6-12 MONTHS

WAKE UP!

By 07:00 you can start waking her up gently if she is still asleep. Give her some milk.

You can introduce solids from four to six months once baby is ready. Babies are usually ready for solids once they can hold their head up straight or if they become curious about food while you are eating. You should, however, give them formula or breastmilk at least until they reach a year of age.

Feed her porridge after her milk. Afterwards you can give her the leftover milk from the first feed.

After this you can dress her and play for a while. Getting some fresh air in the morning will make her sleepy for when she naps again between 09:30 and 10:00. Try not to let her sleep for longer than an hour.

LUNCHTIME BETWEEN 11:30 AND 12

You can start giving her finger foods for lunch and afterwards some milk. After she’s eaten she will sleep between one and three hours. When she wakes up by 14:30 give her some milk, followed by playtime.

At this age your baby is big enough to join other moms and their babies at a playgroup. You could play in the garden or go grocery shopping together.

Let her unpack the grocery bag or reorganise the Tupperware cupboard while you start making dinner.

By 16:00 it’s time for a short nap, especially if she did not get much sleep after lunchtime. At this age most babies will only want to sleep twice in a day. Daytime naps can be anything from twenty minutes to three hours.

DINNER AT AROUND 17:00

Solids first followed by a milk feed. Between 18:00 and 18:30 start getting ready for bed. Keep things calm. Rub her body with baby lotion before you put on her pyjamas. Read her a story or talk to her about what happened during the day. By 19:00 she will hopefully be asleep.

Most babies sleep between ten to twelve hours at this age. They could wake up for a night feed.

If you are lucky she has started to sleep right through till morning. You can now help your baby to soothe herself back to sleep when she wakes up. Falling asleep on her own is also something she will have to learn and master! YB