Daily Rituals That Bring My Family Together

Getting ready for school and work is a fast paced and loud activity in my house filled with sounds like stomping feet, groans, and shouts for lost shoes, backpacks, and breakfast. 

As we are all scattered in different directions around the house, the one thing that brings us all together is breakfast.  I can’t say that we are always sitting at the table, but we are at least all gathered in the kitchen eating and sharing about the hopes for the day. 

Everyone has a job to do.   One child is in charge of getting the yogurts out of the refrigerator, the other is in charge of choosing the breakfast for the day, while my husband and I put it all together. 

Knowing that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, we like to make healthy and delicious breakfast choices to start our day.  (Emphasis on delicious!)  Some of our favorites include pancakes, waffles, muffins, cereals, yogurts, milk and orange juice. 

Living in South Florida, we are a bit snobby about our choice in orange juice.  When we can’t squeeze the oranges ourselves, we head to the grocery store.  

Did you know that Tropicana Pure Premium is 100% Pure Florida Orange Juice?  Tropicana is the single largest buyer of Florida fruit, purchasing approximately 11.6 billion oranges from Florida each year, mainly from central and southern Florida.  When we think oranges, we think of Florida.  So what better brand to purchase than one that uses PURE Florida orange juice? 

An orange grove in Florida that provides delicious oranges to Tropicana.

Tropicana is committed to using the best fruit to give you the great tasting juice you love and the nutrition your body needs. Each 59oz container of Tropicana Pure Premium® has 16 fresh-picked Florida oranges squeezed into it and an 8oz glass gives you 100% vitamin C to help you maintain a healthy immune system.  It’s the first thing I grab when I feel a little under the weather.

Want a chance to visit sunny Florida and a real orange grove?  Like the Tropicana Pure Premium Facebook page for a chance to win a trip for four to Florida.  

Enter the Tropicana sweepstakes for a chance to win 100 Florida prizes, including one-year-supplies of Tropicana or a trip to Florida to visit an orange grove, including round-trip airfare for four to Florida, a 3 night stay at a Florida hotel, and an exclusive experience at a Florida orange grove. For official rules and regulations, visit the “sweeps” tab on Tropicana’s Facebook page at www.Facebook.com/Tropicana .

So, the next time you are searching for a healthy way to start your day, head to your local grocery store and pick up Tropicana Pure Premium 100% Pure Florida Orange Juice.  I’ll be picking some up on my next trip to the store!

What are the daily rituals that bring your family together?  Share some ideas!

I wrote this blog post while participating in the SocialMoms and Tropicana blogging program, to earn My SocialMoms Rewards Points. The opinions and ideas expressed here are my own. To read more posts on this topic, click here.

Alexis

Planning Ahead to Alleviate Morning Madness

I hate mornings!  The stress, the rush, the MADNESS!  Ugh!  
I wish I could have an "I Dream of Jeanne" moment, nod my head, blink my eyes and "poof" everyone is dressed, fed and ready to go.  


Until I can make that happen, here's what I do to stay sane in the mornings.


Planning ahead is key.  The night before work/school, I plan everything!  
I do a lot of my work the night before, especially since my husband isn't around most mornings.
 
I lay out the boys' clothes so that they don't wander around naked wondering what to wear...and I can make sure it all matches! (luckily, they wear uniforms so I don't have much thinking to do)

I pack lunches; the dry stuff goes straight into the lunch boxes, drinks and sandwiches go in the refrigerator (mine too!).  If I plan to send something hot, I place their Thermos cans by the microwave to remind myself to do that first when we get downstairs.

Dry cereal in bags...ready to go!

I plan breakfast; usually they will eat some type of dry cereal in the car or waffles or pancakes (NO SYRUP...too messy!).  Unfortunately, we have to eat in the car because my work (their school) is kind of far from our house and Miami has A LOT of traffic.  I have the kids eat a yogurt while I'm doing last minute stuff in the morning before we get in the car in case they spill so I still have access to a new shirt (happens all the time!).


I make sure all backpacks are packed and ready.  I actually sit them in front of the door so that the kids can't miss them on the way out.  

I even put my coffee cup in the Tassimo machine with a cartridge ready in the pod, so all I have to do is press start in the morning! Every little bit helps us get out of the house quicker.


FYI, if I wasn't so worried about bugs, I would totally have toothpaste on their toothbrushes the night before...but I guess I have to draw the line somewhere!




I guess most would think it would be easier on the days when my husband is around...WRONG!  He ruins our "flow."  An extra person adds a kink in our well-oiled machine....although I wouldn't mind a little help!


What do you do to stay sane in the morning?


Alexis

Kids' Independence

So here's my next step toward sanity....I'm teaching my kids how to shower by themselves.  This process has not been over night, and we are still working out the kinks to the system.

It all began with my obsessive need to have a schedule in my life.  As an early childhood educator, I have always known of the need for schedules and routine in a child's life, but never really understood it until I had kids.  Since my first son's birth, the nightly routine has always been dinner, bath, bed.  Many have mocked this process, but as a mother of elementary aged children, I love that my kids know what to expect in the evening.  (Not to mention this helps with getting my kids in bed by 7:30 each night.  Who's laughing now?)  A routine also ensues during the bathing process as well: hair first, then face, then body.

I began the independent bathing at the beginning of this summer with the premise of convincing my 6 year old that "first graders bathe themselves."  Of course my more independent 4 year old took to the new chore with ease...it has taken the older one a little more coercing.  But we have started with hair washing first.  They love soaping up their hair and making new hairstyles for themselves.

Now my nighttime routine will be a little more sane...