Practical advice for morning routine for a baby and preschooler on nursery days - must include breakfast!

[FinallyGotAnIPhone]

Going back to work next week and I didn't find out that the nursery doesn't serve breakfast until DD had already started attending. Argh! Ridiculous.

Does anyone have any practical advice for how to make the breakfast process at home as quick and painless as possible for a 10 month old and a 3.5 year old.

I am separated so no-one to help out.

I need to ideally leave he house at 745 every day to drop them at 8. I did a trial run with me waking at 6, kids waking at 7 and we didn't get out of he house until 8.15. Guess waking them earlier is probably the answer. How ironic that the baby has only just started sleeping until 7 after months of early waking.

Any top tips? Is this even achievable?!

It is achievable and will get easier - promise. I went back to work after having twins and had to get us out if the house promptly to get to work in time.
I used to get as much as possible ready the night before so, bags packed, clothes laid out, breakfast things out. I would get up, shower, dress, make up so I was ready. Then get the girls up, breakfast together, get them washed and dressed then out. It's doable in an hour. A bit of practise and you'll have it nailed. Don't worry. Hth.

Can the kids (or your toddler at least) have breakfast on the go? Or at least something that can be started at home and eaten on the way there if necessary - a bagel, toast etc? Make sure to get everything ready the night before - clothes laid out for each child plus same for you, bags packed and left by the door, work out how long everything takes in the morning and add an extra 10 mins on for unexpected things like a last minute nappy change etc!

Thanks to both of you. Making me feel better about it! I was thinking about giving them their bagel in the car, or a brioche or something. The three year old would be fine but for the baby it might be a bit messy. She's still having a bottle of milk in the morning too but hopefully I can knock that on the head soon or maybe ask nursery to give it (just thought of that. Not a bad idea!). I've already been encouraging the 3 year old to dress herself and we have a rule that you need to be dressed before going down for breakfast. Think I will try getting them up at 645 and see how that pans out. Poor things.

The plan is that their dad has then some days/nights so I should only have to do this two days a week. When my DD starts school in September I think it's highly likely we will look for alternative childcare arrangements e.g. Nanny/ childminder. Don't really want to pull DD out before then though as she's had a lot of change in her life recently with our separation and nursery has provided some stability.

I would get up yourself and get yourself ready first, then get your 3 year old up and dressed sit them with breakfast and then sort baby out

I leave the house at 730 and often leave dd 10 months in bed til 7

I also get older dc fed and they are usually half dressed before I leave (4&6 year olds) this is without my nagging and I have previously got them all up and out by 730

Deffently leave your baby in bed til 7 I think

Thanks mumof3 do you manage to get the baby dressed/bottle/breakfast then out of the door in 1/2 hour? (With two older ones to deal with too? I'm in awe).

I personally would not resort to breakfast in the car unless a con

Wretched phone - sorry.
Unless a complete emergency.
I think it's horrible for children to eat like that and so much better to eat properly at the table.
I can get my 2.5yo twins up dressed fed and out in half an hour so am sure with some encouragement you'll be a master of it in no time. Good luck!!!

Thanks *Twinsplusonesurprise"!

Thanks also issimma that's what I need - specifics about what people do! Do those of you with baby babies get properly dressed before all the breakfast palava? I used to with dd1 but then my exP was typically sorting breakfast/ nursery run etc so I never really had to worry about sick/ food etc on my clothes. Dd2 is still relatively sicky even at 10 months. On my trial run I got showered/ make up on/ tights on etc but put a tracksuit on and got quickly changed into my suit before I left the house. Felt like a bit of a faff but otherwise highly likely I'll get dirty?! Ugh! My mum suggested I just wear a pinny (1950s housewife?!).

Hi. We have always all had to be ready by 7.45 and had breakfast. DCs are 4 and 2 now but have been doing it for years. There are two parents but DH works away a lot so I do have to do it on my own regularly. This is what we do:
Night before: set everything out, clothes for DCs, clothes for me, school/nursery bags. I also get everything read for breakfast: bowls, cutlery, coffee mugs (with instant coffee in). The kids have porridge for breakfast - and I get the porridge oats in bowls the night before, with milk in and store them covered in the fridge. My handbag packed and ready to be picked up to go in the morning. Literally everything I can to make the mornings smoother.
Morning: alarm goes off at 6.20am. Get up by 6.30, downstairs and make coffee, shower, dress. Kids up around about 7am, straight downstairs with morning milk, porridge in microwave etc, aim is to be at breakfast table at 7.15. All sit and have a proper breakfast. Can feel a bit rushed if the kids are mucking around and not eating brilliantly, but they know the drill and are generally pretty good. 7.30 I am up from the table and clearing away, let kids finish. Then get kids dressed (I generally leave their clothes out in the kitchen the night before so we can do this super fast after breakfast). By 7.40 they are being ordered to get coats, shoes, hats etc on and we brush teeth in the hallway practically as we all walk out the door.

You asked about babies and clothes - I have been known to have wear a pinny, or even my dressing gown OVER my clothes to avoid mess!!!

It works quite well now but has been a process of refinement over the last couple of years.

My kids are exactly the same age. I have DH to help but he is often away for work so then it's a lone job. Our usual routine is this:

6:45 - I wake up, jump in shower (bring baby with me).
7:00 - apply makeup while dangling boob in baby's mouth. Toddler wakes up around now. We visit the toilet.
7:20 - dry hair and put on clothes.
7:25 - retrieve baby from under cot/climbing stairgate/breaking into wardrobe and put on his clothes while he performs the caterpillar.
7:30 - bribe/cajole/plead with toddler to put on clothes. Fail once or twice. Lose dignity but achieve goal.
7:40 - breakfast. Cereal for me and toddler at table. Yoghurt for baby. I eat mine assembling nursery bag for baby and reading books to toddler.
7:50 - take everyone upstairs so toddler can have final wee, brush teeth etc.
7:55 - offer greedy baby final speedy feed.
8:00 - capture baby from stairgate/climbing sofa arm/hiding under table, bribe/cajole toddler to put on shoes and coat, everyone out of house.
8:02 - go back to get everything I've forgotten from hallway. Get in car again.
8:10 - nursery drop off.
8:30 - finally get on tube.
9:00 - arrive at work, ready for bed.

