I'm currently a stay at home mom. I was doing cakes before my daughter was born (a little over a year ago). Once she was born I had to take some time off to get used to her and her schedule.

I really want to get going with cakes again but I get a little nervous when I start to think about it. I don't want to neglect her or my husband or the household duties. I plan on limiting the amount of cakes per week that I do.

I guess I just need to hear from some other stay at home moms of little ones (or once little ones) that did this successfully. Also, any pointers would be great!

I am a SAHM of boys ages 2 and 4. There are times its overwhelming, but I've found what works for us! My days are generally dedicated to the boys, no decorating during the day. They are very scheduled, so I baked when they took naps, now I bake while they have an hour of "quiet time." Decorating is done when they go to bed or on Fridays, when my husband gets home I get started, and stop to have dinner with the family. I know from your previous post you're not quite ready to take on wedding cakes, but for me it seems much more efficient to do wedding cakes. One or 2 wedding cakes=1 or 2 evenings of decorating and 1 or 2 deliveries. I would have to do much more celebrations cakes to make a profit each month after paying insurance, etc., and I really think they take more time for the money (more color changes, more deliveries, etc.) I make arrangements for my children when I do deliveries (never have pick-ups, too paranoid of people I don't know coming to my house w/my kids!). And while I love being home with them, I love setting up the weddings and consults--gives me more adult conversation Sorry for the long post, I'm sure you'll work through it and find your balance

Jewel -- you make beautiful cakes! You'll do a great job!

I'm kind of in the same boat. I'm a SAHM and really want to start my own business in the next year or so.

I'm in the same boat as well . I'm a SAHM and my youngest is starting school in September . But i"m with yous on the neglecting them or not having enough time with them .

I presently do it as a hobby , for family and friends . They are always telling to start up a business ... but i'm apprehensive .

As I type, my little one ( 3 in april) is napping in the office of my new cake shop! I started the same as the others, I'd decorate in the evenings after the boys (9 and 2) went to bed. It really took its toll when wedding season hit. It was hard to plan consults when I'd have to kick out hubby and kids all day! Sometimes I'd have 4-5 appointments in one afternoon, and it got to be very difficult.

My shop opened in February. My little one comes with me to the shop, takes his nap here and has toys for when he wakes up. We built the office big enough to have a space for him to play and have a futon for naps.

We stay at the shop until my oldest gets off the bus and my business partner closes the shop up for the evening. If I need to, I can head back to finish some decorating after the boys are in bed. It works especially well since my shop is 3 miles away from my house.

It can be done, but boy does it take time and patience.

I have four boys, ages 8, 6, 4, and 18 mos.

Sometimes I have to neglect the housework for a busy cake week, or send the kids to do something on their own...but my husband helps and he is glad to, because the income helps us out.

I did get a bigger oven and some extra refrigerators, and the refrigerators have locks on them to keep everything safe from the kids, and my kitchen has a gate on it as well. My husband helps with the kids during a busy time (he has a flexible schedule), makes some cake deliveries for me, and takes the kids during a tasting.

So the whole family has to be willing to pitch in and sacrifice some, if you really want it to be a business, but it is tons better than working out somewhere else (I tried that too) on the family.

I'm SAHM too, yeeeeh moms! No, but I clean and cook early so that when my kids are hungry they can eat. I take out the toys and play and make a mess.....mom's baking. lol As for my hubby he works all day and commutes 3 hours a day so he's tired when he comes home and all he wants is to play Texas Hold'em when he gets home. Good for him, gives me time to do some business and make some money. Was that too harsh? No really but it works for me and what works for mom has to work for everyone. By the way my kids are 13/8/1 and everyone helps with the little one. He just chases the big ones around and they don't mind him.

I am a SAHM of a 6 and 8 year old.I have been doing cakes since my first one was a newborn.They have come to learn that Mom is decorating and stay out of the kitchen and they come and peek in once in a while to see what I have created.I usually do my decorating after I drop them off at school in the morning and then again after I get my daughter from Kindergarten.I try to have everything done in the morning so I have the afternoons free to get dinner started etc.Next year I will have the whole day free to decorate as both will be in school all day! In between baking I throw a load of laundry in or fold it....clean up the kitchen and run the dishwasher or make fondant embellishments.I usually clean my house on the weekend and hubby helps me..I do all the bathrooms..he does all the vacuuming etc..Last weekend I had a large order for 400 Easter cupcakes for a school.Each one was piped with green grass and had a little brown nest with 3 chocolate mini eggs in it and I piped lily of the valley and handmade over 600 mini flowers.Everyone helped out!! It was like an assembly line.I piped the grass and the kids set the eggs and flowers..I did the finishing touches and packed them up in clear cupcake containers.It actually went fairly smooth and quickly!! I guess it really is about time management and a little help from the family.It works for us!

