I was excited to see that Crystal over at Biblical Womanhood is doing a “Back on Track Challenge,” as that is just what I need right now! Ever since Thanksgiving, my daily routines (such as they were!) have been messed up, what with Christmas preparations, extra activities, and vacation. So, I am really looking forward to getting back on track! The first assignment for the challenge is to establish a morning routine (and stick to it!). One of the gifts I received for Christmas was Shopping for Time, by Carolyn Mahaney and her daughters (the Girl Talk bloggers). It’s just a small, easy-to-read book, but I’ve found it to be extremely helpful and encouraging. The second chapter is about joining the “5 AM Club” (aka getting up early). This is one of my greatest struggles, so it was a pretty convicting chapter. :) Anyway, it is something I want to work toward. I know I won’t be getting up at 5 am right away, but 6 am would be a good start! Incidentally, the Mahaney ladies are currently doing a series on their blog that is adapted from Shopping for Time, if any of you want to check it out. Lots of good stuff there!!
Here is what my morning routine will look like--for now, anyway. I also need to figure out where/how to work in exercise. I’m looking at doing it before bed rather than in the morning, but that may change.
Morning Routine (hopefully to start around 6 am each day):
1. Get up/shower/get dressed
2. Wipe down bathroom
3. Quiet time/prayer
4. Breakfast
5. Unload/reload dishwasher
I plan to start this routine on Monday, as this week has been more for resting up and trying to get back in the groove, plus it works out better (for me, at least) to begin a fresh start at the beginning of a week. I’ll try and post my progress once a week for a little accountability. Anyone want to join me? :) I'm also curious: What time do most of you ladies get up? And do you have a specific morning routine? I'd love to know what works well for you!
4 comments:
I've been attempting some kind of workable schedule/routine for the last month or so. These posts have been an encouragement and a good "kick in the pants". It's easy to get sidetracked and to make excuses. I CANNOT make the 5 am club just yet! Marcus still gets me up twice a night to nurse and I know that I would either be a bear or a zombie if I tried to get up that early. I do try to get up by 6:00 if it is doable.
Morning Routine -
1. Nurse Marcus and put him back down. May throw in a load of laundry.
2. Start coffeemake - MUST HAVE!
3. Bible Reading and prayer
4. Michael up at 7ish
5. Read with him until 7:45
6. Breakfast prep./Eat at 8:00
7. Clean up from breakfast, nurse Marcus, brush teeth, get dressed for the day, read a chapter in Proverbs to the boys (I've been convicted recently that I should be reading not only good Christian books but God's Word to my kids, whether they "get it" or not).
8. 9:00-11:45 Playtime, Reading, "School", Outside, DVD or 30 minute video on some days, may get some cleaning/baking done depending on what day it is - I don't have a set time to do all these things, I try to leave some wiggle room for some fun and creativity:).
- Marcus naps from appx. 9:30-10:45 each morning.
9. 12:00 - Lunch - then, starts our afternoon routine which I will not bore you with;).
This is what has been working for us for a while. I guess that when you are home all day without a car (I'm not complaining), setting up a routine and sticking with it is pretty easy. I'm not a spontaneous person - I'm flexible but I like my predictable routine. I know that my boys like to know what is coming next too:).
Rachel, I'm with you on not being able to do the 5 am club yet! Josiah still wakes up at night to nurse too. I am fine with it (I actually enjoy having him snuggled in bed with me . . . but still, I end up more tired than I would be otherwise!)
I love how you have time scheduled in to read to Michael. I should do that with our kids sometime during the day. We do read together, but I don't have a block of time really set aside for it. Great idea on reading from Proverbs to the boys, too. Thanks for sharing what works well for you!! :)
Not that my schedule really compares with yours, but I have to be at work by 7 am every day so I am always struggling to get up early. I shoot for 5:30 but usually stagger out from under the covers around 5:45. I have become the master of quick showers & multi-tasking. I also spend several minutes before bed laying out all of my clothes, packing my lunch (& sometimes dinner, too if it's a two-job day), etc. Another trick that helps me is to choose all my clothes for the week on Sunday & iron them all & get them ready to wear. Obviously, my devotions wait until afternoon or evening & if I exercise it's later in the day, too. I have discovered that if I run or do a really intense workout later in the evening it sometimes really messes my sleep schedule up. It can be hard to get it all in, but there's always tomorrow! Good luck with your new routine!
I'm not sure how helpful my comments will be, as I am far removed from the time of life you ladies are dealing with. I was nowhere near as organized as you when my children were small. Somehow I did manage to get quite a bit done, though. One thing I always did was to make sure I got up and had my shower and got dressed before my hubby left in the morning... even if at some point I went back to bed (and that often happened), I was showered and dressed at least. Just that one simple habit put me more in control of my day.
In the "if I had known then what I know now" department, here's what I would do differently. Have an evening routine which includes laying out my clothes the night before and cleaning up the kitchen the night before. I do both of these things now and although they sound like small things (esp. the laying out of clothes) they do make a big difference the next morning. I also try to remember to get the coffee maker all set up with coffee and water the night before. That way, the first one up in the morning need only push a button to start the coffee going.
Even though I'm older and have a household of only adults, I too have need of a "Back on Track Challenge" right now. My life got far out of whack over the holidays.
I know that I need structure and discipline in my life to accomplish all that God would have me to. My ideal morning routine begins something like this:
1. Shower and get dressed.
2. Swish & swipe bathroom; make bed.
3. Muffin and coffee. (I'm always hungry when I first get up.)
4. Prayer time. (I find that if I read my Bible first I'm just too late with my prayer time and will not find enough time to pray before things start happening. And I really, really want to commit my day to God in prayer.)
5. Bible reading and study.
6. Planning the rest of my day -- this includes checking my menu plan to see what's for supper so I can plan accordingly.
From there, I move on to housework and work on my Sunday School lesson for the rest of the morning. I will check my email then too.
Thanks for posting about this challenge. Just making myself stop and think about my morning routine has been helpful already.
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