Stopping the Morning Madness

Mornings can be hectic for everyone. It always seems like there is a mad rush to get everything ready for the day, and everyone ready and out the door in time for school, work, etc. However, there are some things that can be done to stop the morning madness and allow a calmer start to the day. Consider the following:

Set out clothes and shoes the night before. In families with kids, this can be a real struggle in the mornings, and can put everyone behind, especially if mom or dad have to pick out outfits and locate shoes for more than one child. So, eliminate this from your morning routine by each evening taking a few moments to locate all of the necessary clothes and shoes items for the next day. Set out underwear, socks, pants, top, a jacket, or whatever else you are going to need. Also, make sure you find shoes for each child and set them next to the clothes. That way in the morning, no one has to spend time figuring out what to wear, or looking for sock matches.

Have a plan for meals for the day, in advance. Nothing puts the brakes on a forward moving morning faster than being out of milk when you plan on cereal for breakfast, or not having cash for lunch money and no bread for sandwiches. So, plan at least the night before what you will eat the next day, and either set out the non-perishables, or money for lunches, etc. The idea is to eliminate as much of the lunch making and breakfast scrounging as possible in the mornings.

Gather backpacks, homework, and other school supplies, and have them set out and ready to go. The morning madness always seems a little more stressful when you are running around looking for that class project work 40% of the grade, that has been misplaced, or trying to locate a backpack that seemed to have disappeared. Instead of trying to fit this into an already busy morning, consider setting out all needed items for the next day at school, the night before. That way you can stay up looking for the project, rather than miss the bus because you are looking for it.

Set an alarm clock, and allow time for mishaps. Being rushed is the major reason for morning madness, so set an alarm so that you get up on time, but make sure that “on time” leaves some leeway for those crazy mornings where everything goes wrong.

Have a routine in place: Sometimes the best way to get rid of morning madness is to have a routine that helps to eliminate it. Your routine should include things like:

1. Who gets to use the bathroom when. If you have multiple kids getting ready in the same bathroom, it helps to have an order for who showers when, and who gets to use the mirror, etc. when.
2. Order of morning tasks. Your routine should cover how you go about your morning, such as shower and then eat breakfast, or eat breakfast and then shower. Routines help keep things on track.
3. Time allotted for each task. There are a lot of things to do each morning before heading out for the day, so having some basic time guidelines will help you accomplish those tasks, and effectively eliminate morning madness.