How I Juggle University, Blogging and Been A Mum

Recently I shared a posts about how I struggle with Mum guilt because of the fact that I am a 3rd year university student a Mum and obviously a blogger. I have also had a few conversations with other people fellow bloggers and people who I interact with on Instagram who have said they do not know how I manage to do all the things I do. To me because of the fact that I do it and have no choice otherwise things wouldn't get done. Currently I have a help from my mum because as you will know if you have ready my blog for a while Joe is not here which means that I am doing it solo as such.

In terms of university work and I will not lie there is a ton of it reading, planning assignment and of course writing them on top of lectures. I try and set myself a goal ever single day so I will focus on one module a day and this helps me know what i need to do at the moment I am focusing on an assignment due in December however, I have done a rough plan and starting doing my reading around the subject to make it easier for myself. I go to uni on my days off because I find it so hard to work from home with a toddler who always wants your attention so if she is busy been entertaining at nursery it means I can crack on. I try and do the hours between 9-5 and keep it like a job however, sometimes I end up doing a bit of work at home when Jess is in bed on a night. This is a way I can try and keep my weekends free from university work which is something which you would do if you had a normal 9-5 typical job.

 If I am not in a great mood I can find it transferring to my private/ home life which is annoying because I do not like taking it out on Jess and anyone else who is close to me.  I purchased a personal planner which allows me to keep my eye on the date which work is due in and when I actually have class and important things. My timetable can change every single week this means that I need to make sure that Jess has childcare sorted as some of my lectures can finish after 6pm which is the latest when she can be picked up from nursery and I need to make sure that I do actually have childcare for her. This can range from my Dad coming to York and picking her up while I have a lecture and then take us home. Sometimes she gets picked up by her Daddy depending if he is around and then they have some quality time together.

In order of been a Mum I try and dedicate the whole of the weekend to Jess sometimes, this will see me do work on a Sunday afternoon when she spends a little bit of time with her Grandparents. This allows me to catch up on any work which I may not have been able to do during the week. We like to do something fun during the period of the weekend sometimes it may be something small but as long as she is having a lot of fun that is all that matters. I know that it is going to be easier to have a lot more family time when Joe is back even though I know my work load is going to get even larger I will not feel guilty if I know that I have work to do because she is going to be able to have some amazing special time with Joe. I think that they need some more time to be spent together because they have been away from each other for so long. Planning is key because we have now plans for most weekend's in December and we have multiple plans for next year in the pipeline. Shopping online when I am commuting or when Jess is napping in order for her to get clothes and presents is something which we have to do. Currently me and Joe are constantly sending each other links for ideas of Christmas for everyone because soon we know this is going to be something which we need to deal with.

Blogging is something which can struggle when I am so busy I take my an hour of Sunday afternoon and dedicate this taking picture for the week ahead or the next week which I am planning content for. The reason I say this because sometimes I have posts scheduled for a couple of weeks this is something which I need to do again because I know work is going to be busy again. I write the ideas for my posts in my phone if I do not actually end up writing the post in a app called blog manager on the iphone. This helps me be able to get my words down while I am doing something else such as commuting and then unable to use my laptop. I will then go back when I get chance and add the pictures into a post this can be something like on a short period I have off between lectures on my lunch break. I have a Busy Bee diary which allows me to write when I have scheduled a post for because they can be a while ahead. For example I wrote a post on new years eve which is going to be  up in December. I try and schedule social media post for the whole week on a Sunday which means that my posts are always been promoted if I can not be active on social media my presence is still been felt and I am gaining new readers.

I currently am leaving my house around 6.45 am and getting home around 6.45pm which means that my days are very long and sometimes I do not want to be spending the time which I do have at home looking at a screen. When no doubt it is something which I have been doing for hours which is one of the reasons why I have not been blogging on a night however, taking part in the bloggers chats are something which I would love to be able to get back into.

How do you juggle everything you do? I would love to know

Charlotte x