Easy like Weekday Mornings – My Simple Morning Routines

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I have a confession to make.

I pride myself on being a planner, on being the kind of person that knows I need to wake up early in order to get out of the house without screaming at someone, and on being the sort of person who plans her meals out a week in advance at the very least. Last year that all fell apart. Last year was the first year that both of my children were in school full-time. I should have been swimming in free time, looking around at my clean house and my prepped meals wondering what I could possibly do with all of the hours left at my disposal. Instead, most days were a mad rush out of the house. Most nights I was looking in the refrigerator at around 4:30, frowning at what I found and putting together a mediocre dinner that felt rushed from start to dishes.

I guess I had told myself that since I finally had all of this extra time, all of my usual tricks to manage time wisely weren’t really necessary anymore. It should have taken me just a couple of weeks to see that the wheels were coming off but instead, I functioned, or barely functioned, like this for an entire school year. Now I know better. Now that I’m a seasoned parent of full-time school kids, I know that six hours, five days a week, seems like an eternity, but really it goes by in a flash. I know that routines really are the key to my happiness, which is why I’m putting simple routines into place for getting through the day. I’m also sticking with products that I know are effective and work for me, like Cetaphil®, as a part of my everyday skincare routine.

Now, the perfect weekday morning starts about an hour before my kids’ alarms go off.

Waking up before my kids is the single greatest thing I can do to get things headed in the right direction. There are no distractions and I can drink my coffee and shower in peace. I take a few minutes and look at my calendar for the day and the week so I know what’s ahead and it helps me feel like I’m ready to take on the day.

My kids are seven and ten, so they’re fairly independent in the morning, which has deluded me into believing that I can just get ready while they get ready. This is absolutely false. Inevitably someone needs something and it’s just better if I’m ready, or at least mostly ready, before they get up.

Another absolute necessity is simplifying my skincare and makeup routine. I have been a long time user of Cetaphil products. I have sensitive skin and the minute I found something that is effective without irritating my skin, I stuck with it! Target is now carrying three new Cetaphil face products: Cetaphil® Gentle Makeup Remover, Cetaphil® Daily Hydrating Lotion, and Cetaphil® Rich Hydrating Night Cream with Hyaluronic Acid.

I picked up the Cetaphil® DailyAdvance Lotion and Cetaphil Daily Hydrating Lotion in the face care aisle at Target. There’s no makeup in the world that looks good on skin that isn’t hydrated, so this is always the first step in my skincare routine.  The Cetaphil DailyAdvance Lotion applies like a dream and absorbs quickly on my body.

Cetaphil Daily Hydrating Lotion is my first foray into Cetaphil products other than facial wash products, and I love this for quickly moisturizing my face post-shower. It absorbs quickly so there’s no downtime before I can get dressed.As for makeup, weekdays just aren’t the time for me to play around with new looks. I stick with a tried and true routine utilizing the basics and I can get my face done in five minutes.

Outside of a practical skincare routine, I have a few other things that work really well for making mornings go smoothly. I do as much as I possibly can the night before. That includes making lunches, setting out clothes for everyone – including myself, making sure the kids have packed backpacks and located everything they need for school the next day, and even setting out breakfast dishes.

Also, I take the amount of time I think my kids actually need for getting ready and add thirty minutes to determine what time we should be waking them up.

What are your best tips for getting out of the house on time in the morning? Leave them in the comments below. Be sure to pick up Cetaphil for yourself and grab this Ibotta offer to earn cash back before you head out to shop for Cetaphil or for more Cetaphil inspiration, check out the social hub, here.