More Time for Cuddles in the Morning

Getting my kids out the door in the morning is like herding cats. There tend to be dramas about what daughter wants to wear, and son seems magnetically attached to his bed. I thought that only applied to teenagers, but he is six!  Of course there are some mornings when he rockets out of bed, either because he has a creative project or just because it is the weekend. He loves school, but he just has so much going on in his head that the tasks and timing requires to get there on time are not a priority. And it takes them both about an hour to eat breakfast!

So what to do to avoid yelling, threatening and still being late?  I found that starting the day slow, with cuddles and a chat seems to lubricate the rest of the morning. That luxury requires organisation ahead of time. Here are some ideas:

1.  Make lunches in advance. 
We need seven lunches a week, two days of pre-school for daughter, and five days school for son. In my mind it is as easy to set up a mini production line and make seven as to make just one or two. Thanks to a Tupperware addiction I have enough of their sandwich keeper boxes for seven sandwiches. There are cheaper alternatives, just a matter of preference really. So I whip up seven sandwiches, pop each into its own box, and into the freezer they go. Thus on school mornings, I just pull one out, add some morning tea, and lunch is done.

2. Put the washing on timer

If you like to get your washing dry outside (and why wouldn't you), then hanging it out in the morning is key when you live in a not so warm climate. So I your washing machine has a timer, use it. Put the wash and the rest in the night before, set and forget. That is one less job to remember in the morning.

And of course all the usual suggestions you already know.... Especially the one about getting to bed earlier!

Give it a shot and let me know your suggestions for other tips.