Our School Morning Routine

Happy Back To School season! We are 100% ready to take on Fall and Winter. Our Summer trips have all ended and we truly had one of the best Summers yet. Though there is comfort in routine and we are all happy to be in back to school mode. Our back to school is very minimal as Mila isn't in school full time yet. Mila goes to preschool two times a week. We started her in this program earlier this year and she has been LOVING it! Mila loves her little friends and finally is starting to remember their names. Her best friend is a little girl also named Mila. The two Mila's often wear Disney shirts on the same days which they find so exciting. Every morning Mila finds Mila and immediately they hold hands then go play. Mila barely says good bye to me now, which I'm all for! Because in the beginning she was all tears. It took about two weeks for her to settle in with zero tears.

What is it about seeing your baby all grown up and playing with other little ones? I beam with pride every school morning and it is insane to see how much she has learned in just a few months time!

Today I thought it would be fun to share with you our school morning routine. We've developed quite a little routine that Mila thrives off of. I try to make things fun as well as take things slow. I'm the person who is always late and rushing out the door places. Though with Mila I wanted to really work on spending quality time together before she headed to school for the day. I'll be honest, there are some days when Mila sleeps in and our routine gets pushed back and rushed through. That is life. I'm pretty proud of our mornings though and hope to keep this up as the school years press on. (A modified version as she gets older of course)

6:30 am I Wake Up. Waking up early hasn't always been easy for me. I used to hate it. However, waking up before my family does gives me the head start I need. I start by washing my face and making my coffee. I also check emails and do any work that needs to get done before Mila wakes up. I also get dressed for the day or at least school drop off ready. (Yoga pants or jeans, a t-shirt and Dodger baseball hat ;)

7:30 am Mila Wakes Up. I'm usually working on my computer and sipping coffee when Mila wakes up. I always know when she is awake because she opens her door and then slams it behind her as she runs into our room. We cuddle in my bed together for a bit and then get on with it.

7:40am Breakfast & Mickey Mouse. As most of you know, we make smoothies most school day mornings. They are easy and quick! Plus they give me great peace of mind. I'm able to pack Mila's smoothies with fruits and vegetables. I like knowing that Mila is starting her day with a nutrient rich smoothie. Mila will also have fresh berries, a scrambled egg, toast with peanut butter or an RX Kids Bar. We also watch Mickey and the Roadster Racers together on the couch. I ask her every morning what she dreamed about or what she is most excited to do at school that day. I try and ask her a lot of questions so we have a bit of conversation.

8 am Make Lunch. I put Mila's lunch together while she is finishing up watching her Mickey show. A lot of the time she'll come into the kitchen and help me. I have found that letting her help me put her lunch together also helps her eat more of it. If she doesn't help me put it together I'll always show her the lunch. I'll ask her what her favorite is and I'll tell her what I would like her to eat first or the most of. She usually does a pretty good job eating most of her lunch. Our standing rule though is, whatever she doesn't finish at school she has to finish after school. Again, we'll see how long I can get away with that rule ;) I remember in grade school throwing out the stuff I didn't like and lying to my mom that I ate it. (Sorry mom!) Gosh, I hate thinking about that. I definitely pick and choose healthy options that Mila enjoys to put in her lunch so hopefully that helps.

8:15 am Get Dressed & Ready. Once it is time to get ready we turn off the television and get ready in Mila's room. I let her play with small toys while wrangling her to get dressed and do her hair. If we get dressed fast enough we play a bit together in her room which I love. In each thing that we do in the mornings I try and snag a few minutes with Mila to just be or to play. That one on one time with her in the mornings before she goes off to school is so important to me. I'm hoping she can feel the importance in it too. There is something in my mind about Mila being away from me that makes me feel anxious. I think our time spent together in the mornings helps me send Mila off into the world as best I can. I also can't help but know that every moment means something and our time here together is never guaranteed. Focusing on the tiny bits of quality time with my daughter, gives me peace of mind that when we go our separate ways, we both know that we love each other and did all we could together. We never take our time together for granted.

I did the same with my son. After losing him my whole world turned upside down and burned to the ground. But I know for a fact that I spent such great quality time with him. Never did I take our time together for granted, and its those little moments that we spent together way back when that help me get through my days today.

8:45am Head To School. After all that ... we are off and running! We listen to Mila's curated music playlist in the car on the way to school. (Mostly Disney songs) Then I go back home to work and create content for you guys!

Below I share a few things we do while getting ready for school and a lice prevention detangle hair spray I made...

One thing we do every morning is apply sunscreen. We use THIS sunscreen and love it! I love that it comes in this giant pump bottle! With all gingers in my family we keep this sunscreen in the bathroom and apply it everyday before going outside. I like putting sunscreen on Mila in the mornings especially before school. They play outside a few times a day and though most of the playground area is shaded, I feel more comfortable putting it on her in the mornings. I also gave her teacher sunscreen to keep at school, just in case she ever looks like she needs to reapply. I don't know, sunburns aren't fun and Mila is so fair! Mila knows now that she has to put on "Suns Cream" everyday. So at the end of it all, at least I'm helping her instill a good sunscreen habit.

Mila is half at that stage where she likes to pick her own school outfits and half where she doesn't care. I typically give her a few choices that I am OK with and then let her choose. Our battle these days are shoes. She wants to wear her princess shoes or her slippers with a heel on them to school. It takes a few minutes to remind her that she can't wear those to school if she wants to play. Here are a few clothing brands I LOVE; anything from Cat & Jack at Target, June & January, Everbloom and Hanna Andersson.

LICE PREVENTION HAIR DETANGLING SPRAY! Ya you heard me. I make my own lice prevention spray and it makes me feel better. Look, I got lice from a kid at school when I was in grade school and it was traumatizing. I still remember my mom washing and treating my hair while she wore yellow dish washing gloves. I was crying and cold and it was awful. Having Mila get lice is just, I can't even go there really. If it happens it happens and we'll deal with it, but using this spray gives me peace of mind. I do a lot of things for peace of mind you guys! haha!

Here is how I make mine; In a glass spray bottle (you don't want plastic because of the essential oils in the mixture) mix 1/2 cup of filtered water, 1 cup of your favorite detangle spray, 12 drops of tea tree oil/ melaleuca oil, 6 drops of lavender oil and I like adding 6 drops of eucalyptus oil though you could omit that if you wanted. I use Doterra oils but you can find essential oils online or even at Whole Foods. Just make sure you are using 100% pure essential oils.

Honestly, who knows if it works or not. Again, peace of mind. I also always put Mila's hair up into tight small buns. In hopes of warding off anything gross.

A little reminder that not all mornings go about with zero tantrums or tears ;) ....