Thursday, August 5, 2010

How it's going.....

So, Monday I started working on the Maximize Your Mornings challenge. The time that I chose for getting up is 5:30am so I am assured of having atleast a few minutes to myself before the girls wake up. Here it is on day four and I have made it out of bed at 5:30 everyday...well, except this morning...I hit the snooze button once and ended up getting out of bed at 5:40. Even though I don't have an actual accountability partner for this, it sure helps me get up knowing there are many other ladies doing the same thing.
I have been exercising for 10-15 minutes each morning. Then showering and getting myself ready for the day, and sitting down to read my Bible and pray. It has been so nice to be up early and getting these things done. My day goes so much better when I am prepared like that.
Tuesday was really great because the girls both slept till 7:30! Woo hoo! I was able to get so much done that morning! Wednesday Ellie woke up a little before 7, but I at least had gotten my main things done before she woke up, and then I got to spend time with just her since Hannah slept later. This morning my littles woke up at 6:30...soooooo they watched PBS while I did my devotions.
Now, I've just got to be better about getting myself to bed a little bit earlier. My goal is between 10 and 10:30, but this week it has been more like 11. Needless to say, I've been dragging a little bit, but hopefully that will motivate me to get in bed earlier. :)

Monday, August 2, 2010

Getting up early!

I love to get up early in the morning and get my day going. I also love to stay in my warm, cozy bed and sleep. But I have found my whole day goes so much more smoothly and I can actually accomplish things when I get up early. So, I've been trying over the past few months to get up before everyone else to spend time in my devotions/reading my Bible, exercising, and planning my day. It is much easier to say than do though. I will have a couple of days that go well, and then I end up staying up later than normal to wait for hubby to get home from work, or the baby wakes up really early and I bring her to bed with me, or I just plain don't feel like getting up, etc., etc., etc. Then I end up staying in bed or just moping around the house in my jammies until 9 or sometimes even 10 o'clock in the morning. By the time we have breakfast and I can get a shower and get the girls dressed and ready for the day, well, then it's lunch time, and then it's nap time, and then it's time to start making dinner, and then.........you get the picture. The day just gets away from me, and I haven't had any time to spend with the Lord or take care of myself.
When I was catching up on Inspiredtoaction.com (my new favorite blog to read! Kat is awesome!) the other day, I saw that another blogger (So, I Married a Mennonite) was starting up a challenge based on Kat's ebook "Maximize Your Mornings". For the whole month of August she is going to be leading us through the book, and everyone that joined that challenge will be able to help keep each other accountable and learn how to make the most out of everyday by using our morning time wisely. I am so excited to do this not only for myself, but for how it will help my family to have a centered, happier, more organized wife and mommy.
So, as the first day of the challenge started, I managed to get myself out of bed at 5:30 am and not even hit the snooze button (a bad habit of mine...I don't like to admit this but sometimes I will just lay in bed and keep hitting the snooze button 6 or more times...yes, I know that's lame, but, hey, we all have weaknesses, right? LOL)!! I got my exercise clothes on which I had laid out the night before (FlyLady has been helping me with evening and morning routines...goes quite well with this new challenge, I think), and worked out on the Wii for about 20 minutes. Heard the baby stirring and quick grabbed a shower. By the time I was out she was definitely awake and so was her sister. So much for my quiet time. Kat recommends having hubby watch the early risers so you can have your uniterrupted time, but my hubby usually works late, so he sleeps late, therefore that's not an option for me. Time for plan B. I popped in a video for the girls, got my devotions done and a load of laundry going. Then we had our breakfast together and were off on our day.
It didn't go quite like I had hoped since my little angels woke up so early, but I am just happy I made it out of bed. And since that is the goal we are working on in the challenge this week, I am quite happy that I. GOT. OUT. OF. BED. Yay!!!
Now to do it again tomorrow..............