Streamline Your Morning Routine To Get Out The Door Faster

It’s that time of year again, when we all begin examining our morning routine to see what could help us get out of the door easier in order to smooth the transition of back to school.  So, what can we do differently to help prevent the rush that seems to overtake us on a daily basis again this year?

Plan, plan, plan.  You can’t expect your morning routine to go smoothly when you have no plan.  Morning is not the time to make a decision on what you are going to wear or haggle with your ten year old over why mini skirts are inappropriate for school.  Make it a habit to pick out everyone’s clothing the night before when there is time to iron out any differences.

But don’t stop there.  Go ahead and lay out socks and shoes and any needed accessories.  Make it a daily policy to go over any papers your children have for you when they arrive home from school rather than when they are leaving for school.  Make sure you have taken care of giving your children lunch money and snack money.

Deal with breakfast after dinner to keep your morning routine on track.  As much as you can, prepare for the morning meal the night before.  Lay out bowls and spoons for cereal or plates and forks for waffles.  You can lay out daily vitamins and glasses for orange juice or milk.  Whatever you do at night is that much less that you have to do in the morning.

Get up on time.  You cannot expect your morning routine to go smoothly if you don’t get up in enough time to follow it.  One step to getting up well is to get in bed early enough the night before.  Your kids need more sleep than you do but they are not the only ones that need rest.  It is important to get your own seven to eight hours of sleep to start your day out own.

Image Credit: Our Kids