God has given us the wonderful opportunity of living in a country where flexibility is key. There are not many rigid schedules here, everything is "tranquilo", and I really do like this. The culture I grew up in is very similar, it is not an unfamiliar concept.
Small children however, do need some sort of structure. At least mine do! We have found that routines work way better than schedules in our household. Schedules require hour by hour commitments... for example, at 3 p.m we will have reading time! But what if at 3 pm the fruit vendor knocks on the door? Or your neighbor wants to know if you can drink terere with him?
We find that routines work best for us, they allow us to be more flexible and fit others into our lifestyle. So we don't know when exactly reading will happen...but we know it will be after naps.
Our bedtime routine really works for us. I have three great sleepers, and they have been since they were 6 months. Training babies to sleep through the night definitely works for me (I. Need. Sleep. Period.)
We send them to the potty.
They get a drink of water.
Jammies get put on.
A Bible story is read.
We ask them to tell us one thing they are thankful for.
We pray.
Nightlight is turned on along with some soft classical music.
They are tucked in, each with her own special blankie....
and that's that.
Bedtime usually happens around 7 p.m...but on really long days it could even be as early as 6. Weekends are much later.
So, no matter what time the clock says, the routine is the same, and this really works for us. We are not tied to the hands on the clock, in keeping the with our flexible routines we are more open and available to adapt to the needs of others.
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