MORNING “ME-TIME”

This post has been sponsored by Coffee-mate® Creamer. As always, all thoughts and opinions are my own.

Mornings have quickly become my favorite part of the day. Since I’m not an early riser by nature, I’ve been really focusing on getting to bed earlier so that I won’t want to snooze through my early morning alarm. As someone who works from home, I have determined that keeping a consistent early wake-up call (…and coffee) is a vital factor in my productivity throughout the day.

My favorite way to hold myself accountable is to set my alarm for half an hour earlier than the actual time I need to wake up for morning “me-time”. This allows me to have at least 30 minutes to an hour at my leisure to do the things I enjoy most before starting my workday. These things include enjoying a piping cup of coffee with my favorite Coffee-mate® Coconut Caramel Latte Creamer, catching up on the latest news or a book that I’m loving, and creating my daily “to-do” list, all while cozied up in my pajamas.

My alarm typically goes off at 6:30am and I’m up for the day. I brush my teeth and wash my face with semi-cold water to help wake me up, and then head downstairs to start the coffee maker. If you’ve been following along for a while now, then you know I’m coffee obsessed!

While my typical “cold weather” coffee order is black with a splash of almond milk, I like to sweeten things up a bit for the warmer spring and summer months. I was recently introduced to the new seasonal Coffee-mate Dessert Creamers (find yours only at Walmart near the other dairy products) and they’ve added the perfect amount of sweetness to my early morning “me-time”. As I previously mentioned, the Coconut Caramel Latte is my favorite, but the Toasted Marshmallow Mocha and Cookies & Cream creamers are both divine! I usually add just 1 tablespoon to my coffee and it’s the perfect blend of coconut and the buttery taste of caramel.

Once I have my cup of coffee in hand, I usually let my mind start to wander. Whether I mentally start creating a weekly grocery list or planning our next vacation, I try to be as present as possible and let my mind be as creative as it wants with no restraints. Not only does this exercise help me in the realm of content creation and brainstorming, but it allows me to see a fresh perspective before stepping into the reality of my workday.

Depending on the time that I have left, I’ll usually pull out my notebook and “brain dump” thoughts or ideas I want to focus on or revisit later that week. I think jotting down ideas is such an important step in my morning routine because that’s when I feel most at ease. I’m not worried about how many emails I have in my inbox or what deadline I need to meet, I’m simply enjoying the morning and taking some much needed time for myself. Lastly, I’ll catch up on the news or read a few pages of my book until I finish my cup of coffee. That’s usually when I know it’s time to head back upstairs, change into my clothes and start my workday — feeling refreshed!

Now, of course, I am aware that everyone’s morning looks different but I sincerely hope that you get to set aside just a few minutes to enjoy for yourself. I guarantee it will help set the overall tone for your day and give you a fresh, new perspective of mornings.

Want to try the new Coffee-mate Creamers out for yourself? Find a local Walmart near you and click here for more recipe ideas! And, if you’re there on May 10-13th, be on the lookout for an in-store Coffee-mate sampling event at Walmart, too.