confused about a routine..need advice..

i know im supposed to have instinct but i feel like i dont. my dd is almost 4 months and she doesnt really have a routine..only for bedtime..but everything seems to be fine..people tell me i should let the baby nap at the same time everyday and in the same place..but i feel like it doesnt work for me..dd falls asleep whenever she is tired...if im driving and get home i keep her in the carseat..if she is playing and falls asleep i let her..i feel like a strict routine wont work for me because i am always on the go. grandmas ...SIL's..friend's houses..so i feel like i should let dd be able to fall asleep wherever she is...did i answer my own question?..or am i doing something wrong?..i know im supposed to work around the baby and i do..but i feel like a strict routine makes my life difficult..i have a life too..please tell me what you honestly think....thank you

Re: confused about a routine..need advice..

do whatever works for you. My suggestion might be to keep a journal of what time she eats, how long she plays, and what time she falls asleep and for how long.

You'd be surprised that there probably is a routine in there somewhere!

I know my DD (when we are home) is awake 2-2 1/2 hours before she's ready to go down again. In that time, she eats, plays, crawls around, reads books, sometimes we go out for a walk. When I need to run errands with her, I go after she eats lunch and if she falls asleep in the car, fine. The excitement of going to the store keeps her awake when we are there. It's hard for me to run errands because she naps for 1 1/2-2 hrs normally and sometimes it's 2 1/2 hours (twice a day), so I feel guilty if she only sleeps 30 min in the car.

Re: confused about a routine..need advice..

Re: confused about a routine..need advice..

I honestly think what your doing is perfect. Life is about change an flexibility and it was important to us that our baby was this way too.

I think it's a good thing to be able to sleep anywhere. We would just pick him up and go not worrying about his routine.

Yes there is some routine expecially during the week but on weekends we have fun with him. We take him to friends, restuarants, shopping and just go with the flow.