Here's a bit of gold that may help those of you with 6 month old babies get on track with routines. It helps your day have a bit of structure and remember that routines create security by reducing cortisol levels (stress hormones).

At 6 months of age your baby can sleep through the night without a feed and your day can become quite predictable and have a routine. YAY say all the parents out there! So here's a peek at what it can look like.

Flexible Daily Routine for 6-12 mth old baby

⏰ 6 am – Wake, change nappy and milk feed.

⏰ 7am – Breakfast. Followed by playtime and/or morning walk.

⏰ 9 – 10 am – Morning sleep.

⏰ 11:30 am - 12 midday – Lunch, give main and dessert to appetite.

⏰ 1 – 3pm – Afternoon sleep (no more than 2 hours).

⏰ 5pm – Evening meal, give main and dessert.

⏰ Bedtime routine and wind down – bath, story time and milk feed. Link to a good bedtime routine here.

⏰ 7pm – bedtime and sleep till 6 am. There should be no night feeds offered from 7pm to 6am

Try to not allow baby to nap after 4pm as it is really difficult to get them down for sleep at 7pm.

After one year-old your baby may only need one sleep a day, usually in the afternoon.

If you are struggling to get her down in the morning, then she is probably indicating that it is time for a change. Day time sleeps may last 1–2 hours but do not allow her to sleep for longer than 2 hours otherwise it may impact on night sleeps. You can read more here to learn: Is your baby ready to move to one day nap?

At 6 months we offer solid food before milk feeds except for the first feed of the day

This is a flexible day routine but gives you an idea of how many solid meals they need and how many milk feeds.

Try and give baby solid food to appetite. If they empty the dish try offering more until they close their mouths or turn their head away. They may eat up to one and a half cups of food which can be as much as 2 Weetbix at each meal.

Solid food means finger foods and purees and a balance of protein, carbohydrates, vegetables and fruit. Protein and carbs are important for promoting sleep and helping growth and development. Try and get 1/3 protein to 1/3 carbs and the balance made up with veggies and/or fruit.

To get rid of the last remaining milk feed during the night you will probably need to do some gentle sleep training. It usually doesn't go away all by itself.

Want to learn how you can guide your baby's sleep at this new stage?

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