Routine... when?
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Mum2b_Claire
Mummy to Ruby & Scarlett!
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You can start now if you want! We started the EASY routine from the Baby Whisperer's book at about a month. It really helped us learn to read her cues. We basically offered her a feed every 3 hours in the day, then she had some awake time until she started to show tired cues, then we put her down for a nap, she slept until the next feed, and so the cycle went on.
My tip for routines is just to take the bits from them that works for you and ignore the rest, don't feel you need to stick slavishly to it or you'll set yourself up for frustration! If your baby is happy, sleeping and feeding well then go with it.
After a few weeks we didn't have to 'try' and do the routine, it just happened naturally and although we don't do the EASY cycle exactly any more, and some days the whole thing goes out the window without a major problem, it has helped us no end.
My tip for routines is just to take the bits from them that works for you and ignore the rest, don't feel you need to stick slavishly to it or you'll set yourself up for frustration! If your baby is happy, sleeping and feeding well then go with it.
After a few weeks we didn't have to 'try' and do the routine, it just happened naturally and although we don't do the EASY cycle exactly any more, and some days the whole thing goes out the window without a major problem, it has helped us no end.
aimee-lou
Totally Outnumbered!!
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We started a bedtime at 3 weeks and Earl has taken to it well. We're planning on, if it hasn't happened by then, to start the EASY routine in the new year when Earl will be 2 months. At the moment I just follow him and we do a variant of it anyway (he naturally eats every 2.5-3 hours and will sleep for a while before a feed - I'm sure that he associates waking up with food! lol)
It's up to you really. You never know how they'l take to it until you try it so if you want him in a routine, give it a go and then see how he gets on. It may be that you find that parts work, parts dont. It's all a matter of trail and error.
It's up to you really. You never know how they'l take to it until you try it so if you want him in a routine, give it a go and then see how he gets on. It may be that you find that parts work, parts dont. It's all a matter of trail and error.
lorna84
mummy to Emilie :))
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We started the day she came home, I bath her, give her a little massage, get her dressed, feed her & put her down, although she doesnt realise its a routine just yet Im hoping evenually she will, she sleeps wonderful though so it must be working 
CatStorey
Mum to Chloe and Tom :)
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I tried to start some kind of routine when Chloe was about 3 weeks but she was having none of it and it just stressed me out far too much! So I just left her to it, let her eat when she was hungry, sleep when she was tired ect. Gradually over the weeks she has started to find her own routine though its still pretty randon most days 
I have a bedtime routine of whenever her last feed is (anytime from 9pm-11pm) we both get into my bed, lights down low, no noise and have her bottle. Then she goes into her mosses and sleeps for around 3-4 hours until her next feed.
During the day she usually eats every 3-4 hours. After her bottle she likes to have a play, then will get tired and I will try and get her to sleep. Usually during the day she will only sleep on me, if at all!!
I will try when she is a few months older to get her down for naps in the day propelly and also bring her bedtime ealier.
I think its totally up to you how routined you want to be. I like to keep things quite easy as that suits my lifestyle x
I have a bedtime routine of whenever her last feed is (anytime from 9pm-11pm) we both get into my bed, lights down low, no noise and have her bottle. Then she goes into her mosses and sleeps for around 3-4 hours until her next feed.
During the day she usually eats every 3-4 hours. After her bottle she likes to have a play, then will get tired and I will try and get her to sleep. Usually during the day she will only sleep on me, if at all!!
I will try when she is a few months older to get her down for naps in the day propelly and also bring her bedtime ealier.
I think its totally up to you how routined you want to be. I like to keep things quite easy as that suits my lifestyle x
polaris
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I think like other people have said it is up to you how strict you want to be about routine. But also some babies will take to a routine very easily whereas others will not take to it so easily.
I started a bedtime routine with Thomas about two weeks ago but we don't have a fixed time for bedtime because it depends on how his daytime naps and awake times have gone. Sometime between 7.30 p.m. and 9.30 p.m. generally. Our routine is a good feed, a bit of playtime, then a bath, then another quiet feed in a dim room, lullaby, and then I generally have to walk round the room with him on my shoulder for ages, LOL, that is not supposed to be part of the routine but he is often very uncomfortable with wind in the evenings. However it does generally work as I think he knows it's time for his long sleep afterwards, he is still generally waking every three hours for feeds but at nighttime he will go straight back to sleep after eating whereas during the day he will stay up and play.
