Time to reboot your morning routine
Time to reboot your morning routine
(ARA) – The beginning of the new school year means busy mornings for both mom and the kids. We rush out of bed, shower and get dressed, wake up the kids and give them breakfast, and make sure they catch the bus on time. The routine may be chaotic, but it gets both you and the kids on track and helps you stay on schedule for the rest of the day.
But no matter how well-organized we are during those first weeks of school, just when we think we have our mornings under control, autumn activities kick in. That means an even busier schedule of school, after-school lessons, club meetings, sports practices and homework. With the holidays just around the corner, it’s only going to get more hectic.
Registered dietitian Mitzi Dulan is a nutrition and fitness expert and mother of two busy, active girls. She understands how difficult it is to stick to the morning routines we kept during the first days of school.
“As the fall season rolls around, children begin participating in sports, music or other extra curricular activities,” she says. “They may need additional gear or school supplies. And as the cool fall weather kicks in, we need to put away the summer and early-fall clothing and make sure everyone has new clothes for the colder months ahead.”
As carefully as we had planned our morning schedules at the start of the school year, she says, “with so much more to pay attention to, suddenly we find it harder to stay on track. Now is a good time to get back into good habits and to start new ones.”
If you’ve fallen off your morning routine, here are some tips to climb back on:
1. Do as much as possible the night before. Make your kids’ lunches. Give them their baths or showers. Check homework and other school-bound material. Lay out the next day’s clothes. Load backpacks and book bags, and sit them by the door. Set the table for breakfast. Get the coffeemaker ready to perk at the push of a button. Leave as little to do in the morning as you possibly can.
2. Wake up a little earlier. Set your alarm 15 minutes early to build in a little cushion of time to make sure breakfasts are eaten, shoes tied, and teeth and hair are brushed. Take a moment for a quick inventory: Does each child have his or her lunch money? Do they have the sports gear, musical instruments or other items that will be needed for after-school activities?
3. Don’t skip breakfast. Kids can be thrown off schedule easily, especially when it comes to eating breakfast. Make it easy for your child to start the day with breakfast by providing items that taste good and provide essential nutrients. A quick, nutritious way to start the morning is with Carnation Breakfast Essentials drinks. Each serving has two times the protein of an egg and two times the calcium of a standard 6-ounce cup of yogurt, plus 21 vitamins and minerals.
4. Avoid distractions. Turn off the TV, the radio, electronics, cellphones, and hand-held games. The morning is busy enough without electronic stimulation. Check your voice mail and email before everyone else gets up, or put it off until the kids head out for school. Not only can you get more things done, but you can actually spend important family time together at the breakfast table.
5. Set up a neighborhood “walk pool.” If there are several children in your community who take the same bus to school, there’s no reason for each child to be accompanied by his or her parent every day. Talk to your neighbors and set up a schedule to take turns walking a small group of kids to the bus stop each morning. It will bring the neighborhood closer and give everybody time for an extra cup of coffee.
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