Making Over My Mornings, Day 4

by Erica Johns | Jul 2, 2015 | Connection Points, Great Stuff for Homeschool Moms, Make Over Your Mornings, Mom to Mom

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See all the published Make Over Your Mornings posts by clicking here

Today’s Make Over Your Morning* lesson builds on the idea of priorities by getting into the issue of what fills YOU up. I don’t know if anybody else ever has this problem, but one thing I’ve noticed about myself is that I can go without rewards/presents/filler-ups for a long, long time, and half the time I couldn’t even tell you what would actually feed my soul.  I’m looking forward to starting our facebook group for discussing this stuff starting on July 13.  I think hearing about how others manage this will probably give me some fresh ideas that I could really use.

Want to join us?  First, enroll in the Make Over Your Mornings course*, then come join us in the Facebook group.  You can start your course lessons right away, or you can wait and work through them day-by-day with the other ladies in the Facebook group.  

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Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Making Over My Mornings, Day 3

by Erica Johns | Jul 1, 2015 | Connection Points, Great Stuff for Homeschool Moms, Make Over Your Mornings, Mom to Mom

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See all the published Make Over Your Mornings posts by clicking here

Day 3 of the Make Over Your Mornings course* addresses priorities, which I think is very important, and probably not as easy as we might expect it to be.  In my life I have found that sometimes I have ideals that do not exactly align with reality.  Are you familiar with this dilemma?

Maybe you think, “Yes, yes, it is a big priority for me to take care of my health by exercising, so I should do that first thing in the morning!” but if the reality is that you have a little baby that needs to be fed and changed and bathed and snuggled or breakfast needs to get made for your family, or you have to go out before sunrise to deliver newspapers, then by crackie, your reality isn’t going to make room for your ideals, even if you do really want to lose weight or run a marathon or whatever.  I feel like my entire mothering journey has proven this to me over and over again! We will be talking more about ideals vs. reality, and brainstorming about ways to bring those two things closer together in the free Make Over Your Mornings Facebook group that I’ve created for YOU!

I hope you’ll jump into Crystal’s class and then come join us in the group to talk about these issues.  I think homeschool moms have some unique challenges that could probably benefit from some support and fresh ideas!  We will start discussing the class together on July 13, and will keep going for about a month.

Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Making Over My Mornings, Day 2

by Erica Johns | Jun 30, 2015 | Connection Points, Great Stuff for Homeschool Moms, Make Over Your Mornings, Mom to Mom

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See all published Make Over Your Mornings posts by clicking here

Today  in the Make Over Your Mornings* class, Crystal taught about something that I know is important, but I have always been pretty bad about:  evening routines.

When my six kids were little, evenings and bedtimes were the absolutely worst.  Everybody was tired and cranky (including me, sometimes) and there were a ton of needs, and often due to my husband’s work schedule, I was handling it on my own.  So, we never did get into any habits of cleaning the kitchen nicely before bed or straightening up the house or anything else, because we were just trying to survive.

Well, it has been more than a few years since my kids were babies, and it has only been just recently that I’ve been realizing that yes indeed, I have enough energy, quiet, ability, whatever to do some things at the end of the day that make it much nicer when we get up in the morning.  This lesson gave me some more good ideas about how to make this work and what to include.

My assignments for Day 2:

1.  Establish a bedtime routine.  There are several helpful printouts included in the class workbook that I’m using to guide me through this.  Crystal definitely helps me think about wider aspects to consider than I might have on my own.

2.  I’m also supposed to pick 3 of the most stressful things about my mornings.  With bigger kids that all like to sleep in, my mornings really aren’t that stressful.  However, the things that I would like to have improved that I think would make my mornings better include:  a.  Having a plan already written down for the day.  b.  Knowing where all the materials and items needed for those things are.  c.  A clean and clear desk.

If you decide to join the Make Over Your Mornings class*, please also come join us at my special Facebook group for Enrichment Studies friends that are working through the class together!  You’ll have a built-in team of fellow moms that will help encourage you and share ideas with you!

*Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Who Else Wants to Make Over Their Mornings With Me? Group Forming Now!

by Erica Johns | Jun 29, 2015 | Connection Points, Great Stuff for Homeschool Moms, Make Over Your Mornings, Mom to Mom

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See all the published Make Over Your Mornings posts by clicking here

I suppose that for most of you in the northern hemisphere, at least, you are probably taking a summer break from school.  Ah, summer break!  An easier schedule, a slower start to the day, and freedom from our school schedules and obligations.

Well, not so at my house.  🙂  We are schooling through the summer here.  We have Biology, math, reading, and writing still to do, so we are keeping on.

One of the things that I think most homeschool moms (and all moms?  And all women?  And all people in general?  lol) struggle with is having time and a system in place to get everything done.  I know I do!  With four guys to home educate, a home and large family to take care of, a business to run, and -yes- a job that I also work, it sometimes seems impossible to keep all the plates spinning.  

One thing that I do know, is that when I have a plan and I work that plan, things go a lot smoother and I get a lot more done.  Over the years I’ve had various systems in place that have helped.  Some have been more successful than others, and some were successful for a period of time, but then as life changed, they weren’t as good a fit.  One thing I have seen is that if I can get going before everybody else wakes up and make wise use of my time, that gives me a helpful jump on the day, and I love that!  Because, hey–even if the rest of the day seems like a loss, at least I know I got some productive things done right from the start.

I have decided to spend the next two weeks working through a brand new class from Crystal Paine.  You probably know Crystal from Money Saving Mom.  She’s an internet rock star!  I’ve actually known Crystal online for many years, from way back before she did Money Saving Mom.  We have been in the same publisher’s group together, we’ve done some business together, and I’ve always had great admiration for Crystal’s integrity, generosity, intelligence, and her ability to step into her giftings and develop and use them so well.

Crystal has done an incredible job of encouraging others to be purposeful about their finances, their time, their priorities, and everything else.  It’s such valuable, rock-bottom-true stuff.  I recommend her stuff (books, website, classes) so heartily!

Just recently Crystal released her latest project, Make Over Your Mornings*.  This is a 14-day online class that includes daily video teachings from Crystal, plus a downloadable workbook.  Crystal explains step-by-step how to revamp your mornings so that your day is set on a wise, productive, purposeful path.

My original plan was to blog my way through the class, sharing each day how I’m doing with it, what I thought of the content, whatever.  However, I’ve decided that I’d like to team up with other women that are also working through the class and looking for ideas and encouragement.  I’ve created a special Facebook group for all of you that have decided to join the Make Over Your Mornings class*, and want to have a built-in group of people to share your goals, challenges, and successes with!  You can enroll for the class here*, and then join the Facebook group here.  I plan to start actively discussing each day of the MOYM class on Monday, July 12, so you’ve got some time to plan for it!  If you are on summer break right now, this is the *perfect* time to invest a little effort in this area, because you’ll be laying the groundwork for a better life when the next school year rolls around.

I enjoyed the Day 1 lesson and video.  Crystal does a great job of encouraging the viewer no matter what stage of life you are in, and even if you don’t want to be an early bird!  🙂  The workbook is nicely-designed and the goals and instructions are clearly communicated and encouraging.  My Day 1 assignment is to tell someone that I’m doing this class, and decide when I’m going to take time to get the lesson done.  So, I’ve told YOU, and I’m going to aim for spending time on this class each morning.  🙂

Interested in joining the Morning Makeover?  I’d love for you to join my Facebook group so we can help each other out and cheer each other on!

*Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”