By Eimear Marrinan, Director of Culture at HubSpot
It’s been said that raising children ‘takes a village’. And until I had my own two girls, Aoibhin (4), and Fiadh (2), I didn’t understand how true that phrase actually was. During the pandemic, though, much of that village is out of reach. With schools and daycares still closed in many locations, and social distancing regulations enforced, the support of family, friends and babysitters I often relied on has been replaced by phone conversations and Zoom meetups. Needless to say, it’s not quite the same.
Parents today are not only juggling the usual chaos that comes with parenthood, but we’ve also been thrown unprecedented challenges — from explaining to our kids why they can’t go outside and play with friends, how to learn through a screen, and why we seem to play with our laptops right now more than we play with them. That’s why this year I find myself incredibly grateful that in a world of unpredictability, there’s one thing that’s stayed constant: the village of incredible parents and families at HubSpot.
Just this week, we were honored to be listed a Best Workplace for Parents by the Great Place to Work organization amongst many companies we’ve all admired for years. The recognition got me reflecting on how critical our Families@HubSpot employee resource group has been this year. With 24% of our workforce self-reporting as parents, it’s a shared space for all things parenting while working at HubSpot. In addition to regular Zoom activities for kids like story time and musical concerts organized by HubSpot, Families@HubSpot has given me community and support at times I desperately needed it this year. Parents at HubSpot, many of whom I haven’t had a chance to meet in “real life” yet, have been there for one another when we’ve needed advice, a place to vent, or much-needed laughter.
That’s why #families-at-hubspot is my favorite Slack channel at HubSpot. It captures the conversations and interactions that truly make this a best workplace for parents in my eyes. The channel has been more active than ever this year as we all navigate pandemic parenting, homeschooling, and whatever the day throws our way. To share a taste of what it’s like to be a parent at HubSpot, here are some questions in all of their glory (and the honest answers) parents at HubSpot asked one another in the #families-at-hubspot Slack channel over the past few months. Hopefully they can help answer some questions on your mind, make you smile, and remind you that you’re not alone in trying to navigate parenting in 2020.
Q: Have you ever felt like no kid in history has been as bad as yours? Asking for a friend.
A: Every third day. Followed by her being the best kid in the world.
Q: Parents of two — how do you do this? We now have a four year old and a 7 week old and it’s like everything is on fire all the time.
A: Two things: 1) You’re doing the best you can. Be kind to yourself and to each other. 2) It won’t last forever.
Q: I’d love to hear some creative non-TV ways to kill time. It’s not yet 8am and we’ve already exhausted Play-Doh, art, and kinetic sand.
A: Bathtub swimming. Put on bathing suits, goggles, and play with bubbles in the bathtub.
Q: My oldest, age 10, is interested in learning a programming language while school is out. He’s done a fair amount of Scratch and wants to try something new. What would you recommend next?
A: Check out Green Foot. It’s similar to Scratch except the programming is in Java rather than blocks. Here is a video intro to the environment with some examples of projects the kids can do.
Q: What’s something your kids did today? Let’s refer to them as our coworkers.
A: My coworker cried when she let our dog (co-FURker? (sorry)) sniff her banana bread and he ate it.
Q: Has anyone with preschool-aged kids explained what’s going on with regards to Coronavirus and why they are not at school, or are you keeping it vague (until you have more definitive information, or something else)?
A: As a parent of a 6 year old and 3 year old, I can say that my oldest understood a lot more than we expected her to (she started talking about ‘the virus’ and telling her brother ‘we just want to stay healthy’). The younger one is really just rolling with it, and is just now starting to understand he may not be going back to school for a while. We’re not pushing it beyond that, at least for now.
Q: Best book recommendations to talk to your kids early about racism?
A: Check out the list of resources for stronger allyship HubSpot put together, which includes a section for parents and kids.
Q: Anyone have tips on transitioning from two to one naps a day?
A: We didn’t force it. For both kids, we kept putting them down for their morning nap and if they weren’t having it, then we’d give up on it and move on. If that continued for a week or so, then we stopped the morning nap altogether. For our older son, that transition happened at ~16 months, for our younger son, it happened more at around 12 months (sadly).
