At the start of this New Year, with clean slates and fresh starts, one promise I made to myself was to not over-complicate nor or overwhelm myself with the changes I would like to create this year.

One step in making that happen was to choose a Theme.

After doing a brain dump of all my dreams and wishes for 2015, I saw a common thread and decided on Improvement.

With the start of the 6 Week New Year’s Transformation Challenge next week, I decided to test out some improvements I can make with how I structure my day and spend my time. That way when the challenge DOES begin, I do not feel the pressure/stress of starting from square one…I have a better feel for what to do, what works and what is in a state of improvement.

I have lots to share so I am breaking them down into parts so it is easier for you to read.

Sharing not only helps me reflect on what I have been doing…but this is also a Fantastic opportunity for you to glean some insights and takeaways that you can begin to implement. I hope you enjoy these sneak peeks into my life 🙂

This is where I am at with my Transformation Trial Week Part 1: Morning Routine

The very best success strategy is to…

Prep The Night Before

Yes, I used to do this…but for one reason or another, fell out of this super useful habit. Now as I clean up the kitchen after dinner, I think ahead to what is needed in the morning and ask, “What can I do right now to make it easier?”

While mornings are not a rush because I am running late (learned a great lesson from Tyler a couple years ago about the difference between being ‘on time’ and being early), I am doing many morning tasks at once and realized, I am completely missing out on this short block of time with my son, as we are the only ones up so early.

By taking better control of my mornings this week, I can actually sit DOWN with Tyler at the kitchen table, eat breakfast with him and share in conversations.

Plus multitasking is simply exhausting.

So, this is what I now do…

– Make Tyler’s school lunch

Ever since he started middle school (as he is now a 7th grader) I have not missed making one lunch for him. I am pretty proud of that and also proud of Tyler for wanting to have his meals made…as I type this I thought of a fabulous next step – HE can make his Own Lunches!! Gotta empower him with this skill! I guess I have done it myself this long for I view it as Me taking care of my Child…but he is quickly turning into a young man. Sigh.

– Set out Supplies to Make Breakfast

I typically cook eggs, toast a slice of whole grain bread and make a smoothie for Tyler’s breakfast. To prep I set 2 eggs in a bowl in the fridge, I set the sautee pan and spatula on the stove and pull out the toaster. I then set out a nutribullet cup (what I use to blend) and a bottle of Prograde Protein. His fruit is usually a banana, so I set that on a plate on the counter as well.

– Set Out Morning Water

I start my morning with a warm glass of lemon water. To prep, I fill a glass up and set it next to the microwave, along with my essential oils. I also portion out my supplements (multi, fish oil, enzymes) in a ramekin.

+ Set out a Book

One of the things I would like to do this year is Read more. I have allowed the excuse of being too busy to prevent me from doing more and it can be accomplished in small chunks, chunks I have now identified that can be completed each morning.

>>> This is HOW I know what I am doing is Working <<<

When I do NOT plan the night before.

I did it.

I skipped it last night.

This is where I blame it on the weather….it was ZERO degrees this morning. The last time temperatures fell so low, school was delayed or canceled. I made the mistake of thinking I had the power to predict what would happen…sadly, I did not.

However, because of this, I saw first hand just how HELPFUL the prep strategies had been for me this week…so it was a good lesson that will only reinforce me to KEEP DOING WHAT WORKS!

Like I shared, I do not run late in the mornings BUT without prepping, I am doing ALL the tasks I could have done the night before so I am running around the entire time.

To help you see what I mean, I want to show you how SMOOTHLY my mornings go when I have prepared.

My Morning Routine – the one I want to KEEP doing!

I wake up 5:15. Head to the kitchen and warm my water. As it warms I go through two sun salutations right there in the kitchen to stretch and wake my body up. I then grab my water, add lemon and also some peppermint to pep up my morning and grab my supplements. (about 5 minutes).

I head to the bathroom to shower. Afterwards, I sip on my water and take my supplements as I get ready. Fun tip is the added peppermint infuses the air  – reinforcing that am PEP!

(about 40 minutes).

I then head to the kitchen and get breakfast ready, which is now turnkey for everything is laid out!

I wake Tyler up around 6:00 and he joins me for breakfast.

My breakfast is typically a green smoothie, so I whip this up after I make Tyler’s smoothie, no big prep with this as I keep it super simple: Water, Greens, Fruit, Protein, and sometimes an essential oil.

Here’s one I made this week that was DELISH!

Greens Mix (kale, collard, turnips) frozen mango which made it super creamy, vanilla prograde protein and a couple drops of Ginger essential oil , which is not only awesome for digestion but it added a great zing to this flavorful concoction.

Another way I have improved my mornings…I keep my laptop CLOSED until 8:30. This helps me stay focused on what is most important and even allows me to better mentally plan for my day ahead.

Tyler heads to his room to get ready about 6:30.

At this time I can sit and read. Loving it! I am now seeing it is doable when I can chunk out times like this and avoid distractions.

At 6:50 Tyler gets ready to walk out the door and all I have to do is stick his lunchbox in his backpack. Easy Peasy! I then drive him to school. The commute is not bad as my focus is on being early, so we beat the morning traffic.

I am back home by 7:20 and then get Alexander ready for his day. This part of the schedule is a work in progress as he is home with me the majority of the week – attending pre-school just Tuesday and Thursday mornings.

After this morning, I realize how helpful this routine has been.

Today when I woke up, I skipped sun salutations to get stuff out for breakfast while my water was warming up. Then by the time I woke Tyler up, I was back into the same rush of multitasking, I did not have time to sit down with him for breakfast nor did I have the time to read. I can feel how much that drained me.

Lesson Learned!

And guess what….there are more lessons to come.

That is the way of life.

While you can map out the perfect routine, there will be times when things happen to get you off course.

The KEY is recognizing what happened, WHY and knowing exactly what you need to do to get back on track.

Mistakes and Slip Ups and Set Backs…whatever you call them, are ALL opportunities to LEARN.

I hope in sharing a peek into my life you find something to help you in turn make some positive changes to your lifestyle.

Plus this is just a sample of what I share in my own progress journal during a transformation challenge…and dozens of other Moms share as well!

There is great benefit to having a place to safely share the ins and outs and ups and downs of your day.

For instance:

– you can get new ideas

– you see that you are not alone in the struggles of a busy mom

– you can get encouragement from other moms who get it

If this is missing, no better time than now to do something about it!