I find it much too coincidental that the word ‘irritation’ so closely resembles the word ‘iteration,’ because when Bryan continually tells me that we should ‘iterate’ through our schedules and lists, I feel quite ‘irritated.’ Nevertheless, I’ve learned to love and appreciate his project management of the home even though I am much more free spirited (read:unorganized) than he is. In the end, I usually end up affirming his methods, but only after stubbornly refusing (for weeks and months) to even consider them.
Maybe it’s not for you, but this system seems to works for us.
For awhile now, I’ve been setting my alarm and getting up before the kids. Theoretically. About the earliest I can get out of bed is 6:30 – and that’s after snoozing through NPR for 30 minutes, so I usually wake up around 6. Ruthie is our early riser, and wakes up anywhere between 6:30 and 7:30. Let me tell you that mornings do not go well for anyone around here when I rise at the butt crack of dawn to have some ‘alone time’ and instead find my eldest hanging on my clothes asking me for cereal. And candy.
Last week, however, I iterated. Instead of getting up early to curl up in my chair with a book and a cup of coffee, I decided to sit at the dining room table with my laptop and a cup of coffee. I now start my morning in household management mode, planning the day, returning emails, knocking stuff off my to-do list… you get the idea.
It has changed the way mornings feel around here.
For one thing, I’m not flying by the seat of my pants all day, wishing I had remembered to do This and That and wondering at 4pm what I should make for dinner. Secondly, I’m not in Selfish Time Hording Mode when my Early Riser wakes up just as I sit down to read. That was the worst: seeing my daughter first thing in the morning and immediately wishing I had exercised better use of birth control. She’s adorable, and I didn’t like that icky feeling of not thinking she is adorable.
My kids still watch over an hour of t.v. in the morning because I am still NOT a morning person, so this is how I choose to acclimate myself to the day.
How do you start your day?