Q: Anyone have tips for finding balance with a (wonderful, brilliant, darling) 3.5 year old who just won’t stop talking? We love our daughter to pieces, and don’t want her to feel like she isn’t being heard or can’t talk to us.
A: This isn’t exactly the fastest nor most realistic solution, but what worked for us was having another child for said child to talk to.
Q: Has anyone purchased an otoscope to do home tests for ear infections? Saving a trip to the doc right now would be nice.
A: My youngest had an ear infection last week and Teledoc was incredibly helpful with getting an antibiotic script in for her without needing a home test or anything like that.
Q: How early can we expect our son to chew with his mouth closed? He’s almost 3.5 and his incredibly loud lip smacking is driving us crazy. What kind of expectations should I have?
A: When I read this I made a mental note to pay attention to my 3 year old at our next meal. She also chews with her mouth open, but she will also say that she can’t talk/answer mid-bite because “at school my teachers say not to talk with food in your mouth.” So, I think this means they could be expected to learn not to chew with their mouth open, too.
Q: I’m just back from parental leave since yesterday. How are you all keeping your partners looped into your calendar with regards to when you must be on a live call and aren’t available for baby’s needs?
A: My wife and I have moved recurring meetings to mornings (me) or afternoons (her, since her team is in Seattle), then blocked off the specific meeting times as busy in each other’s calendars. That way if meetings get scheduled outside our “working” hours, we don’t get double-booked. We’ve also made it known that during our “parenting” hours, our kids may make guest appearances on Zoom. We’ve generally been able to stick to that schedule, with both of us putting in time after the kids are asleep to catch up on things.
Q: Does anyone else have teen drivers? What are some of the top insurance companies for teen drivers?
A: Looks like depending on insurance, most offer teen plans and guides. Also, check out how to keep the premium low in this article.
Q: Any recommendations for a good headset + mic combination that only picks up my voice (and not the voices of screaming kids near me)?
A: The Plantronics PLT series is pretty good. I was outside at a coffee shop with multiple children playing around me and the customer couldn’t hear it.
Q: Anyone have to isolate while at home with two toddlers? I’m waiting for test results and my toddlers cannot cope without me.
A: I haven’t dealt with this personally, but have a family member who did. She found it easier to leave the house until her results were back and treat it like she was on a business trip.
Q: Is anyone else’s child having a really hard time at drop off? My son is 4 and loves school, but for the past week he has been crying saying he does not want to leave us. I know being with us for 6 months straight played a role here — any tips that are working for anyone else experiencing a rough transition back to school?
A: Our focus point was breakfast (kid loves cheerios more than me I think… ). Focusing on heading in to ask his teachers what was for breakfast was our breakthrough that made it all go way easier.
Q: We have a 6 day old girl and we’re struggling to get her to sleep in her bassinet. It freaks us out having her co-sleep with us but also that’s the only way she will ever sleep. Help!
A: I recommend swaddling, a white noise machine or darker room. Those early days can be so tough! Hang in there with the sleep deprivation.
Q: Curious if anyone has a good system for helping their kid stay on their daily calendar? We have a pretty independent 9 year old who is having a hard time keeping track of what time classes are.
A: I happen to have one of my old phones sitting around that is too old to connect to the app store, but runs the native clock app that I use as a workout timer. It connects to a calendar but doesn’t run any games, so it’s a perfect fit.
Q: Finally transitioning our 3 year old twins to their “big beds” this weekend. Any tips/expectations/warnings appreciated! Wish us luck.
A: My sister-in-law has twin boys who just made the same transition. She has found the Hatch light particularly helpful because she can set it to red when they “stay in bed” and to green when they have the “go ahead (to leave bed)”. This has helped them stay in their room and they love that the light changes colors and can associate different colors with different actions.
Q: My 3 year old is suddenly very interested in why we have to work every day. We’ve found a bunch of “Mom goes to work” storybooks, but not many good Dad versions. Any recommendations?
A: I used to tell my kids I go to work so I can buy diapers. That worked well until they were all out of diapers. In all seriousness, check out “When Daddy Goes to Work.”
Read more about Great Place to Work’s 2020 Best Workplaces for Parents™, and to learn more about what it’s like to work at HubSpot and the roles we’re currently hiring for, visit our careers page.
