8 Simple Steps to Create a Peaceful Morning Routine for Moms

Having a productive morning routine for moms is the best way to set yourself up for a happy and successful day. Sometimes you feel as if you never have enough time to do everything on your to-do list. Creating an effective morning routine is the first step for a busy mom to face whatever crazy things the day throws at her!

Becoming a homeschool mom was quite a change for our daily schedule. We are not naturally early risers. Having the required time to drop my son off at school and pick him up added a natural flow to our daily routine.

Suddenly, we didn’t have a particular time we needed to be anywhere. There was no required wake-up time. We could eat breakfast or get dressed whenever we wanted. Or not at all.

Now, I was behind all the time. It seemed like no matter how hard I worked, I was never able to do it all.

After some thought and research, I decided a new morning routine was the best thing for me to get a head start on a productive day.

Just making these few small changes in my morning schedule makes a difference in my whole day!

In This Post

How Can a Stay-at-Home Mom Make a Morning Routine?

When you’re a stay-at-home mom, your days look very different from someone who has dedicated work hours. Whether you’re homeschooling, running your own business from home, or running the household full-time, you need a routine that functions for you.

I am a firm believer that every mom needs a routine that meets her own needs. There is no one-size-fits-all, perfect morning that works for everyone.

But I also believe there is a perfect morning routine that works for each mom. We all have the same amount of time in our days. The most important thing is to use it right.

The secret to creating a successful morning routine is to determine your priorities.

What matters to you?

The answer is different for each of us, and will often change depending on the season of life you’re currently in.

For instance, my good morning routine is different now than it was when my children were toddlers. In the summer my morning routine is a bit more relaxed than during our homeschool months.

Other factors that change your morning routine might be:

your husband’s work schedule
a nursing baby
the age of your kids
daily activities your family is involved in

Take a minute to think about what matters to you. Do you want to get up with your husband when he leaves for work? Do you want to have extra time to yourself before the kids wake up?

How much time do you need to take a shower or get dressed before you start the day?

Once you know exactly what you want to do, you can make the morning routine that will work for you.

How to Create Your Successful Morning Routine

The best routine is one you can use on a good morning, a crazy morning, and everything in between. When you realize it’s time to start a new morning routine, there is a right way to go about it.

1. Start small. Don’t try to overhaul your whole routine all at once. Instead, try adding one new habit a week until you figure out what works best for you.

2. Do what matters. Decide what you want to do in the morning, and do that. For instance, some people love a morning workout. It’s not for me, so I never do it. However, if exercise is something that matters to you, feel free to include it in your morning routine.

3. Be intentional. Setting a morning routine won’t happen by accident. It might take a couple of weeks, or even a little longer to get it just right. But successful people don’t give up when trying new things. Just keep at it until you figure out the perfect plan for you.

8 Simple Steps for a Morning Routine for Moms That Works

Once you know what is important to you, you can start to create your morning routine that leads to a great day more often than not. I have found that when I commit myself to following a few morning habits, my time management improves. My personal growth has increased, too!

Just a few new habits in a daily morning routine will set you up for success for the entire day.

Wake Up Before Your Kids

As someone who is not an early riser, getting up before my kids has been a struggle. Plus, I have a child who is 100% a morning person. He can ask me fifteen questions before my foggy morning brain has had time to process the first one.

I know that if I don’t get up before this child, my daily quiet time is shot. I have to make a conscious effort to wake up before him.

Getting up before your kids can be hard, especially if you have a child who doesn’t sleep through the night or one that sleeps with you. I encourage you to try it, though. You might find those few quiet minutes are just the balm your soul needs to start the day right.

Start Your Day with Quiet Time

I have found in my own life that if I don’t focus on my quiet time with God first thing in the morning, it’s unlikely to happen.

You don’t have to be fancy and play music or light a candle. (Although that sounds so wonderful, doesn’t it?) Instead, focus on doing the things you can do. I enjoy a simple cup of coffee in my favorite mug while I have my daily quiet time.

Reading one chapter in Proverbs each day is a great way to have quality time with the Lord each day, even if you don’t have a lot of time. Scripture writing is another great way to incorporate Bible time into your already busy schedule.

Finally, take just a few minutes to pray. Use a printable prayer list to help you stay focused and use your prayer time wisely. Just these few minutes of alone time with the Lord in the morning will have a positive impact on the rest of your day.

Get Dressed for the Day

Wearing pajamas all day seems like the ultimate key to comfort. But I’ve learned the hard way that getting dressed is a vital part of my early morning routine!

Last summer I was “bumming around” the house when one of my dogs got out of the pen. I ran out to catch him and round him back inside. But before I could make it back to the house, the postman showed up with my mail.

I was caught outside in my pajamas. It was a humiliating moment I won’t soon forget.

I’m not saying you need to go all out and get dressed up every day. But taking the time to put on clean, comfortable clothes can make all the difference.

Make the Bed

For some reason, a made bed instantly makes my house feel calmer, less chaotic, and tidier. It’s a small thing, but it makes such a big difference.

Sometimes you see pictures of peaceful bedrooms, well-decorated with gorgeous coverlets, pulled back just so to display matching sheets underneath. The bed is topped with artfully arranged throw pillows arranged just so.

But your bed doesn’t need to look like that. You only need your sheets, comforter, and the pillows where you lay your head. If you struggle to make your bed every day, simplify it until it’s easy.

