is anyone a parent?

[par gin]

I recently became a dad and I was wondering how many of you are parents?
If you are, how do you find the time to hone your skills, and is it even possible to pursue a career in Concept Art when you are a parent and have a full-time job?

Congrats on becoming a father!

The only thing that has worked for me is to just kind of go with the flow when it comes to your kid to avoid frustration. My 3 y/o is a force of nature, and if she won't let me work, there's no use fighting it. You can either find time later, or find a way for them to feel involved with what you're doing. She watercolors dora coloring book pages while I work, and all of a sudden, it's painting with daddy.

I was just getting ready to post a similar question when I saw this. I'm 28 in a few days. I got married while still in college. About midway through 2009, my graduation year at SCAD, my wife found out she was pregnant with our first. Not ideal, with no job prospects on the horizon and crap art skills, but still a blessing. Fast forward to 2012, and we've had a second child, I've had exactly zero paying art jobs, and in fact, I'm working nights about 50 hours/week in a car factory. The pay is actually great (comparatively), but the job is a completely unsatisfying, soul-sucking, crapfest. I listen to Crimson Daggers and Feng Zhu youtube videos during my commute. I try to stay away from time-sinks like video games, but reading and movies are good for your imagination. I sketch on breaks, and yes, in the delivery room both times, and I paint whenever I get home for an hour or two. It's just not enough time, and my skills have only improved marginally with all the distractions. Sometimes I definitely feel like my concept art career is screwed before it began, but I'm just trying to keep on chugging.