(photo courtesy of Matt Giebler)

Denial, anger, bargaining, depression, acceptance…

The 5 stages of waking up.

 

I hate the part of my morning where I have to get out of my bed and participate in real life.

 

The early bird can have the worm, because worms are gross and mornings are stupid.

 

I am sooooooo not a morning person.  I am also not a night owl.  But I can rock about two hours after naptime like nobody’s business!

For me, morning motivation is an oxymoron.  I need more than just an alarm clock to get up and go and do.  I need some organization and a method to the morning madness.

I have an affinity for lists, and rhymes, and alliteration.  Somehow, these themes help me to accomplish things – maybe not great things, but still accomplish things.

My morning routine:

• Rise and shine! (yeah, right…at least rise)

My silly alarm is set for 7:00.  I hit snooze a minimum three times most mornings.  So I am usually at least vertical by 7:30…most mornings.

• Read and feed

I have a Bible study plan that I follow on YouVersion while I am eating breakfast.  It is the best way I have found to remember to eat breakfast is to feed my body while I feed my mind and soul.  If you prefer not to read a Bible study, I highly suggest you read something.  Stretch your mind, learn new things.

• Bike or hike

I have a lovely touring bicycle that I ride when my body and the weather allow.  It is my favorite color (orange), it has a happy little bell and a pretty daisy affixed to the handlebars.  It is cute and it encourages me to ride.

When I cannot ride, I at least practice my range of motion routine and maybe climb up and down the stairs a couple of times.  I am compromised by my health from doing much more then these exercises, and I still do what I can.

• Wash and wear

I am a bath person.  I detest and resent having to take a shower when I have no other option.  We remodeled our master bathroom a few years ago and I gained a beautiful claw-foot slipper tub that I adore!

Getting dressed in the morning is both easy and sometimes difficult for me.  Due to miscellaneous maladies, my clothing consists of a great deal of LuLaRoe leggings and comfortable blouses.  I still like to look as nice as I can, so I have very few pieces that I would not wear out of the house.  When I dress better, I feel better, and it shows in my face and attitude.

• Morning meds

I take several prescriptions and supplements.  I have a pill organizer that is fantastic.  Once a week, I fill the morning and evening sides of the organizer, along with my holy hottie hubby’s pill organizer.  This is helpful to me for not only remembering to take my meds every day, but also in knowing when I am getting low before I run out completely and I am stuck.

 

One more motivational tip for your mornings…