How to find your baby’s perfect schedule
One of the questions that we get the most often is “What should my baby’s schedule be?” This is a loaded question with a lot of parts, so let’s break it down.
0-5 Months
Our general rule of thumb is that babies under 6 months should follow a routine instead of set rigid schedule. For these little babies, we recommend sticking to an eat, play, sleep routine and age-appropriate wake windows. Full feedings at this age are very important. Feedings will range from every 2-3 hours. These are all habits that you can start working on from the beginning. As your baby gets older and feeding becomes more efficient, time between middle of the night feedings have the ability to lengthen.
6-12 months
Once a baby is 6 months, their body is more likely to fall into a rhythm of a set schedule and you can give nudges to be on a schedule that works well for your family. With these babies, you still need to focus on eat, play, sleep, full feedings and age-appropriate wake windows.
When you start working on sleeping training, it is very important that you are very consistent for 2-4 weeks. Once your baby is sleep trained, flexibility can come into play. When determining how to adjust your baby’s routine and schedule, follow the 80/20 rule. Keep the routine and/or schedule 80% of the time and allow flexibility 20% of the time.
For example of routines and schedule, check out this free sample schedule guide! Remember, the more consistency we give our babies, the more consistency they will give us in return.
Does getting your baby to sleep feel overwhelming? Would you love a tried and true process that ? We would love to help your family. Connect with a consultant here. Are you looking for sample schedules, developmental milestone, and how to continue your baby’s sleep journey? Our Sleep Baby Insiders membership supports families 3 months-5 years with a low monthly fee of $4.