4:30am Coffee

I was never really a morning person. That is, not until after my second baby.

Each morning I would wake when my kids wake, and being roused by a crying infant or demanding toddler was not a positive way to start my day. I would make coffee, and stress while I waited it to finish. By the time I remembered that I poured a cup, it would be cold and time for us to leave for daycare/school. Of all these thing, the worst part was the cold coffee.

Deciding to take matters into my own hands, I program a coffee maker the night before so that my coffee is ready for me. I wake up at 4:30am so I can have time to myself in the bathroom, have breakfast, and drink a steaming hot cup of coffee all the way through while I start my day with emails. This has made me incredibly proactive in planning out my days and weeks, and a happier person overall. Kids wake between 6 and 6:30am every morning, and I'm wide-eyed by then. The "me" time is a tremendous benefit for my mental health, and I am in a more consistent routine with my children and partner.

This takes a bit of planning to execute each day. Bedtime for me is around 9:30pm. I have to ensure I set the coffee the night before and that my alarm is going to wake me. However I've started finding myself awake at 4:29am from my body falling into the habit.

All of this started over cold cups of coffee every morning. I drink coffee with sugar-free hazelnut creamer at home, and my Starbucks order is typically a grande dark roast with sugar free vanilla and half and half.

What's yours?