Okay, let's face it, most people will read this and scoff at me. A routine for a newborn-no way. And in a way they're right. I'm going to start off by saying right at the beginning of a baby's life you do need to be VERY flexible with your routine, and simply try to get back on it when you can. I also want to stress that I did not have a perfect baby. Minnie cried from 4pm to 8pm religiously for weeks and it used to drive me crazy BUT I have been there, done it and come out the other side.
Let's
start at the very beginning. Newborns aren't in any routine. This might sound
bad, but is actually great. It's our opportunity to shape the routine into what
we want it to be.
People
will laugh and scoff at you, but I can tell you this. Every person who used a
routine from the off now has a calm structured baby, that sleeps and, on the
whole, eats.
At
first routine is more for you to help keep sane. Your day is broken up into chunks.of
three/four hours depending on your feeding schedule. It helps you know what
your baby might need at each point of the day and helps eliminate what they
probably don't need. I stuck with my routine and at about nine weeks (11.5
pounds) it just clicked with Minnie. All of a sudden she knew what to do-fell
asleep at the right time, was hungry at the right time etc. It helps to set
their body clock and this again is useful for other elements.
I
also think that a routine has a huge bearing on making the other important
elements work - sleep, feeding, being content.
I
used a number of different routines throughout the first year, migrating from
one to the next based on Minnie and her wants and needs. Here are the routines
that worked for us-please feel free to adapt them slightly for your baby based
on awake time, feeding schedules and other relevant factors, but in general,
these meet the needs of a baby at the different ages. Also, please don't think for a second I am the Gina Ford school of never leaving the house. Let's face it, sometimes your baby will nap in the car, the pushchair or heaven forbid, on you! Roll with it, but have this routine structure on the back of your mind and try to stick to it as much as you can. It works sort of along the 'Baby whisperer' E.A.S.Y guidelines (basically Eat, Activity, Sleep, You time - read her book for more), but I have made this work for me.
I do also want to tell you that I broke the golden rule - I woke the sleeping baby. Every single day. She sleeps like an angel and very rarely wakes before me now so I do actually think this helped.
I do also want to tell you that I broke the golden rule - I woke the sleeping baby. Every single day. She sleeps like an angel and very rarely wakes before me now so I do actually think this helped.
0 - 7 weeks
7.00
- Awake and feed
- Change
baby's nappy and outfit
- While
baby is lying on changing mat jump into shower quickly and then get dressed
8.15-8.30
- Baby naps -watch out for tired signs (approx 1.5 hours)
- Do
makeup, hair, eat, chores
10.00
- Awake and feed
- Change
nappy, gentle play
11.15-11.30
- Baby naps (approx 1.5 hours)
-
You time, napping, prep lunch etc
13.00
- Awake and feed
-
Nappy change, gentle play
14.15-14.30
- Baby naps (approx 1.5 hours)
-
You time, washing, spruce house, snack etc
16.00
- Awake and feed
-
Nappy change, gentle play
17.15-17.30
- Catnap (Up to 45 minutes)
-
Dinner prep
18.00
- Cluster feed
-
Gentle play
19.30
- Bath (once introduced),
nappy change, put into pyjamas
20.00
- Bedtime feed
- Baby
to bed (keep in living room with you with you until 5 weeks old, then start to
put into own room at this time)
20.30
- Cook and eat dinner
-
Prepare baby's and your clothes for following day
-
Pack nappy bag for following day
-
Wash hair, shower, paint nails, other 'you' time
22.00-23.00
- Dream feed and put baby straight back to bed
Teeny, tiny - before routine meant much.
7 weeks to 3 months
Essentially all I did here was swapped over the bath and feed at the end of the day. I felt that now she knew what was supposed to happen I could encourage her to sleep at the right time.
7.00 - Awake and feed
- Change baby's nappy and outfit
- While baby is lying on changing mat jump into shower quickly and then get dressed
8.15-8.30 - Baby naps -watch out for tired signs (approx 1.5 hours)
- Do makeup, hair, eat, chores
10.00 - Awake and feed
- Change nappy, gentle play
11.15-11.30 - Baby naps (approx 1.5 hours)
- You time, napping, prep lunch etc
13.00 - Awake and feed
- Nappy change, gentle play
14.15-14.30 - Baby naps (approx 1.5 hours)
- You time, washing, spruce house, snack etc
16.00 - Awake and feed
- Nappy change, gentle play
17.15-17.30 - Catnap (Up to 45 minutes)
- Dinner prep
18.00 - Cluster feed
- Gentle play
19.30 - Bedtime feed
- Bath (once introduced), nappy change, put into pyjamas
- Bath (once introduced), nappy change, put into pyjamas
20.00 - Baby to bed (in own bed)
20.30 - Cook and eat dinner
- Prepare baby's and your clothes for following day
- Pack nappy bag for following day
- Wash hair, shower, paint nails, other 'you' time
22.00-23.00 - Dream feed and put baby straight back to bed
Three months to six months
7.00 - Awake and feed
- Change baby's nappy and outfit
- While baby is lying on changing mat jump into shower quickly and then get dressed
9.00 - Baby naps -watch out for tired signs (approx 1.5-2 hours)
- Do makeup, hair, eat, chores
11.00 - Awake and feed
- Change nappy, activity
13.00 - Baby naps (approx 1.5-2 hours)
- You time, napping, prep lunch etc
15.00 - Awake and feed
- Nappy change, activity
Between
17.00 & 18.00 - Catnap (Up to 45 minutes)
17.00 & 18.00 - Catnap (Up to 45 minutes)
- Dinner prep
19.00 - Bedtime feed
- Bath (once introduced), nappy change, put into pyjamas
- Bath (once introduced), nappy change, put into pyjamas
19.30 - Baby to bed
You'll be getting the hang of this by now, get prepared and then enjoy your evening
22.00-23.00 - Dream feed and put baby straight back to bed
Once weaning is established (6 months plus)
Maybe don't let them get into the chocolate orange.
I will do an installment of this series focused around weaning, but in terms of fitting it into these routines, when I introduced first tastes I used the 3-6 month routine and added in the first tastes for breakfast first, giving half the milk feed first, then the first tastes. I then pushed the 11 am feed slightly later and did the same for lunch. When I was ready to introduce dinner I moved to the next routine as below.
I also found out what timings my nursery used and set my routine up around these. I also ensured that I could keep her bedtime consistent once I went back to work by factoring how long it would take me to get home and have a little time with her before bed. Feel free to adapt this to suit your own needs.
7.00 - Awake, milk
- Breakfast - Change nappy - Bung the baby in a bumbo, get showered etc, change -Dress baby - Play 9.30 -Nap (40 minutes) 10.30 - Milk (you can drop this once you're happy weaning is fully established and replace with a snack) 11.45 - Lunch and water 12.45 - Nap (approx 2 hours) 15.00 - Milk (this will be the next to drop) 16.30 - Nap if didn't sleep well at lunch (30 min) 17.00 - Tea
19.00 - Bedtime feed
- Bath, nappy change, put into pyjamas
19.30 - Baby to bed
I wish you all the best with these routines, please let me know how you get on or if you have any further questions. Look out for the other installments in this series which will include sleep, feeding, essentials and more. If there's anything you could particularly like to read about please do let me know. 
My grown up baby - 1!!
Lucy x | |
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