Over the last few weeks I have been keeping track of his naptimes during the day to see if there is any pattern, they are still fairly random, but he normally has about an hour and a half nap in the morning, then a longer nap at about midday, maybe two hours or even a little bit more (this is normally when I bring him out in the pram), then another one or two short naps of forty-five minutes to an hour in the afternoon. But there are no fixed times for this and sometimes he wants to do something completely different or has a really sleepy day and I just go with the flow in that case. I do try to keep him awake for at least an hour and a half or even two hours during the day, but it doesn't always work.
I started a bedtime routine with Thomas about two weeks ago but we don't have a fixed time for bedtime because it depends on how his daytime naps and awake times have gone. Sometime between 7.30 p.m. and 9.30 p.m. generally. Our routine is a good feed, a bit of playtime, then a bath, then another quiet feed in a dim room, lullaby, and then I generally have to walk round the room with him on my shoulder for ages, LOL, that is not supposed to be part of the routine but he is often very uncomfortable with wind in the evenings. However it does generally work as I think he knows it's time for his long sleep afterwards, he is still generally waking every three hours for feeds but at nighttime he will go straight back to sleep after eating whereas during the day he will stay up and play.
Over the last few weeks I have been keeping track of his naptimes during the day to see if there is any pattern, they are still fairly random, but he normally has about an hour and a half nap in the morning, then a longer nap at about midday, maybe two hours or even a little bit more (this is normally when I bring him out in the pram), then another one or two short naps of forty-five minutes to an hour in the afternoon. But there are no fixed times for this and sometimes he wants to do something completely different or has a really sleepy day and I just go with the flow in that case. I do try to keep him awake for at least an hour and a half or even two hours during the day, but it doesn't always work.
E
elly75
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We have our little guy on the EASY routine for a while now and it's worked out pretty well. With most routines, it may change over the course of a day or longer depending on how the little one is. In the case of the EASY routine, we just make little variants to work for us even better.
Lu28
Aisling's mammy
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I started doing routines by she who cannot be named when Aisling was about 2 months old, until then we just followed her lead. I found the timings of that routine a bit restrictive and I ended up getting stressed if we didn't do things at the 'proper' time. Next time around (!) I think we'll go by the EASY routine as it's very baby led anyway
Beth09
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Thanks everyone, i have just bought the baby whisperer from ebay so when it arrives i will give the EASY routine a go! I did buy the contented little baby but found it way to strict!
The thing im thinking now is we do go out alot in the day and Zach will always sleep in the car, will this not mess up a routine if we make plans to go out?
The thing im thinking now is we do go out alot in the day and Zach will always sleep in the car, will this not mess up a routine if we make plans to go out?
ClaireRJM
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Yeah I started Olivia from about 8 weeks old. She been good & always fed every 3-4 hrs from being couple weeks old, so her feed would usually fall about 4pm so i'd bath at 7:30 feed at 8 then put down straight after. Took her couple weeks get used & cried for good half hour to 2 hour some nights but she sleeps 9-10 hrs now.
One tip i would give is, u gotta be cruel to be kind! A routine is a sign of love & the earlier to implement the better. U need ur time & they need their sleep. As long as they full belly, dry bottom, been winded, nice & snug, they are fine.
I let Olivia nap in day when she wants to as doesnt seem to affect her sleeping at night so not too bothered. No routine r:e naps at all..
Good Luck, dont worry it'll all fall in2 place b4 u know it..x
One tip i would give is, u gotta be cruel to be kind! A routine is a sign of love & the earlier to implement the better. U need ur time & they need their sleep. As long as they full belly, dry bottom, been winded, nice & snug, they are fine.
I let Olivia nap in day when she wants to as doesnt seem to affect her sleeping at night so not too bothered. No routine r:e naps at all..
Good Luck, dont worry it'll all fall in2 place b4 u know it..x
