Do you struggle with getting your mornings off to a good start? This mom morning routine checklist is a super helpful way to stay on task and be more productive when you wake up!
What do mornings look like at your house? Are they calm and peaceful? Or crazy and chaotic?
If you chose chaos, then you need a mom morning routine checklist!
Routines and to-do lists are must-have tools for busy moms who want to get things done and ditch that overwhelmed feeling. And a morning routine can help set the tone for the rest of the day. When mornings go smoothly, everything else just seems to click into place.
Today, I’m sharing a mom morning routine checklist to help you get organized, feel refreshed, and be more productive every day!
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Mom Morning Routine Checklist (for Stress-Free Days!)
Every busy mama’s day looks different. You might be a working mom or a work-at-home mom, a homeschooling mom, a mom of toddlers–and that’s okay! The key to a productive morning routine is figuring out what works for you.
These tips can help you create a morning routine that fits your lifestyle and schedule, whatever that might look like.
1. Wake up before your kids
When I was a mom to a toddler and a newborn and I was exhausted all the time my kids were my alarm clock. I would sleep until the baby cried or my two-year-old came in and poked me in the eye.
Needless to say, neither one was the best way to start the day. So I eventually learned that if I wanted to get things done I was going to have to start getting up before they did.
If you’re in the habit of sleeping later, then you may want to take a hard pass on waking up earlier. But it can have some surprising health benefits and make you a happier mom.
You don’t have to suddenly start waking up three hours earlier each day to become a morning person. The best way to start a habit of waking up earlier is to ease into it.
So invest in a good alarm clock if you don’t have one. Then try waking up 10 minutes earlier for one week. The next week, bump it up to 15 minutes.
Keep going until you’re getting up 30 minutes to an hour before your kids each day. Commit to making this a regular part of your mom morning routine checklist, even on the weekends.
You’ll be surprised at how much you can do in that time to make a difference for the rest of your day.
2. Stretch or exercise
Here’s a sad fact about getting older: I’m not as flexible as I used to be (or as thin).
Making time for morning stretches, yoga, or cardio can help you feel energized and ready for the day. At the very least, stretching can help work out the kinks in your muscles from sleeping all night so you’re ready to move.
Try this simple morning stretch routine or look for other at-home exercise routines you can fit into your schedule.
3. Shower and get dressed
Raise your hand if yoga pants and dry shampoo are your standard stay-at-home mom uniform.
Do you have both hands up? I feel ya.
For a long time when my kids were small, I felt like I just didn’t have time to take a shower, do my hair, or put on makeup. And why get dressed if someone was just going to throw up on me or spill their sippy cup all over me anyway, right?
But not including those things in my morning routine checklist made me feel grubby.
And even though my kids might have been the only person who saw me all day, I wanted to feel like a pulled-together mom.
So once I started getting up earlier, I made sure that I kicked off each day feeling clean and refreshed.
If you’ve managed to add an extra window of time in your day by getting up earlier, use some of it to treat yourself to uninterrupted bathroom time.
Take a shower, wash your hair, and put on makeup. Moisturize and put on some good sunscreen to protect your skin. Then swap out the yoga pants or pajamas for an outfit that’s comfortable and makes you feel good. (Using a capsule wardrobe is a great way to keep this simple.)
These are all small things but they can make a big impact on how you approach the day.
4. Plan the day
To-do lists are such an important part of your morning routine checklist. When you have a to-do list to follow, mom life gets so much easier.
Here’s how I organize my daily to-do list:
- Must-do work-related tasks
- Need-to-do work-related tasks
- Must-do mom/housework tasks
- Need-to-do mom/housework tasks
- Things that can wait
I focus on the must-dos first and I try to limit myself to just three things in each category. Any more than three to-do items and I’m overwhelmed.
If you aren’t using to-do lists to manage mom life, you’re missing out!
And if you need some help getting organized, you download this cute morning routine checklist! Just click either of the images below to get two checklists (one filled in and one blank) that you can use to map out your busy mom days!
5. Enjoy some quiet time
Quiet time, even if it’s just a few minutes, is priceless when you’re a busy mom, especially if you have younger kids at home.
I have a morning reading routine that I like to complete before I start my work-at-home day, but other moms may journal or meditate to get the day started. Making time for these types of activities is a good way to get centered, focused, and calm.
If you can find 10 to 15 minutes to work into your busy mom morning routine, here are some of my favorite ways to spend it:
- Read one chapter of that book you haven’t had time to finish
- Listen to a quick podcast or inspiring TED talk
- Do some yoga or meditate
- Write some morning pages in your journal
- Read a devotional for moms
- Add three items to your gratitude list
- Savor a cup of coffee or tea in a cozy spot
Having a few minutes to yourself doesn’t seem like a big deal. But if your kids are home with you all day then this is a can’t skip part of your morning routine.