I'm a SAHM too; my kids are 9, 7, and 4. I started my business last year, but kept the order taking light at first b/c the kids were about to be home all summer for vacation. Once two went to school all day last fall, and my little one was in preschool, I had some free time to see what worked schedule-wise.

Household duties? I let them slide sometimes. So if the folded laundry doesn't get from the family room coffee table to their rooms (cause I stayed up until 10:30 doing it the night before), they can just get their clothes from the family room the next morning. I love being organized, but I've also learned that the pressure to be Super-Mom/Wife/Caker is only put on me by myself. So I've cut myself some slack.

I like to bake/cool/torte/freeze/clean up at night once they're in bed. Get the "grunt work" out of the way, so to speak. That way I'm ready to decorate during the day on Thursday after a good night's sleep, and my energy level is fresh, and my preschooler stays in school all day until just before the others get off the bus. Thursdays are Cake for 6 hours! Fridays are for finishing up any decorating if necessary. Everyone's schedule and energy flow is different, like a night-owl vs. an early bird.

Don't be afraid to stick your toe back in the water if this is something that makes you feel like yourself again. Adjusting to a new baby takes time and it sounds like you took time to do just that. Kudos! Now take a couple of orders, pace yourself and remember to {breathe} when it seems like things could go more smoothly. Your child will be just fine, you'll still have time for her.

Best of luck to you!

Im a SAHM of 3 kids...ages 4, 2 and 8 months...I find what works is that I can bake during the day....but I never decorate while they are awake...I tried once and it was causing more heartache and I was not able to concentrate...my youngest is crawling and puts everything in her mouth so I have to keep an eye on her.....I wait till they go to sleep..I find only then can I concentrate and not feel like I am neglecting them...I also do all my fondant and accessories a week before (like on Saturday)....I also go to the gym 5 days a week... also, it may sound simple, but I like to write everything needed for the cake and do it ahead of time...eg. decorate cake board....color fondant...etc...that way I can do 20 minutes one night and 20 minutes another so I am not staying up to 1am doing a cake...hope that helps

I am a SAHM of one nearly-3-year-old boy. He is quite a handful sometimes, but he is SO content to just play on the floor and line up his toy cars. I guess I got it easy my first time 'round!

Anyways, I started doing cookies before he was even a month old. I just figured that this is something that I've always wanted to do and if I waited till I had enough time or money, I'd be waiting forever. So, I dove in. It will be 3 years this May and I'm just now starting to do wedding cakes. I did my own and my SILs cake, but I don't really count those.

If you want to do it bad enough, you will find a way to make it work. This might be a little weird, but check out the book, "Who moved my cheese". I read it before I started and there is a great chapter in there about "what would you do if you weren't scared?". I really took this to heart and it might help you too.

I wish you lots of luck and kudos to all you freakin' awesome moms out there doing what you love to do

I think most at-home decorators started as stay-at-home-moms. I left a job I loved for the kids and started cake decorating. I don't regret the decision. The kids learn fairly quickly when Mom needs to work. The stress level goes pretty high. Most of the work was done after they went to bed, so I had many late nights. This worked out well because I am more of a late evening person.

As someone else mentioned, delivering cakes was a way to get to talk to adults! I loved delivering cakes.

I tried to keep at least one weekend a month open for family. Even if we did nothing, there were no cakes, no mess, and a lot less stress. These weekends were considered booked if anyone wanted to place an order.

Good luck. I hope it works out well for you. By the way, cake competitions are a great excuse to get out of the house, meet new people, and stretch your skills.

Michele

Thank you everyone for the encouragement! I am still hesitant to get started. But I'm going to have to get over than because I am making some cakes for friends next Saturday. I have a lot of anxiety about it but I think it is because I haven't done cakes in a while. Wish me luck!

I am a SAHM (my girl will be 4 in a few hours), and I love being able to be home with her. I started my cake business this past year and do most of my baking at night, which can take a toll when you aren't sleeping enough. I try not to bake when my DH is at work or I'll let her "do the dishes - splash in sink). I have a very supportive/helpful husband, I just need to get better at asking for time when I need it. (my goal? To get him to do ALL the baking for me and I'll decorate).

I'm so glad to see so many other women are SAHMs. We get a bad rap for being "lazy" sometimes by people who don't know what they are talking about, but I'm so glad we made the sacrifices we did so I could stay home with my girl. My life is FAR from boring and this is the most important job we will ever have.

