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Do you feel like every morning with your baby is just a few clueless hours of….
“What am I supposed to be doing right now?”
“Oh my god, I almost forgot to feed him breakfast!”
“When’s naptime?”
Do you feel like your baby basically runs your whole schedule?
It’s pretty common knowledge that life with a baby- especially your FIRST baby- means you have to adapt to a whole new way of living compared to your pre-mom life.
DUH. Right?
You may not get to start off your morning with mindlessly scrolling your socials, making a perfectly curated breakfast sandwich and leisurely sipping your morning coffee, but you do have a sweet little buddy who loves you to pieces to join you for your morning routine now! By your side and demanding attention and care and multiple diaper changes.
And I know you’re super grateful, obviously, but I also know you probably wish you had a little more control over how your morning unfolds.
The first several months of your baby’s life is kindof all over the place in terms of a schedule but luckily by the time your baby turns 1, you can safely expect to have more of a say in how the start of your day looks. In fact, this started around when my little man reached about 8 months.
Routine keeps me sane. I need it. And actually, your little babe loves routine too! They start to depend on familiar patterns and schedules just like you do. So for a great start to the day, implementing a (flexible) schedule is just what you need! Here I’m sharing what I do in the AM to feel like I have some control over things.
Here is what a normal day looks like in the Cantley household:
*Feel free to consult with your pediatrician about meal timing throughout the day*
6:30am Wake Up
M’s “dadadadadada” over the monitor is my alarm clock. I’m not one of those people that gets up before my kid and I won’t ever have you think I am. I mean if you prefer to wake up earlier than you have to then you probably don’t need my advice! I go into Bubba’s room and usually he’s in a happy mood if he slept well through the night. Before I pick him up I turn off his sound machine (we love this one!) and open up the curtains and blinds to let the morning light in and for some reason he always smiles and giggles while I slowly open the blinds- it’s actually a quirk I really love about him in the mornings. Then I pick him up out of his crib and love on him for a few minutes as we look out the window- his favorite thing to do. He’s such a curious kiddo.
6:40am Nurse
I then bring Bubba over to the glider and nurse him. I’m so grateful for the ability to nurse him still past one year and I don’t take that gift for granted. He gets nice and cozy, especially since I haven’t taken him out of his sleep sack just yet. After that we cuddle for a few minutes and just look at each other and chat. He’s the cutest thing in the mornings!
6:50am Diaper Change
After I get the little man’s diaper changed I actually just keep him in his jammies. I know there are probably moms who feel the need to get their baby all dressed for the day at this point but that’s just not how we do it around here. If I’m not getting out of my PJs, he doesn’t have to either. Plus he tends to get half of his breakfast all over his lap anyway so why bother.
7:00am Playtime
We get down on the floor, get out some toys and just play around for a bit. At this point I’m still trying to fully wake up so sometimes it’s more that he’s doing independent play and I’m messing around on my phone. Just being honest. Otherwise we’re playing with some minimally obnoxious toys, reading books or, ya know, looking out the window some more. We like to look for people walking their babies or puppies or see if any cars are driving by the house. We also talk about the weather, just small talk- baby style.
7:45am Go Downstairs
At this point we go downstairs and I put Bubba in his activity center (life saver!) while I get our breakfast going. I often cook a big batch of scrambled eggs for him to eat for a few days so that I don’t have to cook breakfast from scratch every single morning. Whenever I do this I’ll have some of the eggs too and just make us some toast and get out whatever fresh fruit we have. He’s obsessed with fruit and will eat anything except kiwis.
8:00am Breakfast Time
Next, we sit down and eat together. Big tip- eat when your baby eats and also have the same food. Sooooo much less work and cleanup. I obviously wasn’t doing this when Bubba was in the baby oatmeal and purees stage but nowadays he and I can share almost any breakfast or other meal. I sip my iced coffee and some water while we eat and then I give Bubba some water in his straw cup (the only one he will drink out of) when he’s all finished with his food.
8:30am Playtime
After I get Bubba all cleaned up from breakfast I put him in his activity center for the first 10-15 minutes so that I can clean up, unload the dishwasher, etc. This is hugely helpful for making sure you don’t fall behind before the day really starts. Then I bring him down to the floor in the living room and we play. Having a change of scenery for playtime keeps it interesting for both of you!
9:00am Wind Down Time
At this point in the morning I start preparing Bubba for his nap and by that I just mean mellow activities. We will read a book, look out the window (he can’t get enough) or walk around the house and talk about what we see. Without these calming activities I would never be able to get him to ease into sleepy mode. I change his diaper and his clothes too if they got too messy at breakfast. We nurse, brush his teeth, then I lay him down for his first nap of the day.
9:30 – 11:00am Nap
During the first nap I try to get some things done. It’s usually a combination of either chores, a workout or tackling to do list items and then showering and getting ready for the day. Bubba’s naps are pretty routinely an hour and a half but I always aim to be done around ten minutes before I think he will wake up just in case.
11:00am Wake Up, Nurse, Get Dressed
It’s diaper changing time and also time to get out of jammies at this point. I check the weather and get him ready to go for a walk.
11:30am – 12:00pm Walk
We looooove walks. Whenever it’s nice out we try to get out of the house and enjoy some fresh air. Bubba loves looking at everything around our neighborhood so it’s a fun experience for him every time. It’s also a great way for you to sneak in some exercise while mixing it up and getting out of the house. I often listen to a podcast during our walks and they are usually personal development related because that’s my jam!
12:00pm Lunch Time
Once we get home from our walk I put Bubba into his high chair, throw some Cheerios on his tray and start making our lunch. At this point we are definitely ready for some food. We also both have some water too.
And that wraps up our morning routine! Having a routine to follow with your kiddo just makes the mornings so much better. It takes the confusion of what to do next out of the picture and reduces stress for you by taking those chunks of time to clean up, catch up, whatever you want. And don’t forget to change up the scenery throughout the morning to keep things interesting and fun for both of you.
I hope this gave you some ideas about how you can create your own morning schedule and stay on top of your home!