How do you start your day?

[floiejo2]

So I'm having a hard time getting into a good "routine" in the mornings. On days that I just hit the ground running, like showering first thing, getting girls dressed and ready, breakfast, and then schooling, I get more accomplished. But that really only happens like 1-2 days a week....maybe. I'm soo not a morning person and have recently had to give up coffee completely because of an ulcer. I work until midnight 2-3 nights a week and the mornings after that are rough, so I gradually pull myself out of bed, sit around trying to wake up, slowly get breakfast, get girls ready, and maybe shower and get dressed. Most of the time on those mornings we're not starting our schooling until 10 or later and it's just scattered. Then I may shower by noon, maybe. Then if I have to go anywhere it's just hard to get it all done.

I guess I just need to make myself get up and get going, but oh man is that hard! So what do your mornings look like?

[pigpokey]

She is so young. Here she would be Pre-K eligible. I think starting at 10am is fine. How long do you go?

Math and reading here does not take that long, plus whatever else I teach that day. Most of DD's (K eligible, hs'd for 1st) school time is on her sports teams, dance classes, Girl Scouts, music lessons, etc.

Remember, there is no need to re-create school schedules because 1:1 instruction is much more efficient.

If you really want to pressure yourself to get going early, I'd say ... play monopoly or parcheesi or Yatzee or something like that for an hour at 9am while you drink coffee or tea.

[elizawill]

hi, we don't start school until 10 or after as well... so i have no advice. that's just what works best for us though. i wake up early & play on the computer a little....clean a little. then i usually go for a run. my kids wake up and watch TV, eat breakfast, or just play. when i get back from running (my dh works from home, so they aren't alone), i make beds and then we start school. this has been about 11am or so. we eat lunch at noonish. my son is usually done by lunch time, and my dd has more to complete. if you're not a morning person, i would just focus on routine in lieu of a schedule, ykwim? the only thing i have a sort of "schedule" for (or set time) is for meal times & bed time. i find our routine naturally falls around those things, and when i keep those times fairly consistent, our daily groove usually falls into place. of course, this can't always work on days we are out and about... but all schedules and routines require flexibility for such things, ykwim? anyway. hth. hope others chime in with great advice for you. hugs.

[justthinkn]

If you're not happy with the 10a start time (which doesn't sound awful to me ), are there ways to simplify your morning routine so you can do more with less energy, if that makes sense? Simplify breakfasts (prepare the night before, or once a week), or getting dressed, or have some simple activities on hand for the kids to start with while you drink your coffee... No idea if it would help/be relevant, but I just blogged about simplifying getting my DD dressed - major morning energy improvement for us!

[Mittsy]

I let my kiddo's start "school" whenever they feel like it, which is usually 10ish. We use workboxes here that I fill with at least 6 educational activities per child, so they can start those on their own or wait for me to finish cleaning which is around 10.

[zjande]

Maybe you could shower the night before? I'd never be able to fit showering into my mornings. We have a pretty solid routine. Wake up & I go fetch clothes for everybody (me & all the littles). I dress myself & then them before we even leave the bedroom. Then we all head downstairs. I make breakfast for everybody, then eat mine & drink my tea in front of the computer. I do my usual mdc, blog, facebook circle, then I start getting all our schoolwork together. I write all my 6th grade son's tasks on the chalkboard for him to check off as he does them, & I sit down with my preschooler for a bit. After that I get distracted by housework.....

And I shower before I go to bed. lol

[moominmamma]

We drift into productivity.

I get up, have a warm drink of some sort, tidy the kitchen if necessary, read my e-mail. Sometimes I go for a run and shower.

My kids drift out of bed one or two at a time. They get themselves something to eat and drink. They might read for a bit.

When they want to start schoolwork, they get to it. It works best for me if their schooling time is staggered because I can attend to them each in turn as needed, so the individually motivated gradual drift into it works well for me. They each do 1-2 hours and usually they're done by 1 pm. While they're working I'm continuing to catch of housework and basically multi-task.

How much schooling are you doing with your 5yo? I would think 60-90 minutes would be more than enough. Even if you don't start until 10 I'd think that would leave plenty of time for other things later in the day. So that leads me to wonder if your "late" start is more a symptom of your general lack of motivation, energy and productivity than the cause of it. If so, the answer is not going to be to get started sooner by using a good morning routine, but to honestly and creatively examine your own feelings and expectations and any issues arising from them. Are you feeling like you're running on empty? If so, I'll bet that's the problem, not whether or not you get breakfast on the table by 8 a.m..

Miranda

[One_Girl]

I get up when dd wakes me up then I slowly wake up and have coffee and something easy to prepare (cereal, instant oatmeal, yogurt and fruit). We start our day at about 9:30 or so and then do the things I plan for that day once we get started. When we start we don't stop except to take a break and play for half an hour or so. We do the same subjects in the same order even no matter what time we get to them and that really helps dd and I stay focused once we start. I usually take a shower while dd is working on practice work or during the time she is writing. If I am introducing a lot of new skills and she needs me there to guide her then I have her do an art project and take it then.

