routine vs no routine? dd is now 6 months and im wondering which way to go,please advise

[robinredbreast]

yes please tell me your experiences with either having a routine or not having one
good or bad welcome

well dd is now 6 months and up until now has had no routine,has been bf on demand and ive just started her onto food for about a week
she is very bright happy and in 6 months has only had 2 days of the sniffles, so has been very healthy,she also sleep for a good 12-14 hours at night.we do cuddle her to sleep
however doesnt really nap in the day

now 66 is 6 months im wondering if i should think about doing more of a routine with her
because i guess we are working towards three meals a day, and it would be good if dd had at least one nap in the day
although she doesnt really get moody so maybe she gets all she needs with 14 hours at night,although doesnt seem much for a 6.5 month old

do any of you put your dc into there grobags in the day to encourage napping

so im trying to decide,should i go for a routine or not?

It all sounds great as it is - what are you trying to fix?

I use grobags day and night.

i would reccomend routine, not necessarily cos thats what the pro's would say but also it makes life much easier for you.

spelling awful sorry

We've been doing a firm routine since DS was about 2 months, but he more or less fell into it himself. It's brilliant for all of us, gives some structure to the day, allows me to plan and he knows what's coming.

nannyjo you're not the scary Jo lady off tv are you?

No hee hee. I'm not scary at all. Ask anyone who has employed me.

I think i'm thought of like that on here tho.

You lucky person!!! Wish mine slept 12-14 hours at night. I think some babies who have easy natures can adapt well to all sorts of cirumstances so dont need a routine so much, however, as they grow older they can change a bit and may need some structure. Does she have a time when she seems sleepy in day at all, if she does could try wind down activities at same time every day and see how that goes and then maybe attempt nap. As she gets more active, will probably need some down time in day. As for feeding, I guess some sort of loose routine is quite useful, as even as adults they say it helps you to eat at fairly regular times. But what do I know, my routine worked really well for DD1 and she really needed it (was a bit crap though to try and do things outwith routine). DD2 has some routine but is crap at sleeping day and night, but she has had loads of problems. So if I've learned anything, its that theyre all different. Sorry if this seems confusing. Bottom line is loose routine may be good, but dont be ruled by it, do what suits you and LO.

just the napping part i suppose
maybe im asking too much,maybe 14 hours a day is all dd needs

Very sensible imho - loved your arse/f**k comment - very funny!

I have 3DS and was strict with ds1 and 2 - both had routines etc but ds3 - things are a bit slack!

Octo i know what you mean...however good your intentions the more on yur plate the harder it is to juggle. I'm by no means the best parent in the world, infact some days i think i'm possitively crap but i was a fab nanny. I get upset when i think of how much better care my charges got then my kids

I'm pregnant now with No.3 and this poor thing gets no thought now what with life already being so hectic, what will it get when it's out

sorry that message was a bit of a hijack to this thead

DS1 got loads of attention obviously, ds2 hardly any and ds3 loads as the others are at school now!

relevant to this thread.
I'm not one for pushing hard and giving yourself a bad time of it just to get a ruoutine going because that won't make you happy and therefore neither baby but I know whnen i got into routines with both my DS's (about) 3 months i could relax a lot knowing what was coming up next and when and becauae i was more relaxed i all of a sudden had a much happier baby.

I'm one that needs that kind of life tho!! bit of a worrier if i don't know whats around the corner.

I think the thing is to try to be happy then the rest falls into place over time

Robin, sounds like it's pretty good just now. Does she give any sleepy signs during the day (eye rubbing, yawning)? I used to just watch for these, and then put her down for a nap (in grobag, but outside or in the porch in her pram) as quickly as possible. After a while I started to have a rough idea of when she'd be likely to be tired. She's almost 15 mo now, and I ask her if she's tired - if she gives me a quick eye rub, she goes down pretty well, if not, it's not worth bothering. She found her own pattern, and I just spent some time watching to see what it was. It's not set in stone, and I can mess with it pretty freely if needs must.

DS2 and this one will be very close in age so i hope i don't neglect DS2 as he'll stil be a baby and i need to remember that but No.3 will need a lot of me too. aaaargh.

dd1 had no routine until she was almost 3, she would regularly go to bed (in my bed) at 3am, she ate what she liked and as a consquence (i thought at the time) ended up with severe constipation, wasn't potty trained until she was 3 and a half (as a result of the constipation and the fact I had no routine so didn't regularly put her in pants for a few hours for a few months until she was almost ready like i have done with dd2 who has potty trained with almost no accidents at only 2.4yrs)

Dd2 had a fairly strict routine from about 1mth old it has benefited us all in that I know when and where she will sleep, she eats a regular times and her diet is brilliant because I meal plan and we have set times when i will give her fruit and juice etc she is still having a regular 2 hr nap so I know when I can plan things to fit in. The only thing that routine hasn't done for my family is ensure dd2 didnt end up with constipation now I think the previous reasons I thought had caused dd1's constipation may not be the case but tbh the lack of routine, eating times and diet can't have helped and definatly delayed her potty training. Dd2 is managing to potty train despite the constipation issues.

Overall I vote for routine.

Children like routine as well I find it causes lots less tantrums because my kids know what is coming next all the time, bedtimes are never an issue in our house.

I'm in a really good routine but it doesn't stop me doing anything. If its sleep he needs when were out thenhe has it in his buggy if he needs it if not he'll go without then catch up on his other nap.

For food etc i takes it with me, heat it there or time it so i takee it hot then feed when iget there etc.

Liked your point starlight about if you are a routine person. I think that makes a difference. But like someone else said it makes meal times easier to plan nd prepare if you know rughly hen they are.

I find 'routines' evolve naturally with time.

octo
what arse/f**k comment ?
have i missed something

mmmm just the napping to sort then really

habb yes she does give off clues when tired like eye rubbing.ill try to act then by thats kinda what ive beendoing anyway
iyswim

i will try putting her in a grobag for naps too

i also worry about cuddling her to sleep and if im creating bad habits ?

It was on another thread! Moondog told a quite nice poster that she was f*king her child up by basically controlled crying and nannyjo said she would laugh her arse off if anyone said she was f*king up her child - you had to be there kind of throwaway comment.

I told moondog I though she was harsh and it was unnecessary to be so mean and left the thread, then went back again ... am quite contrary today!

I found I needed a routine with ds1 after working in teaching for years, ds2 followed suit and ds3 is a law unto himself.

oooh sounds like an interesting thread what section is it on? id better take a peep