I know with my three young ones we were all looking forward to the summer; Relaxed routines, stress free- mornings, and later bedtimes.

Now that school is just around the corner the time has come to get back in the routine of a busy fall season.

My youngest is off to Primary this year so we are taking extra steps to ensure he is well adjusted to a new routine before the first day! Here are five tips to make your mornings stress-free!

1. Create a routine that works for your family; Write it down and share it with your children. Have your older kids read it to your younger children. Don’t forget to get your partner on board too!

2. Start now! I started this week by moving our kids bedtime up 10 minutes each night so by September we are back to their “normal” bedtime.

3. Lay out everyone’s outfits the night before. Want to be even more organized? Lay five outfits out on Sunday and let the kids pick from those five in the morning so they have some control over their outfits. This works best with my 9 year old!

4. Set the breakfast table the night before– this is something the children can absolutely do! We do this as part of our supper clean-up.

5. Make lunches and pack daycare and school bags the night before. This time of year there are many great blogs on kid’s lunch ideas.

I know it may seem like nights are going to be so much busier; we have it down to a science and can get 3 sets of clothes, lunches and bags ready in 20 minutes. Our mornings are much calmer and everyone starts the day on the right foot!

Written by Tasha Richard from Kids & Co, Eastern Canada. Kids and Company provides a nurturing and educational early learning environment for children to play, discover and grow. Come check out one of our 5 locations in Halifax or visit us online at kidsandcompany.com