Freeing up time After spending all day at work, then tending to your household chores such as dinner and laundry you may feel like all your free time is used up. As a working mother you are probably thinking "When can I spend some quality time with my children?" Don't worry you aren't alone. But we guarantee if you follow our simple suggestions, you'll find an extra 10 minutes in your day to spend with your child or children. Look at how you spend your time. No, really, write it down. Look at a normal day minute by minute. As silly as it seems you will probably find some amount of time (experts say up to an hour) that you are using for tasks, which could be put on hold or eliminated from your schedule. Did you really need to spend 20 minutes refolding and sorting towels by color in your closet yesterday? Do you think anyone noticed that your child's gym clothes were pressed? These examples may seem extreme but we bet you have a few similar habits that could be eliminated to free up your time. And if your self-time examination proves not to yield more time, try these tips: 1) Ask for help: It doesn't mean that you can't do it yourself, it only means you were smart enough to recruit other resources. Seek out a stay at home mom who might want earn a few dollars running your errands or ask a grandmother to bake the class cupcakes you need for the school bake sale. 2) Tag your time: Clearly mark the hours of your day with the subject matter. If you are home, your subject becomes your child. You don't do anyone justice to try to answer work emails at home while playing a board game with your child. Tag the hours after children are in bed for work related subjects. 3) Say "yes" to saying "No": It's okay to say no to some volunteer opportunities. Focus on the ones which benefit your child the most and the ones you will enjoy doing. You'll both get more out of the experience. 4) Four hands are better than two: Look at your to-do list and see if there are tasks you can involve your child in doing with you. There aren't too many 5 year olds who don't love doing "grown-up" things like licking stamps, rolling coins, clipping coupons (even if they are ones you don't need) or sorting laundry into colors and whites. Email this story to a friend