Having a newborn is challenging, especially the first few weeks. As a first-time mom, a lot of it has been trial and error. Each baby is different, so you can’t 100% prepare for what’s to come. We learn something new daily, and I don’t think that ever ends since he’s constantly changing. Before he was born, I had someone tell me that they put their newborn on a schedule, which was the key to a less stressful 4th trimester. Newborns have a lot of pull regarding how the day goes based on their needs, but training their timeclock can help make routines a bit more predictable. I was determined to give it a shot.
The first two weeks were a lot of doing what he wanted. His little internal clock wasn’t sure what night and day were yet. His feeding schedule was all over the place (especially with my low milk supply), and we kept purchasing things to help along the way. I think we have his schedule down as best as we can for an almost two-month-old. We try to stick to the routine as much as possible, which has paid off. Not every day is perfect; some days are so challenging that I start to feel stressed and overwhelmed. Creating a schedule has helped Kyle and I navigate our routines and roles. We have a good balance of household chores, dog duty, baby duty, and work-life laid out because of it. It truly helps to have a partner who puts in the same amount of work.
I mentioned that we had put Bugs on a routine in a few recap blogs, and many of you were asking questions about what it looked like, how we did it, and if I’d be willing to share! I figured I’d share what our schedule has looked like over the past two months. I know his schedule will change as he gets older and his needs evolve, but right now, it has been super consistent. Here and there, he’ll fight naps, fuss for no reason, eat more one day and not as much the next, but we just put him back on track the best we can. His little internal clock is starting to get hunger cues, sleeping cues, and play cues all at the same time each day. Putting him on a schedule has made everything in our lives easier, and the routine has proven effective. He slept eight hours straight last night!
One of my friends recommended using the HuckleBerry App. I owe all of our success to this app! Kyle and I both share an account on the phone, allowing us to track everything he does throughout the day. We track naps, feedings, playtime, walks, baths, diaper changes, and more. The app keeps track of his schedule, sends us summaries we can evaluate, and keeps Kyle and me on the same page. I don’t have to shout downstairs asking if he changed the diaper, fed him, or so on. We both keep track of everything in the app! I love that we can go back and see a pattern. If he had a really long sleep stretch, I’ll go back and see how many ounces he drank that day, if we gave him a bath, if we walked him, and compare those stats to a day when he didn’t sleep that well. When we were at the pediatrician, she asked us how many diaper changes we do in a day, how many ounces of formula he’s eating, and what his sleep schedule looked like. Instead of guessing, we could pull up his charts from the app. I can’t recommend this app enough! We’ll probably use this for the first two years of his life. The chart above shows how his sleep schedule changed as he got older. The blue lines are his nighttime sleep stretches, and they get longer each day. 
24 Hours With A New Born | How I Established His Schedule
4:50 am – 5:30 am
• Wakes up from nighttime sleep
• Diaper change
-diaper changes are great before feeding because it wakes him up so he can focus on feeding without falling back asleep
• Feeding (i am currently breastfeeding as well as using formula)
– I sneak in my first cup of coffee & kyle heads out on a walk with Tux
• Changes out of pajamas into something cooler for the hot summer day.
• Diaper Change
• I put him in his lounger while I get changed and ready for our walk.
– sometimes, he falls asleep during this time; otherwise, he’ll fall asleep on the walk
6:30 am
• 1-2 Mile walk
(we also bring Leo) – there are mornings when our walks don’t happen because we woke up later (too hot in the south after 9 am), so we’ll sit outside on the porch to get outdoor time, and I walk Leo later in the morning.
I play baby classical music on iTunes while we walk to drown out the noise and help him sleep.
7: 30 am
Diaper change (he usually wakes up as soon as we get back)
• Feeding
• 15-20 minutes of playmat working on tummy time
9:30 am
• Diaper change
• Down for a nap (usually his longest nap of the day)
-this is when I’ll make myself breakfast, go for a walk while he sleeps in Kyle’s office, throw clothes in the laundry, or get some computer work done. It depends on the day, but it’s nice to have a little “me-time” in the late morning. For example, today, I took Leo on a 3-mile walk while he slept. Once Kyle returns to the office, I’ll have to change it to evening walks.
