How important is Routine for a Baby?

We love routine in our house. It was a lifesaver for us when we had Millie and we knew that when Mylo was at an age to start structuring a routine, we would go with the same one that Millie had as it worked perfectly for us. 5 months in and it’s like clockwork but I wanted to share with you what we do on a standard day...

5am - Mylo tends to wake up around this time but doesn’t have a bottle. We settle him back to sleep by popping on his Ewan the Dreamsheep or his 2 in 1 Soother to get him back to sleep for another hour or so. Sometimes we need to pop him in bed with us so he settles better but this doesn’t happen very often. Adam is usually up at 5:30am for work anyway so I plump up the pillows (these would be great for this) and lay him next to me until it’s time for us both to wake up.

7am - We all get up and it’s bottle time for Mylo. He loves his morning bottle and as long as he goes back to sleep after stirring at 5am, he usually wakes up so happy and chatty it’s adorable! I get chance to make a tea and get the dog and cats sorted too most mornings - it’s a little chaotic in our house in the mornings so I know I have to get a good sleep to keep up with everyone! I then get myself dressed, sort Mylo out and pop him in his bouncer and then get Millie up, fed and dressed ready for school (or her day). 

8:15am - Now Millie is at school, we aim to leave the house for 8:15am (this is the earliest we can leave to get to school if we’re walking) so I get the dog ready, Millie ready and Mylo in his pushchair and we walk up. He usually naps at this time, sometimes I can get him to wait until we’re home and I’ll pop him in his moses basket for a snooze. He will sleep between 9am - 10:30am most mornings. 

11am - Mylo’s 2nd bottle + breakfast. We have started weaning him now with purees as I feel he is ready and it’s the same time I started with Millie. He loves his fruit purees too and opens his mouth wide for it as soon as he realises it’s that time! He then plays for a little while and goes down for his main nap between 12:30pm and 1pm until 3pm. This is his most important nap as if he ever misses it, he’s so grumpy and it can effect his bedtime routine massively!

3pm - 3rd bottle time. Sometimes he can be real grumpy after this bottle but other times, he’s fine. I tend to feed him his bottle, play for 20 or 30minutes and then he comes into the kitchen in his bouncer with me whilst I clean and start getting dinner ready. 

4:30pm/5pm - 6pm - Mylo naps around this time for the last time of the day, if he doesn’t, he ends up falling asleep on his bedtime bottle and is a nightmare to put to bed after. Even if its just a short 30minute nap, he definitely needs it! It’s usually when I get our dinner done too so it’s perfect timing and works well for us all.

6:30-7pm - Bedtime bottle and bath (3 x a week) I don’t bath Mylo everyday, I think it’s bad for his skin if he has too many baths and so he tends to have 3 a week or a quick shower with me at times too. Millie has 3 baths too however, it’s sometimes more as she just enjoys playing in the bath some nights and it helps me if I have some bits to do. 

7:30/8pm - Mylo is usually fast asleep by now. He is still downstairs in his moses basket during the day as it’s easier for me to sort him if he stirs however, this week... I’m going to start moving him upstairs this week for his naps though and perhaps just do some jobs up there so I’m with him. We do have a baby monitor, I just don’t feel like he needs to be put up there on his own just yet. Millie also goes to bed at 7:30pm, sometimes 7pm depending on how her day has been and if she’s tired or not. She loves her own routine - always has and always will I think! 

8pm-10pm is usually my down-time. I get some blog stuff done, some Younique stuff and have a bath if I get chance. I just tend to watch crap TV and relax though as it really is my only time of the day that I have more than 5 minutes to myself! 

10:30pm - Mylo’s last bottle and we take it in turns between us both to do this every other night. It works better this way for us as it means if we need an early night, we can get one. Heading to bed is usually the highlight of my day too but we are desperate for a new mattress as every night, I wake up with such a stiff back it’s driving me crazy! 

Not just for the kids, but for us, I feel like routine is so important, especially a bedtime routine, it gets your body clock in check and you just know how your day is going to go. It has worked absolute wonders for the kids and does the same for us and I would urge anyone to try and get themselves into a routine if you’re not already. It’s easily done and definitely worth while, knowing that you are getting those few hours in the day to get whatever you need doing done and bedtime can be something you can look forward to as well!