Routine or the relaxed approach?

[Bella2]

Just wondered how many of you ladies with young babies have routines in place? Grace is only 5 weeks old and at the moment doesn't have any set routine. She feeds every 3 to 4 hours, sleeps when she's tired and every morning I either bath her and top and tail her but apart from that we're quite flexible. Just wondered if I should be a bit more structured?

 

[Dragonfly Fi]

they find their own routines at around 6mnths and then loose them again at about 10mnths... thats when i started really 'imposing' routine on Jasper, it was clear that he needed sleep at certain times but wasnt able to help himself so we helped him stay in a set routine

at 5 weeks i think routine should be the last thing on your mind xx

 

[Froslass]

i haven't set any routine for me and Hollie x

I let er sleep when she's tired, although I do try keep her awake from tea time till bed time so I get some sleep when she's sleeping and me ad OH have time too x

Ive been pretty relaxed about everything, and I'm certain it has an effect on her because she's so laid back and well behaved! I've been very lucky to have such a well behaved wee baby x

 

[Sarah13]

I don't have routine either, just go with the flow, bit hard to have a routine with a hungry breastfed baby I think! Only thing we have been doing is making day and night different as he's been a bit muddled up! We have dim lights and everyone/thing is a bit quieter at evening and night time, just so he can see there is a difference, I also don't 'play' so much with him and talk softer.

 

[ft90]

Caleb doesn't have a routine either... He eats when he's hungry and sleeps when he's tired. He usually starts a really deep sleep at around 11pm/midnight, so we do try and keep him awake until then, but he's normally awake anyway. That way he'll sleep until around 5.30am.

I think when babies are this little they don't understand routine, they just have to have their needs fulfilled!

We try to give him a bath in the evenings rather than the mornings because then he's more relaxed, but that's as far as our routine goes!

I feel bad that I'm not doing it right when I see some people's routines with LO, but at the end of the day it's whatever feels right for you. I'm a firm believer in going with the flow, and I think in the end Caleb will find a routine we're both happy with

xx

 

[Bella2]

thanks so much for your replies girls, they've made me feel so much better! I hear of people talking about routines which was what made me doubt what we'd been doing but I had been thinking that surely you have to just go with whatever baby needs, particulary if baby is crying for food. Also everyday is different for us, sometimes we're out and about and other days at home so it would be impossible to follow a strict routine. Sarah I agree with the day and night thing, that was one thing the midwife suggested so we try to do the same and I don't talk to baby or have bright lights at the night time feeds to keep her sleepy x x x

 

[rbryan0205]

amelia has had a structured night time routine but the rest of the time was flexible it has helped us now she goes down in her cot fully awake and doesnt have a bottle before bed her choice not mine lol and sleeps from 7/7.0- 7/8 xx

 

[littlemiss83]

With my 1st LO I was BF'ing & didn't have a routine, after about 5/6 weeks we started giving her a bath at bed time & sitting in a dark room (bedroom) to feed & kept her in bedroom untill sunrise. Within a week she went from sleeping 2/3 hrs a night to 5/6 hours a night. The simple things make all the difference & it isn't even a strict routine as such, just bed-time.

With 2nd LO we had to start a bedtime routine from the start (as above with dark room ect) as we have to get up early to get other LO ready for school & collect in afternoon. But even if I didn't have another LO to look after, I was always gona do the routine thing as it worked so well last time, my daughter to this day has only woken through the night about 5 times & thats when she's been ill (she's 7) so bed-time routine defo worked for her. It makes all the difference getting a good sleep at night when you have a baby to run about after all day.

 

[Mummy2Adam]

I agree with littlemiss the bedtime routine is the best thing we did with Adam and we are doing it again with Elexia, she seems to be sleeping a good six hours between feeds at the night time if her cold is annoying her x x

 

[inky]

We didn't have a set routine until LO was about 6 months old, and things have been pretty much the same really, dinner at 5, bath at 5:45, play time til 6:30, last bf at 6:45, and he's fast asleep and in bed by 7. Day times are flexible, He sleeps when he wants but lunch is always at 12.

 

[clairebear22]

Jack's 5mths and still doesn't have a set routine. I base his feeds/food on whatever time he wakes up which is anywhere between 6.30am & 9am! He feeds every 3hrs (he's a little and often baby), has his brekkie, lunch & tea around his feeds, has his bath between 7pm & 8pm (at the moment) and he'll fall asleep anywhere between 9pm & 11pm. He still wakes once in the night for a feed so the later he has his last feed the better for us.

I think he'll eventually slot himself into a routine and i'll work out how to implement a structured one around that. I aim to give him breakfast between 7am & 8am, lunch at 12pm and dinner at 6ish when we eat with snacks/milk inbetween. Give him a morning and afternoon nap, give him a bath when my minded kids have gone home at 6.30pm (when i'm back minding that is) and have him in bed by 7.30pm the lastest. When that routine will start depends on Jack's dvelopment over the next few months x

 

[setdse]

Where Dylan was in scbu he kind if got forced into a routine.

We were really relaxed about it when he came home but it soon became clear he followed his own routine anyway. We have a routine but its not strict to the point of ill wake him up if its Lunch or whatever. I Like having a routine tho as it means when im out I know if I have to be somewhere at a certain time to do a certain thing

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[clairebear22]

Our 1 rule is we never wake Jack when he's sleeping, even if he misses a feed or some food because he'll make up for it later. It's just our 'thing' x

 

[inky]

Our 1 rule is we never wake Jack when he's sleeping, even if he misses a feed or some food because he'll make up for it later. It's just our 'thing' x

I do this too, even when he was tiny. He would always wake when he was hungry! These days he sleeps for as long as I can get him to lol! Is not often that he naps through lunch or dinner tie but I don't think I'd wake him if he did, wake him up before he's ready at your own peril, he has a cob on for the rest of the day!

 

[Constantstar]

Owen has Routine all the way

 

[MrsR]

We let Sebastian set his own routine and it's worked for us so far (he's now 13 months) x

 

[Roo3]

Jake has been in a bedtime routine since he was about 8 weeks old. He has a bath, massage, bottle then is put to bed awake. We started off putting him to bed at about 9ish and slowly bought it forward to 7.30pm. He;s only just started sleeping through most nights until about 7am.
In the past few days he's started falling into his own daytim routine. He has a feed between 7 and 8am, then has a sleep at about 10ish for about 30 mintues. He'll then have another nap at about 1ish for anywhere between 30 minutes and 2 hours. He'll have another bottle between 3 and 4.30pm and another 30 minute nap anytime up until 6pm. We don't let him sleep later than 6pm though. He's not grumpy if he is woken up so I don't mind if we have to wake him up. If we let him sleep later than 6pm he wouldn't sleep at night.
He doesn't nap in his cot during the day yet though, if we are at home he sleeps on the sofa. I'm going to start putting him in his cot for at least one nap from this week.

 

[rbryan0205]

We let Sebastian set his own routine and it's worked for us so far (he's now 13 months) x

its nice to see u back posting x

 

[MrsR]

Thanks honey

 

[pinkymum]

I think I started a night routine when she was about 5/6 weeks old. During the day we have a flexible routine, its not super strict but things do seem to fall into place. I also don't wake her up for food either - I make the most of it