Do I ever envy Ryan! He gets up 15 minutes before he has to leave for work, changes, makes coffee, and is gone. As a woman and mom, my mornings entail so much more.  I’m no expert, I have one easy going baby and have been working for a mere three months but I thought I would share a a few things I do to help make for an efficient and streamlined morning.

1. Wake up before your child

I think this is the tip any mom will give you, if you want a good morning, have a few minutes to yourself. Sometimes it’s not possible, such as during Daylight Savings when Tynan was up at 4:30 a.m. But for the most part, he’s up at 6:00, so I get up at 5:45 am.

2. Schedule 10 minutes to sip coffee 

There’s a common adage that moms drink their coffees cold and man is that ever true. But there’s something about that first couple sips when the coffee is piping hot. It’s worth scheduling into your day. I always give myself an additional 20 minutes so I can sip coffee and read blogs. Usually Tynan is up by then and quietly watches cartoons while I have these few precious morning moments.

3. Prep meals

I like to not think about my meals on work days. Usually when dishing out dinner, I immediately put together a tupperware container of food for my lunch the next day. It’s easy and usually healthy. If I’m doing the sandwich thing such as egg salad, chicken, or tuna, I like to prepare two days worth so I don’t have to think about it. I don’t put it on the bread until actual lunch to keep it from getting soggy, but use a multi compartment tupperware and pack all the items in that.

I try to decide what I’ll have for breakfast and get everything out. If I’m going to whip up eggs, I lay out the frying pan and spatula to ensure they’re clean. Same goes for the blender if I’m having a smoothie.

The least amount of work I can make my meals each morning the better!

4. Pre-pack the baby bag

I have to ensure that Ty’s diaper bag has all the essentials; diapers, wipes, formula, bottle, water, receiving blanket, spare clothes. I put it all together the night before. One day I realized I forgot a bottle and had to swing into Walmart and buy a pack at the last minute. Since then, I go over my checklist every night.

5. Lay out clothes

This is a tip people give all the time and it works really well for Ty. I hate if I hastily grab an outfit and realize halfway through dressing him that it’s too small.Laying out clothes doesn’t work for me because I dress according to how I feel that morning and what hairstyle I have, ha ha!

One quirky thing I do is arrange my closet with the clothes I most recently wore on the right and the clothes I haven’t worn ion awhile on the left. This was a trick I developed to ensure I didn’t just recycle the same couple of outfits over and over.

6. Stick to simple hair & make up

Speaking of hair and makeup, I definitely keep it simple. I do the same makeup routine every morning, maybe changing up my eyeshadow, but otherwise not trying anything new. Experimenting with looks is a weekend thing, not a work morning thing.

I want to add more hairstyles to my repertoire though. Right now I cycle between wearing it down, ponytails, and braids. But by keeping it so simple, it doesn’t take long to do.

7. Load Your Car before the kids

Unless you live in an apartment, I highly suggest you load your car with everything you need, leaving the best for last- the kiddos. I’ll load my purse, lunch bag, diaper bag, water bottle, coffee mug, etc. before I even put on Ty’s coat. This way, I’m not trying to remember everything while he cries because I’m sticking his coat on and I’m not trying to balance him with a bunch of bags on the walk to the car.

And those are my top seven tips so far. As I said, I’m certainly no expert, I’ve only been doing this working mom thing for three months. But man is it ever hard! Anything I can do to make it simpler is important.

Any good tips I missed out on?