Staring my mornings off on the right foot has become especially important for me when I transitioned to this role of mom. Before I was a mom, I remember rolling out of bed moments before I had to leave for work. That does not work for me these days.
So each morning, I have more or less the same morning routine. I wake up around 5:30 or 6. Once I wake up, I grab my phone and scroll on social media for too long. When I finally get out of bed, I head to the kitchen to make my coffee. While the coffee is brewing I drink 12 oz of water (because Mattie James told me to). I grab my coffee and one of the books I am reading (full list of books here) and head to the porch. I start every single day on the porch.
This is my ‘me time’. This is my time as a woman. I spend so much of my day wrapped up in the throws of my mother role, and this is time for me to just be me.
When I became a parent, I read the book Bringing Up Bebe, and realized the importance of remembering that though I became a mom, I was still a woman, a person, with needs and wants. I was and I am deserving of my needs and wants. I try to start off each morning, remembering my identity as a person, not just as mom.
What happens if I go off my morning routine?
I notice, I am usually less happy and less productive throughout the day. I feel like if I don’t get my ‘me time’ in the morning I am a less patient parent. It’s as if I spend the rest of my day fighting for my space. And if you know anything about an almost four year old and a one year old, finding space for myself in the day is a near impossible task.
My morning routine gives me my sanity. Without it, I genuinely don’t know how I would get through the day.
Do you have a morning routine? How do you start your day as a parent?