Breaking routine for special occasion

[soggycheerios]

Any tips please, has anyone been in the same situation?

We have a wedding coming up which we will be taking 10 month old DS to. He has a pretty solid bedtime routine now and sleeps well in his cot. All naps are in his cot too, he has never napped longer than 30 mins anywhere else (pram/car/sling) unless constant movement. We will be at the wedding until midnight if all goes to plan, the venue is rural with no accommodation so can’t just put baby to bed and take turns watching him. I just have no idea how we will get him to sleep in his car seat in the middle of a noisy wedding….. maybe he will surprise me but I’m dreading it! What would others do in this situation?

Also I mentioned to MIL that I was anxious about it and she commented that it’s about time that he got used to being out his routine every now and again and that we need to get used to taking him out in the evenings and not being so rigid with bedtime. Just made me wonder what other peoples views are about this? Me and DH see no reason to break his routine unless totally necessary, if we want to go out together we can put him to bed and ask someone to sit in the house while we go out. It has never struck me as an issue? Is she talking nonsense?! I can understand that comment about a newborn but not so much an older baby who has an established routine.

Grateful for any advice

You are both right. There is no need to break routine for a meal out or whatever. But also you will survive the wedding and it’s okay to forgot routine for special occasions.

take whatever pram/buggy/car seat your LO seems to prefer. White noise might help. They also might nap for a couple of hours at their normal bedtime then wake up for a few hours. That’s okay as a one off. It can be daunting doing these things for the first time but you will get through it and the overtiredness the next day won’t last forever!

but saying that, be prepared to leave earlier than midnight if you need to. Don’t feel you have to stay if LO is unhappy.

Hahaha. Sorry made me laugh as it makes me happy im not the only one whos had that conversation. I have had that conversation with my mother many times. I'm the same. I used to have a bad sleeper. From birth. I'm rigid and don't have much flexibility perhaps 15 mins to 30 mins but not much longer. I have worked hard to get where we are today. If we differ to much (normally nursery days) I get a blubbering mess of an over tired child. Up at 430/5 and whinging all day. So I understand completely

Maybe a pram jiggler might help??? As then it's moving pram?

As a one off it will be fine, yes, baby's sleep may be disrupted and might be a bit out of routine the next day but that's fine.

With regards to MIL comments your baby needs to be out of routine and be up late some evenings is rubbish - yes, some babies will naturally be awake later than others but if you have a good sleep routine in place then keep it. Good sleep is invaluable to children and babies and to break that would have no benefit other than baby being able to be taken out on an evening.

Thanks everyone you have basically confirmed what I was feeling! I will definitely use white noise (use this at home already) and see if I can borrow a pram jiggler from a friend. Even if he has a rubbish night it is only one night and I can always leave early. You’ve already made me feel much better about it :)
@ChittyBang1987 yes it’s easy for others to pass judgment isn’t it when they’re not the one who has to deal with the resultant screaming baby!

Glad you’re feeling positive about it OP. It’s daunting when you break a routine you’ve worked hard to establish and not everyone understands that which can feel isolating.

Those baby banz ear defenders work well for noise. I took my then 8 month old past a parade for 30 minutes and she slept through it.