AvonMom’s Snow Day Tips for

Work at Home Moms

One of the many benefits of working at home is the ability to be home when your kids are. In theory this sounds amazing. I know for me it is a major reason why I work from home. In reality though, it can be difficult trying to balance between work and being a mom. It can be especially hard on those amazing snow days that occur throughout the winter season. Though you may not be able to plan on when these snow days will occur, you can have a plan ready to go when they do pop up with these helpful tips I’ve learned along the way.

Take It Easy with a Pajama Day

Take advantage of the snow day just like your kids are and take it easy. My boys absolutely love it when I announce the day as a pajama day. Pajama day for us means throwing out our routine and lounge in our pajamas as we eat junk food, play board games, watch movies, take a nap and just chillax. Snow days are a perfect reason to take it easy and have a pajama day. Plus, it’s always great for your kids to see you put your hair down and enjoy the unexpected time with one another. Your children won’t be young forever so why not take advantage of this time to make some fun memories.

Create a Snow Day Routine

It would be nice to be able to have a pajama day every snow day, but the reality is, we can’t. This can be especially hard when there are snow days back to back or close together. Just like any job, their are deadlines and things that need to get done in a timely manner. I have always been a parent that implemented routines with my children. We have a routine for every type of day. Establishing a routine provides a framework for you & your children to know what and when everything is happening. “Erica Peterson, mom to two energetic boys and founder/CEO of MomsCanCode.com, suggests announcing the day’s activities like the teacher would at school.” (Braccio Hering, 2018) Another option is to actually have a print out you can put on the fridge so your children can visually see when snack time is or when they will be able to have some fun with mom without hounding you all day with “Mom, Mom, Mom”.

Have Assistants for the Day

For those of us moms who have school age children and older, include them in what you need to do that day and have them help you out. With most work at home jobs, I’m sure there is something your children can help you with completing whether it is bagging customer orders, organizing your inventory or filing paperwork. This is a great way to bond with your children and for them to see first hand what you do to bring home the bacon.

For those of you with toddlers, create an office space for them to “work with mommy”. You can give them some plain paper or a coloring book with some crayons. I even have an old laptop that no longer works that I allow my 3 year old to use when he’s working with mommy. He absolutely loves that he is working on the computer just like mommy. If you don’t have a broken laptop on hand, you can create a shoebox laptop (I did this with my older boys when I was going to school).

If you don’t have anything for your children to do remember there is always the never ending housework that they can work on. We all know there is always laundry, dishes, cleaning their rooms, etc.

Encourage Independent Play

Let’s face it, we all have had those days where our kids expect us to be their entertainment for the day. I have always been one who encouraged my kids to play independently or at least be able to entertain themselves, not only on snow days but EVERYDAY. For those of you who have children that struggle with this and you need time to get work done, you can create a list of ideas for you to refer them to. To encourage that they use this list, you can let them know that you will play a board game or do an activity with them when they give you XX amount of time to complete your work uninterrupted. Obviously consider the age in the amount of time you are expecting uninterrupted time. Smaller children need smaller increments.

What Screen-Time Limits?

We all struggle to limit our children’s screen time on a normal day. I know first hand, some days you just need to throw the screen time limits out the window, well at least extend them. This is especially true with those winters when it seems like you have the kids home more than at school. I personally have learned to not sweat the fact that my child has watched a movie back to back or played video games for an extra hour. During that time, I got much needed work done UNINTERRUPTED.

Have Back-Up Help

For those days you need an extended period of time to get work done whether it’s for meetings, getting a project completed or dreadfully need to leave the house have a back up plan ready to go. Don’t be afraid to ask for help. I know I personally have struggled with this but there is nothing wrong in asking for help. Why stress yourself out when you don’t need to?!?! Ask relatives to take the kids for a couple hours, have your husband take on parent duties when he gets home (or if you are lucky for him to be home during the day, even better), hire a local babysitter, take turns doing play dates with another work at home mom, etc, etc. There are many ways you can get back up help!

Give Yourself a Break

Just like any other day being a work at home mom, don’t be so hard on yourself. All we can do is the best we can. One thing I had learned this past year the hard way is that sometimes things don’t work out like we had planned in our heads. BUT THAT IS OK! You don’t need to stress out by pulling your hair out or freaking out. Snow days are not forever. It will come to an end, you will get back to your normal routine and you will get back on track. Life is too short to stress out over things you can’t control.

How do you balance being a work at home mom on snow days?

References

Care.com’s Snow Days: 9 Tips for Working for Home by Lauren B Stevens (January 3, 2018)
FlexJob’s Tips for Juggling Work and Kids on a Snow Day by Beth Braccio Hering (February 19, 2018)
MotherHustle’s The Work-at-Home Mom’s Guide to Snow Days by Emily Cretella (March 19, 2018)
The Work at Home Woman’s Snow Ideas for the Work-at-Home Mom by Jill Hart (February 21, 2014)

How to Become an Avon Mom

Create an online business you can work anytime, anywhere with the help of your FREE online tools, resources, and training you receive as an Avon representative.

Get started today for $30 + receive a FREE gift when you sign up at www.startavon.com with Reference Code: jantunes.

Click Here to Become an Avon Mom

AvonMom Tips & Tricks

YOU CAN ALSO FIND AVON WITH JEN ANTUNES ON FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM, PINTEREST & TWITTER.

Click Here to Subscribe to Journey of an Avon Mom’s Monthly Newsletter

How Can I Help You?

What You Can Do With Avon:
Shop Avon Online
Shop Avon Brochure
Sell Avon Use Reference Code: jantunes  
Earn Free Avon               
Donate with Avon