Adventure Togs ….. and all that

I posted on Twitter the other day that "I love my little office" – It's true, it is so small but I love disappearing in there to work, escaping from the rest of the house – the cooking, cleaning, etc. and being the boss!

Working from home is so very different from a typical work environment. I structure my day so that most of my work is done between 10 and 3, so there is just enough time to fit in a quick walk after the school run (and I mean RUN most mornings). Next, all the orders are from the previous 24 hours are processed and emailed to our warehouse and then other stuff! Other stuff varies day to day from sourcing new products and invoicing schools to SEO and marketing. Some days it is very organised, other days it seems all of a jumble but I wouldn't swap it for the typical 9-5.30, 5 days a week. Oh no!

I was fortunate enough to only work 2-3 days a week as a locum pharmacist when my boys were younger, but I was never truly satisfied with just being mother on the other 2-3, especially when they started nursery and needed me less. I always felt guilty that I should be working. I did not have the opportunity to go back to my pre-motherhood position on a part-time basis. It was full-time manager or nothing. Hence I locumed in pharmacies as close to my mother's home (the babysitter) as I could get, so I could feed boy 1 before starting work, pop back to feed him at lunchtime and again another feed before the 40 minute drive home. It didn't help that he would not take a bottle at all, so expressing was not an option. When I look back, I really don't know how I did it.

I recently came across a website called My Family Care which helps employers establish the right childcare and eldercare solutions for their employees. It may help others who are in similar situations.

I still juggle some locum days in amongst our sales of outdoor clothing, in addition to another professional role I have with the Pharmaceutical Society. But as long as I have my incy wincy office to escape to, I'm happy!