The last routine I blogged about was Otto’s 9 month old routine, and to be honest not much had changed with it until he turned 13-14 months old. We were really getting used to it, but like everything with babies, it was just a season.

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Having Otto on a routine has been amazing and challenging at the same time. On the one hand, we know what to expect and can plan around it. Bedtime is set, and I think the established routine helps with his sleep (he is finally sleeping through the night)! On the other hand, I sometimes feel like a prisoner to his schedule. I find it hard to be spontaneous and break out of naps and wake windows. Overall though, I think the positives of having a routine outweigh any negatives.

HERE IS OUR TYPICAL DAY…

6:30am-7:15am Wake Up – Otto wakes up like clockwork around this time. Sometimes he will wake up crying but a few times recently he’s woken up babbling and singing – it’s super cute. Daddy gets him and changes him, then brings him to me so I can breastfeed him in bed. After he’s done he will go into his crib again for some independent play. Some days it lasts longer than others, but generally he plays about 15-30 minutes. This means Carlo and I can shut are eyes for this little bit of extra time (every minute counts)!

7:45am/8am Breakfast – Breakfast comes a little earlier these days as Otto seems to wake up ravenous. I’ve noticed his appetite has definitely increased and I feel somehow our whole day revolves around food. I’ve stuck to my meal prep and always have tons of options in the freezer, especially for breakfast when we have little energy. Some of his favourite breakfast foods include: whole wheat toast with butter, scrambled eggs, fruit, homemade oatmeal mini muffins, English muffins with peanut butter, pumpkin pancakes… the list goes on!

8:30am-9:15am Get Ready/Play – After breakfast I clean Otto up and get him dressed and ready for the day. I try to keep things calm in the morning and have him play in his room with me (rather than running around the condo like he does the rest of the time😅). If you haven’t heard of Lovevery (#CommissionsEarned), I highly recommend their Play Kits – these are truly some of Otto’s favourite toys. They keep him focused and engaged and allow him to learn rather than become overstimulated too quickly.

9:15am-10:30am Morning Walk – I love to get us out for some fresh air every day. We used to use this walk for Otto’s morning nap, but he has transitioned down to only one midday nap a day instead of two, so now these walks are purely for leisure. He loves to look at the squirrels, birds, and passing dogs! I also like getting my steps in, and of course, stopping by Starbucks. Some days I will take him to the grocery store or nearby shops, but usually we just walk through the neighbourhood parks.

10:30am Snack – After we get home Otto has a small snack. Like I said, our day kind of revolves around food. Some snacks he loves include: bananas and berries, unsweetened applesauce, crackers and hummus, Babybel cheese, and Love Child Organic Oaty Chomps.

10:45am-12pm Play (Home or Library) – Depending on how we’re feeling, we will either head back out and go to the library or stay home and play. We are so lucky to have such an amazing library just steps away from us, with a huge section for babies and kids to roam around and explore. I try to take advantage of this and go at least 4 times a week. It’s a great change of scenery for me too, plus Otto gets to meet and interact with other toddlers.

12pm Lunch – For lunch I will either heat up some leftovers from last night’s dinner, or prepare something simple. Some of my go to lunch foods for Otto include: chickpea pasta with sauce, chopped up cucumber with a splash of vinegar, homemade chicken broccoli fingers, smoothie bowls, toast with Swiss cheese… what can I say, he has great taste!👌🏻

12:30pm-2:30pm Nap – As I mentioned earlier, we are down to just one nap a day. It wasn’t the easiest transition but we are happy with how it is working out now. Ever since Otto turned one, he began refusing at least one of his naps every couple of days. It got to the point where it was exhausting trying to keep him on a two nap schedule when it just wasn’t working. Nap refusal can be very stressful because while you want your baby to rest, you can’t force them to sleep. So, we ended up extending our morning wake window to around 5 hours and doing one long midday nap. If you have read my blog post on Otto’s sleep, you’ll know he has only stroller or contact napped since he was 4 months old. This is still the case!

2:30pm Snack – Yup…another snack! I mean, who isn’t hungry after a long snooze? I also try to give him a bit of whole milk at this time (I say try because he doesn’t love it). You may have noticed I haven’t mentioned breastfeeding since the 7am feed, and that’s because I am gradually trying to wean Otto off of it. Breastfeeding has been one of the most challenging things I have ever done longterm and I am so relieved to be down to two feeds a day.

2:45pm-4pm Play (Home or Library) – If I haven’t taken Otto to the library yet, we usually go during this window of time. Otherwise, I will basically just follow him around the condo while he explores, moves objects into random places, and uses his Skip Hop walker/scooter. It’s a lot of running around for me!

4pm Prep Dinner – I will either put Otto in his playpen or have him sit on the kitchen floor with some “high value” items (safe kitchen utensils) while I prepare some food for the evening. He hates being in the playpen so I tend to have him in the kitchen with me, even though it ends up taking three times longer to do everything (picture him wandering off every few minutes and me having to grab him).

5pm Dinner – Though we’ve tried to prioritize family meals, more often than not dinner ends up being either me or Carlo sitting with Otto while he eats. I find that we aren’t hungry at this time and there’s also something so relaxing about eating in peace, on the couch, after Otto is asleep. Eventually this will change as he goes to bed later, but for now this is what works. He’s also extremely hangry by this point so 5pm dinner for him it is! Side note, if you’ve never seen a hangry toddler… well I wouldn’t recommend it!

5:30pm-6:30pm Family Walk – After dinner we usually take a long walk to wind down before the end of the day. It’s often hard in the winter months to do this because it’s so dark and freezing, but in the spring we have definitely been taking advantage of the mild evenings.

6:30pm-7:00pm Bath/Nurse/Bed – We’ve continued our nightly baths since Otto was a newborn and he absolutely loves them. He really enjoys the water which I credit Carlo for; he’s been taking him swimming in our condo pool every couple of weeks since he was a few months old. We also recently enrolled Otto in Guardian Swim at our local city pool and he is really loving those classes too! So it’s no wonder he loves the bath! After the bath Daddy will pass him off to me to feed him and put him to bed. He generally goes down pretty quickly and easily (unless he’s teething or something else is bugging him). After he’s in his crib, it’s Mom and Dad’s time to chill out and relax (or work out, or do more work, or do laundry…)!

Days with an “infant-toddler-hybrid” are long and exhausting but they are hilarious and exciting as well. Though I am tired, I do enjoy this stage. I find it so fascinating to watch Otto learn and grow. Every day I feel like he wakes up a little different and with something new about him.

xx Maya