My morning routine as a homeschool mom

As a homeschooling mom, sometimes it can be difficult to find time for yourself. It seems like you’re spending the whole entire day with your kids and never getting anything done.

That’s how it felt for me when I first started homeschooling my oldest son. I love spending time with him, but I also needed to get things done around the house and take care of myself.

This year, I decided I needed to have a morning routine that would give me time alone before all the hustle and bustle of being Mom started happening. It’s really amazing what a difference it has made!

Here’s what a typical morning looks like for me:

6 am – I get out of bed, grab a cup of coffee, and read my morning devotions on my phone.

6:30 am – I’m usually done reading my Bible by this time. Now I get a shower and get dressed, including mascara because it helps me feel more put together.

7 am – By this time, one or both of the boys are up, or the dog is ready to go out. I let her out, then start thinking about breakfast.

7:30 am – The boys are awake! We have breakfast, whether it’s something I have cooked that morning or sometimes we’ll have frozen waffles heated in the oven. I normally will eat granola cereal or frozen waffles. (I’m not really a breakfast person.)

8 am – We all work on our morning chores. The boys tidy their rooms, with help from me as needed. I tidy our room and start a load of laundry. (Sometimes I might start the laundry earlier if I have a few extra minutes.)

8:30 am – Everyone should be dressed, teeth and hair brushed, ready to get started with their day! If not, this is the time to get it done.

9 am – It’s time to start school! My youngest son is 3, so he’s doing a preschool curriculum three days a week. My oldest son is 11 and he’s using the same curriculum, but for 7th grade this year.

This is just a quick glance at what I do in the mornings to keep everything (mainly myself) running smoothly. If I have some extra time anywhere in the morning, I’ll try to get some of my main chores done, like unloading/loading the dishwasher, vacuuming, or dusting, whatever is on my cleaning schedule for that day.

None of us, except my husband, are really morning people. We like our sleep! But I have found that having a consistent routine, even for the little one, helps us all get along when we wake up.

Sometimes this routine doesn’t always work out. Sometimes one of us wakes up grumpy or sick. If that happens, obviously the routine for the day may change. For example, my youngest son has issues with ear infections. The day we are supposed to start school this year, is also the day we’re taking him to an ENT to make sure everything’s a-okay in his ears. So school will be postponed a day or two and our morning routine won’t go into effect because his appointment is at 9am.

But as long as we stick to the routine as closely as we can, everything works out well and we all have a great day together! My boys love school. They love learning and are curious about all the things. It’s so exciting that I get to spend time with them while they discover what they love!