Routine for a 7 month old

[NoTeaForMe]

Hi all,

We seem to finally be naturally falling into a rough routine/pattern to our day now my daughter is 7 months old - I'm guessing a lot of that is because of her having 3 meals a day?!

I was talking to one of my friends the other day and she says her daughter is roughly the same and that it is the Gina Ford way.......can anyone tell me what this set routine is? I don't want a strict routine but as she seems to be kind of following it I'm wondering what the suggested routine is. Just for info not to enforce! I'm especially wondering what she says about the afternoon nap - we're having some trouble with this so it doesn't affect her bedtime!

Thanks

Going from memory here...can't find the book! Think by 7 months routine would be:

7 - up and feed
9.30/10 sleep up by 10.30
Lunch by 12
12-2 sleep (ha!)
2 milk feed
5 - tea
Bath by 6
Milk at 6.45, bed at 7
Baby magically sleeps through the night ( mine didn't do this by 7 months)

I do think this kinda follows what babies do anyway...

Thanks for that!

If there's no mid morning milk how do you get the recommended 3 milk feeds in?

I do just after he wakes up, after his midday sleep ('bout 2.30pm) and then bedtime. But I have to say the middle of the day one is always a bit ad hoc cos of the school run. Like today he didn't have it because I had to take him sleeping from his cot to go to school. Not a happy bunny... But if he wakes up naturally and there's time then I'll give him a feed then.

But remember my DS3 is 10 months so can maybe handle the gaps. He needed his milk more at 7 months.

Thanks, so for breakfast do you give milk first and then breakfast?

As soon as I think we're falling into a rough routine it all goes out the window and I'm not sure why it changes. Maybe I need to be stricter with the routine, problem is I don't like to wake her from naps which obviously has a big knock on effect for the rest of the day!!

Thanks

Yeah, at 7 months he fed as soon as he woke up and then we gave him breakfast at about 7.30/8 once we were all up and dressed.

TBH I think the nap bit is the hardest, none of my DSs did the long lunchtime nap thing until they were between 9 and 12 months. Once they'd got that sussed they could get through until bedtime in a fairly jolly mood. I remember there being something in GF about younger babies having a nap between 4 and 5pm but not letting them go later than 5. As they get older they just don't seem to need this one. Can't remember exactly when it hopes by the wayside, but by 6 months...

DS is almost 7m and our routine is:

6am milk
Back to sleep in our bed
8.30am porridge
11.30am-12.30pm nap
12.30pm lunch
3pm milk
4-5pm nap
5.30pm dinner
8.30pm milk and bed (bath every other day)

libbyssister - i am so reassured by your post. My 6mo DS has taken to having a long nap in the morning (two hours) but the afternoons are torture as he just gets more and more tired. In the afternoon he invariably naps between 30 mins and an hour and wakes from his final nap 3 or more hours before bedtime meaning my DH gets the whole 'you're trying to kill me' screaming fit when he gets DS out of the bath in the evening. He's fine while he's in the bath (loves it), but goes downhill quickly when he gets out. And he's cranky all afternoon - yesterday i was in floods of tears by the time DH returned from work because nothing i did was right for my DS. He's gone from being a really happy, chilled out little man to being quite demanding and fussy. I know it's a phase and will pass, but i just want my smiley boy back!

I think naps have been the one thing that have driven me round the bend, when my DSs have been young. Getting them to have enough sleep so they can function and be happy but not so much that they won't go down easily at bedtime is the holy grail!

mantana well done for getting a good long nap out of your 6 mo! All mine have been a few months older before taking to sleeping longer than 45min/1h at a time in the day. And your DS is having a nap in the afternoon too which is good going. My DS3 was exactly the same at 6 m...happily splashing in the bath one minute and screaming, just wanting milk and sleep the next. Are you weaning DS? Cos sometimes I found that the afternoon crankiness meant he was after a snack, or early tea, or both! He really took to solids and just wanted to eat and eat at 6/7 months (this from a child who was always on the 9th percentile or less for weight!).