We’ve all had them…..mornings where we’ve over slept, whether on purpose….”just give me 5,10,30 minutes more,” or on accident…”AACCKK! It’s already 7:30!!” And, because of those few “blissful” minutes, our planned, pleasant mornings turned into rushing, loud voices, and tears kind of mornings! And AGAIN, we were reminded that this is NOT working–we NEED to make some changes!
News Flash!! We’re Not All Morning People
I was NOT born into the “Morning Person Club.” Growing up, and for YEARS into adulthood and family life, I had to DRAG myself out of bed. I did it…I always made it to school on time, and later, got up to make a hot breakfast for my family before I sent them out the door to school, or work. BUT, somedays, I am positive, that if a fire alarm went off, my body would have still been unable to even respond–it was a HORRIBLE feeling!
Maybe I was just lazy-I don’t think so. Perhaps I just had a bad habit-I don’t think so. Maybe this and maybe that, but I just needed to wake up SLOWLY, and THEN I could move and start my day. I am utterly ashamed to even say this… Are you ready?… When we had new babies, I would sleep SO deep, that I wouldn’t even hear when they cried in the night! And if I did hear them, my body just COULDN’T just get up and take care of them–it wouldn’t move! That was a horrifying feeling for a new mama!! Luckily, they had a daddy that could respond to their cries and get up and bring them to me to feed! *NOTE: No babies were injured in this story…they both turned out just fine! 🙂
All that to say: Somewhere along the line….things changed. I learned that if you get up RIGHT away, when you wake up, that you can kind of wake up better! And have better mornings! It’s the going back to sleep for a few minutes that made it SO hard to move and get up. So now, when I wake up, if it’s anywhere near time to get up, I do just get up, do my routine and then sit and watch the beautiful sky (we have a spectacular sky here) while I finish waking up! I am not saying that this list of tips is a cure all, or that it will work every single morning, but, it did make a world of difference in my days!
SO: Here are my 14 tips for pleasant mornings
Here they are…my tips for happy mornings, all in one list! This is, of course, not a set in stone list. We all are made differently, we all have different schedules/needs, but you can make your own version of these tips, and start having calmer mornings!
- Start the night before!
- After supper, make sure your kitchen is clean and ready for the next meal. It is SO depressing to wake up to a sink full of dirty dishes! Remember, the goal is to have a pleasant morning!
- Meal prep–set the table, get out items that you’ll need to make breakfast, etc. Look ahead, do all you can do now, so there is less to do in the am! If there are lunches to make, make them the night before! Set up the coffee pot for a.m.
- Set clothes out, everyone can help with this! Homework should be done before supper, if possible.
- Start bedtime routines early enough that it can also be done calmly, and everyone gets enough sleep!
- Have a LITTLE bedtime snack of protein–think a slice or two of cheese, crackers and peanut butter, a bit of yogurt. This can help your blood sugar stay level in the night, and keeps you from waking up feeling like a train wreck!
- Set your alarm for at least an hour before your family needs to start getting up.
- Here’s the weird and IMPORTANT one: when you are all tucked in, ready for sleep, tell yourself, “I want to wake up at 5:30 in the morning.” (or whatever time works for you.) Preferably this time will be before your alarm. Then, have a good sleep.
- In the Morning
- Do your BEST to wake up, AND get up when you told yourself you wanted to.
- This is the hard part: JUST DO IT! Get your body out of bed as SOON as you wake up, groggy or not.
- Go to the bathroom, wash your face, brush your teeth.
- Get yourself a cup of coffee/tea and THEN go sit in your comfy chair, and wake up slowly and enjoy the quiet!
- This is time to pray, meditate, think on GOOD things. Or to just sit and enjoy the calm before the busyness of the day begins.
- This is NOT screen time. This is not the time to spend time on your phone, catch up on your emails, look at the news or flip through YouTube Shorts. This is not a time to think about all you need to get done that day. This is YOU time. This is quiet time.
- Enjoy! I love to just sit in the dark while I sip my coffee, and wake up slowly. I watch the stars, and then eventually, the sunrise. And then, fully awake, the day can begin….without rushing, without loud voices, and without tears: a pleasant morning.
And now, go plan your evening, so you can have a pleasant, non-rushed morning! Enjoy!
Thanks for coming! Let’s do it a gain!
Good Thoughts
"Lose an hour in the morning, and you will be all day hunting for it."
PHOTO CREDITS: Girl Sleeping: Photo by Ivan Oboleninov on Pexels.com Pancakes: Photo by Beyza Yalçın on Pexels.com
