My sweetheart, so strong-willed and busy. He started to crawl at 7.5 months and is on the verge of walking. Let’s play with non-toy, toys he says! Let’s explore, Explore and EXPLORE some more. My baby is full of life and curiosity and keeping up with him is my daily cardio. I am however grateful that routine and schedule has made a world of difference to when, This Mama, gets to recoup her energy and make time for the things she enjoys.
We start our day bright and early with a 6:30AM wake-up time and Milk-feed.
We are out the door by 7:00AM for daycare.
At daycare, my lovebug gets Breakfast at 8:00AM.
His next Milk Feed is at 10:30AM.
He enjoys a quick catnap from around 10:30AM to 11:00AM, give or take.
Lunch time is 11:30AM.
Most days he enjoys another Milk-Feed around 12:00PM, but sometimes all that play and he doesn’t want it until 2:00PM.
It was really important for me to relinquish control here. As soon as baby boy started to eat solids, I was concerned he wasn’t getting enough Milk at daycare and adamant about them feeding him 3 times a day and not making solids his primary while most pediatricians recommend his nutrients up until age 1 should still come from breastmilk/formula. However, I quickly learned if he was hungry, he would let you know!
I would continue our routine after I picked him up for the day at 3:45PM and he gets a quick snooze on the way home sometimes catching an hour nap until 5:00PM.
He has another Milk Feed at 4:30PM-5:00PM depending on length of his nap.
Then we take a nice walk outside or engage in some snuggles and mommy and me play until his dinnertime 6:00PM.
During dinner, Milk is offered but he mainly finishes that last Milk at his bedtime of 8:00PM.
An 8:00PM, bedtime seems awfully late! I learned my baby like to sleep less than 12 hours during the week, takes long 2-3 hour naps on the weekends and sometimes makes up for those missed naps at daycare when he gets home.
My son falls asleep on his own in his crib at his bedtime, but the little bunny still enjoys a midnight snack for one more feed at 12:00AM; where he transitions to the bed with mama. This midnight snack can happen anywhere from 12:00AM to 2:00AM. Either way, I find it important to have the bottle ready to go in a cooler next to the bed so we can quietly feed and I still wake up refreshed in the morning.
As a Type A person, I quickly learned that the main things I have control over and I consider essential routine things are wakeup, naptime , bedtime and mealtime when he is at home. Daycare has their own routine and most babies become predictable on the weekend based on what they do at daycare. What I have learned most though is that flexibility is key. Baby boy reaches new milestones often and can be a tad distracted to follow a regimented routine. What matters most is that I offer the same opportunity for the essential routine things at the same time each day. What this means is I must schedule my activities around him, which I am always happy to do. Having a baby naturally comes with sacrifice, but a lot of Joy! I am able to still enjoy my life by ensuring he has everything he needs and more and he is fed, well-rested, and ultimately happily given freedom to explore the world on his timeline.
