So when Tristan was small (like up until age 1) I was strict with regards to his daily routine and although I am now certainly way more flexible about it than I was then, I am still kinda strict about it. It just works for me and for Tristan. Kids like routine.
Routine
Our day starts anywhere between 7 & 8am and because Tristan still sleeps in my bed (I love it 90% of the time) we wake up together and snuggle (the best). Then I turn on TV and go and make us tea & oats (well I have decaf coffee & a yoghurt) before jumping back into bed with him. After breakfast in bed (lucky sod) I get up and get dressed and then get him up & dressed. With it being so cold & wintery now (amazing) I usually leave him in bed while I pop through to make his school lunch before getting him up & dressed. We then brush teeth, wash face and brush hair before heading off to school. Weather dependent we walk otherwise we hop in the car.
Tristan stays at school until 3pm most days as he really enjoys it and it means I can get more things done without him. But when I fetch him we head home and play. He still sleeps every afternoon from around 1 – 2:30/3pm; either at home or at school. He definitely still needs his nap (and I need him to have it otherwise things go pear-shaped around 6pm). When we get home there’s usually a snack of sorts and dinner is eaten as a family at 6/6:30pm. Bath time is at 7:30pm and Tristan is in bed by 8pm and asleep shortly thereafter.
“They” say most kids drop their afternoon nap around age 3 so we have a few more months before we get there. In some ways I am looking forward to him dropping it so that we can go out for lunch as a family & with friends, or if we have a lazy morning and only head out around 11am we won’t have to rush home in time for his afternoon nap. But then I also am not looking forward to him dropping the nap because when he’s at home with me (like school holidays) his nap time gives me time to work, write, do admin, etc. No nap means no early afternoon ME time and I don’t know if I’ll ever be ready to give that up.
