You’re trying to answer emails. The baby’s throwing puffs on the floor. Your toddler’s asking the same question for the third time. The meeting starts in three minutes, and you’re still in yesterday’s hoodie. Yeah — this isn’t “working from home.” This is survival with a Wi-Fi connection. So stop chasing balance and start building rhythms. Here are seven pieces of scaffolding — not solutions — to hold up your workday when you’ve got a small human climbing your leg.

Claim a Work Corner (Even if It’s Just a Chair)

Don’t overthink it. You’re not designing a startup’s innovation hub. You just need a spot. One consistent place where your brain clicks into “get something done” mode. It could be a fold-up tray next to the couch, or a corner of the kitchen table you kick the Legos off of every morning. Doesn’t matter — what matters is that it tells your body: this is where I work. Having a dedicated home office space — even a fake one — helps you mentally clock in and out. Your kid will catch on too. The repetition matters more than the furniture.

Use Visual Schedules (So Your Kid Stops Asking What’s Next)

Visual routines aren’t just for the kids. When you’re underslept and overstretched, seeing the day mapped out in front of you keeps you grounded. Toddlers especially love knowing what comes next — snack, park, quiet time. You can draw it, print it, or grab a helpful calendar app that shows your toddler when it’s their time and when it’s yours. It won’t fix every meltdown. But it gives your day some shape — and that shape helps you both breathe.

Plot Long-Term Moves That Fit the Now

Some parents are just trying to make it to bedtime. Others are planting seeds for what comes next. If you’ve been thinking about switching jobs, leveling up, or finally chasing that tech degree you paused, there are ways to do that without blowing up your current life. Online programs that run on your timeline — not theirs — can open those doors. If you’re curious, check out this resource built for parents with unpredictable hours and no spare time. It might not happen all at once. But forward motion is still motion.

Stop Scheduling. Start Chopping the Day Into Blocks.

You know that color-coded daily planner you downloaded in your third trimester? Toss it. The only schedule that works now is one that flexes every hour. What helps: breaking your day into chunks. Mornings when the baby’s clingy? Light tasks. Midday naps (if they happen)? That’s deep focus time. Baby’s awake and happy playing with a spoon? Use that window. Parents who divide work into time blocks don’t get more hours — they just lose less time to panic when the day shifts.

Lean Into Your Kid’s Natural Rhythm

There’s probably already a pattern under all that noise. Wake, bottle, energy spike. Crash, snack, cling. Use it. Don’t fight it. When your toddler melts down every day at 3pm, stop trying to schedule meetings then. When the baby stares into space for 20 minutes every morning, that’s your window. Your day will still fall apart — but it’ll fall apart less if you’re moving with your kid’s flow instead of against it. Take a peek at a realistic daily schedule for remote parents if you need a jumping-off point. It’s not gospel — it’s scaffolding.

Boundaries Are Ugly but Necessary

There’s no perfect way to keep your work brain and your parent brain in separate rooms. But you still have to try. Maybe it’s a “mom’s working” sign taped to your laptop. Maybe it’s headphones. Maybe it’s setting the expectation that during snack time, you’re 100% parent, and during the 30-minute cartoon block, you’re heads-down on a spreadsheet. However you do it, you need some kind of boundary — even if it’s wobbly. You’ll thank yourself later when you separate work from family time enough to enjoy the parts that matter.

Ask for Help (Even If It Feels Weird)

This part sucks for a lot of parents. Asking. Admitting you can’t do it solo. But the truth is, this setup wasn’t built for one adult to do alone. If you’ve got a neighbor who’d swap playtime, ask. If you can afford a sitter for just two hours twice a week, do it. If your mom wants to FaceTime the baby while you take a call, that’s a win. People who enlist help for childcare duties aren’t spoiled. They’re surviving better. You can’t carry everything and show up fully — something’s gotta give.

The Days Will Still Be Messy

You will still yell. The baby will still grab your laptop cord. The meeting will still get interrupted by a poop explosion. But if you’ve got a few anchors — a workspace, a rhythm, a visual routine, a second set of hands — you’re not drowning. You’re just swimming in a choppy sea with a decent floaty. You won’t feel like you’re nailing it. But most of the parents who look like they are? They’re just treading water with better snacks. So cut yourself some slack. You’re showing up. That’s the part that counts.

Simplify your co-parenting journey with the Our Days Calendar app—effortlessly manage your shared schedule and enjoy more quality time with your children today!

By C Stewart