WAHM: The Pros and Cons of Working from Home

Are you looking for a 10-step commute? It seems like the best of both worlds and an answer to a dilemma that faces many women: How to balance work with being a mom. Working at home can eliminate the need to make what is often a painful choice, but it takes real diligence, compromise, and patience to make it work for both you and your family.

I was the owner of a successful and demanding retail business when I discovered that I was expecting my first child. Just a couple of months into my pregnancy, I realized that I did not want to leave my baby with a caregiver all day, every day, yet I couldn't afford not to work. I came up with an idea to start my own home-based Internet business. It took a bit of nudging in the beginning, but my husband supported my decision. We purchased a new computer, new software, and a Snugli "hands free" baby carrier. After much hard work, BabyZone.com was born, and shortly thereafter so was our beautiful daughter, Nadia.

For me, working at home was a perfect solution, especially during Nadia's infancy. I was building a company based on the topics that most interested me—pregnancy and parenting—and Nadia spent a good portion of the day quietly asleep in my office. The best of both worlds—at least for a little while.

About the time my daughter began to walk, BabyZone began to grow. The company became substantially more time-consuming, and I just couldn't balance both "my babies" at the same time. I hired a mother's helper and was once again able to work and be a mom; I was still the primary caregiver to our daughter.

My family and the business have continued to grow. My husband and I now have a second child, a bouncing baby boy, and the company has moved into a larger office outside of our home.