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Do you want to have a productive days as busy moms? Waking up before the kids might be the solution. This can lead to a better sleep at night, and can help you keep your cool with your tiny humans too!
Change your next morning, and your day will change as well. You’ve probably heard it before, and with good cause.
According to a 2012 research published by the American Psychological Association, “morning person” is happier, more productive, and report feeling healthier. Not only that, but the study from Tel Aviv University suggests that repeated habits might help people feel less anxious.
To fuel their high-performance days, highly successful people have perfect morning routine that they swear by. Morning meditations have been acknowledged by Oprah as a game-changer. Arianna Huffington has a gratitude and yoga practise in the morning.
Payal Kadakia, the creator of ClassPass, says she has made it a practise to read an inspirational quotation every morning.
Morning routines aren’t only for “them”—the ones who have it all—success, time, money, or whatever “it” is that you think you need first to form habits that will benefit you.
I used to brag about how well-organized my daily routine was. I really enjoyed the mornings, when I could meditate, go to the gym, and linger over breakfast with no worries.
This was, of course, prior to the birth of my first child. He wanted to be held all day when he came, but he detested the baby carriers I had.
So I took him in my arms. In the palms of my hands. Throughout the day.
I’d set him down to prepare a sandwich for myself at noon, we’d both cry loudly, and then I’d drip mustard on his head while trying to eat fast with him in my arms.
The remainder of the day went in the same direction. My to-do list was regularly pushed to the side in order to make more time for all the mom things.
Although things improved as my children grew older, my days as a stay at home mom are still unpredictable. As a result, my morning time is much more crucial than it was before I had children. I’d even go so far as to argue that having a morning ritual is necessary.
Here is how you can create the best morning routine and enjoy a few minutes of quiet time before getting a great start to an awesome day.
See also: 10 Reasons Motherhood Is Joyful
Why You Need A Morning Routine
It’s Quiet
If you want to be alone before having children, you can just step into a room and lock the door. You won’t have to worry about someone coloring on the side of your couch if it’s silent.
I don’t know about you, but between the hours of 7 a.m. and 10 p.m., my house is virtually never silent. Boys are arguing, chatting about Minecraft, or requesting assistance with a project. I get some peace and quiet before the madness begins if I use early mornings for quiet time.
You’re More In Tune With Your Reactions
There’s a purpose for the expression “waking up on the wrong side of the bed.” The way we start the day frequently affects how the rest of the day will go.
Being a mom entails a lot of reacting and responding to what other people require. Taking advantage of the time before others need you to clear your thoughts and do the things you truly want to do will allow you to respond gracefully when they do.
I know that I have a miracle morning with my children when I have time to wake up and get myself together before the kids wake up.
It’s Time To Do All The Things We Don’t Have Time To Do
The truth is that we don’t all utilise our time as effectively as we might. However, as mothers, any time we do find during the day is in grave danger of being disturbed.
Waking up early not only provides us more time to complete our goals, but it also helps us to make the most of that time by working without distractions.
Getting up early allows us to engage in stress-relieving activities such as exercise, meditation, or stretching. It also allows us to work on projects that are solely for our benefit, making us happy.
Extra time in the morning for getting the to-do list completed is part of a good morning routine.
See also: You’re A Great Mom, Especially If You’re Doing These 16 Things
Get Clear On Your Morning Routine (And The Kids Too)
One of the most useful things I’ve discovered in our house is not allowing children to leave their rooms until we arrive. This where Toddler Sleep Clocks come in really handy.
Requiring your children (but not newborns) to stay in their rooms until a particular hour accomplishes several goals.
- It motivates children to sleep later since they know they won’t be able to start their day as soon as they open their eyes. This avoids the dreaded 5:30 a.m. alarm clock becoming a habit.
- It keeps the kids from getting into mischief before you wake up. When you are sleeping, it is not safe for your children to wake up and walk around the house. It goes without saying that kids might be harmed, walk outside, and attempt a variety of dangerous activities. Requiring children to remain in their rooms until a predetermined time is beneficial. you can utilize a sleep clock for that.