6. Eat a healthy breakfast
I used to never eat breakfast. Which was a huge mistake when I was trying to chase after two little ones all day and needed the energy to do it.
If you don’t eat a healthy breakfast each day, this is a must to add to your morning routine.
Keep it simple if you feel like you don’t have a lot of time to make something. My go-to breakfast is a sunny-side-up egg on grilled bread with avocado mash and a slice of turkey bacon. I put it all in the skillet together and it takes about five minutes to make.
If you need some inspiration into what to make, here are some healthy breakfast recipes that you (and your kids) will love!
7. Tidy up
Cleaning is not my favorite thing to do at all, but I do love having a neat, tidy home.
Adding a few simple cleaning and decluttering tasks into my morning routine checklist helps me keep it that way without tying up hours of my time.
Here’s a quick rundown of things you can do in the morning to keep the house clean:
- Start one load of laundry
- Wipe down the kitchen counters
- Sweep the floors (or turn on your robot vacuum like me)
- Straighten up throw pillows and blankets on the sofa
- Wipe down the counters and toilet in the bathroom
These are simple things that take me 10 to 15 minutes to do max altogether. If you’re not doing simple cleaning tasks daily, consider picking 5 or 6 things you can knock out quickly to keep the house neat.
8. Get your family’s day started
Once you’ve checked off all the items on your mom morning routine list it’s time to get the rest of the family going. Here’s what that might look like for you:
- Wake up the kids and get faces washed
- Have them make their beds
- Get kids dressed and hair combed/brushed
- Prep breakfast
- Load the dishwasher after breakfast while kids brush their teeth
- Do a last-minute check to make sure everyone has everything they need
- Get the kids off to school (or to the kitchen table if you homeschool)
It might seem like a lot but some of these tasks may take just a few minutes. Using time blocks to plan your morning routine can help you get it all done without a mad scramble for the door.
Tips for Peaceful Mornings
Need a few more tips to make your mom morning routine checklist work? Here are my best ideas for peaceful and productive mornings.
Plan the night before
A mom morning routine checklist doesn’t start in the morning–it actually begins the night before.
The more you can do before bed, the less you’ll have to do in the morning. So that might include:
- Picking out clothes for yourself and the kids
- Helping kids organize their backpacks
- Prepping what you’ll need for breakfast
- Packing lunches
- Rounding up dirty laundry so you can pop it in the wash when you get up
- Setting the timer for the coffee maker
These are all small things but they can lighten your load in the morning so you can slip right into your routine when you wake up.
Go to bed on time (and get a good night’s sleep!)
Easier said than done as a busy mom, right?
But really, prioritizing sleep is something you can’t skip if you want your morning routine to work. And it’s just good for you, too.
Getting enough sleep can:
- Boost your immune system so you don’t get sick as often
- Help you maintain a healthy weight
- Reduce your stress levels and improve your mood
- Help you focus and feel less distracted
- Reduce your risk of developing serious problems like heart disease
That sounds good, doesn’t it? If you’re not sleeping as well as you’d like, here are some things that could help:
- Start a bedtime ritual or evening routine
- Exercise during the day
- Cut out screens 30 minutes to an hour before bed
- Try valerian root or melatonin (I love these Natrol melatonin gummies)
- Go to bed at the same time each night
- Use an ambient noise machine to lull you to sleep
- Keep your bedroom at a comfortable temperature
- Upgrade your pillows and bedding
- Mist pillows with lavender essential oil spray
- Invest in a more comfortable mattress
Try experimenting with different things to see what helps and what doesn’t. The goal is to start every day feeling as rested as possible.
Save screen time for later
It may be tempting to reach for your phone first thing in the morning but that can throw off your entire morning routine.
Why? Because it’s so easy to get into scroll mode on Facebook or Pinterest. You think to yourself, I’ll only take a quick look and 45 minutes later you realize how much time you’ve wasted.
I’m not against screen time (for moms or kids) but if you want to get your day going right, then hold off on checking social media or reading the news until you’ve completed the rest of your morning routine checklist.
Create morning routines for kids
Kids thrive on routines so while you’re getting your mom morning routine checklist together, why not make one for your little ones as well?
Here are some things you can add to a morning routine checklist for kids:
- Wash face
- Brush teeth
- Make bed
- Get dressed
- Eat breakfast
- Do morning chores (i.e., feed pets, load dishwasher, wipe down bathroom counter, etc.)
Everything on the list should be age-appropriate and ideally, things your kids can cross off without a lot of supervision from you.
What Does Your Mom Morning Routine Checklist Cover?
A morning routine can be a lifesaver for busy moms who want to make a smooth start to the day. The morning routine checklist I’ve shared here is a great way to keep track of your routine and plan your days with fewer headaches.
Need some extra help managing your time as a busy mom? Check out The Organized Home for tips on how to create routines that keep your days running smoothly, your house in order, and your family happy. It’s one of my go-to resources for calming the chaos of everyday mom life!