Up With the Sun

In the past ten days, I've managed to be up before the sun nine times.  One day, oops, I thought "five more minutes" and the next thing I knew it was 7:15!  

The first few days were hard to drag myself out of bed.  These days it's getting easier and easier.  Most days I can have the house all straightened up, be dressed and ready for the day, have the school board written out with the day's assignments, and have some sort of breakfast cooking before the kids ever get up.

Andrew (the baby) sometimes gets up just after I do, and sometimes sleeps in.  On the days that he gets up, I take the time to change him, feed him, and then he sits happily in his high chair and plays while I do a quick cleaning and start breakfast.

The very first day I did this, my oldest daughter (who is always sleeping late) said, "Mom, if you'd make something good for breakfast like this every day, I'd get up a lot sooner."

Ouch.

The second day, my younger daughter said to me, "Mom, why are you in such a good mood?  It's like you're nice, and so everyone else is being nice."

Even bigger ouch!

It is stressful to me to have a house that isn't straightened up, and to feel like I get no time to myself, no quiet moments to think my own thoughts.  That stress translates into me being grumpy sometimes.  But when I get up early, the house is already clean - and I get to do it by myself, in the quiet, while sorting out my thoughts for the day.  So, while I'm preparing the home and food for everyone else, I'm preparing my own heart and mind for the day.

My next goal: get up early enough to make Tony breakfast before he leaves for work (I'll need to get up a half hour earlier even than what I am doing right now.)  And then to make sure to get some quiet Bible reading time each morning as well.  I can do it.  Baby steps!

Well, it's now 7:18 am.  I hear Andrew stirring.  Time to get him up and feed him, then start some breakfast for the rest of the family.  Have a blessed day, everyone!