Days out with baby

[Rockieroad]

I’m looking ahead to days out as lockdown lifts/weather improves and just wondering how on earth it will work with a baby?

I have a 6 month old DS so haven’t ever had to worry about this and feel really clueless and a bit stupid!

To begin with naps were whenever and always on me, however in the past month or so he now naps in his cot upstairs.
Naps are currently
9:30-10
12:30-2:30
4:45-5 (usually in pram on walk)

If I ever need to pop anyway I.e shop then I do this between naps and make sure we are back. Whenever I have tried longer naps in the pram he can’t get past one sleep cycle and gets so grumpy when he doesn’t get his ‘proper’ naps! I think afternoons out would be best for him but am a bit embarrassed to be so rigid when making plans with other people.

My parents told me I should have made sure he can sleep whenever/wherever but just haven’t had the opportunity or need to do this! Is it too late to start now??

Any hints or tips on this?! Or is it fine/normal to have to be home for lunchtime with a baby?

What worked well for us was to time outings/activities in such a way that DD would nap in the sling either on the way there or on the way back. A bit stressful sometimes but generally it worked really well! And it's nice for babies to sleep in the sling.

I think mine dropped to two naps round about then, so bear in mind that you won't have to work off the current timings forever!

It really depends on the baby. Some babies I know were fine to do everything on the go and some preferred to be at home for proper naps in the cot.

What I would say is don’t be a slave to the routine. If your baby has only one sleep cycle instead of two because you’re on the go then it’s absolutely fine, just change next nap / bedtime a bit to fit in

Thanks for the advice so far!

@elliemara haven’t got a sling but will look into getting one

@Persipan this is why I thought the afternoon might be better for outings as the 3rd nap is so short, but this just seems a bit too inflexible still?

@ShirleyPhallus i seem to have one that prefers to be at home but I don’t know if it’s just because that’s what he is so used to. Definitely don’t want to be a slave to the routine, itching to get back into the world!

I was pretty much out 10-3 (or even later when didn't have to do the school run) with mine. They will get used to naps anywhere if you force them to. I can't be bothered with being stuck to a schedule or having to be home. So mine always slept in the car or in the pushchair. I think my son has slept one nap at home ever in his cot (he's 3 now) and I'm not sure dd ever slept a nap in her cot. He will probably get used to it.

It gets more complicated when you also have to work in snacks and meals, so I would just do your best to get used to both of you being flexible. Even if you have no where to go, you can always go out for a walk around the part or whatever to get him used to sleeping anywhere.

Mine were cot nappers from 6 months ish. I loved it as I got that time to chill at home without having to push a pram or hold a baby. The downside was days out.

Firstly their routine will change, so don’t worry about the exact timings too much. That last nap will probably be dropped in the next month or 2.

Secondly one crappy nap day won’t be the end of the world. Mine would never take long naps in the car or buggy, but they’d take enough to tide them over and then we’d just put them to bed a bit earlier or they napped longer the next day.

With my first she was used to just sleeping in the pram out and about. Due to lockdown my nearly 1 year old has always napped in his cot so days out when we could in the summer were tricky but I just accepted that some naps would be a bit shorter in the car or pram and maybe I’d stay sitting in the car for a bit once we got home so the nap was longer or walk around a bit more with the pram. It’s easier once they drop to two naps which won’t be long for you

@Rockieroad This page has tons of good advice on all the different types of slings, and lots of photo/video tutorials:

www.carryingmatters.co.uk/types-of-slings/

www.carryingmatters.co.uk/useful-videos/

Good luck! x

I used to aim to get in the car for the first nap and then just have the second/third one in the buggy or sling. It was often a short one but for the odd day it was fine. I found it more difficult fitting in meals when out - ok if it was just me &DH because we'd just work round it but meeting up with others was often a bit harder round milk, lunch and naps.

Thanks everyone.

I was quite good at getting out and about at first, 2nd lockdown stalled things a bit but managed a trip out shopping with my mum and lunch out with my DH in December. But now that DS is so much more alert and aware and we’ve been inside so much, I just feel like my confidence is really knocked.

I’m feeling better about getting back on track if he’s sleep is disturbed now. Still worried about how fussy he will be but I think some practice trips out with DH may be a good idea to just test the waters.

I found the 6-10 months age the hardest; they're alert so want to be involved, but also not really mobile enough to properly do anything, they're on a nap transition, and meals seem to take up half a wake window anyway!

Believe it or not, your baby will be okay if they skip a nap (or have it pushed back) a couple of times a week - especially if you're out and about and they have lots of new things to look at. I was like you becoming a mum during the pandemic - it was very easy to get stuck in a routine, but it doesn't have to be that way. If it turns out your DS really won't nap in the pram during the day (mine won't!), or it works best for him to nap at home - just try to do it as often as you can, or prioritise the nap it seems to impact the most.