Babies, no less than adults, are creatures of habit. There are so many unexpected and surprising events in life, it is comforting and reassuring to have some happenings that are predictable. This is particularly true for the baby, who has arrived in an utterly foreign world, and whose earliest mental ability is to understand and appreciate, regularly occurring events.

Time is less important than sequence because it is sequence rather than time which babies can understand and appreciate. But there is no size fits all for baby routines. The first few weeks are pretty hectic as the baby begins life outside the womb. After several weeks, More often than not it will go something like wake, feed, play, sleep. The time between, and the time engaged in these routines will vary from day to day while the sequence remains the same. Of course you can introduce other activities, such as bathing, going out in the stroller, into the routine. By about four months most babies will be with the schedule. For those babies who have still not bought into the pattern, a more clock oriented schedule can be introduced at this age, to help the baby fall into the pattern.

The important point about routines is not to be too bound by them and to be flexible. If the baby is hungry at ten and isn’t usually fed till 12, the baby’s needs should come first. In addition a baby’s temperament has to be factored into the equation. Some babies feel very comforted by routine, and are disturbed with breaks in the pattern. These babies may need a more clock oriented scheme than those babies who deal comfortably with variations in the daily pattern. It is not only the baby’s temperament that needs to be taken into account, so does your own. If you are an orderly person and your baby is too, that is a perfect fit. But it doesn’t always happen that way. When there is a conflict in this regard, it is important not to blame yourself or the baby, and to recognize that it is simply a difference in temperament.

Since it is easier for you, and rather than for your baby to understand and adapt to the difference, that is the wisest, if not the easiest, solution.

Life is never as regular as we would like it to be and it is always presenting us with unexpected challenges. A baby or a parent can get sick, accidents and natural disasters can throw routines into a shambles. We have to recognize that this will happen, deal with the situation, and return to the established routine as soon as possible. Helping the baby deal with variations and breaks in the routine is as important as is setting them up in the first place.