Morning Craziness: How to Make your Morning Less Chaotic with Kids
Do you struggle getting your kids ready for school and out the door in the morning?
This is a constant struggle for me!! I have 3 girls that I have to get dressed, feed them breakfast, fix their hair, and make sure their teeth are brushed. Sounds easy enough right? Well you add a crying baby who needs me right away and 2 of my girls are arguing about something, it makes for a tough morning!!!
No matter how early we get up, we always struggle to get out of the door in time for school! I had to make my mornings easier somehow!! After trial and error, I came up with a list of things I do to make our mornings easier!
Want a morning with less chaos?
Start the Night Before
Lay clothes out: This includes accessories, shoes, and socks
Be sure you lay clothes in the same spot every night so that your kids look in the same spot every morning to get dressed. This helps to establish a routine. My girls wear hairbows so I clip a matching bow on their outfit and lay their shoes by their clothes. If your kids pick out their own clothes, make that part of their Nighttime routine.
Make sure all folders are signed and that bags are ready for school
Before my girls go to bed, it is THEIR responsibility to make sure their folders are signed and bag is ready to go and placed by the door. That way, on the way out the door, THEY remember to grab their bag! If your kids are younger, you will have to make sure folder is signed and bag is ready to go by the door.
If taking a lunch, have it ready the night before
My 7 year old makes her own lunch, so if she wants to take her lunch to school, she makes her own lunch and gets it ready. This is part of her nighttime routine. If you have younger children, it will have to be your responsibility to make the lunch the night before. I promise, by taking the time the night before to make lunches, it makes your mornings SOOO much easier!! I usually put a sticky note on the door for my daughter so she remembers to grab her lunch ON HER OWN. Or for younger children, it’s a good way for US to remember!! Too many times we were on our way to school and realize that the lunch is at home in the refrigerator, so I have to turn around and go back home to get her lunch, which leads to more frustration!!
Put a Sticky Note on the Door
I put a sticky note on the door to remind my daughter to grab her lunch! It’s also a great reminder for US…… This sticky note has saved us many trips back home to get the lunch that is still in the refrigerator!
Now time to tackle the morning
Turn on their light 15-30 minutes BEFORE they HAVE to start getting ready
When I wake up in the morning, first thing I do is turn the light on in the girls room. This gives them about 15-30 minutes to wake up on their own and allows me to get ready. During this time, I turn on my girls favorite music to get them stirring! When I rush my kids in the morning, this makes them even more grumpy. I’ve learned that if they wake up on their own, they are not quite as grumpy!
Have a morning routine in place for your kids
Wake up, get dressed (clothes are ready and laid out the night before), brush teeth, fix hair, eat breakfast and out the door!!
Kids get dressed and ready
You have laid out their clothes, so first thing they should do is get dressed with shoes and socks. Once dressed, time to brush their teeth. Once teeth are brushes and before breakfast, go ahead and fix their hair. That way they are ready to go before they eat breakfast!
If you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say it all
This is a rule at my house. If arguing and drama is going to happen, it is at this time when they are getting dressed and ready. I have made it a rule that if they do not have something nice to say, they are not to say anything at all!! I got tired of playing referee in the morning and this rule has helped our mornings go smoother!!
Breakfast
Have Healthy Breakfast options, they can fix themselves
Rule at my house for my 4 and 7 year old…. You can have anything for breakfast that you can fix yourself. They have to be completely ready for school so that they have time to make breakfast. Cereal, waffles, pancakes, or already cooked sausage they can warm up are some things I have. They know how to use the toaster and microwave which makes my life easier. While the older kids are eating is my chance to feed my 1 year old.
If they don’t get ready in a timely manner, then they have to grab and go
If they didn’t get ready fast enough, I don’t give them an option to fix breakfast. They have to grab something to eat in the car like a cereal bar, pop tart, fruit, etc…. This makes them want to hurry up and get ready so they can have the breakfast they want!
Set a Time or have a timer
I like to set a timer for my girls. This gets them motivated to get ready faster! If you have older children, you can give them a time that they HAVE to be ready to walk out the door! Make this a necessity, NOT AN OPTION! They HAVE to be ready when the timer goes off or at the time you have them!
Out the door
Bags are already by the door, the sticky note is a reminder to grab the lunch, so when you walk out the door, there will be no more frustration of having to turn around because of something forgotten!!
Note: Because my girls are old enough to get themselves ready, this gives me time to get my 1 year old ready. If you are getting all your kids dressed, be sure you wake up before your kids to get yourself ready so you can have the time when the kids are up, to get them dressed and ready! You can still get everything ready the night before, which helps for an easier morning!!!
Do you have any tips to share that will help me and other moms have a less chaotic morning? Please feel free to share!
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