Youve beaten the obstacles and found a way to work at home, whether by finding a job or starting a home business. But is your work getting in the way of time with your family? It may be time to make sure you are finding balance between working at home and your family.

Lets take a look at some easy things you can do to ensure that you are spending time with your family.

1. Make time for play. Family activities are a great way to relax away from work. It can be as simple as taking a walk or going to the park, or it could be a full day excursion to a museum, amusement part or beach. You dont have to leave the house, of course. You could play games, make cookies or do other fun activities around the house. The point is to simply have fun as a family and have time to talk to each other.

One way to start is to plan a family night. Tell everyone they have to be home on a particular evening each week and do things as a family. Even if you just rent a movie to watch together, its something youre doing together.

If youre married, make sure you plan a regular date night with your spouse. Frequency may depend on how old your children are and how often you can get babysitting, but it is important for your marriage to have time as a couple.

You dont have to spend a lot of money to have fun with your family. Just make time for fun.

2. Be there for your childrens activities. If your children are involved in sports, acting, singing or other activities, make sure you are there for all the games, performances or other important events. It will help your children to know that they are very important to you.

3. Set rules and enforce them. If your children understand when they can interrupt your work you will be able to get more done in less time, giving you more time for your family.

Of course, you need to be consistent. If kids get away with breaking the rules some of the time, they will test the rules often. Consistency will save you time in the long run, even if you arent sure you want to spare the time at a particular moment.

4. Pay attention to what kind of attention each child needs. Every child is different. Some demand attention while others are so quiet its easy to forget that they need you too. Make sure you spend time with each child as an individual.

5. When the kids come home from school, take some time to talk about their day. They will appreciate your interest. You should also make sure they understand their homework and start it at whatever time they do best at finishing it. Some do best starting homework immediately on getting home, while others do better if they can play for a while first. Be aware of your childs needs.

6. If your work is something the children can help with, let them be involved. If not, you can still at least talk to them about what you do. This sets a good example for your children by helping them to know what working is really about.

Its easy to get buried in the needs of your work when you work at home. A little bit of planning can go a long way toward making working at home a wonderful experience for all. Your family is why you decided to work at home, so dont let your time with them get put aside.

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1. Start your day by telling the kids you are going to be working. Make sure you have enough time for last-minute demands, such as the urgent need to play just one game of Chutes and Ladders.

2. Remind kids of when they can disturb you while you work. No, wanting a cookie is not an emergency. Yes, you can tell me if the cat is on fire.

3. Remind husband of when he can disturb you while you work. No, thats not an emergency either. Give me a back rub after Im done working and well talk.

4. Chase cat out of home office.

5. Clean up dishes from around computer. Take to kitchen and remind everyone they are supposed to eat in the kitchen, not the office.

6. Get cat out of office chair and put outside.

7. Get toddler out of office chair and send to Daddy. Close office door.

8. Hear toddler pounding on office door. Find teddy bear tucked behind computer and give to toddler.

9. Start working.

10. Hear kids arguing in hall just outside your office door. Remind them to be quiet for you. Try to get them to stop telling you their side of the story. Send kids to husband for mediation.

11. Take a deep breath. Get back to work.

12. Husband knocks on door to ask when dinner will be ready. With great restraint, remind him that its his night to cook.

13. Try to remember what you were doing. Start new project when you cant figure it out.

14. Toddler comes in covered in paints. Older child follows, saying he didnt either leave them out. Yell to husband to give toddler a bath.

15. Find paint all over your paperwork. Do your best to clean it.

16. Main phone line rings. Answer because husband is too busy giving toddler a bath. Tell friend no you cant watch her kids for her tomorrow. Remind her that you do WORK at home.

17. Answer call that beeps through on call waiting. Tell mother-in-law no, you arent interested in the outside the home job she just heard about. Yes, you are earning enough working at home. No, it isnt just a hobby. Explain you are working and cant talk for long. Hear all the reasons she thinks you need to find a different job.

18. Retreat back to office before kids realize you arent in there.

19. Get some work done fast while the getting is good.

20. Soaking wet toddler comes charging in and demands you help dress her. Try to send to Daddy. Calm toddlers tantrum as she insists she wants MOMMY to do it. Decide dressing her is faster than trying to calm her down other ways. Send clothed toddler back to Daddy.

21. Try to get settled back into working.

22. Hear smoke alarm go off. Dinner must be ready. Take a break and get something to eat with the family.

23. Head back to work. Find out you missed the call you had been expecting. Call them back.

24. Computer crashes. Wait for it to reboot.

25. Realize you hadnt saved the file you were working on. Autosave didnt quite get it all. Try to remember what you had been doing.

26. Realize your internet connection isnt working. Try to get automated tech support to give you a real person.

27. Kids come thundering into the room for bedtime hugs and to ask for a story. Take a break and enjoy.

28. Chase cat back out of office.

29. Find out cat walked all over your keyboard, deleting half your file and inserting random text.

30. Toddler has to go potty and wont let Daddy help. Once thats done, help toddler back to bed.

31. Peace and quiet at last. Get some work done before you fall asleep.

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Most work at home moms start home based businesses because they want to be home with their little ones. And I was no different: I left a great corporate job to be around my two children.

But then, you put a lot of work in your business, and it works! Yes, you are getting orders, and making some money, but the flip side is that you dont have as much time for your little ones. How do you then balance your time? Do you still put your children first? Or do you go for the “just a minute honey!” line and hope they can’t tell time?

It happened to me: one day, during my first Christmas season in business, I was busy with an order for 150 gift baskets. It was hard work, and stress was running high. The deadline was approaching, and I had no time to stop to even straighten the room.

There were boxes with product everywhere, there were empty boxes, and there was gourmet food everywhere: a true disaster area! And just then, my 4 year old daughter (now 11) came to me with her big brown eyes in tears: “Mommy, I am bored and I am lonely… Can we play a little?” What could I do? I was alone at home with her, and if I stopped to play, there was no way I could finish my order in time.

So, I thought quickly, on my feet, of how I could play with her and work at the same time. And I came up with the idea of building her an office right next to mine out of used/damages boxes. She was ecstatic! And SHE did all the work! I told her where to go and get the boxes, and made room for her by me desk. She built a desk, improvised a chair, and even had items to sell in her store.

With that in place, I was able to continue my work uninterrupted most of the time. She loved watching and copying me: when I picked up the phone to talk to a customer, she picked up her imaginary phone. When I needed to make a basket, she made one of her own. When I calculated the price for my baskets, she picked up a pencil and calculated her own prices.

In time, her office evolved: the old, damaged boxes were replaced with actual wooden drawers. Inventory I wasn’t able to sell became her store’s inventory. She even got an adding machine, and a couch. Now, her office is her favorite spot to play. And it’s not just an office anymore: it’s an entire building with different shops. She has a restaurant, a bath and body store, a book store, and a toy store.

The store has helped her in many ways:

- she learned about maintaining and ordering inventory
- she learned about phone etiquette
- she learned addition and subtraction
- she learned organization skills
- she learned to be creative (little bits and pieces of ribbon, irregular baskets, empty containers have become great assets to her business)

Could YOU be using your business to teach your kids business basics while having fun? I am sure you could. Just take some time and think how your situation can be used to plant some business seeds in your child.

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