HOME-BASED BUSINESS + KIDS = BALD MOM

Ever hear the saying, “cleaning with kids in the house is like brushing your teeth while eating oreos”?  I feel like something similar could be said about running a home-based business during summer break.

Here’s how I would phrase it though: “Running a home-based business while your kids are out on summer vacation is like putting together an atomic bomb during an elephant stampede.”

Honestly, I am really okay with the distractions and craziness kids bring to an environment.  Having once taught in a junior high science classroom, I understand a certain amount of chaos is to be expected when you have kids around.  But, in the classroom there was always a sense of order and structure that surrounded lab experiments or daily work.  The summer life for elementary aged children can struggle to stay structured no matter what type of order parents try to put into place.  My kids have chores and duties throughout the day, but there is always that inevitable “down-time” --  and that is the time that gets us into trouble.

For the most part, I have to say my kiddos do great.  They know when the phone rings they have to be quiet and fortunately for me, due to their extreme love for baseball they are outside A LOT.  But despite knowing the “business rules of the house” there is always an unplanned catastrophe that happens right as the phone rings, or sporadic sibling fight that breaks out at the most inopportune moments.  The further into summer we get the more hair I tend to pull out.  So by August, mom-the-office-and-family-manager is starting to feel like she needs a wig. 

If you have ever spent .05 seconds babysitting elementary-aged kids, then you have no doubt experienced sibling fights,  unexplained disasters, or the constant influx of questions that come naturally from children who live under the same roof.  The following phrases somewhat reflect what I hear on a daily basis…

“MOM! Kaden hit me again!”

“Mom, Kahle’s being annoying”

BANG! “Mom? Can you come up here? I think I MIGHT have broken something…”

“Mom, can flushing Legos hurt the toilet?”

“Mom, did you know Marty can eat stuffed animals or at least kind of eat them?”

“Mom, I’m hungry”

“What are we going to eat for breakfast?”

“What are you fixing for lunch?”

“Mom! We’re out of milk again!!”

“Who ate all the Goldfish crackers?!”

“Mom, Kaden took all my money!”
“No I didn’t”
“Yes you did”
“No I didn’t”
“Yes you did”


“Mom, Kahle took my baseball cards”
“No I didn’t”
“Yes you did”
“No I didn’t”
“Yes you did”

(I might also note that I never knew the word “Mom” could be used so much by two boys…but that’s a post for another day…)

I think you get the gist of it.  Needless to say, these phrases can cause a few frustrations while talking to customers on the phone, taking orders, doing bookwork, or just staying sane from 8am-5pm during the summer months.

But you know what the worst part is?  I know the minute school starts I will miss having them around.  I mean, isn’t that the true curse of motherhood (running a business from your home or not…)?  You long for those simple moments where you can recall what it feels like to NOT have a clanging gong ringing in your head – only to find you miss the little suckers who installed the gong in the first place.

Ah, such is life, right?


Happy back to school week!  

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