When I first became a mother in 2013, I soon realized there was minimal time left at the end of the day for myself. When my oldest child was born, I was fortunate to take twelve weeks off from work to be home with him. Once I was ready to return to work, we decided it would be best for my husband and I to work opposite schedules. My husband and I both worked in the hospital at the time and worked twelve-hour shifts. Since we worked twelve-hour shifts, we worked three days per week each. It seems like such a sweet schedule, but factor in working opposite days and caring for an infant. My husband also worked the night shift. My oldest child was by far the easiest baby ever. He slept twelve hours straight the week before I returned to work from maternity leave. He took long, predictable naps during the day as well. I honestly can count the number of times he cried on one hand. One year later, I dropped down my work hours to part-time. One less day of work per week was fabulous because I had more time at home with him. That also allowed my husband and I to have another day off together. During that first year, I set some time aside for myself. He was a great baby, but I knew I needed to have something that I would do for myself. Being a natural morning person, I woke thirty to sixty minutes before he did. I would take that time to drink coffee, eat breakfast, and lounge on the couch watching TV. It gave me time to wake up with minimal stimulation. I cherished that time and felt it set my mood for the day.
Then came my second child. You know how I said my oldest was the easiest baby ever? Well, here came my second child to humble me. If there was someone who hated sleep, it was her. When she did nap, they were short. She did not like going to bed as early as her brother. When she did fall asleep, she woke up multiple times. She just flat-out was not a good sleeper. Fast forward to now, we have to wake her up most days, or she will continue to sleep. She did not sleep well for at least the first six months. During that time, I struggled some days with my morning routine because I was tired. However, I continued it because I felt good once I was up and ready for the day. I was still doing the same thing in the morning. I would drink coffee, eat some oatmeal, catch up on a show on TV, and scroll Pinterest. Coffee was still a part of my mornings at that time. I looked forward to my coffee every morning for the warmth.
At some point, when they were both going to bed early and sleeping consistently, I decided to start waking up two hours before them. Let me tell you, that made all the difference. I would write in my planner what I would do with that time. It became a time when I would either do something productive or refreshing. During that time, I enrolled back into school for my Master’s in Nursing Informatics. I used those mornings for schoolwork and could focus on school while the house was quiet. I was still working at the hospital on a part-time basis, so my time at home was precious.
In 2019, I got pregnant with my third. I was still in school and breezing through motherhood. I owe it to all those quiet mornings. When my third was born, we came home from the hospital, and I had to turn in an assignment for school. A ten-page paper included about twenty references: the reality hit me when my oldest had school, my middle school had Mother’s Day out to attend, and I had a newborn at home. It was the time when I struggled the most with the mornings. My youngest was not the best sleeper, and I had school assignments and everything else motherhood-related. The school didn’t stop because I had a baby. I continued to push through those early mornings, and life with the kids started to calm down. I will not provide many references here, but I will let you imagine what happened.
My youngest was born at the end of 2019, and we all know what 2020 was. That year was a big test for me. That was the year that was a total game-changer for my mornings. I struggled to find time to exercise with three young kids in the house. I canceled my gym membership and invested in some home equipment. I started to wake up two hours before my kids, around 5 am. I would use one hour for schoolwork and one hour for exercise. This was refreshing. It set the tone for my day. I also found time at night to read the book “The 5 am Club”. Read this book if you want to wake up early for quiet time, exercise, growth, renewal, or focus. This book made me feel good about my decision to utilize my mornings for myself. It takes some discipline initially, but it is worth it.
Now, I work Monday through Friday. I also have two kids in elementary school and one in a pre-K daycare setting. I have to commute to work daily as well. My mornings start at 4 a.m. I use that time to drink coffee, exercise, gather last-minute items for the day, and get ready for work. It gives me two hours before the kids rise and almost three hours before I need to leave the house. My mornings are very meaningful.