This solid routine, along with a few others (including some early tidy-up routines that the kids perform on their own), keeps our mornings on track. Things get chaotic when we wander too far. We may start our days in tranquilly if we take simple steps in our habit stacking, even if they vary on a regular basis.
Preparing For The Morning, The Night Before
To have a productive morning routine, think about it the night before to set yourself up for success in the morning. Do something the night before to improve your morning, whether it’s configuring your coffeemaker, placing your exercise clothes right next to your bed, or cooking breakfast in the crockpot.
You can plan clothes for yourself and your children. Making your meals the night before saves you time in the morning. Sit down and consider all of your daily tasks; are there any that can be completed the day before (or, even better, batched out over the weekend to prepare for the entire week)?
Preparing for the day ahead of time might help you save time in the morning.
For me that means starting a load of laundry and knowing exactly what I’m making for my kids lunches in the morning are one of the first thing’s I think about and do! All mom morning routines will look different.
Going To Bed Early
I understand how tempting it is to stay up late after the kids have gone to bed, catching up on Netflix with your husband. However, the earlier you go to bed, the simpler it will be to get up in the morning.
I like to stick to a simple bedtime routine to ensure I get a good night’s sleep.
Find Something Enticing To Make Mornings Exciting
If you have something to look forward to, getting up early will be easy. Perhaps you prefer to sip your gourmet coffee in the mornings while reading a book for a few minutes.
Perhaps you sit and write in your diary while watching the sunrise. Perhaps you should just stretch quietly in the dark. Give yourself something to look forward to in the mornings, and you’ll be happier and experience good mornings.
Get Hydrated
Drinking 70 ounces (half my body weight in ounces) of water every day is one of my regular rituals. When I get up, I like to fetch a glass of water and add some lemon to it.
It motivates me to achieve my goals, helps me wake up, and makes me feel fantastic, and of course leads to a successful morning. After the hours you’ve spent sleeping, your body is dehydrated. Hydrate. Dehydration, according to research, reduces alertness and attention.
Try Affirmations
I enjoy setting a positive purpose in the morning. Our ‘thinking’ brain may find affirmations corny, but our lizard brain just hears us repeating positive phrases and believes them.
Simply repeating the phrase “today is a beautiful day” might make you smile and put you in the mood to enjoy getting up early. I know it sounds like positive affirmations are only for morning people, but you can become like these people too with a little but of practice! You can write down your affirmations in a book like this if you like as well!
62 Important Affirmations For When Motherhood Is Hard
Don’t Check The Phone
The majority of us feel the temptation to check our phones as soon as we wake up. But, have you ever find yourself aimlessly browsing through alerts or social media while you’re in a rush to get dressed because—oh, look at the time—you’re in a hurry to get ready?
Checking your phone first might sometimes lead to the false impression that there are more items that need your urgent attention than there are.
Avoid answering the phone first thing in the morning until you’ve reviewed your top priorities, meetings, and activities for the day. Keep track of your time and devote it to the activities that are most important to you. Some alerts can be ignored.
Get Kids Involved
One of the most useful things I’ve discovered in our house is not allowing children to leave their rooms until we arrive.
Requiring your children (but not newborns) to stay in their rooms until a particular hour accomplishes several goals.
- It motivates children to sleep later since they know they won’t be able to start their day as soon as they open their eyes. This avoids the dreaded 5:30 a.m. alarm clock becoming a habit.
- It also keeps your children from getting into mischief before you wake up. When you are sleeping, it is not safe for your children to wake up and walk around the house. You might not even notice they’re awake if they’re quiet and you’re a deep sleeper. It goes without saying that kids might be harmed, walk outside, and attempt a variety of dangerous activities. requiring them to remain in their rooms until a particular time limit has passed
This routine, along with a few others (including some early tidy-up routines that the kids perform on their own), keeps our mornings on track. Things get chaotic when we wander too far. We may start our days in tranquilly if we stick to our habits, even if they vary on a regular basis.
