Our Morning Routine

This post was sponsored by Nature Made® as a part of an Ambassador Program for Influence Central.

I’ve always been a morning person. Mornings feel like resets, and I’m always grateful for grace in the form of resets.

How well our morning goes is often pretty indicative of how our day will go. I’m more likely to be productive early in the morning than later in the afternoon or evening, so I crave some kind of routine in those first wee hours that my munchkins and I are awake in order to max out on what I can accomplish.

Having an infant means that no two mornings ever (ever) look the same, but there are a few bits of our morning routine that never seem to change. Hadley always wakes up around 7 a.m. and asks for me to come get her. I take her pull-up off immediately, she grabs “Piggy” (her dearest, nearly shredded rubber potholder) and “Purple” (her beloved blanket) as she gets out of bed, and then walks her cute little booty to the bathroom.

While she’s doing her thing, I fill up a sippy cup half way with milk (so she doesn’t fill up too much before breakfast) and then she always comes running out of the bathroom looking for it. For the next hour she’ll play with her toys, maybe watch an episode of one of her favorite DVRed shows, and hopefully eat a few bites of her breakfast. These days scrambled eggs with cheese, a frozen waffle, “Elsa” (Yoplait) yogurt, a granola bar, apple slices, or what’s left of my chocolate protein shake are all in the rotation, depending on her mood.

If it’s a school day or we need to be somewhere, we’ll go back to her room to get her dressed before heading to the bathroom to fix her hair and brush her teeth. She’s always liked getting in the car and going places, so getting out the door isn’t a struggle for her. She loves zipping her new light jacket all the way up to her neck and carrying her own lunchbox out to the car. Miss Independent.

If Sadie wakes up between 5 and 6, I usually bring her to my bed to nurse her in the dark and then let her snooze in my bed for another hour or so. Once she wakes up we usually play on my lap in the living room or I let her roll around on the floor with toys if I’m tending to Hadley. Around 8:15ish I usually let her get some energy out in her jumper once she’s more awake. Around 9 she’s always ready for a nap, so she often just snoozes in the car on the way to preschool or another morning activity. Her favorite days are quiet mornings around the house when she can play hard in her footed  pajamas and then nap comfortably for an hour or two in her crib; This only happens once (maybe twice) a week. Poor Sadie. #secondkidprobs

As for me, my favorite way to start the day is by getting up before the girls and enjoying my “golden hour”. Jamie always kisses me goodbye in the morning around 5, so half of the time I’m “with it” enough to let my feet hit the floor and start the day.

Or I just fall back asleep or maybe just nurse Sadie for a bit (if she’s up) and then snooze with her for a bit until my big girl is up.

That golden hour though… It’s empowering. In total silence I’m able to shake up a caffeinated drink (I don’t drink coffee but I do enjoy a Spark or Crystal Light with caffeine), take my vitamins/supplements of choice, do some reading or spend time in the Word, and then maybe respond to a couple emails or share my most recent blog post on social media. Yesterday morning I spent 15 minutes reading through a short book given to me by the outgoing commander’s wife called The Green Plate.

Regardless of how relaxed and enjoyable our morning was, those final five minutes before getting out the door for preschool or a set-time activity are always rushed. Hadley needs to use the bathroom one more time. Sadie needs to be topped off with milk and get a fresh diaper. I need to fill my water bottle with water. Teddy needs to go out one more time. I laugh when I think about how those 5-10 minutes have always just been chaos, and probably always will be. 🙂

Regardless of what our morning consisted of, if/where we’re traveling, or what day of the week it is, I never miss taking a few vitamins and supplements as part of a healthy morning start. My family that visits frequently all knows where my little stash is: right next to the blender on the kitchen countertop. My eyes were opened to the benefits of taking a few select vitamins and supplements nearly three years ago after Hadley was born, and this has since become a permanent routine.

The one supplement that I always dash out and replenish as soon as I notice that I’m getting low is my daily Nature Made® probiotic (among a few other Nature Made® products). I’ve tried a couple other brands throughout the last three years, but Nature Made®’s version is priced right and is super easy to scoop up during a trip to Walmart (where I always inevitably go for something at least once a month.) Nature Made® is the #1 Pharmacist Recommended brand for many key dietary supplement categories*

Totally geeking out here, but I can’t spread the probiotic love enough (am I really 28 or 75?) There are a whole handful of reasons why taking a daily probiotic has greatly attributed to my healthier lifestyle. Nature Made® Probiotics: Nature Made® Advanced Dual Action Probiotic has been clinically studied and provides dual support to both your small and large intestine for comprehensive coverage to help support digestive balance and healthy gut flora.†

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*Based on the 2016 U.S. News & World Report – Pharmacy Times Survey.

†These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. These products are not intended to diagnose, cure, treat or prevent any disease.

†These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. These products are not intended to diagnose, cure, treat or prevent any disease.