Last minute plans? Forget about it. Racing out to the shops? Not anymore. Out of the house in 5 minutes? Yeah right, there’s bound to be a last minute poop or spew.
Having a baby changes the way you look at time. It’s no longer just a glance at the time; the clock rules your day.
When Jack was born midwives at the hospital told me about demand feeding. Feed the baby when he’s hungry, make sure he gets at least six feeds in a 24 hour period, and has at least 6 wet nappies each day. I nodded and smiled and carried on.
Five days later we were home. Tired, feeling overwhelmed and still in my pyjamas at lunchtime driving myself insane a friend messaged, ‘the sooner you get into a routine the better it’ll be for both you and Jack.’
A few months earlier my midwife at our antenatal classes had said the same thing. Routines are a blessing when you have kids. They keep everyone happy. ‘Babies thrive on routines’, she had said.
True that.
Three days after leaving the hospital Jack and I started our routine and now each day is ruled by the clock. At six weeks he’s woken up at 7am for a feed, then he eats at 10:15am, 1:30pm, 4:45pm and 6:15pm, followed by a dream feed at 10pm, and then another feed if he wakes up throughout the night. Sometimes he does wake up to eat again at around 1:30am and 5am but we’re working on getting him to sleep through the night.
What makes getting onto a routine great is that Jack and my breasts have gotten used to it and both are raring to go right on the clock. Going out is much easier too. If we’re meeting friends for coffee we can do it around feed times, Jack doesn’t mind where he eats and I’m often feeding him at a cafe or in the park as we try to get out and about. Then he sleeps in his pram.
Over the next 2-4 weeks we’re going to be working on getting him on a four hour routine so that he eats at 7am, 11am, 3pm, 6:30pm and 10:30pm and then whenever he wakes during the night. Though mummy and daddy are keeping their fingers crossed that he will start sleeping through till 7am soon.
Babies thrive on routines as do parents. So, if Jack is happy, we are too.
