Being a new mom is hard for many reasons. Try adding on a global pandemic and a new work from home schedule. You can just say “being a new mom in a global pandemic while working from home is as equally a dumpster fire as 2020 was all together.” Try saying that 3x fast.
I work as a 4th grade reading and social studies teacher and I’ve been fortunate enough to be able to work from home since March 2020. I say fortunate because some of my colleagues in other districts are being asked to come into their buildings and teach face to face. Lucky for me, my district is using the scientific data and has been making the decisions to keep us virtual, especially now with covid numbers spiking again in our area and nationwide.
As an educator, I follow the teaching schedule that was created for us and I manage life and feeding baby around that. Sometimes though, baby gets priority and I have to feed her while I work because sis has protested the bottle in every way that she can.
Here’s my work from home schedule.
6:00-6:30 AM
- Dream feed Yemaya
- Wash face
- Start kettle for coffee
- Drink Water
- Prep lessons, websites, and google classroom
Honestly, it depends on what happened the night before if I wake when my alarm sounds at six or get an extra 30 minutes of sleep. We currently bedshare with Yemaya so feeding her in the morning is super easy when you can just whip out a boob. I tend to keep Sunday evening for family time and choose to wake up early on Mondays to prep my student’s work in google classroom, schedule parent replies, and get my morning slides together.
7:00-7:30 AM
- Remove retainers/brush teeth
- Drink coffee
- Yemaya is awake – change her diaper & playtime
- Open Zoom for students
Not much is going on during this time besides getting my mind together for the day. I’ve probably looked at my Google Calendar to see if there are any meetings, parent conferences, or blog posts going out, things like that. I am still with Smile Direct Club and my ten hours of nighttime wear are usually up around 7 or 7:30 am. That’s when I can get my oral hygiene together. Yemaya may also wake during this time so I’ll set up some toys for her in the office and she’ll play in the background while I teach my first set of kids.
7:45-9:40 AM
- Teach homeroom students
- Feed Yemaya/First Nap
- Take an asynchronous break
Virtual learning is pretty straight forward for me and I have really come to love it. Thanks to my building for implementing breaks in our schedule our students are able to get up and stretch, grab a snack, or take a bathroom break if needed at 8:50 AM and 9:40 – 10:10 AM. This allows me to feed Yemaya and put her back down for her morning nap.
10:10-11:50 AM
- Teaching second block
During this time I am teaching my second block of students. My sister is awake by this time and can help with Yemaya. She may bring her in for a feed, but this just depends on whether or not she wakes from her nap.
12:00 Noon
It’s officially lunch time! During this time Geeshian and I are catching up and talking about what the dinner plan is or how his night at work was. I may have my second cup of coffee, but I am almost always prepping for dinner if meat needs to be defrosted. I’m also scrolling socials and playing with Yem. She’ll be awake for a full two hours now.
1:00 – 3:00 PM
- Student small group, parent conferences, meetings with colleagues
This block really depends on the day. Friday’s are usually grade level meetings.
3:00 – Rest of the day
- Nap
- Grading
- Socials
- Dinner
- Yemaya – feeding, playing, napping, repeat.
11:30 PM
- Bedtime
I know that this is a pretty late bedtime especially with a young child, but again we’re human and living through a pandemic. It really just depends on what is going on during the day and how many naps Yemaya gets. Her sleep during the day definitely affects her sleep at night. Hopefully, by the time we go back into the building, she’ll be on a schedule that will work for the entire family.
