I like to keep my little one on a schedule. It’s not very strict. He doesn’t lose his cool if he doesn’t get that afternoon snack, and I’m not pulling my hair out if he fell asleep in the car seat. But, we do have a flow. It’s such a flow that helps me be the mom I need to be for him and helps him to identify what he needs as well.
If invited to an outing or I have a ton of errands to run, I work it around our schedule. I like to find a way to get it done without disrupting his “normal” too much. But sometimes, choosing to stick to his normal can be deemed as strict or uptight.
Yes! I’m that mom that likes to keep my kid on a schedule. Establishing a schedule for my son has helped me to better understand what my son needs and when he needs it.
I remember one time my husband and I were invited to go bowling. It was a family outing where several others would be bringing their children as well. Excited to attend, I asked what time everyone would be getting together. The start time was 7pm.
Yikes!
Here’s my thing. Our son goes to bed at 8pm. Of course, he’ll be excited. He’ll be into the game. He’ll be super amped, and when we finally get home it’s going to take a little work to power him down.
Don’t get me wrong. We love when he’s hyped about his surroundings. But that close to bedtime…not so much.
I remember saying to my husband that it felt kind of late to begin a family outing until I realized that the other kids are older. Would it work for our son? Would one night really throw him off so much? We chose to stick to our normal bedtime for the little one, but not before we heard why we should ignore our schedule.
“He’ll be fine.”
“One night isn’t going to hurt.”
“Other kids will be there.”
“You can’t always keep him on a schedule.”
Or my favorite…”Loosen up.”
I know. I know. Life doesn’t always go according to schedule. Trust me. I leave room for my son’s day to free flow and be slightly flexible. But because of our schedule, I love that my son knows what’s going on. I love that he knows when we turn the TV off it means let’s get ready for bed. I love seeing him happily run to the bathroom, stepping upon his stool ready to brush his teeth because…he knows.
I love that he knows when he can get tablet time and for how long he can use it. It’s helped to reduce meltdowns because he isn’t surprised when I’m telling him time to put the tablet away. He knows the drill.
Having a schedule has made it smooth because we can transition from one thing to the next. I don’t know how long keeping this schedule will continue on for him.
…But for now, I’m that mom that likes to keep a schedule.
