Routine

So, it’s summer, and I have already had the thought of I am ready for school to start again creeping in my head!  Why you might ask? Because of the schedule, the routine and the consistency it provides for my husband and I, but more importantly for our kids (ages 7, 5 and 2 ½).  Routine is a big part of our lives.  It keeps us grounded, it keeps us sane.  Every once in a while, we lose sight of it, but once we get it back, all is right in the world again.

 

It’s summer, there are extracurricular activities.  There are vacations, weekends with grandparents and friends.  Long, long days of summer.  It’s all fun and games, but it’s exhausting!  What has worked for us is establishing that routine, that expectation for our family.  Being full-time, working parents, our kids wake up and bedtime schedules do not vary much during the summer vs. the school year.  It’s our way.  Up at 6am, bed at 8pm.  (Early, I know!)

 

Of course there are exceptions.  Sometimes our ball games don’t get over until after 8pm.  Sometimes we are simply out of town, enjoying life or a beautiful summer evening.  And every once in a great while, we all sleep in!  (And oh, did I mention we have a 2 ½ year old, active, stubborn, ornery routine crashing boy!?)

 

We learned routine very early on. From birth, our first born son gave us a challenge.  He arrived healthy, but crying.  And I mean a lot of crying.  He had colic, and by rule he maybe slept from 9pm-2am.  The rest of the time he was crying.  No joke, and I cried a lot as well.  The hardest part lasted for 9 months.  And then it still wasn’t easy.  Some wise person told us about establishing a routine, and sticking with it, even if it didn’t catch right away.  So we started with a bath in the evening, bottle, and then down for bedtime.  And guess what?  Eventually it worked!   And as we’ve welcomed our other two children we’ve lived by the same rule bath, snack, books, brush teeth and bed.  Does it and has it worked every time?  Nope, but we don’t give up.  We stay the course and it works.   

 

My 5 year old daughter loves routine.  She loves to have a schedule and to know what’s planned for the day.  We have to pick out clothes the night before (an excellent routine to establish, I should try it for myself!)  It helps her organize her thoughts, and prepare for things that she’s excited about, and not so excited about.  It makes the nights and mornings smoother…especially for her as she keeps a slow pace. 

 

When we took a family vacation to Florida last year, each kid wanted to do something different, at different times.  When my son wanted to go to the pool, my daughter wanted to go to the beach…and the baby was just unsettled.  We realized early on that we had to establish a routine and boundaries.  We still joke about this, but it worked beautifully.  Here is our Florida schedule:  10am pool, followed by lunch, rest time, then beach!  Pool, lunch, rest, beach!   Everyone was happy then!  Each got time doing what they wanted and knew what to expect. 

 

Routines can be established for anything.  Dinner time, play time, homework, rest time, school and even work…I like this blog by Mighty Mommy.  http://www.quickanddirtytips.com/parenting/school-age/how-routines-will-simplify-your-life.  She has 8 kids that range from 6-18 and she offers tips that work for her family that cover the elementary kids as well as her high school age kids.  There are many, many articles and ideas out there.  Just google kids and routines. 

 

Are routines for everyone?  Maybe not.  This is just what works for us.  And we have a lot of room to improve.  I’ve only shared a few things that have worked for us, we have many fails as well.   If our routine becomes off, we may forget to turn in homework, or may wake up late, or miss something.  We are far from perfect.  Just this morning we couldn’t find one of my daughters shoes.  If we are off our schedule on the weekend, our Mondays and Tuesdays can be a little rough and we get crabby. But once we get back to it, things seem to run much more smoothly. 

 

As our family continues to grow, and school and extracurricular activities continue to enter our life, our routines will change, there will be challenges, and external pulls to just give up the routine.  But it’s something that has worked for us, and that we will continue to do our best to maintain!

Join the Conversation!

What routines work for you?