Making a choice to stay at home after having a baby is not an easy one for most women. It means an immediate reduction in income and also somehow means that you get taken for granted by your family. However there are women who make this choice and find that life changes drastically for them. The first few years pass by in a haze, as the little one needs all the attention he or she can get. After the child starts going to school, most mothers find that they have a lot of time on their hands and start getting frustrated as boredom sets in. They soon realize that rejoining the workforce is not easy, as they have lost out on experience, which is vital for any job. So what can they do? Here are a few options that could get them started on a new career, while at home!!
 

Web Designing

These days with Computers and the Internet being the buzzword everywhere, an IT career could be one answer to women who want a change and the freedom to work from home. Rather than becoming a hard-core programmer, a course in Web Designing, which almost all institutes offer today, could help them design web sites from home. These days one comes across enough advertisements in the newspapers asking for freelance web designers. Designing logos, visiting cards, Desk Top Publishing are also options in the IT field. Of course, these options require a creative bend of mind. 
 

Magazines

Just the other day I was reading about a lady, Mona Sharma, mother of two children, who started her own magazine - Siliconindia, a technology magazine geared primarily toward Asian Indian professionals, covering issues of importance such as immigration, mentoring, and the tech and business communities as a whole. Another success story is of a lady who combined her newly acquired web skills along with her cooking skills to become an online expert on French Cuisine for a popular Web site.
 

Catering

For women who find the world of computers intimidating, there are other options. Those who have a flair for cooking or baking could cater to parties (or small groups to start off with), or bake cakes on a made-to-order basis. A bit of marketing needs to be done initially by calling up people and informing them about your business, or by placing ads in local newspapers.
 

Classes 

Conducting classes is another alternative, and there are quite a few women who conduct classes at home, some of them music, some related to art and craft while some others impart culinary skills. This leaves them with a lot of free time as classes can be scheduled according to one's convenience. 

If teaching is not your forte, you could pursue alternative careers like helping others with party planning, telemarketing… all of which leave you with plenty of time at your disposal.