Bedtime - times and routine for 6 month old

[Newbiemum76]

Hi all,
My little boy is 6 months old - I’m just wondering what everyone’s bedtime routines are/what time baby goes to bed?

Current routine:
bath 6/6.30pm (depending on last nap)
pjs/massage after bath
bottle 7/7.30ish
patted to sleep in arms and put in cot
(don’t know why I’ve put times as they are different every day but I like to keep the same routine regardless of the time)

I am still sitting upstairs with him until I go to bed around 9ish as he is a fairly light sleeper and will hold my hand to go back to sleep. I figured the older he gets the less he’ll need me - although he can’t settle himself to sleep, I have to pat him (will probably post about this in another thread!)

This bedtime routine works for me however my partner doesn’t get home from work till 6.45/7pm and leaves before DS wakes up in a morning so doesn’t get to see him much. DS will sometimes (most days) have a nap around 5/5.30 which results in a later bedtime and then my partner can see him. I would like my evenings back if I’m being honest! (I won’t till I don’t sit next to him when he’s sleeping though I know)

Should I allow a later bedtime? Does anyone else’s baby have a later bedtime? Does it work?
Should add he usually sleeps through the night only waking once for a feed.

I found they needed a much later bedtime until they dropped naps completely.

Rather than changing timings I'd work on shortening the bedtime routine. Sounds like at the moment it basically takes from 6 am til 9 am?

First of all he doesn't need bathing every day, so that saves you some time, but more importantly I'd try to stop him needing you to stay with him til you go to bed. Can you just leave and use a baby monitor? If he wakes you can leave 5 mins (or however long you are comfortable with) and then go and resettle if needed. At least then you'd get some time with your partner.

@CoalCraft the whole bath/pjs/bottle/bed only takes 45 mins max. Just the timings are all over the place as it depends when he wakes from his last nap.
I don’t tend to bath him everyday but he knows when he has a bath that he has pjs and bottle and bed afterwards as after the bath he starts rubbing his eyes without fail and moaning for his milk.

I have been sitting next to him while he’s been asleep as they say for first 6 months baby should sleep in same room you’re in. Now he’s 6 months I do want to start leaving him, we have a pet cam that we’re using as our baby monitor so I can watch him on my iPad, just worried it’s a lot to go from sitting next to him if he wakes to not being in the room at all

Lol noticed I put am rather than pm in my first message, oops!

@Newbiemum76 Fair enough re the bath - if it cues him for sleep that's a good thing! And sounds like your sorted for leaving him to sleep with your pet cam. I wouldn't worry about him waking and fretting about you not being there. He may well wake less if he can't hear you in the room (that was the case with mine) and even if he does wake you can be there in seconds if you need to.

Timings wise I've always aimed for putting them down between 7:30 and 8 pm but there's no hard and fast ruli. Personally for your own convenience I'd look at getting a more fixed nap schedule so your day is more predictable, but it's ot essential.

@CoalCraft might brave it tomorrow night with the camera and see! Yes usually he’s down by 8pm, there’s the odd night where he’s been down by 9pm but he usually sleeps well in the night so the odd later bedtime doesn’t bother me too much!

His naps are a different thing altogether! His first nap is 2 hours after he wakes up but the other naps are not as regular! He also hates going to sleep in the day so it’s always a battle. Haha a different problem!