Get Up Before Your Kids...

[Anonykunt]

Apparently it's the way forward. Great! I thought. I'll set my alarm for 6.30. The youngest doesn't get up til 7. I will finish my novel with a coffee and get my laundry on. Productive morning me.

Despite being knackered I couldn't get quickly to sleep. I woke several times in the night. 5 mins before my alarm is due to go off, my youngest comes into my room asking for "milkies" and toast.

I'll try again tomorrow.

My youngest can hear a sparrow fart 5 miles away down-wind. I’d need to be getting up at 3am not to have him join me.

I do this now, getting up at 5am.and enjoying peaceful time to myself to cook, exercise, do the housework etc, leaving my evenings free.

When my kids were little, however, this was impossible. DC1 was the sort of child who struggled to get to sleep and would often wake up between bedtime and around 11pm. DC was (and still is) an early waker, who would wake up at around 4.30 am and doze lightly with frequent wakings from them on. So in order to get up before my family, I'd be going to bed at around 11.30 and getting up around 3am. Which is the middle of the night.

My DC sleep later now, but my body clock is screwed and I'm usually up by 6.30 at the latest. I love an early morning cuppa and some peace and quiet 😊

Ds1 has always been an early riser, and that hasn’t changed despite him being 14yo now. Generally wakes at around 6am, but sometimes closer to 6:30. And if I were to get up before him, I would disturb him and also Ds2. They both sleep really lightly at that time of night/morning and I can 100% guarantee that they’d be up and about with me.

Its always been the same. Not such a big deal now that they’re older, but as smaller children I would hear lots of advice about that being a good time to get things organised, or maybe have a coffee in peace, or a bath, or get a head start on the day, or whatever.

No chance.

I am not a morning person so this advice isn't for me.

I'd just sit there feeling like death warmed up for 30 minutes, I wouldn't achieve anything.

I prefer to have my quiet time in the evening when they're in bed.

i used to do this,
this was my best time of the day!

Mine has been up since 4 so I'd have to be up by 3. And I only went to bed at 11pm.

I like my peace in the evening too. Maybe I'm greedy. I would just like a few moments before it all STARTS.

If anyone in our (admittedly small) house visits the loo after 4am it’s game over - 3yo light sleeper shouts WHO’S IN THE TOILET at the top of her voice, which then wakes the also light sleeping 12mo.

Its laughable to think we’d actually be able to go downstairs and sit in peace - I envy people who can manage this!

If only. DD wakes at 5.30 anyway and DS can hear the whisper quiet turn of a door handle behind his own closed door and starts hollering WAKE UP! WAKE UP EVERYONE!
DH used to try and sneak out for an early bike ride but it never worked. Even being ninja quiet the whole family would be up and awake just after 5 and grumpy for the rest of the day.

My friend gets up at 6 to do this and then rushes around at 8 trying to get her son dressed for school, makes no sense to me as that relaxed feeling turns into high stress where she's feeding him multiple breakfast items and dressing him herself. My ds wakes up if he knows I'm up. He senses me I'm sure and that's it, no peace. Dd likes to talk to me at 1030pm onwards so I get no peace then either.

I'd have to get up at about 3am for this to actually happen for me. 😂 Three kids and all of them are rubbish sleepers. I reckon I'd have "company" within about 5 minutes.

Wouldn’t work for me as I’m a night owl. I have no problems staying up till 2 in the morning, and I am most productive with housework and stuff about 8pm. But I hate early starts and if I have too many I’m sleepy all afternoon.
1am is my happy time. Family are all asleep and I’m watching some made for TV movie!!

My kids are awake for the day by 6.30 am sharp - fuck that lark (I await the monosyllabic teenage sloth period). Now they're old enough to come downstairs and get themselves breakfast with me keeping an ear out on them - it's much more pleasant parenting!

We are not early morning people - none of us.

As toddlers both girls went through a 6am wake up …so hard especially with clock changes!

Its holidays I start work at 8 (wfh) so I quietly can wake up at 7:15 coffee shower and start. Weekends we lucky if I see the children before 10 - we usually get up around 8/9.

I get up at 6.45 and make a brew to have either sitting in the garden or in the living room with the windows open wide (whatever the weather). Starting the day with the fresh air and peace and quiet does make it much easier to cope with the rest of the day.

I work love to be a morning person! I go to bed at 10pm anyway, so it’s not like i don’t get enough sleep! But I just can’t do it! Even worth best intentions!!

i get up at 7 for work, but I would love to get in to the routine if getting up at 5 and not feeling like a zombie for ages!

Any tips?

I’m always awake before my kids. Unfortunately I’m cosleeping with a restless 3 year old by this time and if I move she will wake up.