Having a morning routine has been one of the most helpful practises for me to be more calm, relaxed and focussed. Which has a positive knock-on effect on all areas of my life, especially my family and my online business. But doing a morning routine around your kids can be challenging to say the least. I've been interrupted during my meditation, reading or yoga many times and had to cut it short or even skip it completely on more than one occasion. The benefits of having a morning practice for yourself are too great though to give up. So stick with me and learn some tips and tricks on how you can fit your routine around your kids so you can still get those amazing benefits that will help you boost your success in any area you want.
My morning routine is based on Hal Elrod's book The Miracle Morning by the way. If you are interested in creating your own routine, I would definitely recommend you check it out.
If you want to learn more about the journal I'm using for my morning routine which is also my daily, weekly, monthly and yearly planner, I've written a blog post about it here:
RETHiNK Planner Review: The Daily Planner to Help You Achieve Your Goals#1. Get Up Early
Getting up before your kids will give you the best chances of getting some undisturbed me-time which will give you the cool and strength to face the craziness of the day ahead. I know it sounds hard. But what I found is, that getting up on my own terms at a time I choose is actually very empowering and therefore easier for me, rather than getting woken up by my toddler at whatever time he sees fit. On the days I get up early by myself I definitely feel more in charge, I am calmer and less stressed. I feel like I can control how the day goes rather than having to react to whatever is thrown at me.
#2. Go To Bed Early
For me, the number one thing to help me get up early is going to bed on time. I really need my 8 hours of sleep to fully function throughout the day. This one is actually my biggest challenge. Once my little one is asleep, it's just so tempting and nice to chill on the sofa with my husband watching movies, interesting things on YouTube or playing video games. I absolutely LOVE these relaxing evenings with him. So much so that I've been really struggling to go to bed at a reasonable time. But there is a little hack that helps me to overcome this.
Behold the Bedtime Alarm!
All I have to do is set an alarm on my phone for the time I want to or rather should go to bed. And then I put my phone far across the room. This has two benefits. First of all, without my phone by my side, it's one less distraction I have to battle before going to bed. And secondly, the most important bit - once the alarm goes off I have to get up from the couch in order to turn it off. (Pick an alarm that's too annoying and too loud to ignore.) The magic is, once I get up, I don't actually feel like sitting down anymore and think to myself that I might as well go to bed now. Problem solved! This little hack absolutely works wonders for me. Try it out and let me know in the comments if it works for too. :)
Oh and, putting your alarm across the room also works amazingly well in the mornings to get out of bed! :)
#3. Prepare Everything For Your Routine The Night Before
#4. Be Flexible
Our kids can be quite unpredictable at times. So even if we've prepped everything, gone to bed early, set our morning alarm, our kids might just decide to get up early. Or maybe they are sick and neither your kid nor you are getting any sleep that night. Just remember, your morning routine is not just another task on your to-do list. It's a habit that helps you feel better, be calm and ultimately be a better parent. If your baby or your kids need you, be there for them. You can try to do your practice or part of it later, maybe when the baby is napping. Or you might decide to just skip it for that day and try again the next day. Which is totally fine too. You could even do a mini routine for days when you don't have time or when you are just starting out and struggling to find any time at all.
Example for a mini morning routine:
- 1 minute of silence/meditation/reflection
- 1 minute of journaling - write down any thoughts/ideas/challenges/wins etc. that linger in your brain. By doing that you will come up with solutions and insights you would have never thought of otherwise. It's also a great way to declutter your mind, just by writing things out on paper.
- 1 minute to say/read out your goals or affirmations
- 1 minute of visualisation practise where you envision yourself living your dream and reaching your goals
- 1 minute of workout like jumping jacks to get your heart pumping and to get oxygen in your bloodstream and to your brain
- 1 minute of reading a book you enjoy or a subject you want to learn more about.
Usually, I would allocate 5-20 minutes for each of these habits so my morning routine would take about an hour in total. But even if you only do these habits for one minute each you will feel a difference and you can gradually increase the time as you go along or as things get better. Just don't give up because of one bad morning or a difficult week. Get back to it as soon as you can and enjoy the benefits it brings to you and your family.
#5. Involve Your Kids
When your kids are older you could actively involve them in your routine. They would probably love doing jumping jacks or a funny dance with you. My little one always wants to participate when he sees me doing yoga. Up to that point that he has pretty much memorized all the poses for sun salutations at 2 years old.
Older kids might enjoy meditating/practising silence or doing breathing exercises with you. They could even say their own simple affirmations like "I am brave." "I believe in myself." "I have a big heart."
Instead of journaling, you could give your kids a piece of paper they can draw on.
These are just some ideas you could try. If you are looking for more tips or if you want to create a morning routine specifically for your kids, I can recommend The Miracle Morning for Parents and Families by Hal Elrod. This book is full of helpful tips and tricks on how you can implement a morning routine and a more peaceful and fulfilled life for your family and your children. It introduces daily practices specifically for kids that can help them become the best version of themselves and be better equipped for the challenges that life brings.
