We are about 3 weeks deep into the fall routine, with this week being the first one where Bible study was added to the mix. So, it is safe to say that I generally know what we will be dealing with in the mornings on our way out the door. Here's my list of tips and tricks for getting out the door with kids.
1. Good preparation starts the night before.
Find the bags. Where could they have possibly gone in the short hours since the last time you used them? These are not mysteries that you want to be unraveling in the morning. I speak from massive amounts of experience.
Make the drinks. Why does it take us almost two drinks a piece to be able to leave the house? Who knows, but it does, and making them the night before is easier.
Lay out the clothes- with or without help from your children. That way there is the slight chance that there will be no fighting over what clothes to wear. Or which shoes. Or which bow. Or which socks. Sorry - your Hello Kitty socks do not look good with your flip flops and floral dress.
If you forget to do all of this the night before, do not panic. It will not help. Just head to tip number two.
2. Get up on time. Or ahead of on time if you did not do all of your night prep-work. Since I can barely ever do this, I really can't talk about it. Usually I wake up to babies crying in my room. Or a smelly two year old saying she needs her pull-up changed or granola bar unwrapped. But, I imagine that if you are able to get up on time, it would be really helpful.
3. Rope any other possible adult in your house into helping. Have your sister-in-law move in. She is very helpful in the morning. Ask your husband to help buckle babies. And/or feed them. And/or change their diapers. And/or get them dressed.
4. If no other adults are available, as - let's face it - is often the case, start praying. You will need all of the strength and patience that God can give you to face it alone. Everyone is depending on you!
5. Since you need help, try motivating your children to help you. Have your four year old give a bottle, if she's willing - though it may be a little hit or miss if your house is like mine. Tell your kids how much fun they will have where ever you are headed. Sometimes, when the clouds part and angels sing, the kids may actually decide to be helpful and dress themselves without complaint.
6. Give up being on time. Once you have less regard for this point, it makes everything else less stressful. In all truthfulness, I really have had to slow down in the morning a bit and realize that I don't want my children to remember always rushing to get places. There is rarely an emergency, and I've got to quit acting like there is one. The world will be okay if I am there 10 minutes later than I wanted to be. It won't always be like this.
So, those are my (snarky) tips for getting out of the house. My next tip is for when you are out and about. Should you ever find your children reluctant to leave someplace fun - have your friend's kid pull the fire alarm. Ya'll. This happened at lunch yesterday, and let me just say that it was one of the most epically crazy moments ever. Here's what I learned - 1) My kids are not yet great under pressure. Neither are most of my friends' kids. They all seem to cave a bit or a massive amount. 2) Schools take fire alarms very seriously, and apparently, they are not easy to turn off, because even after 10 minutes of trying to get out the door, the alarm was still going off, with all of the students standing outside of the building, even though we had alerted them all to the fact that one of our number had pulled the alarm. 3) The fire alarm will make you all quickly go crazy. By the time we actually got out the door, we were all crying. It was just too much.
Hope this helps all you other parents out there in the thick of it. I think I will probably curl up and die when I have to actually get my children to school on time. Lord, come quickly. Maybe before Kindergarten next year.
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