We have found over the years, that our children benefit greatly from structure and routine. Having these disciplines in place gives them a sense of stability. Finding ways to keep routines as a part of a way of life is always interesting. It can be challenging at times and takes practice to build the habits but well worth it! I have always been the type of person that enjoys order and structure. I do see the importance in developing this in our home. Having these routines in place makes for peace! Who doesn’t want peace?

Our Routines

Most of the routines that we have come up with were ideas of our own. There wasn’t a book of suggestions that we had to guide us. Many routines were based on what we experienced growing up. Any discipline is difficult in the beginning. Not all of these routines that we implemented flowed naturally and were easy to be consistent with.

Nightly Reading

An example of one routine that Brian and I established early on when Gregory was just a little guy (he’s 22 now). This first routine was to make sure we spent time each and every night reading books together and praying together as a family. Brian and I decided together to be committed to this with all of our children. Sitting down on the couch at night and reading books together is one of my most favorite times as a mother! Our little ones often love to choose some of their favorites books for us to read.   During the holiday seasons we always have a basket out with just the special books for that season.

Quiet Time

A second routine we have committed to in our home is quiet time. This was established more recently. Of course as our kids grew older, they stopped taking naps in the afternoon. While this is sad that many of my kids have outgrown nap time, it is part of life. In order for me to have a break in the day, we were looking for something structured for the kids to do since naps wasn’t an option. This is where quiet time came from. Initially, when we started quiet time, our kids would struggle to find stuff to do. They would also become noisy or come out of the room constantly and for a variety of reasons.

As quiet time has become a consistency, the restlessness has subsided. This time has become a great set time for them to read. Now for quiet time, instead of bouncing around, they go in their rooms to listen to an audio book on their YoTo player or read a book quietly. Sometimes they will just play together, but now it is less rambunctious for the most part. Quiet play is fine with me as long as it remains quiet play, and as long as they have read first and stay in their room! We also provide a timer so they know when they can come out.  Added time to the timer if they come out before the timer dings!

Mornings

A couple years ago, Brian and I started our own discipline of getting up early to visit and read together. We have enjoyed this established time together and time with the Lord. Its been a wonderful way for us to start our day and create margin in our day. While this was a wonderful time for us, we found that we were very often interrupted by our children. Our kids would wake up at varying times each day, and immediately come out to find us. While we love to spend time with them, this was a time that we wanted to be able to get into God’s Word.

A friend of Brian’s mentioned that their kids would not come out until a specific time each morning. They stayed in their rooms and played quietly, or read books. We both immediately thought this was brilliant. Now, when the kids wake in the morning they are not allowed to pop out of their rooms until 7:00. As with any new discipline or routine, this one is still a work in process. Our kids will still occasionally come out before 7:00. As cute as they are, we remind them that it is not 7:00 and they need to return to their room. As each week passes, they are adhering to this routine more. We are still working on establishing this with Cody. He likes to join me during my quiet time with the Lord most mornings! Once they are up and going they get to work on their chores.

Daily Chores

Each morning our kids have chores that they have to do. Our goal with these chores is to teach them discipline, and hard work. In order to help facilitate this, we have a chore chart. This chart is a visual aide for them to see what they need to get done each day. When they complete a chore, they can move it to the DONE side to show the task is complete. Getting the kids in this routine still requires work and training. It isn’t easy but can be done and helps them to begin to establish good work ethic and responsibility at a young age.

The Daily Cards

These daily cards are new to our family. Having this visual ready when the kids wake has been great for our kids. They can see how the day will play out and it is also a good way to make things run smoothly. I love these from Treehouse Schoolhouse. It brings incredible peace to children to be able see how the day is planned. Its good to know what to expect in the day and what to look forward to.

We remove the cards as we complete activities and as we navigate throughout the day. These cards are really great for my kids. In addition to this, my kids also use a daily school checklist. They use this checklist for the personal things and to check off items completed for school.

Benefits of Routines

I can’t stress enough how much routine allows for things to run more smooth and in a peaceful way in your home! These routines that we have implemented throughout the years are customized to meet the needs of our family. Our intention is to share what has worked for us. We hope that these will give you ideas of how you can implement routines in your home.  Remember that consistency is the key. Don’t expect it to go smoothly right from the beginning. It always takes time to establish any good habit and these daily routines in our household are no exception to that.