Ahhh.  Winter.  Your almost here.  I know it’s strange but I love wintertime.  Snuggly nights at home cuddled up with hot cocoa and fuzzy blankets.  It just makes my heart sing.  I love the slower pace of the cold season.  Maybe it’s that the early nightfall brings us indoors sooner, but I feel like we have more time together during winter.

For quite some time now I have truly struggled with a nightly routine for our family.  It’s never been our strong suit.  Likely because my husband and I are both night people by nature so we come alive in the evening.  I’m always busy around the house with supper and chores and he’s usually getting rowdy with the kiddos.  It’s been a discipline for us to learn the importance of a nightly routine and how to train our mind and bodies to wind down.  I feel that even though we aren’t masters at this endeavor, it can still be valuable to share what we’ve learned and what’s been working for us in hope that you may glean something from it.

A little list of what brings warmth and calm to our nightly routine… (note: we are not a super structured family so this is just the basic outline I use to help us stay on track… we don’t hit our times perfectly 😉

With Family

5:00  listening to music while fixing supper (helpers welcomed)

6:00  eating together

6:30  cleaning up together (night time chores)

1. dishes
2. sweep
3. laundry
4. trash
5. tidy up (things strung out from the day)

7:00  ready for bed (bath time)

8:00  song & story with Jared

(he plays the dulcimer while we sing folksongs and hymns then I read a chapter book while they snuggle and listen… just call us the next Branson best! ;P (you have to be from the ozarks to laugh at that joke)

8:30  prayers and tuck in time

With Husband and Self

9:00  tea & time together

(ideas: talking, a show, reading, exercising, stretching, cuddling, anything to wind down and just B E  together… this is really hard for us, not because we don’t want to just relax together but because by the time we get alone time were either really tired or have things to get done, or sometimes we just want to do our own thing.  it’s still a work in progress for us, but we’re getting closer.  the nights we accomplish this time together feels so good!)

10:00  lights out.

Hopefully this was insightful for you and gave you some takeaway for your own nightly rhythm.   I’ve found when planning this out it’s best to think of it as a rhythm not a schedule or routine.  It helps to think how your night naturally flows best.  It’s much easier to tweak and dismiss rigidity in your expectations this way.

What is an idea you might try to use or what might you include that I didn’t?  I’d love to read your input so leave a comment!

Live for the most & stay warm friends!

kc

p.s. linked a few warm and cozy things for you below…