Day In the Life of a Writer: 2 Kids Under 2

I want to share a day in the life of a writer.

I’m also a mom with two kids under two.

If you stepped into my home at this very moment you would notice the following:

Day In the Life of a Writer: 2 Kids Under 2

  • Random articles of clothing covering the living room floor
  • An old cheerio or two by my children’s toy box
  • Clean laundry in a bucket waiting to be put away
  • Notebooks with random notes strategically placed throughout the house

I’m a work-at-home mom who lives in Northern Canada, with 2 kids under two. They’re twins.

I’m also a freelance writer.

Life can be a little overwhelming but I have a wonderful support system that helps ease the pressure when it comes to balancing my work and home.

It isn’t easy, but I love what I do and being able to stay home and raise my children is something I’m very passionate about. Want to know how I manage a typical day with 2 kids under two? Every work-at-home mom has their particular schedule and plan that works for them. This is my typical day in the life of a freelance writer with my twins.

Day in the Life of a Writer

Let’s get to it!

Is It Morning Already?

Around 7:15 a.m. my daughter usually wakes up whining, although these past few days she’s been giving me the run-down of all her latest words (hi, bye, ding-dong, mommy, daddy, baby).

My son, the rock-star sleeper that he is, usually wakes up around 7:30. They both sleep in the same room, but in different cribs.

My husband and I take turns getting them and changing them, so when he is changing them, I get to work a little more on my writing. See, I try to wake up an hour or so before my children wake up. This gives me some time to update my Twitter and Facebook accounts, look for some unique photos for my upcoming posts, and read any new articles that interest me.

I’m fortunate enough to have both my children sleep through the night so no more waking up 4-5 times in the middle of the night and looking like a haggard version of myself the next day (please don’t let me relive that time!).

It usually takes around 20 minutes to change both of them because they either don’t want to be change and fight us, or, one or both has a leaky diaper and their sleepers have to be changed.

8:00-9:00 a.m.

This is usually coffee time for the grown-ups and milk for my son and daughter. It’s one of the few times I get to relax in a day.

The children usually watch a show or YouTube videos of nursery songs. Sometimes, they let us watch the morning news or yesterday’s hockey game (Go Canucks Go!)

9:00-10 a.m.

Breakfast time for the children. I don’t typically eat breakfast until noon, and by that time it’s lunch. I usually survive on coffee and mom energy.

Breakfast does seem to take almost 45 minutes to an hour. I’m not sure if this is typical for other moms with children? Since we adopt a healthy and natural lifestyle, we cook all our food and limit processed food. We also limit our wheat and eat a more Paelo diet.

10-12:45 p.m.

I use this time before lunch to either get chores down or to play outside if the weather is nice and not too cold. There are also organizational tasks that need to be done like storing clothes that don’t fit my children anymore in the garage.

Typical chores I can do when my children are around:

  • Clean the bathroom with all natural and homemade products.
  • Dust
  • Vacuum
  • Put a load of laundry in the washer
  • Fold laundry and put away
  • Put dishes in the dishwasher and run the dishwasher

When we go outside my children play with their outdoor toys and run around in the backyard. I recently bought some scarecrows, one boy and one girl, from the Dollar Store and every time we are outside they want to see them and say hi to them.

I eat my breakfast and feed them lunch between 12-12:30, change diapers and get them ready for their glorious, much needed (for mommy) nap.

The Perfect Time to Write

For my day in the life of a content writer, this is the perfect time to write.

As soon as I lay my last child in the crib and close the door, I go into my office. My office is also our master bedroom but I like working here instead of downstairs where my husband works. My husband runs his own e-commerce business and is able to stay home and help me out at times.

This is the time when I can write my blog posts, write guest posts, pitch for freelance writing jobs and update all my social media accounts.

My children typically sleep an hour and 15 minutes. If I’m lucky they will sleep for 2 hours and if all the stars align, they will sleep for 2.5 hours.

When my children wake up, I can still squeeze in another 20-30 minutes because my husband, at this time, takes his break.

Family Helps Out

I’m fortunate enough to have family nearby to watch my children for an hour or two in the afternoon. This is a great opportunity for me to finalize any writing I did earlier and continue on any other writing tasks.

Dinner miraculously comes together by 5 or 5:30 and everyone sits down to eat. After dinner everyone spends family time until the children go to bed at 7:15 p.m.

Write Away!

Yes! A day in the life of a writer means I get to write at different parts of the day.

I’m able to squeeze in another 1-2 hours after my children go to bed. I also use this time to clean up the toys, empty the dishwasher, put a new load in and finish any little things that didn’t get done in the day.

