Keeping my toddlers daily schedule consistent establishes a routine to keep consistency for the boys. The activities throughout the day can be flexible, but eating and sleep times stay the same.
Block scheduling works great for us, so if you haven’t checked out my post on our daily block schedule, check it out here!
I’m sharing our daily schedule because it’s working very well for us right now. I’ve had my boys on a schedule since as early as I can remember. They are great sleepers and I think consistent schedules have a lot to do with that.
My toddlers daily schedule…
Here is what a typical day looks like for my twin boys… They are currently 26 months (24 months adjusted) and it is in the middle of summer here in Tennessee.
7:30 am- wake
Wake up, get dressed
7:30-8:30 am- breakfast
Breakfast, brush teeth, take supplements. Try these spinach and oat pancakes for a yummy breakfast idea!
8:30-9:00 am- play
Play with toys, while mommy puts on a little makeup for the day. =) Once I am ready, we read a few stories.
9:00-9:45 am- outside play
Go for a walk around the neighborhood, then play outside. I try to walk them daily before it gets too hot. We live in Tennessee and summers here are hot and humid! When we get back from our walk, the boys ride bikes and play with some outdoor toys.
10:00 am- snack
Snack time! We eat inside to cool off.
10:30 am- outside or play inside
Depending on the weather at this point, we either go back outside and the boys play in their water table, or we go upstairs to their play space to play until lunch.
During this time if we are playing inside, I try to include some educational activities for them to engage in. This is sometimes as simple as play-dough shapes and colors. Other times I prepare something a little more structured. This is ALWAYS a choice. If they aren’t into it, I save it for another day.
If you are looking for activities, check out Busy Toddler. She’s got great ideas that I use often!
11:00 am- get ready for lunch
Prepare lunch, eat. The boys generally play with Legos or read books while I make lunch. I meal prep a lot of their food ahead of time, or serve a lot of leftovers, so lunch doesn’t take me long to throw together.
11:30 am- lunch
Boys eat lunch, then we clean up and get ready for nap.
12:00/12:30-2:30 pm- Nap
My boys go down for nap between 12 and 12:30, depending on how the morning has gone. They generally sleep for 2 hours to 2 1/2 hours. I don’t let them sleep any later than 3:00 pm.
2:30 pm- snack
Get up from nap and eat snack. Try these peanut butter and carrot, dairy free muffins for a snack! My toddlers love them!
3:00 pm – play & baths
During this time we go back outside if it’s not too hot and play in the water table (again). If it IS too hot, we either play upstairs in the boys play space, or in the front room in our home. I try to find different toys for this time that they didn’t play with in the morning, otherwise they can get bored and start getting crabby.
Around 4:30 I give them baths. I like baths prior to dinner, so afterterward we can just play as a family and read stories. We do baths every other day or every 3 days depending on how dirty they get. =)
5:00- dinner prep
When the boys are in good spirits, they color or play with toys while I make dinner. On rough days, I put on an episode of Blippi or Daniel Tiger. Lately they have been obsessed with Blippi. I’d like to say the boys never watch TV, but lately it’s been needed while I make dinner…
They are in a biting stage (sigh) so when they are tired and crabby and I’m not watching them every second, they bite… which makes dinner prep dreadful.
One day I’ll get it together and prepare activities for them to do during this time, but for now, I’ll let Blippi do the teaching. 😉
5:30/6:00 pm- dinner
Family dinner and clean up. My hubby comes downstairs (he works from home) and we eat together as a family. I’m so grateful for this time where we can all eat together. This is something I want to continue doing as long as possible.
7:00 pm – get ready for bed
This time consists of getting pajamas on (on non bath nights), reading stories, playing with dad and brushing teeth.
7:30 pm- bed
Lights out by 7:30! The boys have always been amazing at going down on their own, so after putting them to bed, we don’t have to go back to their room. We are VERY grateful for this.
That about sums up our days right now. Not the most exciting with us being at home (due to COVID), but we are making it work and trying to make the best of it. =)
Getting a blow up pool is on my list of “needs,” so swimming will soon become a part of our daily schedule.
Don’t forget to PIN this to your Pinterest for later!
What are you doing to keep your little ones busy each day? Comment below! I’m always looking for more ideas!
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