Work-at-Home-Moms have their own reasons for choosing their current work arrangement.
Our second Happypinaymommy.com’s Work-at-Home-Mom of the Week said, it was a combination of heavy traffic, and losing time with her little boy that pushed her to consider a home-based job.
As I have said I our pilot WAHM of the WEEK feature last week, this series of posts is meant to honor work at home moms who try hard to strike a balance between working from home and taking care of their family’s needs. It is also meant to inspire those who a still on the fence if they’d give working at home a try, that yes, working from home is feasible, ad that others are tired, but fulfilled and happy with the choice they made.
Again the series is not meant to sideline stay at home moms or work out of the home mommies. This is all just meant to promote positive motherhood vibes
Introducing Happypinaymommy.com’s Work-at-Home-Mom of the Week, Janice Buenavista, who works from home as a Virtual Assistant.
Here are the excerpts of Happypinaymommy.com’s interview with Mommy Janice:
Happypinaymommy: When did you decide to be a WAHM?
Mommy Janice: I decided to become a WAHM three years ago when the commute from Cavite to Eastwood became longer and longer and even more painful to the heart (and to the wallet) because I work at night and sometimes during the holidays. I think the turning point was when I realized one day that I have been missing so much on my son’s “firsts” and development. Then I had nanny problems.
HPM: What made you decide to be one?
Mommy Janice: I was able to survive the agonizing travel for a year then a realization bit me and broke my heart as a mom. I was missing so much on my son’s “firsts” and development. I felt so guilty because I know that I can do better as a mom. So I started contemplating on working at home (I guess I love working and earning; personally I cannot afford to not earn an income for myself and for my family).
My husband was of course very supportive but he’d rather that I leave work only when I am to start with the new one right away. He is not the one to stop me from doing what I do best and love. So I made all the arrangements, put my plan into action and ended up with a home-based job that not only pays quite handsomely but also affords me with a well struck balance between my work and personal life.
(Post continued below)
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- A Busy Pinay Mom’s Guide to Getting Healthier Take-out Meals for the Family
- Where to buy Adult Coloring Books
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HPM: What is the greatest challenge of being a WAHM?
Mommy Janice: The most challenging part of being a WAHM is that I have to multitask and smart plan even more because I don’t have a helper and we feel that it is not necessary to hire one. When I was single, doing all the cooking and other household chores seemed simple but doing it for other people also is just insane. I admit there are times when I get cranky but when I see my little one I realize in the end that I do what I do for him, so I can be with him everyday and every night, 24/7 even on holidays.
HPM: Who inspires you?
Mommy Janice: I sacrifice a lot everyday like sleep, alone time etc. But it is very rewarding. Being able to be the first one to know what your child is doing is priceless. Seeing your little one grow knowing that he feels secure because his mom is with him is immeasurable happiness. I guess it is a mother’s ultimate goal to become hands on when it comes to nurturing her child
HPM: How does your husband support you?
Mommy Janice: my husband shows his support by trying his best to help me with the dishes..does his best not to wake me when I am asleep and supports me with what will make me feel good about myself. Right now we are both working from home so my son is over the top happy and inspired.
HPM: What is the best part of working at home:
Mommy Janice: Working from home has s lot of perks actually. I was able to discover the inner chef in me that I didn’t realize was there. Looking back, I wonder why I didn’t take Culinary Arts. Had I known I’m into food and pastries I would have chosen a different path in college LOL! I am also able to grow my small herb garden, which was another discovery of myself that unfolded only when I became a SAHM/WAHM.
HPM: What is your advice for moms who want to give working from home a try?
Mommy Janice: Do I encourage other Mommies to be a SAHM/WAHM? Yes absolutely. The journey is not easy but what you unravel along the way is priceless. I lost some part of myself before becoming what I am now, in the end those were not essential when it comes to raising my son myself and personally tending for my family’s needs. I can say that I go to bed TIRED but definitely OVERJOYED.
For moms who are contemplating to work-from-home, we asked Mommy Janice to share with us her schedule:
DAILY WORK: “I work at night so pretty much the action is during the day and during the weekends. Meal preparation is what takes so much time so on a weekend I try to prep as much as I can. I plan our meals for the week, prepare the grocery list from there plus our daily consumables and stocks like the toiletries, Davin’s baon for school, snack time munchies, etc. I usually do the groceries on a Sunday morning.
“Here’s how a typical week looks like for me:
Sunday Morning (6-9 am) Wash dishes from the night before Prepare a quick breakfast Market/Groceries be back before 9 am. Unpack the groceries and prep my meal ingredients according to recipe. Have breakfast. Prepare for church.
Church service is at 10AM to 1PM including lunch with church members.
1-2pm head home and rest
2pm-5pm start at least half of the laundry while prepping our meals for the week like marinating the meat, chopping veggies, etc. And prepare dinner
5 – 6:30pm check Davin’s homework, and bonding until dinner.
6:30 -7:30 pm Dinner, TV time
7:40pm: Usual bedtime for me and Davin (sometimes it’s just me already dozing off at this hour)
MONDAYS ONWARDS
7am prepare 2 meals for the day. Since there’s only 3 of us and it’s quite hard to cook for only three people, our breakfast meal is also our lunch or our lunch becomes dinner or our dinner become breakfast.
9am start with the remaining laundry. At this time Davin is being prepped by his Dad for school.
10.30am. Davin leaves for school and it’s Mom & Dad time or just Mom time as I will be either doing some gardening or baking or cleaning or sleeping again until 1pm
1pm -2.30 Wash the dishes from, finish off the laundry.
2.30pm Davin arrives from school/lunch
3pm Homework with Davin/ fold the laundry
3.30pm I go to sleep until it’s time for work at 11pm. Daddy takes care of dinner and making sure Davin is fed. When I wake up at 11pm Davin is already snoring.
11pm to 7.30am I work as a virtual asst.
I try to zip in a little cleaning like dusting off the shelves or wiping the tv clean. We don’t have a lot of stuff at home so pretty much it is only the bathroom and kitchen that needs to be cleaned at least once a week and the bedrooms at least twice per month.
In any day of the week we take a stroll in the mall or eat out.
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So there you have it. Hope you have somehow been inspired on how Mommy Janice makes working from home work for her and her little family. Let us know if you have any questions. Feel free to head on over at my Facebook Page and leave me a message. Please hit the like button too so you could receive updates from Happypinaymomy.com directly on your newsfeed.
Thank you and if there is a work at home mom you’d like me to feature as WAHM of the WEEK, let me know by leaving a message in my FB Page.
A happy homemaker is a Happy Pinay Mommy!
Leaving you with a cute video on Working from Home:
Legitimate Websites that Provide Online Job Opportunities for Filipino Mothers