Stats In a Day

You might hear or watch me do the following:

  • Say “Dangerous!” about 54 times in a day.
  • Change around 12 diapers a day.
  • Defer to Pinterest for toddler activities to keep them busy. Check out Pinterest groups too.
  • Listen to “Baa Baa Black Sheep” around 30 times a day (down from 60 times a day 4 months ago).

In all, I can conservatively say I manage around 6 hours of writing. Of course, this isn’t every day. I still have to cook and do groceries as well as plan play dates during the week.

A Day in the Life of a Writer – Done for the Day!

If you are a work-at-home mom, how many hours can you squeeze in your already full day? Do you find it’s easier to work more if your children are  younger (more naps) or older? Were you able to work when your children were awake? What is your typical schedule? I’d like to hear from other moms who freelance write!

Hi I'm Elna and I'm a freelance writer and mom blogger. I help people just like you become a profitable freelance writer. Within 6 months of starting my freelance writing business from scratch I was able to earn a full-time living as a part-time freelance writer while taking care of my twin toddlers. Check out my free email course Get Paid to Write Online and learn the steps you need to take to be a freelance writer.

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13 Comments

Hi Elna! I wanted you to know that I have written a blog post called How to Write Great Content with Limited Time and I linked this particular post of yours to it. I want everyone to know that they aren’t alone in raising children and trying to find the time to write! I also have 2 children and I can totally relate to the struggles. Keep up the great work!Reply to Robbyn
Robbyn, Thanks so much for the link. Your blog has some great tips on content and social media! Yes, having two children is tough, especially when they are twins. But, the good thing is, they have the same nap time and bed time! In the process of potty training them so fun times! ElnaReply to Elna
Thanks for sharing! I always wondered how you managed it with two toddlers. Looks like you’re doing great with your time.Reply to Alicia
Ha, no problem. This is an older post, so I really should update it. Something I no longer do is wake up before the kids do. I found that my waking up was causing them to stir. So, now I only write when they have their afternoon nap and when they go down for the night. ElnaReply to Elna
Singing with each other whilst your toddler is young will assist them to really feel much more confident about singing when they’re older.Reply to baa
Thanks for the video1Reply to Elna
You are super mom:)! Kudos! I have two children, 2 and 5. My son goes to school, while my daughter stays at home with me. I moved to Canada last year and into our own home a few months ago. Now we are all settled, but the routine and lifestyle is SO completely different from what I am used to. So I do end up managing everything at home and getting down to blogging regularly and writing for a couple of news blogs (un-paid work) once a month or so. But that’s where my organizing abilities come to an abrupt halt. For me to seriously manage a freelance writing career, I need to manage my time much more effectively. Your article gives me hope! I will definitely tune in to innovative ink a lot from now on:). Thanks a bunch!Reply to Nida
Hi Elna! Good to ‘meet’ you via LinkedIn. I just have one son (‘Mushroom’) and he goes to pre-school three times a week so that’s when I work. I used to get a lot done when he napped but he’s 3 a half now so I can’t rely on that any more! So now I try to better plan my work days so that when I’m with him we can just hang out – work spills over sometimes and I do some in the evenings but that’s ok as I love it! Hope you’re enjoying freelancing so far – it’s good you have so much support at home to help you get started. Great website by the way!Reply to Rachael
Hi Rachael Thanks for heading on over to my blog! I always like to hear from new people. So having twin toddles is a tough one for sure! They are getting better with their napping. I can usually bank on 1 hour for sure but most times I get closer to two hours. I think the recent time change is lengthening their naps b/c they are waking up earlier in the morning by about a half hour. So my freelance writing is going fairly well and thanks again for leaving a comment!Reply to Elna
Hi Elna, I am the daughter of June, it is very difficult writing around my 16 month old boy. However, your post has given me some motivation. It’s time for me to do some time management planning! You do a great job. 🙂Reply to Eve
Hi Eve! Yes having children is TOUGH! and trying to work at home seems almost impossible. The number one reason I am able to work from home is the huge support I have in helping me with my children. My husband works from home and as I mentioned, family members come by often to relieve me for a few hours and that is a HUGE help. I’m glad I was able to inspire you!Reply to Elna
Hi Elna, I congratulate you. I can’t believe you do so much and still manage to get all that writing in. I guess you’re lucky having the support network though. My daughter has a 16 month old son. They live with me. She recently started blogging and is trying very hard to fit in writing. But as she’s on her own (well with my help when I can) it’s quite hard for her to get much done. Her son is very clingy and active and the only time she has is when he goes to bed after 6pm. But by then she’s really tired. Anyway, I’ll pass on your post for her to read. I’m sure it will inspire her. Thanks for stopping by and leaving a comment on my blog. I appreciate it. 🙂Reply to June
Thanks again for your warm thoughts on my blog post!Reply to Elna