Getting Started With The Right Tools
Clock: If you’re not someone who gets up naturally early, you’ll need an alarm clock. This is a gentle choice if you have the room to yourself or if your partner will be waking up soon. It gradually illuminates the room to gently wake you up, and when it’s time to get out of bed, it plays natural sounds or the radio.
A fitness tracker with a vibrating alarm is one choice if you need to get up without waking up your companion, this is quite a gentle vibration though and I sleep through mine (FitBit) all the time.
This Bluetooth speaker headband, which connects wirelessly to your phone or tablet and allows you to go to sleep with a bedtime meditation and wake up with your own customized alarm, may also be of interest (my husband LOVES his!)
Coffee: Coffee enthusiasts will appreciate the convenience of a programmed coffee maker. It’s a bit easier to get out of bed when you know there’s a cup of coffee waiting for you. This research even claims that smelling it might help you wake up before you take a sip!
Cute Journal: Maybe this is just me, but I love my journals (I’ve collected them for years) and I like to have one just for my morning routines and thoughts. If you want to know how I use my Erin Condren Life planner I have a post on that here.
What To Add To Your Routine
Important Tasks
It’s simple to stand up and putter. We check our email, go down a rabbit hole, and before we know it, small ones are screaming for us from the bedroom or rushing downstairs. Determine your top task for the morning as part of your evening routine, and do it first. This is one of the best tips out of this whole list!
Workout
I used to run absurdly early in the mornings before my kids woke up and before my husband got ready for work when I was preparing for my marathon. I reasoned that if there was an emergency, my spouse would be able to wake up and manage it while I was out on my morning run. I was out and back most mornings before anybody noticed, feeling awake and productive.
Journal
Julia Cameron recommends that everyone create Morning Pages, a type of free-writing practise, in her book The Artist’s Way. This type of writing is particularly beneficial in the morning for clearing your mind of all the clutter. As you write or type, you could discover things you’re worried about, new answers to issues, or a daily to-do list.
Make Kids Lunches
Sometimes it’s easier to make kids lunches when the kids aren’t in the kitchen trying to add different snacks or take stuff out of their lunch boxes while you’re making the lunch.
My kids make their own lunches at 5 and 7, but I still like to monitor the snacks they take to school. I love to make breakfast for everyone in my morning alone, and I feel like a lot of moms do this in the morning too.
Mom Morning Routine For Moms With Very Little Kids
You’re in the thick of it as a mother. I’m aware that your tiny monster is disrupting your sleep. Only you can tell if getting up early is feasible, or if it’s something you should attempt again in three months.
Some mothers are able to perform incredible feats with their newborns. With a new baby, I didn’t have much of a morning ritual save changing his diaper and placing my boob in his mouth.
You’ll make it through. You’ll fall asleep once again. You’ll be able to regain some control over your morning routine checklist.
You Don’t Need A long Routine
How much earlier should you get up each morning than the kids? The short answer is that it depends.
How early you need to get up is determined by how early you went to bed the night before, how much work you need to get done, and how much alone time you need to be a happy parent.
It was really worse for me when I used to get up two hours earlier than the kids since I got into a deep work zone and had to quit. That irritated me. I also got really tired in the afternoons and there just isn’t time to get a little extra sleep in my day so it was kind of a nightmare.
After a while, I learned that 30 minutes in a typical morning routine was much better than 2 hours for me, so you’ll have to figure out what works for you.
One of the reasons I indicated before that we should prioritize the most critical activity is that we no longer have control over our time.
Being a mother means you never know when you’ll be interrupted. You might just get a few minutes of your morning ritual completed before your early risers ask for your help with something.
Make the most of your time, and remember that even 10 minutes of peace as part of your morning routine, done regularly, may add up to a lot.
