My Toddler’s Morning Routine For A Perfect Day (15-Months-Old)

My toddler’s morning routine sets us up for a happy, (mostly) meltdown-free day.

I’ve always been pretty good about keeping a routine in our house. That’s not to say we don’t have days where it doesn’t work out, but for the most part, we try to stick to a pretty regular schedule. It makes me happy, and more importantly – it keeps my son happy. Toddlers thrive when they’re on a routine. They like having a general idea of how their day is going to go. I’m flexible though, because I don’t want to pass on my bad qualities (like having an anxiety attack when something pops up that throws your day off).

It’s safe to say that keeping my toddler’s morning routine is the most important part. After nap, things will happen how they happen. Sometimes my husband will arrive home early and I’ll have some help around the house, and other days I’m on my own until 7pm. As long as our morning routine remains somewhat consistent, my son seems to be in much better spirits, no matter what the afternoon and evening brings.

My Toddler’s Morning Routine

8:30 – 9:00AM: Wake up and get dressed.

If I’m lucky enough to wrangle him out of his clothes, that is. Half the time he stays in pajamas, who am I kidding.

9:00 – 9:30AM: Eat breakfast and drink our morning milk. Horizon Organic Grassfed Milk is our favorite!

This milk is the bomb-diggity, y’all! You can’t beat it! It’s Marshall-approved, creamy, organic, and the cows are grassfed, making it a staple in our kitchen. Win-win! Plus, it’s available at Walmart, which is about 3 minutes down the road from us.

If you want to give Horizon Organic Grassfed Milk a try, you can save with an offer from Ibotta here!

9:30 – 10:00AM: Independent play or TV time while I tidy up and check my email.

I know, I know, TV is the devil. This mama needs a moment to drink her coffee and get the house back in order though. Marshall loves playing independently, anyway, so it all works out.

10:00 – 10:45AM: Feed the chicks and dogs, then water the plants.

Marshall is my sweet little helper. He loves watering the plants and watching the chicks eat breakfast. When the dogs are eating, he can’t help himself from trying to join them. It’s a struggle.

10:45 – 11:45AM: Outdoor playtime. If it’s rainy or cold, we’ll stay inside and have sensory playtime.

Marshall’s slowly starting to warm up to the idea of playing in the grass. It wasn’t his favorite thing in the world for a long time. It’s been raining all week, so pasta sensory play has been our go-to.

For more indoor activity ideas, check out this post.

11:45 – 12:00PM: Clean up. This usually results in a mini-meltdown because, for whatever reason, Marshall acts like wiping his face off is the worst possible thing I could do to him.

Poor guy. I try to hold off on washing him up because it just breaks my heart! It starts to get hard looking at his little raggamuffin self after a while, though.

12:00 – 12:30PM: Lunch time!

This boy loves to eat!

12:30 – 12:45: Read a book.

Sometimes we read together, and other days he prefers to read alone. I’m just glad he’s interested in books!

12:45: Lay down for nap.

Woohoo! My favorite part! I can finally get some work done! By the end of his nap, I usually miss him. Motherhood is strange, y’all.

Do you have a morning routine for your little ones? Every child is different, so I’m always curious to hear from other mamas. Marshall may have a tad of his mama’s neurotic OCD-tendencies.