Shade of Alyssa: A Morning Person

I am a morning person. It is my favorite time of the day. "The early bird gets the worm" should be my motto because I live it each day. There is something about getting up before anyone else to a quiet house. It's my "me" time. Here's how my routine goes..

4:45 am

My alarm goes off.

4:55 am

Out of bed and headed downstairs.

5:00 am

Make myself a cup of coffee. Start up the computer.

5:05 am

Have my quiet time with God to read my Bible and pray. I listen to Pandora while I do this, sip my coffee and write verses down in a journal that are meaningful to me.

5:30 am

Work on my blog, check email, and read other blogs.

5:55 am

Put my workout DVD in, eat a banana and fill my water bottle.

6-6:30 am

Workout.

6:30 am

Shower and get ready.

7:00 am

Get Ry up & come downstairs, eat breakfast together, and start our day.

I always put my workout clothes out on my dresser and outfit for the day the night before so I'm not trying to find things in the dark in the morning.

When did I start waking up early?

I guess you could say that I started waking up early/being a productive morning person when I was in High School. I had a lot going on with Honors classes, sports, etc. so I felt most productive when I was up and out in the morning. I really started to enjoy waking up early in college. Sometimes I would go and sit in Starbucks at 6 am and get work done. I loved it. Now that I am a parent, I really treasure this time of day to myself.

It runs in my blood.

My parents are both morning people. I don't remember a time where my mom slept past 4:30 am. I would always hear her downstairs making her breakfast and brewing a cup of coffee. My dad has always been an "early bird gets the worm" type of person too. I guess you could say it runs in my blood. My husband, Mike, on the other hand, is definitely not a morning person. He stays up until midnight most nights and trembles at the thought of waking up before 8 am. My husband loves his sleep. It works for us though. When Ry was really little her would do the late night shifts if she woke up and I would do the early morning shifts. 

Why? Why? Why?

I really like doing this because I feel like I have started my day on the right foot. I feel productive and ready to start my day when I get Riley up. This also allows me to focus on her when she's awake rather than using that time to workout and get ready. One disclaimer is that when Ry was really little, my days were slightly different. She was getting up so early so she just watched me work out and get ready. If she slept then I would sleep. We started back up with my morning routine once she was sleeping through the night. I started working out/getting ready without her once she was sleeping until 7 am. I've also found that early mornings work best for me to do my workouts. I am not a evening workout person. I like to get up, get my workout in, and be done. 

Aren't you tired?

People ask me, do I feel more tired throughout the day? Honestly, not more than anyone else with a 1 year old. I am a happier version of myself when I have that time in the morning than if I slept the extra hour or two. I just would rather use my time being productive than sleeping. That's just my personal opinion. I usually just go to bed by 9:30-10 pm and I'm good to go.

Peace, quiet and a grateful, happy heart.

I really do love waking up early. I love my quiet cup of coffee, my time focusing on my relationship with God, and being productive. It allows me to start my day focusing on the most important things and going into the day with a grateful, happy heart. I would encourage you all to try it. It really can change your whole day for the better.

Hope you all have a happy Thursday!