Reading is such an important skill for kids to have, but it is also a beneficial hobby for all ages. Reading just a little bit every day not only expands your mind and your knowledge, but it can also reduce stress, help you wind down from your day, and give you a break from the craziness that occurs on a daily basis. We have all heard how important it is for parents to read to their kids. We often forget how important it is for kids to see the adults in their lives reading. But how can we find time to read in our busy lives?

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Finding Time to Read For Yourself

A lot of times, we parents forget to take time for ourselves. You see reminders everywhere to fit more time into your schedule for self care. But do we ever really slow down and put self care time into our daily schedules? There is always another meal to be cooked, or a meeting to schedule, or a sporting event to attend. Where do experts expect us to find extra time in our busy days to read a book?

There are so many ways that you can slip a couple minutes of reading into your daily routine. As a new mom, I admit that I let my daily reading routine slip a little. As a kid, you could barely ever find me without a book nearby. When my daughter recently walked into the room with a book in front of her face, it made me laugh because that was how my sister and I were when we were kids. As parents, we don’t often have the luxury of reading chapter after chapter without looking up at the world around us. I had to make a conscious effort to find little moments in my busy day to fit in my own reading. I also realized how important it was for my daughter to see me reading items that weren’t on screens.

Finding a few minutes a day to learn something new

Recently, I started making an effort to once again read every night before bed. Having a toddler who runs around all day and doesn’t always sleep through the night means that some nights I can only read a couple of paragraphs before I fall asleep. But those few minutes help me step away from my day and sink myself into another world. I am also guilty of always having at least 2 books started at a time. I recently started reading more non-fiction and self help books, but found that it was harder to read those right before bed.

After reading The Miracle Morning by Hal Elrod, I decided that even 5 minutes of reading that focused on bettering myself was important. Since I really wanted to get the important messages in the books I was reading, I decided to carve out a specific part of my day for self improvement. Believe it or not, reading my self help books while I brush my teeth and wash my face at night has allowed me to really focus. It also makes me feel good because I am focusing on myself for those 5-10 minutes at the end of the day.

Spend your waiting time with a good book!

Another trick for busy moms on the go, is one that I learned from my own mother. When we were in the busy adolescent and pre-teen years, we were in all kinds of clubs and sports. My mom was amazing, driving us back and forth from event to event and never complaining. She always had a book tucked away in the car in case she was stuck waiting somewhere, and she used it quite often. One of the books I remember her keeping in the car was the parenting book Parenting with Dignity by Mac Bledsoe. (The toddler version is actually my current nonfiction read!). Much like my mom, I have always tried to keep a book with me wherever I go. Those little moments waiting in parking lots or the doctor’s office can add up!

Finding Time to Read With Your Kids

There are also ways that you can fit more reading time into your day with your kids. My daughter is a creature of habit. She likes listening to the same books before naptime and bedtime. Whenever we have a new book, I have to introduce it to her during another part of the day, or it will never get read. Often, I will read them to her while she is eating her lunch or her snack. Once she hears the story a few times, it usually makes it into our daily rotation.

Reading on the Go

In addition to having books in your car for yourself, you can also keep certain books in your car for your kids. My sister and I almost never got into the car as kids without at least one or two books with us. Packing for road trips with us was next to impossible because we often tried to bring our whole libraries with us. While you don’t want to encourage that, it doesn’t hurt for kids of all ages to have some books in the car.

My daughter has had her own books in our cars for as long as I can remember. Even though she can’t read yet, she likes to look at the pictures or tell us stories out of them. As kids get older, you can have them read aloud to you or to their younger siblings while you are driving. My aunt made me do this during a car trip once with a required school book I wasn’t enjoying. It definitely made the book go faster to read it out loud.

Surrounding them with inspiration

Having reading materials in every room of your home is a great way to ensure that your family will fill the little moments with more reading as well. Even if you are just flipping through a magazine while waiting for your kids to put on their shoes, they will see you reading and mimic that behavior.

We have books for my daughter in almost every room of the house. I can’t think of a room that she hasn’t “read” in. She even has a box of books in each bathroom while she has been potty training. Since we just opened up our outdoor patio, I added a box of her books for outdoor reading too. Read books to your kids while they are playing in the bathtub. Read while they are brushing their teeth. Give little ones a soft book while you are changing their diapers. These are all simple moments that can give you a little more reading time throughout the day.

My daughter and I always end the day with a read aloud before bed. Recently she has been asking me to read to her first thing in the morning before she even gets dressed. I love that she has started this tradition of starting and ending the day with reading. I hope that she will continue that tradition when she is old enough to read on her own, and that she never forgets to find a little me-time with a good book.

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