Every day is different........

DD is 6 months old this thursday.

As the title suggests, every single day is different. The only thing that remains the same is the fact that she can stay awake for 2 hours before she needs a nap again. But those naps never have a set time, set length, set... anything!

I still can't understand or see how some people manage to get their babies into a "routine" and do the same nap times, etc every day. Not that I want to do this - because I don't think she'd do it even if I wanted to.

Gah, I have no idea where I'm going with this thread, I just want some reassurance that letting her take the lead and sleep when she is tired, feed when she is hungry (well, derrrr), go to bed for the night when she is ready etc is the right thing to do.


This is Gentle Parenting isn't it? :doh:


Anyone else have a wee rascal who keeps them on their toes 24/7?
Of course there will be!

:) :) :)
Sue x

You are doing perfectly hun!

Yup, you're doing fine!

I let DS take the lead when he was younger... eventually he and I fell into a routine, but it happened naturally, not by forcing anything. Watching your baby is the best thing you can do - you're doing a great job!

sounds good to me!! follow her lead darl xx

Not gentle parenting. Parenting by necessity. DS never had any kind of pattern with sleep until 15+ months when he'd dropped to one nap.

Thanks guys!!! Haha, can you tell I've just had a frustrating conversation with my mother? AARRGGHHH!

*must switch off when we get to baby talk*

Don't worry Sue you are def on the right track i reckon! My DD is about 3 weeks younger than yours. We have a 'strict' bed time routine - bath, bottle, bed by 7pm - but during the day i just go on her being tired. She wakes up at different times every morning so i can't just keep her awake for 3 hours until it's nap time if she's tired! thats not fair! xo

Totally on the right track! Gosh imagine the stress of trying to get them into a routine. I could never be bothered. I just did what she wanted when she wanted. And like marcellus, we never had a routine until she went to one nap around 16 months!

That's good to know about the nap thing guys, thanks. xxxxx

I always say day napping is not a life skill and noone is going to ask them at a job interview if they went down regularly for a nap when they were a baby! Although saying that, i did read somewhere that baby routines for eating and sleeping only came about because when people started to work go factories etc in the industrial revolution that the factory owners were unhappy with their workers lack of discipline and bad time keeping because traditionally they had made their own loose routines based on nature and necessity when working on the land etc. So the powers that be in those times encouraged research etc into the benefits of strict routines for babies to make better, more compliant workers in the future. Now our culture is so ingrained with routine and clock watching we forget we are not part of the machine. But our babies remember! We should learn from them!

Nope, no set routine here either. My DD2 is 12 months old and I know she needs a sleep in the morning when she starts showing tired signs and the same deal in the afternoon. We fit food and feeding in around that. For my own sanity, my older two have a routine, but it works around DD2 and usually it means that I can get them all to sleep at the same time each day at least for an hour. Most days it works out, but every now and then, DD2 still throws me a curve ball and sleeps for 3 hours in the morning rather than her usual 1 to 1 and a half and I can't keep the older kids awake waiting for her to be ready for bed again because they are just too tired.

I think you are doing great! Six months is still very young and they are a bit all over the place with sleeping and eating. I think the main thing is that she is sleeping when she needs to for as long as she needs to and not getting overtired all the time. When or how that happens is not important as long as you are feeling okay with it all.

I spent the first 8-9 months of DDs life trying to fit her into a routine and all it did was stress me out and make me watch the clock all day. As soon as someone said to me 'the babies don't read the baby books do they?' it all clicked and I just started going by DDs cues. Some days was 3 hourly feeds sometimes 5 hourly, 1,2,3 day naps, whatever, I just went with the flow and it was so much better than thinking 'she SHOULD be sleeping/feeding now'.
Both her and I were (and still are) alot happier going by demand! :)

We have never followed a routine. I think a few people are quite scandalised that DS doesn't have a bedtime. He goes to sleep when is tired whether that be 8pm or 11.30. Honestly I much rather this than trying to force him to sleep. It just ends in tears and frustration. Over the past few months I've noticed him settling into his own little routine without any encouragement from me. The hard work does pay off eventually. I've breastfed on demand and DH and I have shared our bed with a miniature bed hog for almost 17 months now. It works for us and I wouldn't change a thing :)

Babies can't tell the time, so I don't see why the clock would help anyone!

I roughly go to bed at the same time and eat at similar times, but imagine if someone said you were only allowed to eat at these three hourly timeslots, and sleep on the dot of 7pm?

As people we often fall into natural patterns, but many people don't...it depends a lot on the personality.

Anyway, to set a routine you would have to have bub up at the same time every day, so it doesn't throw out the routine...and yes I know people who set an alarm to wake their baby at the same time :o

I know some people need a routine for day care and work etc, but if you're happy without one, why change it?

Thanks guys, that's all really good to hear. DH and I have never been people who do the same stuff every single day (well, except for work but that's it). Routines have always freaked me out but I am sick of hearing "is she in a "routine" now?"

DD is a happy, healthy wee rascal so I won't be changing anything!!
Thanks again xxxx