RubyrooUK I have been laughing out loud at that post! Fantastic! Thank you for brightening my day and the v practical advice as requested !

Fizzly thanks to you too. This is all incredibly helpful to me honestly it is. Thank you.

Wrt the 3 year old getting dressed I hear you on the bribing. I've been building up to it and trying to make it a game "I bet you can't get dressed in your own" for the last few weeks and gone all out for the reward chart this week in the vague hope that come the end of this week once receiving her treat she will get dressed on her own forevermore. Ha! Yeah right!

Thanks OP for this thread - reading with interest am just back to work with DC 2.9 and 7 months.
Reassured that its possible - and that most mornings are currently similar to Rubyroo. That post made me laugh in recognition.

Hi everyone, inspired by all the good advice and tips on this thread I managed to get us all out of the house and at nursery for 8. I got up at 640 before the two kids, sacrificed shower (something I never thought I'd do but I decided to give the "shower the night before" a go and it was fine) did make up got dressed etc, then woke them at just before 7, got them dressed then downstairs for 7.15, had breakfast all together (everything out on the table the night before), back upstairs, teeth cleaned and then out the door. It wasn't that bad after all and I managed it. Thanks again all!

Hi there, I have taken some useful tips from your post as I will be in a similar position soon myself with similar aged children, if I can get a job that is, albeit I will have DH to help. Hope your schedule is working out! I remember getting one child ready for nursery and am anxious about how to get two ready (we emigrated and had second baby and am just looking for work.again now) - the post about catching the baby/bribing the toddler sounds about right!
I just wanted to say in response to any ideas about giving a child food in the car - at a first aid for littlies course I did recently we were told about a child who choked to death in a car eating food - the parent didn't realise as choking is silent. Please no matter what the hurry, don't do it.
Good luck with continued success and as little stress as possible on work days!

Gosh what an awful story.

RoadtoTuapeka you'll be fine. Listen to me a week in all full of energy ... I am sure next week I will be on my knees :-D

I get up at 6 50 and out of the door by 7 25 - I often shower the night before. Dry shampoo is your friend. I dress DS aged 2 and put him in front of beebies with a tub of dry cereal or someblueberries and a tippy cup of milk.much less messy to do milk and cereal separately. I get showered and dressed while he is munching. Tell the toddler the Night before saying in the morning we need to get ready quickly with no kicking or crying. Star chart for good behaviour. We have bag packed and hat coat and shoes by the door. Mantra is hat on coat on shoes on choruses loudly every time we go out.

its a bit later than yours but i gat 5 under 5 out in a hour.

i make sure everythings out the night before,clothes,breakfast stuff,bags shoes etc.

i wake at 7.get myself ready and feed bf baby and put toddler in highchair with cereal and a banana.

kids wake up at 7.30,they eat breakfast and get dressed and we are out at 8.15.i dress the babies while the 3 bigger ones eat breakfast.

you will get used to it,just see how it goes and if something doesnt work then just try something else.

Practice makes perfect!

My kids are older but make 'piles' (I gave up on neatly hanging on door handles) of the next days clothes before bed. They have to have visited the bathroom (toilet/face wash/teeth) and dressed before breakfast is served. We have no TV on in the mornings as it made them grumpy, unfocused and set the timings not me ("just wait for it to finish!").

Simple clothes help, my big ones both wear uniform now but I had my own nurssery 'uniform' of jogging bottoms, t shirt and sweatshirt. Not glamorous but easy for them to dress themselves, comfortable especially for naps, all went together no arguments over co-ordination and cheap and easy to replace if painted on.

We wake at 7 to leave at 8. Tbh its dh who finds it hardest to be done in that time as he is a bit of a faffer. I tried having more time in the mornings but found waking earlier just encouraged faffing about.

My eldest is a bit older, but we have a reward system in the morning - if he gets dressed in 5 mins then he gets a 'stone put into a jar', so many stones and he gets 'special play' for 15 mins at the end of the day (works out to about once a week).
So I start the timer, do his top button up, and then can walk away for 5 minutes while he gets dressed and proudly shows me at the end.
Has worked miracles for our mornings!

OP wrt to clothes - when my two were still dribbly/snotty (who am I kidding - they still are, but they keep it to themselves nowadays ) I used to get dressed in work clothes, and then put an old t-shirt/shirt/jumper over the top, which I didn't take off until I had dropped DC2 at nursery and was no longer in danger of having snot/breakfast wiped down my shoulder. Not elegant, but nursery didn't care and taking it off was my transition from "mummy mode" to "work mode"

I so empathise with arriving at work feeling like you have run a marathon/done a full day's work, though. I used to sit for a moment and take a deep breath before leaving nursery for work, just to calm down and re-focus.

Can your baby have a sippy cup of milk while you feed your toddler? Maybe get one of those ones that doesn't leak when it's dropped so you don't have to change her again? My 7 mo downs a sippy cup in 2 minutes flat but it takes ages for her to get thtough a bottle. Took a few goes to teach her how to feed herself but was thinking ahead to your situation when I start taking her to nursery in a few weeks time.

Maybe you already do this. Apologies if so. And yes, a nursery that doesn't serve breakfast. Ridiculous and I hope they don't take the piss and charge full whack regardless.