Stalled project. How to not let this happen.

Oh man, I so need to bookmark this thread... 8 weeks and counting to "baby makes three" and I fear the effect on my projects :(

Gearhead_42 wrote: Oh man, I so need to bookmark this thread... 8 weeks and counting to "baby makes three" and I fear the effect on my projects :(

I have two kids now (one only 2 months old) and my wife and I both made the commitment to each other that our kids would not pull us away from what we love to do, but that we would pull our kids into it with us. It's worked pretty well. I've been bringing my 3-year old into the garage with me since he was still in his bouncy chair. I just make sure that I don't do anything crazy when he's around, like cutting or welding. Or, I'll take something small (like a carb rebuild, or gauge cluster build) into the house.

Don't let kids pull you out of what you love, because it won't ever be convenient to get back into it until they're grown, then it may be too late to get them interested and you won't want to do it anymore anyway. Don't miss out on those shared moments in the garage sharing what you love with the people that you love. Those are some of the best memories I have as a kid --working with Dad in the garage.

I do all of my work in the morning now, or on Saturdays. My wife and I have always gone to bed at the same time, so this is what works best for me, but like has been said, everyone has 30 minutes a day when they aren't doing anything. For the big projects, just give the significant other a heads-up a few days in advance, "hey, on saturday, I'm doing a disc brake conversion on the Subaru and it's gonna take about 6 hours. Is there anything on the honey-do list that needs to get done before that?" Commo is key.

In reply to DustoffDave:

Irish44j seems to have struck that balance as well. He gets more done on his car in a week than I do in a month... And I don't even have kids...

Try living across an ocean from your project...

I feel like I should answer to a few of those who've responded. My kids are 4, 2 and 1 with #4 coming in November. My wife has had a ridiculous pregnancy, and I often give her the night off when I get home from work while I get the kids to bed etc myself. It's very possible to bring a 4 year old into the garage, and when I work on the Lemons car, I do, but It's pretty dangerous to bring three kids into a garage like mine, especially since everything is cutting/welding/sanding. That being said, kid #1 will help with the tranny fluid change extravaganza I have planned for this weekend.