One of my biggest fears before having kids was that we'd get the kind who liked to wake up at 5:30. That didn't happen, although it remains to be seen what kid no. 3 is like. I'm hoping he inherits our sleep-in genes.
Max is up first, at around 7. He walks into our bedroom, taps my shoulder and gestures toward his butt, as in, I have to go NOW. What follows is the usual battle of wills: He wants me to help him and I refuse.
Me: "Max, you can pull down your own pajamas!"
Max: Whimper-whine
Me: "Max, you can do it!"
Max: Whimper-whine
Soon enough, he complies because he realizes I am not going to help and he is risking an accident. Then I make him pull his bottoms back up. I still haven't given him the personalized "Fireman Max" water bottle I ordered from Etsy as a reward for bathroom independence; he knows he has to be consistent, without my pestering.
As I help Max gets dressed, we chat. He tells me what day of the week it is. He reminds me that he needs to visit the fire station this weekend. And that bowling is his favorite sport. And the he loves fire trucks.
"Happy?" he asks, as he always does.
"Yes, I am," I reassure him. I so love that he asks.
Then Max goes down the stairs on his butt; he stands only if I'm in front of him or holding his hand. He heads to the living room to cuddle up to his iPad and watch as many fire truck videos as he can cram in before it's breakfast time. I will never take for granted his ability to amuse himself during the morning—it still seems like a gift, because for years Max couldn't and wouldn't play alone.
I head back to bed to sneak in a little more sleep. Once Sabrina is up, she pops in to kiss me, showers, makes the momentous decision of what to wear and proceeds to leave all of her drawers open and half her wardrobe on the floor. She helps herself to breakfast, usually whole-grain bread with peanut butter and banana.
I can pop in my contact lens, check email, shower, do my hair, get dressed and put on makeup in 15 minutes flat. And come up with a solution for world peace! Our sitter arrives, and she gives Max oatmeal right before I head out. Meanwhile, Dave is sure to be pestering me to eat this healthy whole-grain cereal that has lots and lots of nutrients and is completely tasteless. I'll grab a plain Fage yogurt and fruit and make a dash for the train to work. Before I walk in to the office, I get an iced coffee with lots of milk.
What are mornings like for you?
Photo: Flickr/Silvain de Munck
1. I roll out of bed at around 6:30.
ReplyDelete2. I get dressed in my school uniform.
3. I grab a protein bar, bacon,semi-healthy chocolate muffin, or something else and some overly sweetened coffee.
4. One of my parents takes me to school.
But I can't do that today because I'm sick with bronchitis. :(
Alarm goes off at 5:40. I hit snooze until 6. Get up, get dressed, put on makeup, brush my hair, etc. Make breakfast (something I can take to go-- smoothies are my usual thing!) Leave for work by 6:30 so I can be at school by 7:00 to help kids who come in early. The life of a teacher!
ReplyDeleteMore importantly, though, I want to comment on how impressed I am by your persistence in pushing Max to be independent! I'm sure it would be easy to just help Max with any- and everything, especially when you have just woken up and just want to crawl back into bed, but you push through that. I admire you! Keep it up, you're an awesome mom.
I come from a family of "morning people," so I'm not surprised that two of my three kiddos seem to have followed suit. Mornings aren't too bad for us (crazy, but doable) because I am one of those annoying types that wakes up at 5:30, no alarm, and jumps out of bed wide awake and ready to take on the day. Now evenings, when my eyelids are drooping and feel completely energy depleted, that's a different story...
ReplyDeleteI just need to know how in the world you get ready in 15 minutes...we need a video, please! :-)
ReplyDeleteUm, I never said I LOOKED that amazing. :) I don't wear much makeup. My hair is curly and doesn't need styling, just some gel. That helps!
DeleteI wake up at 5:45 and take Nexium before getting out of bed at 6:15ish and eating breakfast. Then I get dressed while checking this blog, finish getting ready and leave for school either on the bus or in my mom's car at a few minutes before 7.
ReplyDelete