The last time I was back in the office working was 11 months ago, right before circuit breaker started in Apr 2020. This is my first full week at work back in the office and it has been quite the adjustment. I have to take into account transport time, office attire, higher level of ambient noise with colleagues in discussions and on calls. And I have to spend the entire day in the city from morning to evening. This made me more tired at the end of each work day, reduces the amount of time I can spend with my family and restricts me from helping out with housework and errands.

On the plus side, it has been great catching up with my colleagues and having more collaborations in the office. I don’t feel so alone while working at my job because I get to have the social interactions that makes my corporate work more interesting. Going forward, it looks like I will be spending one full week back in the office every month (25% work in office and 75% work from home) for now until it becomes every alternate week (50% work in office and 50% work from home). Not sure how I will feel about that when the time comes.

Anyway, my wife is on a more flexible work arrangement at her job and only goes in a few days every alternate week (20% work in office and 80% work from home). She can actually choose a 100% work from home arrangement if she wants to but prefers to go in for now to catch up with her colleagues and go for appointments in the city. This flexibility is going to be important if we decide to have another kid. It can be exhausting going into the office to work while pregnant and I would rather she work from home then instead.

• 

In the meantime, from Mon to Thurs every week, we put our son at my parents-in-law’s place during the day to be looked after by family. This ensures he continues to be in a positive environment that he can play in and enjoy, while being taken care of by people we trust. If we are working from home, we get to focus on our jobs during the day. And it allows us to go into the office together if we have to. The good thing is that we still get to spend time with him in the morning and evening without being exhausted from work. From Fri to Sun every week, he’s with us (even when we are working from home on Fri) so everyone get a nice balance of time with him during the week without overdoing it when he becomes too much to handle.

It has taken us a long time to get to this point and things continue to change with new challenges & difficulties arising all the time. So we just have to keep adapting to the situation as a family. On a side note, I can’t imagine going back to what corporate life used to be like with us working in the office full-time. This flexible work from home arrangement has made corporate life more bearable especially when we have a family. Gives you more time to spend and be present with them without being distracted by work stuff. Hope it’s permanent and stays this way.

It has been an eventful week for my wife so far. The major restructuring at her bank that has been going on for a few months was weighing on everyone’s minds. The outcome was finally released earlier in the week and I’m happy that it has been a positive one for her and the colleagues she’s close to. They went into the office to take the calls with their managers and went out for celebratory drinks in the evening after work.

It’s a relief for me to know that my wife still has a job. I will find out more details about the nature of her role, grading and pay after she gets the offer letter. This good news came at the right time as we are in Dec and the last month of the year is usually a time of festivities and celebrations. I can proceed with more certainty on our plans for the next 2 years to rent a 3-bedroom apartment, put our 1st kid in childcare, possibly have a 2nd kid and perhaps buy a bigger property.