I feel like I would like a little more daily routine in our lives. I'm sure that my 3 yr old dd and twin babes (and dh and I) would benefit from some more rhythm in our lives. We are naturally quite flexible people (which I like), but I feel a little more structure would be good.

I just found out about the following book: Seven Times the Sun : Guiding Your Child Through the Rhythms of the Day
by Shea Darian. It sounds great, but I'm wondering if anyone would like to share their daily routines or if anyone knows of any useful websites.

I'm not thinking of a strict routine...more something like getting up and having breakfast, then going outside for a walk (or time in the garden), then lunch, quiet reading time, snack....and so on.

Any wisdom out there :)?

Janice

I'd sit back and look at how your day usually goes, what kinds of things do you normally do....then think about what things you'd like to be doing but never seem to get around too. And then work out how you can incorporate everything and write it down.

so we get up and have breakfast
get dressed
personal hygenie
take out dinner (or make sure you have dinner planned, this is a biggy for me!LOL)
go for a walk (while it's still cool! LOL)
read a book or two
play with blocks
mom makes lunch kids play
lunch
clean up
chores
quiet time
art time
mom makes dinner kids finish up art start cleaning up
clean up
eat
baths
family game time/story
bed
mom/dad cleans up from dinner.

we do have a sort of routine (not schedule) and i throw in one day a week for the park another day of the week for errands. but here's our daily routine:

wake up
ely comes to my bed, munches on a breakfast snack and watches toons for a little bit so i can get a little more sleep
we get up, put clothes on
eat breakfast
ely plays (either outside or in) while i tidy the kitchen and get dinner out
lunch
"rest time"
playtime again while i cook dinner
dinner
bath
books
songs
bed/sleep

i would love to incorporate more toddler activities and am working on it. i feel tied down still with a nursing almost 2 mo that doesn't have her rhythm figured out yet.

i would love to read others' posts about this. i think the waldorf way of life is so much more serene that normal.

bumping

:)

Janice

Hey there,

I really like Seven Times the Sun. Get it from the library first to see if you like it; it has a lot of songs and sheet music for the songs as well as practical everyday things.

Life has changed drastically for the better since I started doing more rituals and routines a few months ago. That is also when I completely cut out TV and 99% of computer time for Sam. Huge major enormous wonderful changes!

Our daily routine is something like this:
* Wake up (I sing a "good morning to you" song when I go into his room)
* Pick out clothes, get cleaned up and dressed
* Go downstairs and prepare/eat breakfast (we listen to "breakfast music" in the morning, which is a CD called The Planet Sleeps - actually lullabies, but it's very mellow music and a good transition to the day). We eat together, facing each other across the table.
* Talk about what the plan is for the morning. Usually an out-of-the-house activity (museum, park, playground, playgroup, visiting friends/family).
*Morning activity
* Home for lunch together at the table, then reading time, then upstairs for quiet time (nap).
* Wake up from nap (again "good morning to you" song when I go in his room post-nap)
* Snuggling for a bit in the bed
* Go downstairs, Sam picks music to play in living room while he uses crayons or plays with other toys. (Meanwhile I'm in the kitchen making dinner and listening to NPR on the radio, LOL.) He usually comes into the kitchen periodically to see what I'm doing or play in there.
* Daddy comes home and we eat dinner together at the table.
* Daddy playtime after dinner.
* Reading time, then tub, then pjs on and up to his bedroom.
* I sing one song, his choice, while I lie next to him on his bed, then I tell him I love him and good night (exit stage left).

Little variation from this schedule at this point. He's used to the morning being 'his' time and the afternoon being 'my' time iykwim.

HTH a little!

Tara