Good luck ~

Does stay at home Grandmothers count? I keep all my Grandbabies so their Moms and Dads can work - Everyday (and some into the night) I have 4 kids .. 2.5, 2-1.5's & a 5.5 month old! So my days are mostly CrAzY! I have found the ONLY way is like b4 mentioned .. I do any fondant accents the Sunday b4 coz I usually dont have kidz on Sunday - Bake while their all napping (which usually dosnt happen at the same time .. but If I can, bake then - next day same time start decorating .. then week-ends I only have just one so I can put it all together b4 pick-up!
So I guess the point Im making is it all comes down to TIME MANAGMENT! Find what works for you and the little ones schedule - then schedule yourself around that! Thats what works for us!
Def. not easy most the time but it does help with the stress!!
Good Luck! And happy baking!!

I love being a stay at home mom. I have older girls 19/18 that are now away at college and I homeschool my boys ages 10/7. I worked for many years in corporate america when my girls wre little and I missed alot of their growing up. When we decided to have more children, we decided that I would stop working so I could raise the next child myself. Our last one was a surprise. I have been doing cakes since my girls were in elementary school. It was never a problem. Now my boys enjoy watching me bake and decorate. They even copy me when I make gumpaste flowers by making flowers with their clay. It is so cool. I don't tackle big cake projects until my husband's days off so he can take the boys to the park or something. But generally, this craft is so part of our life that we have just made it work. Everyone cooperates. good luck. you can do it. start slow. don't waste your talent.
We stay at home moms are special people raising special children who will be more confident, educated and loving members of society.

This might be long, just a warning. I'm a new SAHM baker. I started decorating almost exactly a year ago when I was 3 mos. pregnant. My business exploded when a local caterer started carrying my cupcakes in her shop. I now make 10-12 dozen a week for her alone. I also have a big flaw which is not being able to say no to an order. This has made for many a late night. Sometimes I go to bed at 5am and my son wakes up at 7am. I can usually get 3 slower days per week (Mon-Wed) so I catch up on housework and sleep then. (Like a fireman)

Obviously, that is not an ideal schedule so I have now learned to make all my fondant pieces on my slow days and leave them to dry. I have also started baking ahead and storing everything in our chest freezer which helps. My husband is finishing our basement right now so help from him is somewhat minimal. I rent a commercial kitchen near by for technicality but store everything and do decorations at home. As I was reading everyone's post I was mixing icing and my little guy is having a nap. I understand how you feel about the neglect factor. It's my first baby and he's 6 months now and I just don't want to miss a thing. I sacrifice a lot of sleep for that.

In the last year I have started decorating, had a baby, registered and legalized my business, and I'll be doing my first show in April. I have 3 weddings booked for this summer (one being my sister) and I can't wait to book more. I cannot believe how the business has taken off and I thank my lucky stars that I found something I love to do while being at home with my son. I plan on having more so I know time management has to be a skill I master quickly!

To echo some of the others, it will take patience, hard work, and sacrifice. It is that way with starting any business but if it's what you want to do you can make it happen. Besides, any mom is plenty familiar with patience, hard work, and sacrifice!!

Good luck to you!

Whey! im a SAHM too!! my Little boy is too! but my husband is great, i dont make many cakes , but when i do, hes on hand to watch the little one for a few hours. if ive got a few orders coming up, i make sure everything else non cake related is done a head of time, The house is spotless ( ok so it doesnt last . . . but at least its done haha! ). at busy times i cook 'one pot dishes' like casseroles, that dont take aot of preperation, and can be just popped in the oven till im ready to go. 9 times out of 10 when im busy decorating the washing machine and dryer will be going away too so nothing gets left out really. It isnt that difficult, just carefu time managment and planning! im sure youll do great

I started my business when my daughter was 5 and my son was 7 - they are now 11 and 13, so the business has grown with them! It started out part-time so that I could do most of my work when they were both at school, but it quickly exploded into a full-time business.

Yes, things get dropped (like housework, not family time!). When things got to be too much, we hired a cleaner to come in twice a month to deal with the heavy cleaning that wasn't getting done. Being at home with my kids has been wonderful - I tend to do most of my cake work during daytime hours (just don't work well at night!), so routine and time management is key! Oh, and my slow-cooker is my best friend during wedding season!

There are great to read. Very encouraging.

I have 4-year-old and 9-month-old sons and want very much to be a SAHM/decorator ... some cakes, mainly cookies. It's hard to get the courage for me to make the leap, though, especially now.

Maybe someday.