Mundane Mornings

 

How many of you, like myself, are just not a fan of mornings with your families?  Most days, despite my nagging and eye rolls, my kids wake up and immediately want to turn on the TV and just zone out.  Sometimes it's cartoons, sometimes it’s YouTube, and almost always turns into my girls fighting over what they are going to watch while they stare at the screen eating their cereal at the coffee table rather than the dining table, which is a battle I lose every morning because I do not have the energy or the patience to fight it.  I have been rolling this way for too long now and I am ready to try and change.  

 

I have been reading books on how to be more mindful and positive and how I can drastically influence my family and their day just by how I approach our mornings.   Guys, this could change not only mine, but my family’s, whole day!  I HAVE to try. I have to give it my effort.  

How our mornings have been in the past..

-zombie like

-nag infested

-thoughtless

-non-routine

How I would like to see my mornings change..

-encouraging

-positive

-thoughtful

-ritualistic

So here are my thoughts as to how I plan on achieving my ideal mornings.  

First, and foremost, NO TV!  Nothing good comes from that damn thing!  It only drives me crazy and raises my anxiety watching my kids turn into little tiny robots who, without even looking, are spoon feeding themselves whatever cereal is placed in front of them.  I can say their names multiple times when they are in this state of automation and they literally do not hear me. Then look at me like a psycho person when I finally raise my voice and have my eyes open as wide as can be because I am just so annoyed.  Recognizing that we were stuck in this continual habit was a great first step in changing our mornings for the better.

Second, I would like to start a gratitude journal, not only for my children, but for myself as well.  It’s something I have read of before in books and blogs that has an irrefutable effect and a great start to one’s day.  If we all start our day thinking positively and with gratitude, we not only give ourselves peace in our hearts and minds, but we are creating a sense of togetherness.  We, as a family, are working together towards a better and more mindful selves.  

 

Third, creating routine.  But by this, I also want to be sure that we are creating the time to accomplish our morning tasks at each individuals own timeframe.  This means waking up early. So. Freaking. Early. Like 6:00AM early!  But, this will allow us to accomplish our goals for the morning while taking our time and not losing my shit.

Currently, my kids wake up 1 hour before we leave the house.  Only ONE HOUR! This is just setting all of us for failure.  

Here is typically how that one hour goes for my kids.

 Wake up.   Wander upstairs with one thought on the mind, “find the remote”.  Turn on TV. Yell “Mom!” 10 times until she rolls out of bed and demand for your favorite sugary cereal.  Aimlessly scoop cereal from bowl on the coffee table into mouth while staring wide eyed and not blinking at some dumb YouTube video of life hacks involving things you don’t care about and would also never do.  Spend WAY too much time eating. Mom nags to hurry up, but that doesn’t hurry us. 30 minutes have passed. Mom is freaking out now. “Stop eating” she yells, “everyone to your bedrooms. It’s time to get dressed!”  (I do always have the kids clothes picked out, so there is ONE positive with our mornings) We slowly get dressed and wonder why mom is losing her shit. Now time for teeth and hair. Mom nags that we are going to slow and need to hurry up.  Mom is doing hair while we brush our teeth. Now it's time for shoes. “Whatever shoes you can find a match to, just put them on and let’s GOOO!” 

Guys.  This is embarrassing!!!  

I hate this so much.  But I will admit, this is how most of our mornings go before school.  

As the saying goes, “there’s no use crying over spilt milk”.  And I will admit, I have cried. I don’t like this and how our mornings have become. With that said, I have turned my tears into planning. I am acknowledging it and will be working hard to correct this negative ass morning I have been creating for myself and my kids.  

I am going to keep you all updated and hopefully we can all work together to encourage our families, and ourselves, to have a happy, productive, and easygoing morning.  Who’s with me?!

 

Mamas:

How do you start your day?  Is it a chaotic mad rush in the morning?  Have you been able to make changes that help start your day with positivity and mindfulness?  Comment below with your experience and, of course, share your tips to starting your day out on the right foot.