The most challenging aspect of this quarantine period was finding a daily routine that worked well for all of us. Jonas is used to a lot more freedom and free play when he is alone with dad, but now that I’m working from home, it was necessary to set healthy boundaries around how we spend our days to ensure that I could also thrive professionally in this new environment. I am happy to report that with each passing week, we are feeling more at ease and productive in our respective routines. This is what a typical Monday – Friday schedule looks like for Jonas and I:
- 6:00 AM: My day begins. Wake up, brush teeth, change clothes, make my morning coffee, take the dogs out to potty and feed them.
- 6:30 AM: Prepare Jonas’ homeschool lesson materials, work on any blog/ business to-do items.
- 7:30 AM: Wake Jonas Up (if he hasn’t woken up on his own). Brush his teeth, change out of his PJ’s into regular clothes and prepare his breakfast.
- 8:00 AM: I setup my work area in the dining room and I login into to my laptop . I’ll let Jonas watch some cartoons on the Google Home Smart Display on the kitchen island (we have a open kitchen/ dining room setup). This is my time to organize my emails and to-do’s for the day. He is still low on energy during this time and I try to take advantage and get as much done as possible.
- 9:00 AM: We start the daily homeschooling lesson. During this time, I have to be able to work on items / calls as they come in. So what’s been working for us is breaking up the daily lesson plan ( there are 6 components to each lesson plan) with 15 minute break intervals in between. For example: we will do a craft (approx time: 15 minutes) followed by 15 minutes of self learning on the iPad (this is so I am able to work during the breaks) and so on.
- 11:30 AM: Homeschooling lessons are finished by this time. Jonas has time to free play, while I start preparing lunch.
- 12:00 PM: Lunchtime
- 12:30 PM: I officially take my work “lunch break”. We start our naptime ritual and I put Jonas down for a nap. The whole process can take anywhere between 15-30 minutes depending on the day, hence officially clocking out and signing off at this time so we can proceed with naptime with little interruptions.
- 1:00 PM: I go back to work while Jonas naps. During this time, I focus on the tasks that require my undivided attention and make/ return any important phone calls to clients.
- 2:30 PM: If Jonas hasn’t woken up by then, I usually wake him up. But before I do, I usually prepare a snack and have it ready for him because he tends to wake up groggy and ready to eat.
- 3:00 PM: Compared to our morning, the rest of our afternoon is less structured. By this point in the day, I’ve tackled most important work to-do’s, so I focus on any follow up items and organizing my work for the following day. Jonas is usually engaging in free play or is welcomed to play with our Google Home Smart Display to listen to music / watch videos. Given the day, I may start working on dinner at this juncture.
- 4:30 PM: Logout of work laptop and clean up the dining room table/ area. I don’t want to see my work stuff hanging out in our dining room, when I’m no longer working.
- 5:00 PM: Our structured routine ends.
After business hours are over, our life seem very similar to our pre-quarantine routine. Depending on the day and our moods, it can mean dinner, dishes, walking the dogs, going for a family walk, Netflix and Chill, FaceTime / Zoom gatherings with family and friends and now that the weather is nicer, hanging out in the backyard before our bath/ bed time routine. This season has taught me about the calming effect routine has in my life (as well as my son’s), especially now more than ever! Presented with the prospect of unlimited “free time”, my brain went into panic mode. Creating a schedule (albeit a loose one), helped me feel less anxious and much more in control when everything in life seems unmanageable and completely out of my control. Everyone’s schedule is going to look different from one household to another, but my hope is that you keep trying until you find something that works for you and your family.