Managing Morning Madness

How to Make Your Mornings Move Smoothly

Getting your kids ready for school before you've had your morning coffee and while they're still sleepy can quickly turn pretty crazy if you aren't properly prepared for it. There are several ways you can navigate morning madness without going crazy and even possibly avoid it all together. Between making breakfast, getting yourself ready, getting the kids ready, packing lunches, helping with last minute homework, trying to prevent post-morning mess (what your kitchen looks like after everyone has eaten and left), and putting the finishing touches on that project at work... you've got a lot to do. Here are some ways you can decrease and even eliminate morning madness.

Plan ahead.
Fail to plan, plan to fail. That should be your mantra. Think of all the things you need to do in the morning the night before and get as many of them done as possible. This means packing lunches the night before, having your kids lay out their clothes for the morning, and even picking out your own clothes for the next day. This can also mean putting things you want to remember right by the door. Nothing is more frustrating than having to turn around because you've forgotten something.

Be an early bird.
One of the best things you can do to be prepared for the morning is to get up early enough. Wake up early enough to give yourself time to get completely ready before you wake up the kids. If you're totally ready you won't be running around the house at the last minute looking for that missing shoe. If you're ready you'll be able to focus on getting the kids ready and even making breakfast.