Our Morning Rhythm
Hey Loves!
I just posted a YouTube video on our mostly-daily routine and I thought I would share some deets here.
First, if you haven’t already, read this blog post on why it is called a “rhythm” or “routine” and/or check out this video.
Now to our mornings…
You should know I can never predict when my kids will wake up. I would say the window is anywhere between 6:20 and 8:15. There’s no rhyme or reason and, to date, how consistent I am on the routine of their days and bedtimes has no bearing effect. So our routine is as follows:
Kids wake, potty, get dressed, make their beds. (Yes, my children make their own beds and do other chores)
My husband basically keeps them away from me so I can finish my morning routine. (More on my current one later. The basics of it can be found here.) During this time, they read, talk to their dad, make goals for the day, and play quietly.
Then my husband or I, depending on time and availability (my husband works for an international company so sometimes they have meetings or trainings at like 7 a.m. EST to accommodate everyone) makes their breakfast.
After breakfast is when I take over. My morning time rhythm with the kids consist of reading a page of this book, learning or reviewing a prayer from this book, morning baskets and outside play.
A note on morning baskets: If you haven’t heard of this concept, I will do my best to explain it to you. A morning basket is typically a varied lot of books and activities that families do together, stored in a basket. These activities are mostly completed in the morning. With that said, a morning basket can be any time of day and include anything you want.
Our morning baskets are fun thematic learning games that all of us enjoy but don’t’ necessarily want to add to our designated learning time. These themes can range from Valentine’s day to dinosaurs to knights and dragons to Shark Week.
Our morning basket activities are about 20 minuets max. This year we are using the monthly theme packs from Let’s Play School FUNdementals and I am over the moon as this will cut out so much research and prep time for me while providing fun, interactive activities for my kids.
After morning baskets, because it’s summer, we go outside. Then some reading, a snack and onward we move into learning time.
Now, depending on time, other appointments, etc., this can change. This is why it is called a rhythm- so when schedules change, as they will, we can meet the schedule change and easily fall back into the rhythm. In the fall and winter our outside is later in the day because of cooler temps. A slight change in the rhythm is way easier to get accustomed to than a constantly changing schedule.
This routine also helps us all feel safe by knowing what comes next and especially helps me not get overwhelmed or stressed by a schedule, because no one needs that.
What’s you rhythm or routine?
Love you. Mean it.