5 Simple Tips for More Peaceful Mornings

STARTING YOUR MORNING peacefully is the key to a more pleasant day. I've been raising kids for 19+ years and if there's one thing I have figured out, it's that mornings can make you or break you. If it's a rough morning you are bound to have a tough time recovering from it. Bad mornings can turn even the most relaxed, wonderful kids into clinging alien children you wouldn't claim as your own. These are a few of my tried and true tips for more peaceful mornings, use them as you see fit.

1. Ready or Not. Encourage your kids to set out their clothes in the evening. This makes mornings more streamlined and easier to get dressed, plus you won't have to worry about the dreaded "I don't have any _________ to wear" in my house it's usually underwear filling in the blank, but yours may differ.

2. Get Your Winks In. It's true, if you don't get enough sleep it's hard to rise and shine in the morning. So make it a point to get your kids to bed early and then follow suit - you’ll feel so much more relaxed right off the bat and who wants to get up feeling tired already?

3. Rise Earlier to Shine Brighter. It seems counterintuitive but setting that alarm just 10 minutes earlier can really help you out. You'll feel more relaxed because you have just a little more time (something we could all use) and you'll feel less stressed about beating the time on the clock.

4. What's for breakfast? Create a food rhythm to live by - knowing what's on the menu can ease morning stress for the whole family. Breakfast can be as simple or as complex as you want - at our house we mix it up and have granola one day but scrambled eggs another day.

5. Keep 'em in the Dark We have big ugly bright lights in our kitchen so we keep them off in the mornings and use the over the stove light instead. We like to light a single candle for the duration of breakfast because it creates a quiet atmosphere that surely puts all of us into a great place. Use your discretion here and make sure never to leave small children alone with a candle burning.

Well, there you go, my five best tips on how to have better more peaceful start to your day. What do you do? Do you have any tricks of the trade? I'd love to hear what other parents have to say. Pack your lunch before bed? Set out breakfast early? What works for your family?