The kids at my office — the internet is a great thing

We’ve been playing juggling games with child care for the last couple weeks while the boys are on winter holidays. We didn’t want to put them into a child care program, so have been very creative. A friend who was home with her one boy took my two for a whole day. She survived, but I think it reaffirmed her decision to stop at just one child. I’ve given up trying to get a lot of work done at the home office and have just been at home, and sometimes ready to tear my hair out. And we traded with another mom whose kids are usually in afterschool care with my two. One day she took my two so I could come to the office, and another day I took her two so she could go to work. That worked pretty well, since having a friend over is much more entertaining than just having a brother around.

But today, we did without mostly. Hubby took most of the day off to hang with the kids (tear his hair out? I hope not — not much left there to tear!), then mid-afternoon he drove them to my office, where they stayed for a couple hours. Yet I continued to work. I managed this with the magic of the internet. There aren’t a lot of people in at work this week, so it’s quiet to begin with. I warned my co-workers, but I almost needn’t have bothered. They were on the computer, surfing at Webkins or Club Penguin, and quiet as mice in the office next door to mine. There’s lot of food around the office for snacks, and at the end of the day, they bus home with me. All that gives hubby a few hours to catch up on work.

I won’t be doing this often, but it worked well this week.

Chocolate in the office

On the one hand, being in an office this time of year is nice. Everyone is so happy about the holidays, and we do fun stuff like a staff dinner, Secret Santa gift exchanges, and put up decorations.

On the other hand, being in an office this time of year is very difficult. Our office gets a lot of holiday gifts, and just about all of them are chocolate. Since they’re to say thanks for stuff the staff all do, the chocolates get shared, and put out in common areas for everyone to help themselves.

It’s not that I don’t like chocolate, it’s that I like it too much. If you think controlling your diet is tough this time of year no matter what, imagine it when there are yummy chocolates of all kinds of varieties two doors over, just waiting for someone to eat them.

I don’t have enough willpower to work here full time, and working here part time I still have to pay dearly at the gym and the closet when I try on my clothes.

Some things were easier when I worked at home five days a week.