The dog needs to go out. The kids are coming home. Whoops, no, those are your STUDENTS coming in. Now, your daughter's clamoring for help with homework. Your husband comes in wondering where supper is, while all the time, you're trying to get your piano student to concentrate on his Hanon. Can the multiple lives of a private music teacher be kept separate when they're kept in the same building, mainly your home? It might take some doing, but it can be done.

If any all possible, designate a room that is YOUR room. This room should be off-limits to anyone, especially during lesson time. If you can, have this room close to your family room or another place away from the main hub of your living quarters, to avoid having nosy students (or parents!) peeking around. I have a study off of my family room. When my students are early or have their parents with them, there's a TV and magazines available. There's a restroom on this lower level just a few steps away. An ideal situation could even be to have a computer set up in this room for a waiting student to work on Music Ace™ or any of the MiBAC programs.

Take advantage of your phone's volume control, Caller ID, and answering machine. Don't answer the phone unless you think it's absolutely, absolutely crucial. I've made that mistake before, only to be caught talking halfway through a lesson, having a tough time getting off the line, then ending up not charging for the lesson because I talked my way through a lot of it. During lesson time, you might consider even changing your message to mention that you are giving lessons. If the same people try to call you during the same time of the week, eventually they might take the hint.

That works great for your students, but taking care of your family is another matter. If your children are fairly young, it might be in your best interest (as a close friend of mine used to do) to pay for a young teen to sit with them, help them with their homework, and in general, be available to give them attention. If your children are old enough, a good sit-down session with them explaining what your expectations are while you're giving lessons should help. Your children should do as much of their homework on their own as possible, with the understanding that you WILL go over their assignments when you are finished. Then keep your word. You might be exhausted, but your kids won't feel like you're giving someone else's children priority over your own. Keep an area of the house available for your children to quietly "recreate" while you're giving lessons, without worry that the house is coming down. If you allow your kids to play outside during this time, make sure to set rules and regulations so you won't have to worry about popping your head out every 10 minutes to make sure they didn't turn the hose on in October or something:-) Allow your students the small amount of time between lessons just to "connect". I let my kids pop in with a question or to tell me about their day before lessons or in between lessons as much as possible just to reassure them that I know they still exist. They've had an exciting day, too, and it's often tough for kids to keep in what's happened with them until supper time.

Speaking of which, make friends with your CrockPot! Most of the teachers I talked with said that meal planning is a must....if at all possible, a week in advance. Some teachers assign certain nights of the week as certain meat days to make planning and shopping easier. I also like to plan meals that can be in the oven for a while on the nights I only have a lesson or two. Then, all I have to do is pop it out of the oven, throw together a light salad, and bingo! If you have the time on the weekends, make a meal, but make a double batch and toss the rest in the freezer. It can be put in the microwave on your busy nights cut down on a lot of time. (Advice: take it out of the freezer the evening before and set it in the refrigerator so it doesn't take as long to reheat).

Patty Krock's suggestions:
I love my crockpots and actually have 3 different sizes.I make baked potatoes in the crock pot. I use potatoes about the size of my fist, wash and dry them, sometimes season or rub a small amount of margarine on them. Then I wrap each one in foil and begin to stack in the
crock. It will take most of the day 6 hours on low or about 2-3 hrs on high. Then we have a loaded potato fixings bar for the whole family to create their spuds. Add a salad or soup and your meal is complete.

The new Prego sauce is fantastic - put one pound box of ziti pasta (uncooked) into a greased 9x13 pan. Pour in the prego sauce and one jar of water into the pan. Stir and make sure all the pasta is covered. Cover with foil and bake according to directions on jar. Add shredded moz cheese and cover another 10 minutes. So super easy.

And how to do handle episodes such as your child coming home sick, the dog throwing up, or other crucial emergencies? Keep your sense of humor, keep the Lysol handy, clean it up, and go on! Sometimes, it helps to make friends with your students' parents. I have had incidents when I've had to cancel at the last minute because of a sick child. Make sure you get emergency numbers from your students, and let them know your policy of you cancelling at the last minute. Mine is a free lesson, because there have been times when I've literally had to turn students away because a child came home sick and I couldn't get ahold of the family.

Finally, appreciate your family! Treat your kids every once in a while, be nice to your spouse and do something out of the way for him/her, and once you work out a routine, things will normally be fine. But, don't take on more than what you (or your family!) can handle. The money just isn't worth it.