WFHMs…how are you working with your baby?
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Anonymous
| Baby is 5 weeks and I’ll be returning to work at 6 weeks (company only does 6 weeks of leave…smh). How are you WFM with your infant? DS wants to be held all day. DH also WFH and we both have flexible jobs so we’ll tag team but not sure how realistic we’re being! Any tips are appreciated. |
Anonymous
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Ah I’m sorry op, that sounds stressful. You will likely need childcare/help. I have a 10 week old and still can’t imagine working from home while caring for him. I did care for my then 2 year old while switching off with my husband and working during the height of covid but jobs were even more flexible then.
I’m assuming you’ve already looked into this, but just make sure you aren’t religionless for FMLA. Companies over 50 employees and if you’ve been there a year you are protected til 12 weeks. It’s unpaid though but can be worth it if you can swing it. Wish we had better policies on this! |
Anonymous
We also tag time and work during naps but we are not super productive. We get the minimum done during the day and make up the rest at night. I’d suggest getting at least part time childcare. It’s a Godsend. We found a college sitter who works 20-30 hrs per week. |
Anonymous
| DH and I tag teamed with our then 1-year old from March-August of last year. It was super stressful and exhausting. I would honestly start looking for child care. If your jobs are flexible you have some cushion while you get a spot, but get on some waitlists now. Many of them might have spots that open up end of August for the school year as they move the older ones up to the toddler room. |
Anonymous
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You hire a nanny, babysitter, daycare...like the rest of us.
Do you live under a rock? This isn't going to get easier especially as your baby starts napping less, reaches/grabs all things, and beyond (sitting up, more interacting, mobile, etc). |
Anonymous
+1. And it’s really bad for the baby to be ignored all day except for feeding. Babies need stimulation and language. We have a nanny. My company doesn’t even allow WFH unless we have childcare. |
Anonymous
| Nanny. That way you can still spend time with the baby during the day. |
Anonymous
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I am so truly sorry about your crappy maternity leave.
Please get childcare. Trying to WFH with a baby is not fair to the baby, your family, your employer but most of all.. to you!!!! |
Anonymous
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I think for the next 4-6 weeks, you'll be able to get by with a lot of babywearing. You can wear your baby and bounce on a ball while working on the computer.
After that, yea, it's going to be really tough. You need childcare. |
Anonymous
| Yeah, I don't think this is feasible. You need childcare, unless you can both cut a lot of corners and essentially only work 20-30 hours a week each. |
Anonymous
| You need childcare. Your employer may even insist on it. You can either parent during the day or work and your employer may choose for you if you won't. |
Anonymous
| huh?? You're shortchanging your child and your job. Get a nanny or daycare like everyone else. |
Anonymous
+2 |
Anonymous
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What is your baby like and what is your job like?
I started joining conference calls taking long walks outside while the baby napped in a k’tan at about 8 weeks. Mommy-shamers aside my baby got tons of fresh air and I got exercise. Then I fed the baby (30 min) and handed to my husband for 90 minutes while I focused on email and documents that needed my attention. Then I logged off for an hour to focus on playing with my baby, fed her again and we walked again. It wasn’t ideal but this was before vaccines. Now we have a babysitter part time, and as others say, we work a lot at night. |
Anonymous
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You will need a sitter, or else you will half a$$ work, and half a$$ take care of your baby from waking until 11 pm.
OP - this is not feasible long term. Get a nanny, or send your child to daycare. |