VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WAVY) – Like so many of you, I found myself working from home this week while also trying to take care of my son.
He is seven months old and liable to start shrieking with delight and at maximum volume at any given time, which makes it difficult to plan for conference calls, live shots and virtual interviews.
Fortunately for me, he also naps a few times a day – if he feels like it. Here’s how I’ve been getting things done while we’re temporarily without childcare:
3:45 a.m.
Alarm goes off.
Hit snooze many times – more than I’ll admit, but not as many as my husband. Victory.
Turn on WAVY to catch up on what’s happened since last night.
Begin writing a web script for the story I’ll be talking about later in the morning.
5 a.m.
Put on makeup and heat up curling iron.
Stare at split ends, wondering if I will have to trim them myself.
Remember how badly this turned out in college and resolve to wait, no matter how long it takes (props to AOC Salon for doing the responsible thing even before it was mandated!).
5:35 a.m.
Dial into the WAVY newsroom.
Throw toys into the corner off-screen.
5:45 a.m.
Live on WAVY from my living room to yours, talking to Madison Glassman about how people can save on their energy bill while they’re working from home.
6 a.m.
Miller wakes up and begins his favorite hobby of pulling everything off the shelves, with a special emphasis on breakable items.
6:35 a.m.
Dial into the WAVY newsroom.
Miller disapproves of my hairstyle and pulls hard to show it.
6:40 a.m.
Run Miller upstairs to my husband’s home office/storage closet, where they will review financial statements together while I appear live and record videos for our promotions department.
We do the same routine all over again until I finish up on WAVY, and my husband begins his conference calls.
8:30 a.m.
Me vs. Miller, round one. I get nothing work-related done for the next hour during the battle of the wills known to some parents as “nap time.” Miller wins.
Over the next few hours: have a snack, talk to producers about story ideas for the week, have a snack, make calls to set up virtual interviews, watch coronavirus coverage, have a snack. Distract the baby with books, toys, table legs, scrambled eggs, pots, pans, spice jars, windows, shoes, anything shiny.
2 p.m.
The boy sleeps!
Wash dishes and tidy up the house – two endless tasks that stop for no world event.
Work out in my driveway; wish the neighbors could be spared the image of me kickboxing the air.
4:30 p.m.
Start dinner while my husband takes a break from his office and goes for a run with Miller in the jogging stroller.
Test virtual recording capability with our ever-patient chief operations officer.
6 p.m.
Worn out from a long day of protesting naps, Miller dive-bombs into his crib.
I watch evening coronavirus coverage, then write scripts for tomorrow morning’s live shots.
8:00 p.m.
Worn out from a long day of protested naps, I dive-bomb into my bed.