The daily grind
A few weeks back I posted an Instagram story with a glimpse of a PDF I'd put together to help my husband visualize the daily routine with the baby. I did a little poll asking whether it would be helpful if I shared it, and the results were unanimous - so here we are! Needless to say, this is an entirely practical post, as opposed to the sentimentalities I normally publish. Also, do keep in mind that what works for my family may not work for yours (and vice-versa). That said, let's dig in.
The daily grind
The original PDF listed our routine before our son turned six months, but the daily tasks have changed quite a bit since. I used to look forward to not having to sterilize everything every day, but the challenges (and messiness) of introducing solids and water to S kinda made me miss the good ol' sterilized bottles days.
Anyways, here's what our days look mostly like (tasks added after he turned 6 months are highlighted in green):
Observations:
Nursing
I still nurse S at least twice daily - first thing in the morning and after bath time, sometimes also during the day. He was almost exclusively breastfed up to 4 months, but then his pediatrician asked us to supplement with formula, and my milk supply hasn't been the same since. Pumping didn't really work for us, so that's that!
Baby food brand
One of the biggest perks of living in Munich is finding HIPP everywhere. It's hands down our go-to baby food brand - from the formula (Combiotik) to both savory and "sweet" baby foods, baby water, and cereal. It's affordable, organic and the quality is superb. S loves it, and so do we.
That said - we mostly cook him veggies at home, but HIPP is the most wonderful alternative when we simply don't have the time.
Sterilizing
The "sterilizing" bit of the daily tasks isn't completely accurate any longer. I now usually just wash the bottle as soon as possible (and very thoroughly too, because as much as I approve the HIPP formula, the Combiotik 2 is super sticky and there's always residue, so I have to triple check each time). Bottles are now sterilized 2x/week; pacifiers are still sterilized daily though.
Play time
When we're home, S spends most of the time on a play mat on the floor with his baby gym and other toys, hence the importance of keeping the floor clean even though he isn't crawling yet. We got one of those rubber, non-toxic play mats, which really helps him get a good grip while on tummy. We love it, but unfortunately so does our cat... So I'm not sure how long it will last.
What the hell is a butt cloth?
We always attach the pacifier to a tiny cloth to keep it clean and covered from dust, etc. When at home, we always clean our baby’s butt with cotton and water, and keep the overnight used pacifier cloth to dry the excess, hence calling it "butt cloth" (vice-versa with the cloth that's used with the pacifier during the day). They're obviously washed and ironed before we use them with the pacifier again. ;)
Bath time routine
This one isn't detailed on the PDF because it's a whole category of its own. It includes (but isn't limited to): showering or bathing baby, drying him thoroughly, applying moisturizer on face and body while massaging him, dressing him, combing his hair, cleaning ears and nose, giving his vitamine D, then nursing AND bottle-feeding him... As my husband puts it "why did we ever grow up?".
Ironing
Yup, we iron all of his clothes, always. Maybe it's a Brazilian thing? We thought we could/would stop once he turned six months, but we've gotten too used to it by now. I'm sure this will be different once baby number 2 comes along.
Long story short - I hope this helps. Do let me know in the comments if you've found this helpful, and/or if you have any questions. Hopefully this won't discourage anyone from having babies!