make this more manageable without losing my mind?” That feeling of being stretched in a million directions, wondering if you’re doing a great job at anything, is completely normal. But what if you could find a clear starting point? Finding legitimate Mom Jobs that offer flexibility often starts with a plan.
If this all sounds great in theory, but you’re still staring at the chaos of your day, wondering where to even begin, I’ve got your back. For less than the cost of a fancy coffee, my “Your What-If List” PDF guide cuts through the noise and helps you pinpoint the one simple shift that will make the biggest impact on your work-life balance. And as a special bonus, you’ll get instant free access to my 45-minute “Pockets to Profits” webinar. It’s all about learning how to use those small windows of time, like the quiet after nap time, to explore your skills and create exciting new possibilities for your family.
Consider it your low-risk, high-reward first step to turning those overwhelming “what-ifs” into a clear, actionable plan for a calmer, more productive life.
