Contented Little Baby Book

Has anyone tried the routines from the abovementioned book by Gina Ford? I read it before DD came along and it appealed to me ONLY because I like the idea of having a bit of structure and knowing what i'm doing next. I am currently having "discussions" with my SIL at the moment because she says they are good to follow for a happy baby...I, on the otherhand, cannot understand how you can dictate when and baby feeds, sleeps and plays. Is it just me??? I also would tend to think that if you are breastfeeding (as i am) and feed based on the clock, not on baby, that your milk supply would be all screwed up.
I know i've already done a post about routines but they are really playing on my mind at the moment and while i have accepted that i have a happy baby i will keep doing what i am doing, i cant help but think that i am setting myself up for troubles as she gets older - in terms of sleeping and such.

Not just you, don't worry! I've not tried the routines, in fact I refused to buy the book I was so distraught at what this woman thinks childrearing is about. There are several similar books out there (including "this isn't a routine, you may deviate from it by up to half an hour if you need to" ones).

You can start a flexible routine of Sleep, feed, play, sleep... from a very early age if that's what agrees with you and the baby. I always think the world is such a shock that it's best to let the baby do as s/he wishes at first and gently start a routine based around what the baby does, encouraging night sleeping over day sleeping.

Not having a routine as a toddler can make the child upset, but no routine as a tiny baby doesn't cause any damage (in fact, I would say the opposite: imagine your hugs being timed! that would screw you up). As you say, when BFing a strict feeding regimen is the last thing you need.

No I haven't tried it and wouldn't endorse it either.

I'm all for routines but flexibility is the key. I believe that routines do give babies/children security and help them thrive but we have to remember that they aren't robots and have individual needs that we need to be looking out for. I've never read that book. I gained some helpful info from 'Secrets of the Baby Whisperer' where the feed,play,sleep routine is encouraged...but again i had to play a lot of things by ear as DD grew and changed.

Taralee I am with you. I borrowed the book from the library when DS was very young, maybe 1 month old. There was no way(!!) I was going to follow her strict routines - I just plain didn't want to! There was no way I wanted to be up at x hour, feed Flynn, express for 20 mins, put him to sleep (but not for more than x hours!) etc etc. And I wasn't going to invest in block out blinds - there was no way I wanted a kid who would only sleep in total darkness and silence (I think sensory deprivation has been banned as a form of torture by the UN!!)

I read heaps of different books before DS was born and after, and basically consolidated all that into doing what felt right, with all that info as background, floating around my head. Bits of what I read came to me at various times (including stuff from Gina Ford, I admit - though probably her stuff on the importance of routine and predictability than anything else) but doing what was right at the time seems to have got me through.

We are lucky because (until 6 months anyway) Flynn was a completely fake baby - rarely cried, easy to settle, no wind or colic to speak of. Now he is a bit trickier and wily - doesn't like sleeping!! - but we have still got through without controlled crying, Gina Ford-esque sensory deprivation or even constant carrying in a sling - we did what felt right, though.

All that said, better go relieve DH - he is up with Flynn now, trying to pat/rock him to sleep in his cot. The poor little lamb is teething ATM. Flynn isn't screaming or even crying, but I KNOW he is wide awake, staring at DH in the dark......(I never said there was an easy solution, mind you!!!)

Taralee,

A friend of mine lent me the book when I was pregnant with my first, as like you, I have a tendancy to like a bit of structure.

However, I only got through the first few chapters.....her tone alone put me off.....so patronising....from memory she even tells you when to have a cuppa! Just irritated the life out of me.

When Olivia first arrived, all of the books gathered dust as I my DH and I just winged it......whatever worked at the time was fine. But I did have the same lingering doubts about whether I was setting myself up for trouble later.........

But I am happy to report that all of my worries were totally unnecessary.......Olivia (and Charlie, and Lexie too.......) seem to change their minds about what they needed fairly regularly.....so I just follow their lead, and often I realise I have stressed about a bad habit & it never is an issue.

For example, I always boob fed Olivia and Charlie to sleep, because it was nice, and I foudn it helped them sleep better and I figured I would get longer sleeps out of them. But then I started having a panic that they would ALWAYS need feeding to sleep.......but they didn't at all. (Both slept through the night for 12 hours at a stretch without a feed consistently from 4 months old)

Same with the hammock.......they are hammock babies and I was TERRIFIED that they wouldn't transisition to a cot.......but they did, no problem at all.

Honestly, go with your gut and then deal with stuff as it comes up, rather than anticipating issues that may never arise..........

Hooray! You've all made me feel HEAPS better, I will keep doing what I am doing and let my little Buddha-faced baby girl lead the way. Do you think Gina would mind if I went for a pee...or should I wait until I have put a teacup on my head and spun around 47 times?

LMAO Taralee - I think you should write a routine book with that fab advice. I'd buy it!

LOL Taralee... I think wee breaks are allowed at 7.02am and 3.23pm. Any variations need to be looked into further ;) You must wait to have a poo until your partner is home.