11: 30 AM
• Wakes up
• Diaper change
• Feeding
• 20-minutes of black & white sensory videos with classical music
– he is in love with these videos and anything black and white. Sometimes, he’ll lie in his bouncer laughing at our kitchen lights for twenty minutes. He’s so mesmerized by these black and white videos, and I love that they make him happy. I am not anti-screen time, but I’d rather him watch these than get hooked on Coco Melon lol I made the mistake of turning it on one morning, and I was SHOCKED at how hooked he was as a two-month-old. I’m sticking to these black and white sensory videos for now. I was reading Raise Wildflowers, and there are many great TV show options when that time comes.
12:50 pm
• Diaper change
• Feeding
• Walk him around the yard to get some outside time (usually calms any fussiness)
• I’ll usually wear him in a wrap if I need to get things done around the house. He usually falls asleep while I’m walking around.
Sometimes he’ll sit in the bean bag chair while I fold laundry, and we’ll play with his crinkle toys. He’s usually pretty good about hanging out with me if I continue to sing and play with him.
3:00 pm
• Diaper change
• Feeding
• Relax time
-We relax together upstairs in the loft, play on the playmat and do tummy time, or we may venture out to pick up a Starbucks. I try my best to keep him awake around this time. I try not to be on my phone or computer and do one-on-one interactions like singing, smiling, talking, and showing him black and white shape cards.
-Once the weather gets cooler outside, I’ll add another outdoor walk around this time, especially since he’ll cut back on all the naps and feedings.
4:00 pm
• Diaper Change
• I’ll usually wear him while making dinner, or Kyle will hold him while working.
• We eat dinner
• Play outside with the dogs
-I’ll usually sit with him under the fan on the back patio.
5:30 pm
• Diaper change
• Feeding
• Self-entertainment
-We lay him on his playmat, and he stares at the mirror and the little characters hanging. He’s starting to grab them finally! I usually play music for him while he’s lying down, too. We usually clean up the house, wash bottles, and get everything in place for the next day.
6:30 pm
• 15 minutes of upstairs tummy time
• Bathtime
-bathtime is every other night, and I wash his hair only once a week. Bathtime is the literal best time! He’s obsessed with baths, and it instantly calms any fussiness. He has the best sleep after a bath as well. I usually put a towel in the dryer while he’s taking a bath, so it’s nice and warm when he gets out. It makes him super sleepy and relaxes him.
• Diaper Change
• Lotion massage
• Pajamas
• Feeding
-last warm bottle of the night
• Diaper Change
• Breastfeeding until he falls asleep
8:00 pm
• Sleep – Goes into the Snoo for nighttime sleep
-We don’t use the Snoo during the day, which helps let his body know it’s nighttime. It’ll make transitioning out of the Snoo easier as well.
• Bedtime for us
-As soon as he goes to bed, I brush my teeth, put on my pajamas, and go to bed. I don’t stay up watching shows or do anything else because sleep is essential for good mental and physical health postpartum. I wouldn’t be able to function during the day if I didn’t sleep at night.
1:45 am – 3:45 am
• Wakes up for the first feeding of the night.
-I used to wake him every 2 1/2 hours during the night to feed him, but now that he’s at a healthy weight, I don’t wake him up at all. He sleeps 5. to 8 hours during the first stretch.
– I can always tell when he’s about to wake up because he’ll make little groaning sounds. I run downstairs, grab a formula bottle, and then head upstairs to start the routine. I usually find a good show to help me stay up, but since he’s been sleeping for long stretches, I’m hardly tired anymore. During the first few weeks, I was afraid of falling asleep while feeding.
• Feeding
-sometimes, we don’t even make it to the formula before he falls asleep. As soon as he falls asleep, I put him back in his bed. If it’s one of the eight-hour stretches, I take him downstairs to sleep in my arms while I sneak in a cup of coffee.
