My Morning Routine as a Stay at Home Mom
Hey there, friends! I hope you had a wonderful Veterans day celebrating all of the brave men and women who sacrificed so much for our freedom! By the time you’re all reading this, I am currently road tripping to Florida for family vacation! Even in the midst of traveling, I couldn’t leave my “Cool, Calm, and Collected family” hanging! I look forward to writing you each and every week (both on Mondays and Thursdays)! In fact, a sweet mama recently asked me to share my morning routine as a stay at home mom, and it sounded so fun that I simply couldn’t resist! I myself love learning what other mamas do for their morning routines, so feel free to leave me yours in the comments below! I hope you enjoy!
I usually wake up at around 7am to the sound of my 8 month old daughter cooing, "Mama," or my 2 1/2 year old son shouting, "Mama, I'm ready to get oouuttt!" Since my daughter usually wakes first, I'll bring her into bed with me, nurse her, read to her, sing to her, and just do all the cuddles together! This is such a special time for me to focus on her growth, awe at her beauty, and have some solid mommy-daughter time! As many second-time (or more) mamas understand...daily finding those special moments with each of your children is super special, and this early time of day is one of ours!
One-on-one time with each child is a great practice. Always leave time for cuddles, even if a short time is all you have! You got this, mama!
Once my daughter’s needs are fully met, I place her back in her pack and play with some books/non hazardous toys, and start to get myself ready before heading over to my son's room! I'll remove his diaper, and put him straight on the potty to go pee. My son is successfully potty trained during the day, which you can read all about here, but I don't have the energy to tackle the nighttime potty training just yet, and I'm fine with that! (As always, I'll let you know on the blog when I hit this milsetone!)
My son and I walk “hand in hand” to the kitchen to get some breakfast and fresh water to bring back to his crib for his “independent morning play time” (which I plan to also implement with my daughter)! Whether you’re a mama with one kid, or multiple kids, I HIGHLY recommend this!! It can free you to do things like: get ready, eat breakfast, devotional, do a quick clean up, work, or tend to your other children while your child learns to entertain himself! It's without a doubt one of the biggest things my husband and I are so happy we've implemented into our kid’s life!
How did we implement independent play time you ask? Since my son was about 9 months old, I needed to figure out a way to keep him busy while I taught online at home in the early mornings for an hour or two! So, when my son would wake in the early morning, I would nurse him until he was full, change him, care for him, and put him back to sleep. I’d place a few books and non hazardous toys at the opposite end of the crib for when he woke. (I do not advocate for putting things in your child's crib. At this point, our son proved to be able to remove items from his face if they were in his way, but every child is different. I also had a camera on him the whole duration of the time for my viewing!) When he woke for the day, about two hours later, he would notice/play with his books and toys, and happily entertain himself for at least an hour!Till this day, every morning when he wakes up, (whether at home, or traveling) he loves to spend at least an hour in his crib (or pack and play) independently playing! Eventually, when he transitions to a big boy bed, I plan to do the same!
Solo play time has sparked endless creativity, independence, and a solid routine for our little guy!
As stated earlier, during this hour of my toddler’s independent play time, I will get ready, brush my teeth, make coffee, devotion (always working to become more disciplined in this), clean yesterday's messes, work on my blog, fold laundry, etc. By this time, my daughter will either be independently playing in her own crib, or with me in my bedroom or living room playing with a bag full of toys which can keep her happily entertained for pretty much forever... (although it seems she’s always getting into something these days, haha!) She also just started pulling herself up to stand! Any other 8 month-er mamas in the house?! These kids grow up so fast!
My 8 month old daughter pulling herself to stand for the first time!
Keeping busy with a good book and “handy dandy” egg shaker!
I was recently asked by a lovely reader what my daily flow looks like? More structured, or more “go with the flow?” My kids and I both thrive off a structured schedule. To do lists! Planning! Routines! I love it! However, within these structures are different options to choose from that allow us for much flexibility, or“going with the flow" which I think is a happy medium! For example, around 9:30am, 10am we are out of the house until we get ready for nap time at 1pm. We can go to the library, zoo, food shopping, a friend’s house, the park, a trail, run errands, museum, doctors appointments, etc. The opportunities are quite literally endless!
During this time on-the-go, my 8 month old will take her first nap of the morning which will last around 2 hours, giving my son and I some wonderfully focused one-on-one time! Once we’ve returned home, it's time for both kids to “eat lunch,” (8 month old nurses). After lunch, it's time for my toddler’s afternoon nap which lasts for several hours! This results in lunch time for me, and some more one-on-one time with my daughter, followed by some more independent play!
One of our special outings to a beautiful butterfly garden! Morning outings don’t have to be glamorous though…They can be anywhere!
Lunch time with a view always! Gotta train them young to “people watch,” haha just kidding! Looking out a window can be much more fun than opting for T.V.
Well, that's what a day in the life of our current morning routine often looks like! Even with transitioning to two kids it stays pretty consistent for us, really helps us get our wiggles out, plus helps find time for ourselves to all “play” independently! If you want to learn how I left the house when I had a toddler and a newborn you can find that here! Again, I'd love to hear what you do for your morning routine? Are you super structured? Go with the flow? Please don't be shy! Share your wisdom with me, and leave it in the comments below! Have a beautiful sunshine-y day!
Cool, Calm, and Collectedly Yours,