Put your pillows in place, tuck in the sheets, and pull the cover over the top.

This is a simple chore you can immediately mark off your to-do list, and feel great about having it done.

Eat the Frog

Not literally. Mark Twain once said, “Eat a live frog first thing in the morning and nothing worse will happen to you the rest of the day.”

In other words, if you do one hard thing in the morning, the day can only get better! For me, this means tackling some of my least favorite chores first.

For instance, I hate emptying the dishwasher. I don’t know why, since it only takes a few minutes. But I’m really bad to put it off and let dishes pile up on the counter, or in the sink.

Just a few minutes first thing in the morning takes care of that chore and makes the day so much smoother. Now that my boys are older, emptying the dishwasher is one of their kids’ daily chores.

Starting a load of laundry is another great way to start your day off right. Laundry is a never-ending chore. But if you start first thing in the morning, you’ll have time to complete a load from start to finish each day.

You’ll be able to stay on top of the laundry much more easily if you make it a priority each day. Incorporating part of your daily cleaning routine into your mommy morning routine will help you take control of your day from the start.

Start Your Day with an Attitude of Gratitude

It’s easy to get wrapped up in the day-to-day busyness of life and forget just how blessed we are. Taking a few minutes at the beginning of your day to write in a gratitude journal will change your attitude.

You can also include your daily gratitude in your prayer time as you thank God for being good to you.

Thankfulness will help cultivate contentment in your heart. When you live a life of contentment, you’ll find that you have more peace and joy. And that’s something to be grateful for! Try reading Bible verses about thankfulness to encourage your heart to find gratitude even in hard times.

Set a Positive Tone

If you start your day by checking social media or reading the news, you’re setting yourself up for discouragement. News is almost always bad. And social media is full of negativity.

Instead of filling your mind with things of the world first thing, set a positive, happy tone. Listen to an encouraging podcast or uplifting music. When you fill your mind with something positive, you’ll have a happier mindset to start the day.

Here are a few encouraging podcasts to encourage you:

Write a Realistic To-Do List

I often feel optimistic at the start of a new day and feel like I can do anything. I sit down at my kitchen table and write out a long list of things I think I can accomplish.

But over time I’ve realized a simple list is better for several reasons. First, if your list is too long, there’s no way you can finish it. You may start the day feeling optimistic, but you’ll end a long day feeling discouraged because you couldn’t complete what you needed.

Secondly, there are only so many hours in every day. It’s better to do a few things well than a lot of things poorly. When your list is manageable, you’ll be able to accomplish it. Checking things off of your daily checklist is the best part of each day.

Seeing every task checked off gives you a true sense of accomplishment.

Bonus Tip: Create a Successful Evening Routine

The success of your routine for the next morning depends on the routine you complete at night. You can set yourself up for a good morning by doing a bit of prep work the night before. Think about all the things you need to do when you first wake up in the morning. Can you take the load off in the morning by completing some of your tasks the night before?

Here are a few ideas:

lay out your clothes or workout clothes
wash all the dirty dishes, or put them in the dishwasher
clear all clutter from your counters
fold any blankets and return them to their places
put pillows back on the couches or chairs
hang up clothes, or put them in the hamper
get your coffee maker ready for the morning
fill your water bottle so you can start hydrating first thing tomorrow

When you take the time to complete a few small chores last thing before bed, you’ll be saving yourself a precious few minutes in the morning. It seems like a small thing, but it will add up over time.

What My Morning Routine for Moms Looks Like

It took me a while to figure out exactly what I needed to include in my personal morning routine. I spent a lot of time reading what others considered a great morning routine. But none of them worked right for me.

When I started to consider my lifestyle, personal needs, and priorities, I was able to come up with the perfect routine that worked for me. Use this same process to create a new routine to create your perfect routine.

As a night owl, I don’t like to start early, but I make the most of the time I have to make the day work for me. I’ve also found that it’s easier to set a range of times for my routine. It works much better than assigning a particular time to every task.

7:00-7:30 am: Wake up, prep coffee, and set up for a morning quiet time

7:30-8:00 am: Daily devotions and prayer

8:00-9:00 am: Boys wake up, get dressed, do morning chores, etc

9:00 am: Begin our homeschool day

This is just a sample morning routine. Yours could look different.

For instance, if you have a baby who keeps you awake at all hours of the night, you might not jump out of bed at 7:00 am. If you have younger children who are early risers, you might get up far earlier than me to have your personal alone time.

Our routines also look different during the school year than during summer. A good morning routine for moms is the one that works for you and is easily adaptable to your lifestyle.

Start Your Day Off Right With an Easy Morning Routine

As stay-at-home moms, it’s easy to fall into the trap of wandering through our days. But establishing a mom’s morning routine can help you to start your day with purpose.

You can make your mom life so much easier by using routines to simplify your everyday tasks.

Make your early mornings a little bit brighter and start your day off right by creating your personal morning routine that fits your lifestyle and priorities.

More Planning and Routines for You

Start your week off right with these Monday morning blessings and prayers for a happy week.
Stay faithful to Bible reading and prayer with a free printable monthly Bible verse calendar.
Develop healthy and happy daily routines for you and your kids with free printable daily routines.
Save your sanity with a free printable kids’ chore chart!