We've got routines in the way of doing things eg, after dinner the kids know its bath, bottle, story then bed time. We don't always do things at set times though, so we get flexibility through that - and the kids don't go to pieces if we're running behind time, or having dinner out at night.

DH's step sister has a 5 yr old and 3 yr old and she is really strict with timeframes and routines. Now she wants to start going out in the evenings with her DH and apparently the kids scream their grand parents house down when they leave as they're so used to their routines.