Family Organization - Preparation for the Next Day

I often find it humorous that people ask me how I get ready in the morning for work and school with "those six kids."  It's not like I have six toddlers or six infants, but I have at least five healthy, independent, able-bodied children who can prepare themselves for the day.  The toddler's help in morning preparation is minimal at best but the other children definitely have their own set of responsibilities when it comes to departing the house on time for our schoolday/workday.

No matter if you have six children or one child, organization is the key to having a minimally stress-free morning before you exit the house.  The rule in our home is that all homework and any other papers that I need to see from my children, must be placed on the counter each night before bed.  The children must also have their lunchboxes on the counter and the backpacks, sports gear, instruments, and shoes must be set at the front door.  Likewise, their school uniforms must be laid out on their desks in their bedrooms as well as all underwear and socks - all before they can rest their heads on their pillow at night.  (I must admit that my ability to do a load of laundry each day is lacking thus it is imperative that the kids have the underwear and socks set out or else we will spend time in the morning - time which we dont' have - sorting through clean piles of clothes looking for matching socks or underwear!)

After the children have gone to sleep, it is then my responsibility to check all homework, read parent letters from teachers, sign papers, and make lunches.  After I view each homework assignment and place my signature on the appropriate papers, I leave the papers exactly where the children left them so that they can pick them up quickly in the morning and place them in their respective backpacks.  I then prepare the lunches for the next day - all eight of them!  I usually keep lunch low-key in terms of preparation-time; sandwiches, fruit, yogurt, snacks, chips, water bottles etc.  I have timed myself several times and have noticed it takes me no more than 30 minutes to make, pack, and put away the lunches in the refrigerator.  I would estimate that my nightly responsibility of checking homework, signing papers, and preparing lunches takes me about 50 minutes.  No wonder I am so exhausted and ready for bed! :)

In the morning when the children awake, they make their beds, get dressed, carry down their dirty clothes to the laundry room, place homework in their backpacks, and then eat a quick bowl of cereal or oatmeal.  They then make sure the kitchen is clean, they feed our animals, brush their teeth, and put their coats or jackets on.  They then retrieve their lunches from the refrigerator, put on their backpacks, pick up their extra items (instruments, sports gear) and stand in the hallway at the front door, waiting for me.  I give the car key to the eldest child who then leads all the kids to our wonderful 12 passenger van.  My husband and I make sure all the lights are turned off, items are in their place, lock the front door, and we're headed for our day.

If my family fails to do our "chores" each evening before bed, then the morning is very rough and we arrive late for work and school.  I think mornings are naturally stressful because we may not be entirely rested or we anticipate a busy day head, thus if we are in an organized routine, with much of the preparation accomplished before bedtime, the mornings should be less stressful.  I think my family's organization makes sense and I think it will work for your family as well.  Best of luck with your family's organization!