Weekends:
On Saturday and Sunday, we keep to the schedule as much as possible, but we change things by going places with him, taking him to the pool early in the morning, and staying up a bit later to watch a movie together.
I’m definitely not oblivious to the fact that this schedule will only be temporary as he grows, goes through teething, his needs change, and I couldn’t imagine how hard it would be to keep a schedule if you threw another kid into the mix. I’m just here to show you what has been working for us and our situation over the past few months! Schedules are not required for newborn babies, so do not get discouraged if your schedule is all over the place because that is NORMAL as well.
If you like this style of post, I can try to update it each month! Let me know! ♥️
Questions for you!
- Do you/did you have your baby on some sort of schedule?
- What do you struggle with when it comes to motherhood balance?
- What is your favorite part of the day with your child?
Are you pumping at all?
I only pump a few times a week if it’s in the middle of the night and I’m engorged but don’t want to wake him up, and sometimes to see how much I’m producing. I don’t do it on the regular because it was just getting to be too much.
I just had my third child and was introduced to the Haaka. It’s been a true lifesaver for building my milk supply and helping with engorgement; you should check it out. I bf’ed my last two kiddos until they were 2 and with my first supplemented until 10 weeks old. Whatever your journey, fed is best.
Thank you! I use the Spectra when I need to, and it does great. He’s a growing boy (almost doubled his size) so our journey definitely working!
I loved reading this. Schedules are important at any age. It boosts confidence especially in children. Would love to see more of these. Never been a human Mom but I’ve been a Nanny for 31 years. Routine and schedules are my go to. Congrats again on your beautiful baby boy. 🥰
Thank you, Dawn!!
I envy this schedule. It seems so calming and grounding. Brings consistency which I crave. My baby is 2 months old now and we have a 2.5 yr old. That 2.5 yr old makes the schedule blow up and takes my calm and patience with her. Struggling with that balance right now.
My favorite part of the day right now is the toddler’s naptime. It’s midday and if I can get it, I feed him right after putting her down then I can hopefully get a little time to read, workout, enjoy the quiet lol
Hi, Sarah!
It’s not always calming sometimes more of organized chaos 😉 It has truly helped, though!
Having a toddler in the mix has to be challenging! What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger I guess! 😉
My son is about 3 weeks older than yours and has a routine most days! Although today isn’t one of them 😵💫 – these growing babes! We worked to stretch his daytime feedings to every 4 hours around 9 weeks and it made such a difference for me because that actually gave us time to do things without risking complete chaos!
My biggest balancing struggle is just everything for him, keeping up with the house, and doing what I need (exercise, showers!)
He usually naps in his crib, but I try to do one cuddly nap which I soak in. I also had issues breastfeeding and still supplement a little, but now that we’re 90% good with breastfeeding I really enjoy that time with him and the rocking after.
I’ve been nervous about screen time too (no coco melon here yet but his nonna did buy him a doll from it), but maybe illl try the black and white videos!
Hi, Julie!
It’s those growth spurts that throw the biggest curve ball!
We usually do a quick power clean each night together to keep up with the mess instead of doing it once or twice a week when it’s in complete disarray. And for showers, I put him in the docatot outside the shower while he sleeps! LOL
Those cuddles are the absolute best!!
The black and white videos have been incredible! Maybe even turn them on for a bit while you catch up on things! They’re free on YouTube!
Loved this post. You have a great routine down! Can you talk more about your breastfeeding journey?
I haven’t decided whether I want to dive into a breastfeeding post yet (way too much breastfeeding judgment/unsolicited advice on the internet) but I may throw in where I’m at with breastfeeding in the next recap blog! I had a hard time since I had to have placenta fragments removed after birth, which caused a lower supply, but I’m still producing enough to do half/half. It’s not the journey I wanted, but he’s fed! ♥️
Hi Taralynn,
1. Do you/did you have your baby on some sort of schedule?
We didn’t do a consistent schedule with either child as a newborn, but now I do set alarms in my phone for dinner time, tubby time, and bedtime so the night doesn’t slip away from me. I’m alone with the kids at night during the week since my husband works second shift, so sticking to an alarm schedule has been incredibly helpful for me!
