another day another day another day another day

Ahhh parenting.
In our family we work a lot on routines. Routines keep us doing the things that we know we should without the fight. Theoretically speaking. In the morning, I am not supposed to have to nag everyone to get dressed, make their beds, brush their teeth, and so on. We have discussed and taught the morning routine many times because it seems the most involved and the most important. We have practised it hundreds of times. Many parts of the routines are established and automatic. Mostly those are the things that we began years ago.

Before the institution of the morning routine, every day was a new fight. Number One child hated clothes and socks and had an especially tender head. Getting dresssed was a battle every day. We began practising a formal routine with charts, stickers and rewards at the start of kindergarten. Number One was five and The Little Mother was four. We were homeschooling. Much of the curriculum was personal grooming, chores and routines. Every year we have added things to the routine and it is more the preparation for the day than the day itself. Getting dressed now is easy.

Now the big girls have this routine before they leave for school at 8:10-ish:
Get dressed, make bed, say prayers, eat, brush teeth and hair, tidy their own room and the zone that they have for that week, family devotional. Musical instrument practise seems a little much but some days someone makes a brief attempt.
Big Brother who just turned three follows the leader and has adopted the idea of a morning routine quite naturally. His routine is get dressed and put pajamas away (I introduced the idea last week that three year olds have the special ability to put their own clothes away), brush teeth and make bed with help, and do one chore. (He gets to choose between options such as empty half the dishwasher, tidy the shoes, help sort socks or fold dishtowels.) He doesn't like stickers but sometimes gets gum or stories when he finishes.

One of the valuable offshoots of establishing morning routines for the children is that is has made me more aware of them for myself. I need routines to keep me on track. It is tempting as a stay-at-home mother to start working as soon as I get up: feeding people, tidying up the dishes, helping people with their routine. Shouting "get dressed," while I am still in my pajamas and with bed-head. Now I try to lead by example, tidying up my room and getting dressed even as they are. I suppose that ideally I would dress and shower and exercise before they get up. Perhaps when the Baby starts sleeping.