Establishing a Routine for Your Newborn ~ Guest Post

Bringing a brand new baby home from the hospital has to be one of the most exciting experiences a mother can have. There are many visitors, many welcoming gifts, and of course lots of advice.  But after the excitement wears off and friends and family leave, reality quickly sets in.  Focus turns to the task at hand, and while there is nothing sweeter than rocking a sleeping baby, keep in mind that babies don't always sleep when we expect them to.  There are, however, measures we can take to help establish a routine for the new addition.  

After the challenge of labor and delivery has been experienced and the first medical choices of immunizations and cord blood banking have been considered, a new mother now has to adjust to life with baby at home. One of the biggest changes for mom is having days and nights are turned around for baby’s feeding schedule. This is common for newborns, but it can wear moms out when their own sleep patterns are disrupted.  To remedy this, moms should gradually work to keep the baby up for extended periods of time during the day.  This can be terribly exhausting when dealing with a tired and cranky baby, so get family and friends involved. Take turns keeping the baby awake for periods of time during the day.  This will do wonders for the newborn when you finally let her sleep and rest during the night.  Mothers should remember to not get discouraged and not be too hard on herself if this takes a week or so to turn the baby's sleep pattern around. 

After the days and nights get straightened out, it is extremely important for moms to establish a schedule for the baby.  Feeding times should occur at regular intervals to regulate and stabilize a baby's metabolism.  Once this is established, naptime and playtime can become part of the routine.  The key is routine: food, play time, nap time. The payoff for establishing this routine will be when the child gets a bit older.  When regular naptime becomes part of a child's routine, moms will not have nearly the number of bedtime battles down the road.  Always keep in mind that a well-rested child is a well-behaved child.  

Along with establishing a routine for the baby is establishing a routine for mom.  Moms tend to be selfless, always doing for others and putting the baby first.  Of course this is very noble for a mother to do, but keep in mind that for a mom, she is no good to anyone, including her precious baby, if she are operating on fumes.  Just like a baby, mom needs to be recharged.  For the first several weeks, a mother should always nap when the baby naps.  Laundry and other chores can wait.

Lastly, once that baby is safely home and tucked away in bed, don't forget to tackle other important issues to protect your child, life insurance, a will, and guardianship in case any emergency would warrant those things down the road. 

"This article was written by Katie Moore. Katie is an active writer within the blogging community who discusses maternity, motherhood, prenatal health, childbirth and other topics within this niche.  If you have any questions or would like to connect with Katie please contact by visiting her blog, Moore From Katie or her twitter @moorekm26."