?M: In Which She Showers Adoration on the Alarm Clock

Alarmed. My kids are. A lot of you asked me about this, so today, I deliver the goods...or, the facts... This is what we do. Maybe you already do it. Maybe you don't need to. Maybe you want to, but don't know where to start. This is how we alarmed the Koch kids. This is how I savor the morning and feel ready, prepared and excited for when they burst out of that bedroom door.

My kids get up at 8:15 AM every single day. They take their naps and quiet times from 2-4 PM, every single day. I have training, an easy to follow schedule, and their precious alarm clock to thank for this. This is a clock in my bathroom. They are all sleeping now so I couldn't get to the real one. You follow me. It's a clock.

Grace, my oldest who is now 5*, was 2. She had, until that point, gotten up at 8 every morning since she was 6 months old- on her own. Great. She decided to get up at about 6:30 every morning one week, out of the blue. This perfectly coincided with the week she learned to open her own door.

* Yes, we had four kids in just over four years. Grace had been four for three months when Hudson, our #4 was born. I hear that I "look busy" a lot.

I freaked out! What was I going to do?! Were my leisurely mornings gone forever? And Patie was about 6 months old by then and shared a room with Grace and she needed her sleep dearly, so this just wasn't working out. Really. not. working. out.

After a few days of this, I realized the phase may not pass on it's own, and Grace was really crabby during the day- she needed to sleep more too. This wasn't best for her, or anyone.

I decided to try some manipulation. Er, ah, bribing? Er, ah, new training approaches... She knew Jim and I had an alarm clock. We talked about how big people use an alarm clock to let them know what time they are supposed to get up. She was followin' me. I asked if she wanted her own alarm clock, since she was big now. Of course she wanted one.

We went to Wal Mart for a special trip and she got to pick out her own. This was very exciting. She got a pink one that phases night light colors in and out on it's own. Too cool. She was beyond thrilled. They still sell them.

We set it up and set the rules. She needed to stay in her room, preferably sleeping, but, absolutely quiet until the alarm let her know it was time to get up. Just like Mommy and Daddy do. Cool.

The first night we used it, it was a big hit. Huge. So adult, so cool. Never a thought to test us. She was big. After several nights of this, she began sleeping to her normal time again and the alarm began waking her up. Score. I always knew exactly when they'd be up. Perfect.

We began using it for naps, too, when she got older. We still abide by the same routine, and every single kid has followed suit. It's the order of our house, the pace of our days, and as each new Koch makes their entrance to the house, they seem to just know, this is our pattern, this is our pace, and each one's body clock has fallen in line by the age of 6 months. Yes, they've tested us, each one, and Hudson will be ne exception, I'm sure, one day. Lily tested us quite a bit on this last month, the spell is coming to a close, and boy, she set a record for 'pline. But, that's life when you're 2, right?

Basically:

1. Make it a fun thing and involve the kids.

2. Set the wake time for a time that works best for everyone- their own sleeping needs and the family's needs as a whole. In no time, if you stick with it, everyone's patterns will adjust. If you think you want to push their wake times later from where they are right now, do it in small increments of 15 minutes or so over the course of a few weeks and they'll ease into it. If it's best for everyone for an hour or so of more quiet and hopefully sleep for them and "Mom" time for you, it will not hurt them to be trained to stay in bed longer. In fact, it will benefit the whole darn household. Maybe they'll even start rising up and calling you blessed...

3. Be firm and consistent. Let them know the expectations and consequences ahead of time. Keep the rules simple and clear and stick to them like, hardcore. They'll thank you for it someday.

4. If they really need you, or if they're potty trained and need to, you know, they can of course come out and find you or, you know, do their thing. Kids, even young ones, are smart, and they know the difference and they will try to eventually test you. If they come out for another reason than need before it beeps, there is an immediate consequence, or discipline, whatever you choose. And then they go back to bed until it beeps, no funky business. If you think they need an extra boost, let them know for every morning they wake in jive with the new order of things, they get a treat, like a gummi bear, an extra strawberry, or a little whipped cream on their pancake, or whatever you choose. Something small, but motivating. You might be surprised, how much they will respect the clock.

Cost of a funky alarm clock: No more than $10.

Always knowing when the day will really begin with your kids: Priceless.