S top dreading the stressful start to the day and start taking control of your mornings. A few simple tips and tricks will turn the morning craze into smooth sailing. Plus, when you have a stress-free start, the rest of the day just seems to go better.
Create morning rules.
Just like you don't let kids eat dessert before dinner to ensure they eat well, set rules for the morning to keep things moving. For example, no TV until all morning tasks are completed. For teens, smartphones and other mobile devices must remain on the kitchen table until they are ready to go.
Select a week's worth of clothes Sunday night.
Instead of choosing outfits the night prior, supersize your time-saving efforts by doing this task just once on Sunday night. Involve kids in selecting their clothes for the week so they feel empowered in their choices. Then hang entire outfits in the closet or stack in one drawer dedicated to weekday wear. When mornings come, kids know exactly where to find the day's duds. Bonus: you don't have to worry about midweek laundry.
Sundays = meal prep.
Make a week's worth of healthy lunches on Sunday and put them in the refrigerator. This way lunches are ready to go and you'll know they're healthy. For breakfast, make it easy for kids by setting out healthy cereals they can prepare themselves or have fresh fruit sliced and ready to top yogurt or cottage cheese.
Pack backpacks the night before.
Create a routine and set alarms.
Avoid the morning panic by packing homework, lunches and school projects into your kid's' backpacks the night before. Have them at the front door and ready to go.
Create a morning routine and stick to it. For example, kids wake at 7 a.m., eat breakfast at 7:15 a.m., get dressed and ready at 7:30 a.m., then out the door by 8 a.m. And if the kids need to share a bathroom, set a daily bathroom schedule with alarms to keep kids on track and avoid arguments in the morning.
Have a family organization centre.
Have a chalkboard, cork board or calendar in the kitchen or mudroom for notes and family schedules. This ensures everyone knows where they have to be for the week. Starting your day stress free means every day begins with a good morning. PEIL
Get ready before waking up the kids.
Trying to ready yourself for the day while helping the kids is a recipe for disaster. This is why waking before the rest of the family really makes mornings happier. Try getting up 30 minutes before the kids so you have time to get ready and enjoy a cup of coffee. You'll be fully awake, much happier and can focus on helping the kids stay on-task.
FALL 2017 pei-living.ca
47
Made with FlippingBook interactive PDF creator