I have heard from moms that they struggle with having some type of morning routine with their kids in the summer. It can be hard to transition from the structured school year routine of fast-paced mornings to the slower-paced “nowhere-to-go” kind of morning.
I can remember when my kids were small that some days it was past noon before we got our act together. Now, don’t get me wrong, there are days when that is great, but make sure you plan to have a “lazy day” at home instead of just letting it happen because of a lack of routine. You will end up wasting a lot of precious time that can be used in a more constructive way.
Kids do better with routine
It is a plain fact. By developing routines that work within your family you are creating habits that will continue to develop for your child and help them customize what works for them. Everyone is a little different, so helping your child find systems that work individually is always a good thing.
Creating a simple morning routine for your family can be just that—SIMPLE! First, jot down the few self-care tasks that need to happen in the morning:
- Eating breakfast
- Cleaning up dishes
- Brushing teeth
- Making beds
- Showering/bathing
- Combing hair
- Getting dressed
Next, determine a good time to expect everyone to be up by. If you want to be more flexible, then do not have a time set and allow everyone to get up on their own; otherwise set a time to get the day started for everyone. If 8 a.m. is good, then determine the first self-care tasks to be completed. Then break those tasks down into time increments and then evaluate your time chart.
For example, it might look like this:
- 8:00–8:30 Relax, snuggle, free time
- 8:30–9:00 Eat breakfast and clean op
- 9:00–9:45 Shower, get dressed, brush teeth, comb hair, make beds
If your child needs more time for these tasks, then adjust it to fit the needs of your family.
If they need less, do the same. Or perhaps if you have older children, like me, I just have a standard time that all these items need to be finished. My kids are old enough to budget their time and get tasks accomplished within the time period I have given them. At our house in the summer, my kids are expected to have certain tasks completed by 10 a.m., unless they have prior approval, there is always that special day where they get to exercise their day to really sleep late! :-)
After you have evaluated the time increments, then post this list in a place where everyone can see it and refer to it. Have fun creating a big poster board complete with pictures if you have children who cannot read.
By setting up an expectation for your children to be held accountable and have some responsibility you will be helping them create routines that will help them do better during the day. Providing just a little structure and routine, even in summer, will create a mom who is happy and less stressed. You won’t be the mom nagging and yelling all morning to ask if everyone has brushed their teeth yet or made their bed before they shoot outside to play.
Providing this routine and consistent follow-through with the expectation will create a standard where your household ends up running itself in the morning—really!
What type of routine works in your home for the summer?
