Mornings Aren't Magical

This is my coffee mug :). On the back it says "Mornings aren't MAGICAL". It's absolutely perfect for me. I am not a morning person, plain and simple. I never have been. For as long as I can remember, I have unleashed my wrath on anyone foolish enough to attempt to wake me before I was ready. My mom taught me early on to use an alarm clock. Of course it didn't take me long to learn about the snooze button, lol! But that would lead to her wrath when she came in to drag me out of bed.

Then came high school. I joined the colorguard (don't laugh, our band and colorguard were freaking awesome!). This meant I had 0 period. Wondering what that is? 0 period is when you have to show up at school at the ass crack of dawn. Crazy huh!?! I would drag myself out of bed sometime between 5am and 5:30am, start the coffee, yell at the parentals (yes I yelled, I wasn't going in there, they were about as much of morning people as I was), then hop in the shower in hopes of improving my mood. Coffee would be tossed into a thermos, make-up and clothes tossed into the backpack and off I would go.

Then the fun would really begin. 250 cranky teenagers gathered onto the field to practice, practice and practice some more. Even in Southern California, some mornings were down right cold. And thick fog led for some funny collisions. Ever run into a quad set of drums or a line of saxaphones? I have and I don't recommend it. The band was released a few minutes before 1st period bell and then you would see the mad dash as they all rushed to change their clothes before class (most of us wore sweats to practice, you don't want to go to the rest of your classes in sweaty clothes). Colorguard had 1st period practice as well and our only hope was that the instructor watched the time so we could have enough of it to change and throw on some makeup before the rest of the day. All of this is a lot to stuff into the morning of someone who despises the hours before 10am. And yet, despite my crankiness and hatred of the morning hours, I looked forward to it everyday. I met some of the greatest people ever in the colorguard and band and I'm happy to say that 15ish years later, they are still some of my closest friends.

Then came adulthood and my first job, Disneyland. Oh yeah baby, I worked at The Happiest Place On Earth! Occasionally I had an opening weekday shift, which meant back to pre-dawn wake up calls. Again coffee was my best friend. I also learned to put my makeup on in the car in order to save time. Don't worry, it was in rush hour traffic, which in Cali means at times you come to full stop right there on the freeway. I'd put my makeup on, park my car, take the shuttle to the park and grab my costume. As I pulled on my costume for the day, I blastered on my fantastic smile. No really, I have a great smile. I would list it as my second best feature, second only to my green eyes. After I was dressed, I polished off whatever coffee I had left (keeping the thermos with me for refills, especially on 10+ hour days) and hopped on out to whatever store I was at, ready to be part of the Disney magic.

Then came my first child. She was born 9 years ago and I haven't gotten a good nights sleep since lol. I know longer work, but if you think I get to sleep in now, you'd be mistaken. But I do have my children well trained, sort of. They know that if they irritate mommy before my coffee, it is at their own peril. So now I sip my coffee from my Mornings Aren't Magical cup and think about different my mornings are now. 15 years ago my biggest worry was getting to school on time. I hated mornings, but it was relief to get out of the drama at my house and get to my friends who had become my family. Now my first morning hours are filled with making breakfast, packing lunch, getting kids dressed and Amee out the door to the bus stop. Then I plan for lessons (the youngest is home schooled) and wait for my little buddy to get here (I watch a little 2 year old boy 4 days a week). I take a few moments, with my beloved coffee and just let my mind wander. The coffee kicks in, my shoulders relax, the tension releases just a bit and I smile at all the wonderful memories of the non-magical mornings of high school. Then it's time to jump back into reality and my continueing quest to be the best mom I can be.