Morning Routine

Mornings are the craziest time of day for any family.  Whether you have one child or 5, having a routine in place can be a lifesaver!  Around our house, the summer months are full of lazy mornings - get dressed when you want, eat when you want, play when you want - no routine what-so-ever.  And I like it that way because that what summers are for - especially  because I'm not working!
But as the end of August crept closer, I knew that routines had to make a comeback - especially because we had a Kindergartner on our hands.
I found these printable morning routine cards and I really like them.  But they weren't EXACTLY what I needed and I would have to find more wall space when I already had something that would work just fine.  Remember the Chore Chart?

These are the magnets that we had on WAY back in February, I changed it so that it would better suit our morning routine - the most important part of my day and the kids.
So every morning looks a little like this:

7:00 - Wake up daughter and get her eating breakfast.  She doesn't have time at daycare before the school bus comes.
7:15 - Daughter starts on her Morning Magnets which include: Get Dressed, Make Your Bed, Brush Your Teeth and Feed the Cat. 
While she does her thing (all independently) I go into my Sons room to help him out.
I take off his night time diaper and then pull out today's clothes (shirt, pants, gitchies, socks) and tell him to get dressed.  He can undress and dress himself completely while I do my hair or make my coffee.
7:25 - Son is dressed (mostly), I help him brush his teeth.  Daughter is still usually putzing around.
7:30 - TV goes on.  This is our TV time during the day because we don't have time after school.  They kids watch Bubble Guppies and we even have a routine built into the show. 
7:45 - When the Bubble Guppies start singing their "Line Up/Outside" song MY kids have to line up (not literally) and get on their shoes and their sweaters/jackets.  They can still watch the TV from the porch, but it's time to get ready. 
7:55 - Then by the time the show is over, we just have to walk out the door.
8:00 - Drop off at daycare

What makes our mornings even better?

• Snacks and lunches made the night before
• Coffee maker on timer (I have yet to do this - I keep forgetting)
• Shoes and sweaters/jackets/mitts/toques where they need to be
• Clothes picked out and ready to go (we pick our clothes for the whole week on Sundays)
• INDEPENDENT CHILDREN

I can't stress the last one enough.  My kids are so independent that I can get my stuff done and not have to worry.  Yes, sometimes my daughter is a daydreamer and my son comes downstairs with his gitchies OVER his pants - but for the most part, they can handle the morning routine by themselves and I love it!