A lot of times I’m asked “How do you get anything done?! I mean, when do you have the time to do everything?!” — It’s the number one question I get on a consistent basis and I always reply with, “The nap time rush!” It seems so silly but its so true! It’s definitely a difficult task having a husband who is gone a lot for work, a crazy 1 year old baby girl, a full time business to run, a house to take care of, etc. I’ve had to learn the hard way how to get things done and how to prioritize each and every day and while I am definitely not a pro at it just yet, I’m getting there! I figured since I’m asked this question so much, I may as well share what I do know so far and can follow up with a blog post later down the road to see what tweaks and adjustments I’ve made to streamline my days a little more!

Often times I’m asked this question by new moms who are also business owners. At first it seems like this huge daunting task to run a business from home while taking care of a little one (or little ones if you have more than one) but I promise the intimidation goes away as you settle into a routine and get into a groove! When I first had Aubree, I was so sleep deprived, my house was a wreck, laundry piled up, I had a difficult time finding time to edit, answer emails, cook, clean, etc. I started frantically doing things every time Aubree would nap or go down at nights, but I realized there was no rhyme or reason to the things I was doing. I needed a solid routine!

So, for all you new momma’s out there that are still adjusting to motherhood and owning & running your own business from home, here are some of my tips to getting things done… I hope they help you in some way!

– We recently hired someone to start cleaning our house once every other week. I know this isn’t feasible to some but we use Scrubbermaids and their rates are unbelievably affordable! I did a LOT of research and they came in at the best rates and do an amazing job at cleaning our home! While she’s here cleaning, I’m able to work on emails, editing, feeding Aubree, putting her down for a nap, etc. all while knowing my house is being cleaned and its one less thing on my to-do list. That’s a beautiful thing!

– The nap time rush: We have a great routine down now that we’ve been parents for the past year. Aubree wakes up every morning around 7am. She eats her breakfast and then we play and work some energy out and then…its nap time! She typically naps around 12pm and anywhere from an hour and a half to four hours. I never know what I’m going to get though so… that’s why I call it the Nap Time Rush!!!

– Aubree is down for a nap and that means I have anywhere from 90 minutes to 4 hours to get stuff done. By ‘stuff’ I mean, unload the dishwasher, load it back, prep dinner for tonight, clean up the massive amount of toys that were destroying our living room, fold the clothes in the dryer and put a new load in the washing machine, open my laptop and edit photo’s. So here’s how I prioritize: Aubree goes down, I go downstairs and pick up the living room. I just FEEL better when the house is straight and picked up. Then I go and prep dinner, and put dishes in the dishwasher if there is any. Clean Aubree’s high chair from breakfast, then do any laundry that needs to be done. Once that is all complete, I sit down to start answering emails and editing galleries. While the gallery is exporting from LR, I start my blog for said gallery and start uploading the photo’s to Pixieset (this way multiple things are happening at once). I write a sweet thank you note to my clients and send the Pixieset gallery off to my client! :) Then finish writing my blog, blogstomp my images, publish the blog, and put it on my Facebook business page. It seems like a lot and all very tedious, which it is very tedious, but its doable! It works for me because this is my routine. It’s not always a flawless routine, but its my ‘groove’ for now.

The same way people with ‘normal’ jobs go to work every day, sit at a desk for 8 hours and get work done, is what I try to bring into my home during nap time. It’s different for me because I work at home and have distractions like my new book sitting on the coffee table, the TV (ohh how my DVR backs up), social media, etc. It’s not as easy for me to get work done like it is for people with ‘normal’ 9-5 jobs. They leave their house with zero distractions and sit at a desk where their work is all they have to do all day. But I sit at my desk or the couch to work and realize a million things that need to be done when I look around our home! I’m definitely not complaining because I never want to go back to the corporate world and LOVE that my dream job gives me the chance to stay home with our baby girl. I just think it takes a lot of dedication, hard work, and consistency to run a business from home.

I definitely have rough days where almost nothing gets done. Sometimes its all I can do to just keep the kid alive and fed as I feel the day won me over instead of me winning the day over. I’m not claiming to have it all right or saying I’m a success at this each and every day, because I’m not. I’m just a wife, mom and business owner who tries every day to be a little better than yesterday! Hopefully this blog helped someone and if anyone needs advice, help, etc… I’m always here! :)