Songs to wake to.

There are so many wonderful things about being a teacher. I love catching up with my old students and meeting the new ones. I love the feeling that fall is beginning: crisp and fresh and offering a new start every year. I even love getting new binders to put my lesson plans in. What can I say - I'm a total nerd. Always have been, always will be. But there is one thing I never have and never will love about going back to school, and it is this:

I should never be awake to see that time on my alarm clock. But alas, even the best of jobs have their downsides. So I've come up with an attempt to get myself up-and-at'em without causing Aaron to wonder why he didn't just become a monk. I made a wakeup playlist with some of the chipper-est, cheeriest, why-don't-you-just-jump-out-of-bed-and-be-happy-about-it-too songs that I could find. Here's the thing, though. By sharing this list, I am proving beyond a doubt that I'm not very cool. Some of these songs are beyond cheesy, and the range of musical styles is probably too broad for most (read: country-haters, show tunes-haters, Kanye-haters). But desperate times call for desperate measures, and 5:15 a.m. is a desperate time (plus, I have to be honest, I really like every song on this list). So if any of you are grumpy like me, here you go! One more caveat: these are sunny day songs, not rainy day songs. I know, I'm weird.

1. Here Comes the Sun - Phil Keaggy
2. What a Beautiful Day - Chris Cagle
3. Good Day Sunshine - The Beatles
4. Oh, What a Beautiful Morning - Alfred Drake
5. Good Morning - Kanye West
6. Wouldn't It Be Nice - The Beach Boys
7. First Day of My Life - Bright Eyes
8. Troubles Will Be Gone - Tallest Man On Earth
9. You're My Best Friend - Queen (Warning: This is only if you have friend. Don't listen to this if you are lonely. No early morning pity parties on the Wakeup Playlist - please proceed directly to next song.)
10. Put On A Happy Face - Jason Alexander (Bye Bye Birdie)
11. If You Want to Sing Out, Sing Out - Cat Stevens
12. Sun It Rises - Fleet Foxes
13. Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing - Sufjan Stevens
14. June Hymn - The Decembrists
15. Good Life - One Republic
16. Instead - Madeleine Peyroux
17. Featherstone - The Paper Kites
18. Hello, Dolly! - Louis Armstrong
19. I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles) - The Proclaimers
20. Brand New Day - Joshua Radin
21. Sunshine Cake - Frank Sinatra
22. Early Bird - Shirley Temple (I know, I know... but I've wanted to wake up like Shirley Temple ever since I saw her sing this song in the movie. She's so happy... it's personal, ok?)
23. We're Going to Be Friends - Jack Johnson
24. This Is Your Life - Switchfoot
25. Burden of Tomorrow - The Tallest Man on Earth
26. This Everyday Love - Rascal Flatts (See previous warning)
27. Wildflowers - Tom Petty
28. Beautiful Day - U2
29. Keep On the Sunny Side - The Whites
30. Who Wouldn't Want to Be Me - Keith Urban
31. Goodmorning - William Fitzsimmons
32. Vagabond - Wolfmother
33. Gonna Be A Lovely Day - Kirk Franklin

There you have it! Do you have any morning favorites that I should add?