2. What do you struggle with when it comes to motherhood balance?
Taking care of myself can be a struggle sometimes. Now that I’m off for the summer (high school teacher), I can dedicate more time to some self love! My babies are 3.5 and 13 months old, so this has been a LONG time coming!!
3. What is your favorite part of the day with your child?
I dont really have one specific favorite time, but if I had to choose I think it would be when we cuddle on the couch with a Disney movie right before bed. It’s a relaxing time of the evening for us. I also really like going for hour long walks in our neighborhood. Usually both kids will fall asleep and I can get some exercise while they enjoy the fresh air!
Hi, Kat!
That is such a good idea! The time flies by when there is so much to do. The alarm system is great! I always set timers with my Alexa.
You definitely deserve that time for yourself! I’m glad you’re focussing on that more this summer.
I love that and I think aside from mornign coffee, that would be my favorite too! ♥️
Routine is so important! I started this early as well and she was sleeping through the night every night at 4 months. She’s still an amazing sleeper! Keep it going and adjust as you go 😊 For me, I was terrible at taking time to do things for myself. I felt guilty leaving her to even get my hair done. But that’s changed (she’s 4 now). My favorite part of the baby stage was the before sleep feedings. Just the two of us was amazing. Now it’s still bedtime because she picks a book to for me to read to her. Congrats again and thanks for sharing!
Hi, Shauna!
Definitely so worth it. I’m shocked he’s sleeping eight hours a night right now.
Gahhhh I feel that! I can only go out on walks while he naps otherwise I feel terrible being away from him.
I can’t wait for all the book time! ♥️
Please keep doing these posts! Looking forward to having my firstborn in October, but also a bit terrified lol.
What do you have him sleep in during the day instead of his bassinet?
Im mostly nervous about the first two months as I figure out how to be a mom!
Thanks, Laurel!
Do NOT be terrified! You got this! ♥️ & congrats to you!! It’s going to come so naturally you’ll be shocked! A mother’s instinct is real.
He LOVES to sleep in his fisher price rocker! lol He’s in there for 90% of his naps! The rest is either on my chest or if I’m upstairs doing laundry, I’ll put him in his crib.
Do you/did you have your baby on some sort of schedule?
Yes with our first and no with our second. I think both choices were the right ones for us at the one times 🤍
What do you struggle with when it comes to motherhood balance? I felt the need the continue my pre-baby life (cooking, cleaning, marriage habits, social life, etc) pretty soon after the birth of my first, which caused me lots of stress and feelings of inadequacy. With my second, I’ve chosen to give myself grace during this pp period so I haven’t felt much stress (yet)!!
What is your favorite part of the day with your child? Contact naps and breastfeeding are my favorite.
Hi, Madeline!
You always have to do what is best, and I’m sure it’s hard to stick to any schedule when you throw another child in the mix. I love that you learned after your first! I can see what you mean by craving a bit of the pre-baby life. It used to be so easy just to grab my shoes and head out the door, but not so much anymore!
xo
Hi Tarakynn, I really enjoyed reading this post, I hope you share more like this in the future. How do you like the Babybreeza? Which formula are you using? Have you had any difficulty finding it in your area?
Hi, Sarah!
Babybrezza has been a blessing!! When he’s hungry, I just hit a button and forums comes out within one second. It’s so much easier than measuring, mixing, and so on! It’s a 10/10 for me! Our pediatrician recommended enfamil neuropro and he’s done really well with it. Finding formula has been terrible! Its so sad that this is happening in our country. Luckily, we’ve been able to snag a few tubs now and then. Our friends and family have been looking out for us as well and pick it up when they see it. We’ve had luck finding it at Costco now and then.