Is it possible that you are planning too much? Since you are working with her one on one things should be going faster than they do in public school so you don't need to plan for six hours worth of work. Cutting down on some of the unnecessary work may help you feel less overwhelmed with things. You may also feel fresher if you make the day after you work late a weekend day and the weekends school days. Setting up a calendar to cross off days of the week, and circling the days when there won't be school work to do for that week may be helpful for your kids if that is something you choose to do.

[CariOfOz]

S L O W L Y! I am NOT a morning person and have given up hope that I'll turn into one as I get older The boys get breakfast, I make coffee & they watch a bit of abc kids (like pbs) and I check my email etc while I wake up. We usually get started around 10ISH.. sometimes as late as 11, like if it's a gorgeous day I take the kids outside before it gets too hot Often my 8yo will read a bit of his book to his brother, or they will get out the play doh etc

I don't try to fit everything in every day either! Each day I am to do math with both, one language arts activity with Lucas (he has spelling, reading comp and grammar so we do one on each of the three at home days a week) and either science or history. We usually go history x3 and science x2 per week. And Connor does his reading eggs a few times a week. They both have web based memberships for math & language programs so they do those when I'm cleaning & such.

[TEAK's Mom]

We, too, start slowly. Actually, it's just me who starts slowly. The girls tend to get up and read or otherwise entertain themselves as I gradually attain sentience. Sometimes, I leave them some sort of challenge to work on as I wake up and brew coffee. They especially like cracking secret codes and treasure hunts.

[Mama~Love]

I feel I need to jump right in as soon as possible, otherwise we never get anything done. But, I have a deadline of 1:30pm, as I leave for work then. So, we need to get stuff done in the mornings.

[Shelsi]

We start at 8:30 and we begin with a board game of ds's choosing. If we start after 9:30 the whole day does not go well - it just seems too disorganized and I've discovered that my ds does not have a very good attention span if we start too late. I'm a night owl but the kids wake me at 7 a.m. every morning.

For me, I'm still in my PJ's when we "do school." Then after school the kids eat lunch while I work out, then I hop in the shower, eat my lunch, and then we have the rest of the day to do whatever (by this time it's usually around 1:30 or so).

[craft_media_hero]

We start real slow and easy. We often don't get going til 10, either, and take lots of breaks, sometimes picking up hs stuff later in the day.

We start off with cuddles in bed Then get dressed (sometimes, lol), then breakfast. Often she'll sit and read to me while I'm getting breakfast ready, which is a really nice start. After we clean up breakfast we get right on to our homeschool, usually math but sometimes switching it up. Then we alternate active activities with sit down stuff. Now that the weather is getting warmer, we are trying to eat either brek of lunch outside and do more active sidewalk type school. I'm also intentionally mixing in the Montessori-style practical life stuff when I see she's tapping out on the table work.

[Fairy4tmama]

I work till 10 or 11 three nights a week. I don't end up getting into bed untill 1 at least on those nights because I haven't seen DH. SO I FEEL YOUR PAIN on those days after you work . My work nights are M,T,W so I feel like it helps that they are consecutive. I have recently found a place of acceptance that we are not going to be morning home schoolers, that just doesn't work for us. Mommy absolutely must have 7-8 hours of sleep or I can not be the mom I want to be. So the boys get up between 8 and 9 and watch a dvd or play a video game and then I get up when I can no longer convince dd to go back to sleep usually between 8:30 and 9:30.
So here is what are days look like (Bearing in mind that this is a totally evolving routine)

• DD joins the boys for some media.
• I do dishes and make tea for my self. Once dishes are done and kitchen is kind of tidy I make breakfast.
• TV gets turned off for breakfast and I put on a selection of music to listen to while the kids eat. My kids really linger over breakfast so this can easily last 45-60 minutes.
• After breakfast the kids are free to do what they like sans media
• I clean up from breakfast and get dressed (maybe) then I do a bit of house work/ talk on the phone / TRY and take care of anything that might disrupt lessons/ arbitrate conflicts that arise/ help people find and set up activities/ and occasionally sit with a magazine and a hot cup of tea (I recently gave up coffee too)
• Some times just before lunch I will put on a video of my choosing or book on tape so the kids don't eat each other while I make lunch
• We eat lunch (I am wanting to start some art study during lunch but that has yet to manifest)this is usually around 1 or 1:30
• Then the kids clear the table and wash their hands and face while I wipe said table down and sweep up underneath it
• Then every one picks out books for read aloud and we read for somewhere between 20 minutes and an hour depending on every ones mood and attention span.
• Usually DS2 and DD go play in their room after reading but some times they linger with ds1 and I and "do lessons" with us.
• After reading Ds1 and I work at the table for around 30 minutes to an hour
• So even if we didn't eat lunch until two we are usually done no later then 3:45
• I have to leave for work at five so that leaves me at least an hour to get ready which is very doable for me and I can usually even hustle and get the kitchen picked up and dishes done before I go. Unless we have a babysitter coming I don't really do any dinner prep. If I don't have to work I enjoy the calm of the afternoon
  

I also wanted to add that we have days where we don't get to lessons because we go out to meet friends, go to a class or run errands and I don't feel guilty about it. My kids are learning all the time, lessons are just part of our big picture. I tell my dh, when he worries that we went on a play date or just plain didn't get to it, "Some times we take days off when others are in school some times we work when others are off it all evens out".