I’m trying so hard to get ahead of the chaos that having a large family brings but I also know that there will be days. Days when NOTHING seems to go right, days when EVERYONE seems to get up on the WRONG side of the bed, days when NOBODY wants to listen or behave … the list could go on but I think we all get the idea.
One thing I’ve been trying hard to do is to get up a little early. I did this before and somehow fell out of the habit yet again but this is one habit that I am really trying to bring back. This starts by making sure that I get to bed at a decent time. This also means that I’ve really been trying to make sure that little Miss sleeps in her own little bed instead of wallowing all over me and Daddy in our bed.
I need a little bit of calm, a little bit of time to devote to myself and what I need or want to get done to help prevent Mom burnout. I have had a hard time not feeling like I’m being selfish but it’s really not. This 30-45 minutes gives me a chance to refresh my patience and get my thoughts together before I am bombarded with so many questions that I can’t even think straight. It feels like someone ALWAYS needs me for something.
I am thankful that we have our routines because the house does run on autopilot for little spurts here and there right now but definitely not as smoothly as it could be running. I also know that part of this could be because we have been sick and on an extended break from school so getting back into routines can be a little tricky. We also have a HUGE MESS in part of the house which can make anyone feel a little anxious as they walk past it because we all know that the project is getting closer to completion which means we will be dealing with the MESS sooner rather than later.
April 21, 2016: Take a peek into my morning
I am thankful for the mornings that I do get to spend a few minutes of quiet time doing things that I want to do versus doing things that I MUST do. I might work on a Bible study, the menu plan, the grocery list, school plans, my blog, or read a few pages from a new book. Some of these things might not seem very peaceful but they are when I can fully concentrate on them without worrying about why the baby is crying or about what the dog is barking at… or what that loud CRASH was that I just heard.
One thing that I’ve been doing to promote this habit is to set the coffee maker up at night. We have a small Keurig that has been trying to go out on us but we also have a bigger Bunn that was gifted to us. I’ve been setting up the bigger coffee pot so that Mr. Awesome can make him some coffee to go in the mornings and I can grab a cup to bring back to the bedroom. That way I can sit at my desk to work or read or I can curl up in the bed if Little Miss wants some snuggles. Sometimes I will watch YouTube on mute with the captions on when she just wants some snuggles.
We were just gifted an automatic coffee maker with a clock… FANCY! I’ve had coffee pots similar to this one before and they were AWESOME but I’m kinda liking the Bunn right now. We do go through quite a bit of coffee in the mornings so I may just set up both of them… that way we have plenty of coffee for everyone to go around first thing in the morning. Maybe if I set the automatic coffee pot for a little earlier than we actually get up then it will help us wake up? The best part of wakin’ up is Folgers in your cup… right?
Biblical Womanhood Bible Study
When I go into the kitchen I try not to turn on the big overhead light as I have taught my kids that the light being on means that it is OK to be up and about… that’s not what I want them to do while I’m trying to have a little quiet time though. Instead, I try to use the smaller light over the kitchen sink. Right now we have a couple of kids who are sleeping on the couch while we redo the bedrooms so they seem to wake up no matter which light I turn on but they have been quiet when they get up so that is nice.
I do have my desk set up in my bedroom for now but I’m not sure that I really like its location at the moment. It won’t fit in my closet like I had for one of my previous setups but maybe in the future we can set up another little ‘War Room‘. I really miss that closet sometimes.
My desk is a mess but it is a work in progress… every day I try to tackle a small pile and work through it. I’ve also been on a mission this month to throw away or donate at least 10 items a day. It’s been going pretty good and most days I exceed the amount so I know that we are making progress. I think about these kinds of things during my quiet time as well as things that I would like to work on for myself and my family.
I think it is important that we have a few minutes to ourselves every day, maybe even a few times a day. Sometimes I will try to take a few minutes when the baby is napping and the kids are outside playing… that doesn’t happen every day but I am grateful for it when it does. I don’t get my quiet time every morning either but I am grateful for when I do because I do feel better when I have had a few minutes to myself.
Successful Mornings Start with a Good Night’s Sleep
Some days go better than others because sometimes I don’t get to bed until later than planned or little Miss is sick and just wants Momma to hold her all night. There are other nights that I just can’t fall asleep no matter how hard I try. There are a million excuses that I could use to stay in bed a little longer but I’ve really been trying to focus on the reasons why I need to get up and have my little bit of quiet time.
The biggest reason is for my FAMILY! I want to be the best mom, wife, teacher, and whatever else I need to be on any given day that I can be. I don’t like losing my patience with kids or starting my day out worried about things that I have no control over. By taking a few minutes in the morning, I can spend a little time talking to God and a little time making a plan for the day. It helps me feel refreshed and brings me a sense of calm that I need to get started. This may not be the way everyone feels but it really does help me.
I hope everyone can carve out a few minutes of their day… morning, noon, or night… to have a little quiet time for themselves. My quiet time is over for today as I hear my herd of elephants trampling to the kitchen in search of food… they really are that LOUD!
Have a blessed day!
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