We are now about a month into the school year, and have been fine-tuning how to get out of the house on time. One of my children started 6th grade this year, so we aren’t new to the school-morning rush by any means, but this is the first year I have two going to school, and in different schools. I know there are others out there who MUST be struggling with this same thing so I decided to share what has (mostly) worked for us!
Bathe before bed:
In our house, we take baths before bed. It would be impossible for everyone to bathe in the morning unless we were up super, super early. I have never been a morning person, and I am also 32 weeks pregnant so even a few extra minutes of sleep are greatly appreciated.
Make lunches:
We make lunches the night before, during dinner clean-up time. I pack lunch boxes with everything that can be made ahead. I DON’T make sandwiches until morning though because I’ve noticed they don’t taste as good that way! Keep lunch boxes in the fridge overnight, but make SURE to leave them open! The same insulation that keeps the contents cool inside, will keep the coolness of the fridge out if they’re zipped shut.At the same time, refill water bottles and label snacks for the next days snack. I go ahead and stick those in their backpacks.
checklist idea
Pack backpacks:
I pack backpacks with any extra clothing they may need (for accidents or dressing out during p.e.) and go through folders to make sure I’ve signed forms/looked over anything that needs to be addressed. Once the backpacks are ready, they go in the dining room to be picked up after grabbing their lunches from the fridge the next morning.
Choose outfits:
We also choose outfits for the next day. This is so important! My son is 11 so for the most part he chooses his outfit. My 6-year-old daughter is another story. She is very picky when it comes to her choice of attire. At night, we have time to look over all her outfits so she can pick what she wants, and I have time to persuade her differently if need be. Most of the time she chooses the frilliest dress in the closet with her dress-up heels ;).
Send lunch/snack money:
Thankfully our school allows us to pay for lunches/snacks online. I like to keep money in their accounts at all times for the days when they don’t take their lunches. I can also check the balance at anytime and use my debit card to reload immediately. If the account is low, I make sure to add more. It is SO worth it to use the online system to add money, so if you’re not sure if its available, ask! It has saved me this school year already.
Breakfast:
My children’s schools offer free breakfast (woohoo!) so we normally don’t eat before leaving the house. When we occasionally have breakfast at home it is something we can eat in the car, like a granola bar, fruit, or a cup of cereal (thanks to my mom for that awesome idea!). I store our snacks in a basket inside a cabinet within the kids reach so they can easily grab from it if they decide they can’t wait for school breakfast.
Also, it helps ALOT if I get myself ready before the kids get up. Everything I do for the kids, I repeat for myself. I have found that on days when I don’t get myself ready before the kids are up, are the days when my son remembers an extra assignment due that day, or my daughter has a last-minute change of heart on her outfit choice. Hopefully, when morning comes, all we have to do is get dressed, brush teeth and fix hair.Then, we stop by the kitchen to pick up lunches and backpacks and were out the door! On days that go as planned I wake up at 6 am and we are walking out the door to meet the bus at 6:45 am. I call that a win!
If you have any other tips or ideas feel free to leave a comment letting us know what has worked for you! Thanks for reading, and don’t forget to click the follow button to stay up-to-date on all my new posts and info. 🙂
We had a successful morning!
A New Sunrise 