I feel happy and satisfied that my daily routines have turned my life into a well-oiled machine. Like a machine, I’ve got a job to do, and that is to tend to all areas of my life well. In this Simple Series, I’m going to expound on the key areas that keep this machine running smoothly. I’ve already delved into simplifying working out and meal preparation, so would like to explore some more areas of life organization. Up next is how I’ve found success in my weekday morning routine!
While my morning routine entails completing many tasks, I complete them as efficiently as possible – to the point that my mornings now feel simple. It’s important to me that the atmosphere in my home is calm. When I am running late, the feeling of frenzy builds and builds, and it’s hard to come down from that and get back to feeling calm. Between the stress of traffic, skirting bad drivers, and climbing through a jam-packed parking garage, my mornings already come with built-in hassle! So when crafting a morning routine, I looked at ways that would minimize hassle and frenzy.
Additionally, I am responsible for ensuring that my son feels well cared for and calm. I want him to remember his days starting in a way that is good, not stressful. The best way to achieve this has been to prepare in advance and to wake up on time.
Advanced preparation means that we prepare all lunches on Sunday. At the end of each weekday I take what was prepped and place it in the lunchbox in the fridge. This way, I can just grab the lunchbox in the morning and don’t run the risk of forgetting part of the lunch. I also prepare the coffee maker before going to bed. It took many days of being put further behind by these two tasks that I finally threw up my hands in frustration and forced myself to just take care of it the night before. And, the results have been so nice!
Waking up on time takes a little more personal growth and effort. First, I had to acknowledge the amount of time it actually takes me to get ready, not the amount of time I wish it took! After many (many) days of getting it wrong, I figured out the window of time that I needed to be out of bed, done with getting ready, done with getting my son ready, and walking out the door. Setting my alarm clock accordingly is only part of it! I have to actually get out of bed on time, too. I once had a friend tell me her honest opinion on the snooze button: she hates it! She could not understand why a person would set an alarm for one time, and decided to skip it and get up at a different time the next day. Though I do love my snooze button, I understand the sentiment and acknowledge that she has a point. When you honor time and give yourself enough of it, your morning routine can be smooth and simple.
I’d love to know: what are your life hacks for creating calm weekday mornings?
The Honest Journey 