I have plenty of early mornings and late nights. I like to keep as much of my “work” in the morning down to a minimum if it’s possible.

With two kids who start school at the exact same time on opposite sides of town,  (both will have buses come and pick them up), I know that I will need to be up and out of the house and at the bus stop with the two of them no later than 6:30 am.

Related: 5 Things Every Child Should Do In The Morning

Here a few ways that I ensure that I have a smooth morning.

Make a plan.

A month ago as we began to approach the start of school, I went ahead and enacted our morning routine. It takes 21 days to make something a habit right? It takes a few weeks for something to truly become a routine for you. With young kids, it’s extremely important that you establish some type of routine as soon as possible.  I knew that having to shuffle the kids out the house in different directions was going to be a major task; so it was imperative that I locked down some type of plan early on, and started to work on making sure our mornings were fuss and stress-free.

Prepare as much as you can on Sunday evenings

I always get my kids clothing situated for the week on Sunday nights. Sunday is also the time where I can sit and do my girl’s hair for the week as well. This allows me more time in the mornings to deal with other things that may come up; such as missed paperwork that needs to be signed, making breakfast, or extra hugs (because who doesn’t love hugs?).

This means getting as much of our breakfast for the week prepared on Sundays as well. One of my favorite things to prepare is muffins. They are quick and easy and can be frozen.

Another great way I start my day is I substitute regular creamer in my coffee with Horizon Organic Grassfed Milk. You may wonder how this milk is any different from other types, but I promise once you taste it, you will definitely notice the difference!

Related: 5 Things Successful Women Do On Sundays

Know your kids (and you)

This is a no-brainer. But when I say know your kids I mean really know them. For instance, my son takes forever in the bathroom, so I wake him up a 45 minutes before I wake up my daughter. This allows him time in the bathroom uninterrupted. Then at 5:45 am I can then wake up my 4-year-old get her cleaned up and dressed, and fix her a quick breakfast (something small because they will eat breakfast again at school no matter what), and walk them to the bus stop. By knowing and understanding my kid’s habits this allows me to plan our mornings more effectively. This also cuts down on us rushing and causing myself or my kids to become frustrated because everyone is trying to hurry and get out of the house.

Establishing a solid morning routine is key to making sure that your kids start their day off right. Not only that, but it instills in them the importance of being prepared ahead of time.

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