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8 Hacks to Becoming a Morning Person

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I absolutely love mornings–like love, love them. Getting up early, starting my morning time routine, and having a quiet, peaceful morning with God before my day gets going is my favorite part of the day. Add in a beautiful sunrise, and I’m in Heaven.

However, I don’t like getting out of bed. I don’t like not getting enough sleep. I don’t bound out of bed every single morning, ready to start my day. Honestly, I don’t think many people do. Most people, even the ones that get up early, would probably say that they have a hard time getting up in the morning. I think that’s a universal thing.

So how do we become morning people when it’s hard to get out of bed? Here are eight hacks to turn yourself in a morning person, even though you may not technically be a morning person.

1. Take a shower

One of the best things you can do to wake up is to take a shower. Add some shower gel that helps you wake up, and you’ll be awake in no time. Matt got me the set pictured below for my birthday. It’s my favorite for waking up in the morning. I’ve used the lotion and shower gel before, but the shower steamers were new to me. They are amazing! The entire bathroom smells good. The orange ginger scent is so refreshing and revitalizing; it wakes you right up.

2. Light a candle.

Candles are my love language. One of the things that helps me get going in the morning is to come downstairs and light a candle. My favorite places to get candles are TJ Max, Kirklands, and Bath and Body Works.

3. Start a new journal.

A way to refresh your morning is to pick a new journal. We just rolled out our new fall covers for our Faithfully Stepping Journals, and I am loving my new cover. It’s just an added perk to my mornings.

4. Make a cup of coffee.

I make an iced coffee every morning, even in the winter. I’m crazy; I know. But it really helps me to wake up; it also give me something to look forward to. I have coffee that I only drink in the morning. Right now, I’m enjoying Java. By saving it for mornings, I look forward to it even before I go to bed the night before.

5. Put on music.

My husband loves listening to music first thing in the morning. Before he even gets out of bed for the day, he snags his noise-canceling headphones and slips them on. It helps him to wake up and be a ready to start the day.

6. Grab a Blanket.

If you want a great morning time, start collecting warm throw blankets. Bonus if they can change out with the seasons to keep things fresh and fun. Except for the middle of summer when it’s super hot, I pretty much always snag a blanket from the back of the couch for my morning time.

7. Hang up white lights.

This one is a little extra but is one of my favorite things about my morning time. Last year, we strung white lights in the dining room. We left them up because I love coming down in the morning and turning them on. It’s a softer light than the overhead lights, and it just makes my morning time extra special.

8. Go to bed at a good time the night before.

This is so key to being able to get up in the morning. If you truly want to become a morning person, you have to learn how to go to bed at night. It’s a discipline–just like getting up early. It takes time and practice, but it’s so worth it.

These are just some hacks that work for me. I can say confidently that I have never regretted a morning that I got up early, but I have plenty of times I have regretted not getting up early.

Start Small

Start small. Get up five minutes earlier; then ten minutes. Then work it up from there. Start implementing some of my morning time hacks; try some of your own. See if you can’t fake yourself into becoming a morning person!

What are your morning hacks that help you get out of bed?

More Encouragement

For more on this topic, check out our free guide on how to have a morning time routine.

3 Things I Will Always Spend Money On

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It’s that time of year. The Christmas decorations are on display, the Christmas music rings out in every store, and shopping is in full progress. It’s one of my favorite times of year. It’s really about the only time of year that I will just let myself spend money. It’s that awesome time of year where you can walk into almost any store and buy something instead of just look because it’s a Christmas present for somebody on your list.

I was thinking the other day as I was shopping that while I love to spend money on gifts this time of year, there are a few things that I will spend money on all year long. These are the things that I come back to over and over again, no matter what time of year it is. And I think these three items will always make for a great Christmas present if you don’t know what else to get.

Candles

I love candles. In fact, candles are my love language. My husband knows not to buy me flowers, but rather, candles. Candles, to me, are what makes a house homey. We buy candles all year round in all shapes, sizes, and formats. In fact, my favorite thing is to have multiple candles burning on my table at one time.

There is nothing better than stepping into a warm home and smelling burning candles. It just feels so homey. It’s a small thing I can do to make our home a place we love.

Some of the best places I’ve found to get candles are Bath and Body, when you combine a sale and a coupon; Yankee Candle (the same—sale and a coupon), Kirkland’s, and TJ Max. The thing I love about shopping at different places is finding unique and different candles. It’s become almost like a hobby, finding the most unique candle.

Blankets

The next thing I will spend money on is a good blanket sale. Just like the candles, I think a blanket or two thrown across a bed or a chair or couch just makes a room so homey. My family loves soft, warm blankets any time of year, but especially at Christmas time. I love using Black Friday and other special shopping times to get blankets at really good prices.

I’ve found great deals on blankets at Kohl’s, Jo-Ann Fabrics, and Hobby Lobby. Blankets are one of the easiest things to find on sale and make the best presents. I mean think about it, have you ever met a person who doesn’t love a warm, cuddly blanket?

Coffee

The last thing I will spend money on is coffee. We get up really early at our house, and I love good coffee in the morning. We have a great Keurig machine that is my absolute favorite because it brews over ice, and that right there is amazing! Almost every morning, even when it’s freezing, I will brew an iced coffee. Call me crazy, but I love it! It helps me wake up.

Some of my favorite coffees are Cinnabon k-cups, chocolate peanut butter k-cups, and blueberry cobbler coffee. In addition to that, I am an absolute whipped cream fan. I love whipped cream on top of my iced coffee. This year, I found these amazing flavored whipped creams from Target; and they are just taking my coffee to the next level! I’m still trying to track down the salted caramel one and the hot chocolate flavored one!

All three of these things—candles, blankets, and coffee make great Christmas presents. So if you don’t know what to get somebody for Christmas, try one of these!

What things are you always willing to spend money on?

More Encouragement

For more like this, check out my post, My Favorite Things- Christmas Gift Ideas.