Bluebird Chic ambassador Crystal Livesay of The Ardent Storyteller shares her ideas for establishing a morning routine that will have you feeling refreshed and your creative spirit refueled.
Contrary to what this article is titled, I am NOT a morning person. I always dream I will be but getting up in the morning is a struggle every single day. However, I have learned that some good morning routines and habits have helped me so much to feel refreshed and refueled, especially with a house full of kiddos. I am going to share with you some of my morning routines that you can implement as well to help you renew your spirit!
Ideally, I get up before the kids. It is really hard for me to feel refreshed when I get up to a million questions and wants and needs. If it is quiet and I can be alone with my thoughts, it works out so much better for me and my day, and then the kids in turn.
Like a large group of people, I start my morning with a coffee. I cannot even function without it. Even if coffee isn’t your drink of choice, taking a few minutes every morning to just sit in silence and enjoy my quiet time. I don’t really do anything while drinking my coffee. Definitely do not open emails! Once you open your email, you start to get into work/organize mode and then you start your day with pressure and stress…at least I do when I open my massive, overflowing, never organized inbox. Just grab a drink and head to somewhere quiet to enjoy your drink.
If I am lucky, I still have some time and the kids are not up yet. I like to read at least one chapter of something on my list. It doesn’t usually take too long and it gets me into books and doing something just for me. Sometimes it is a fiction book. Other times it is non-fiction. Could be something I am reading for work, or it could be something I am just reading for fun. A chapter doesn’t usually take very long and I feel so much better having gotten my head into a book at least once that day!
After enjoying my coffee and book, I usually go out onto the porch or walk through the yard. This isn’t a long process…just 5 minutes or so. I get a feel for the weather of the day and I usually do some praying and mental prepping for the day. By this point I know it’s just a matter of time before the kiddos come rolling out of bed so I am just getting an idea about what our day looks like and trying to be grateful because I found that starting each day grateful, improves my mood by like a thousand percent!
Now that my head is a bit clear and I am feeling grateful, I sit down and with a quick list pad or my planner, I work on my daily to-do list. Just writing them down helps me to prioritize what is coming for the day, what will for sure need done, and give me just a general idea how the day looks. I am going into the day with a full plan and visual. Of course, you have to be open to impulse during the Summer especially, but knowing for certain what things will most definitely be happening and where you have wiggle room makes the day much less stressful for me. Sometimes Dad gets home from work and has other plans in mind, so I definitely write my list of to-dos with the understand that anything could change. Plus this gives me a reason to use all the adorable notebooks and list pads that I have collected over the years!
As the kiddos start trickling up I feel much better and more refreshed to start my day with them. Usually, this whole process only takes about an hour. I don’t wake up with the sun and spend 4 hours doing all these amazing things before the kids get up. It is just a small amount of time that helps me to mentally prepare and refuel my own cup before I have to start pouring into everyone else’s.
What are some things you guys do to start your day that help you set the tone for your day?! I would love to hear more ideas!
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