Yes, give me all the tips 😀 I am currently 30 weeks pregnant and have no pregnant friends or friends with little kids so it is helpful reading about your experience.
Congrats, Sandra!!
Hi Taralynn. I am not a mom (well I’m a pup mom for now! haha) but I wanted to say I love this type of post. Since I home to be a mother one day it helps give a good idea of what a day to day schedule might be like. Much appreciated. I feel like these are the things we don’t always think about when hoping for a baby!! haha =) Definitely lots of work. What a great mom you are. Thanks for sharing.
Thank you, Amanda!!!
You’re doing such a great job! Newborn life is such a mixture between joy and stress. I had low supply (and weight gain issues with my baby, now 9 months), and it was surprisingly difficult to let go of what I thought would happen with breastfeeding. I felt such a sense of loss that things weren’t going the way I wanted. I never thought I’d be able to breastfeed this long after everything, but we are still going strong, and baby is thriving. Every postpartum is so individual, and you are giving your baby exactly what he needs. You are doing great!
Sarah, this was such a kind comment! THANK YOU!
You’re doing so great! You’re going to be glad you started a routine early! I kick myself all the time for not starting sooner. Sleep, eating, bathing, dressing… everything seems easier for me and happier for him with a routine in place. My sweet boy is 1.5 now and I’m just starting to get it together 🙄 If I had another, I’d follow in your footsteps for sure! Congratulations on your new love!
My favorite part of the day is when he wakes up each morning and after his nap ❤️
The hardest thing is for me was getting that routine! And caring for myself.
Aw thank you, Amy!! I love the mornings too! There’s something so special about them.
I loved reading this blog as I’m about to give birth next month! What stroller do you have?
Congrats, Carrie! We have the Mockingbird.
Dear Taralynn,
Thanks so much for this post. I would also love to read some updates and more things that work for your little family.
I’m super impressed by your routines and seeing the evolution!! It’s super cute how Bugs already holds the bottle :,)
I’m also using the Huckleberry app now – along with the Baby+ app – and I like that everything is summarized in a chart, gives me a great overview. My husband and I also share an account – thanks so much for the tip.
I do think that we have the little one on some sort of schedule?! It may shift or we change (or omit) the activity orders but after reading your post, I really tried to pay more attention to the schedule. There are a few things that make it difficult, for instance, the little one doesn’t like to sleep on his own. He gives us a few minutes after we put him down before he wakes up, haha. Some say waking him up gently before putting him down, helps, but not in our case. So we have him in the Manduca on us during the day where he can sleep up to 3 hours… which is great but well, we can’t do anything else, only light things, plus he gets heavy, haha and now in the summer… it tends to get super hot.
Our son cries sometimes at dawn but I’m thinking maybe it is because he is overtired… the app helps so much in seeing patterns and visualizing what may cause discomfort.
Some may think we got him used to being held but we don’t think so. He just needs us close and we love it. Every baby is different. And we are confident that he will learn to calm himself down soon. I’m taking one step at a time getting him used to sleep in his crib during the day.
I really love the times when we “talk”, when it’s calm and I make faces and he smiles and looks at me… <3 that could be at any time of the day.
I love your routine! It’s awesome that you and Kyle work so well together, even if some days are harder. And I loved that you said it’s ok if there is no routine or if we are all over the place. Ugh that’s me haha! I have a 10 month old boy and understand all of it. I had HG during pregnancy and so everything I intended to prepare for went out the door (no prenatal yoga, unprepared for an unmedicated birth, no idea what I was doing postpartum lol). I had never been around babies much or taken care of them before I had my son so it was very overwhelming. We had very little support and my bf went back to work right away. It was very very hard and I was exhausted. Could barely feed myself some days. He was a sweet and cuddly boy, but a tad colic. My boy changed so much and so did whatever routine we had. But the experience has made me very passionate to become a birth and postpartum doula! I just want to support mothers and their children. And next baby should hopefully be easier in terms of me knowing what I’m doing better! It’s fun to see you’re updates! The joys and challenges are all part of it!