Perfect 6-Month-Old Baby Schedule

Six months is an exciting time for your baby with solid food being introduced and lots of new skills being picked up. 

As a result your baby’s daily schedule will change a lot after they turn six months.  

Sample schedules for your 6 month old baby

Here are two sample daily schedules to give you an idea of your baby’s day at six months.

This first schedule is for when you are getting started with weaning in the first week after your baby turns six months old.

I found starting off with breakfast when introducing solid foods was much easier, as my babies were always alert and up for trying something new at this time.

TIME	WHAT’S BABY DOING
7am	Wake-up and feed (milk)
8am	Breakfast – Solids
9am	Nap
10am	Feed (milk)
12.30pm	Feed (milk)
1pm	Nap
3.30pm	Wake-up
4pm	Feed (milk)
5pm	Possible short nap
6.30pm	Bathtime
7pm	Feed (milk)
7.30pm	Lights out

Some babies may still be feeding in the night at this age. It’s not uncommon for babies to not sleep through the night fully until age one.

This next sample schedule assumes you have introduced two daily solid meals, breakfast and lunch.

You’ll notice here I’ve still included five milk feeds – but once you have introduced a solid breakfast and lunch then your baby may not want the midday milk feed.

TIME	WHAT’S BABY DOING
7am	Wake-up and feed (milk)
8am	Breakfast (solids)
9am	Nap
10am	Wake up and milk feed
12midday	Lunch (solids)
12.30pm	Possible milk feed
1pm	Nap
3.30pm	Wake-up
4pm	Feed (milk)
5pm	Possible short nap
6.30pm	Bath
7pm	Milk feed & bedtime
7.30pm	Lights out

Remember that every baby is different and any timings or guidance on quantities of food should be taken as rough estimates not an exact guide.

How many milk feeds will baby have at six months?

Your baby is likely to be on five milk feeds per day at six months, each of around 6-8ozs, before they start to wean.

As the month progresses they may drop to four milk feeds per day.

Some babies may still be waking for milk in the night at six months.

Introducing solid foods

The biggest change as six months is introducing food to a schedule you’ve probably already got used to!

Your routine may feel like it’s shifting constantly during this time – mine definitely did. 

I remember feeling so confused about how to fit everything in at the beginning of weaning. When your baby is already on five feeds per day, it’s difficult to imagine how to add any more feeding times into the mix. 

Then you need to start thinking about dropping milk feeds as the solid food takes over as being your baby’s number one source of calories.

When you think about the whole process it may seem overwhelming, but the best thing to do at this stage is to take it one day, and even one meal, at a time.

It happens really gradually, starting with just a few teaspoons of food. Then before you know it your baby is on three meals a day. 

How much solid food for a baby at six months?

Your baby does not need a huge quantity of solid food from the day they turn six months. Start with just one to two tablespoons per meal, with just one meal to begin with.

Try this for a week, and see how you go. Then increase the quantity and see how they get on.

The big thing to note about this phase in your baby’s life is that some days they will seem to hardly eat any solids at all. They may reject nearly everything you offer them for an entire day. 

Keep trying them on new foods and be consistent.

How much sleep for baby at six months?

Your baby needs a total of 14 hours sleep and that is likely to include 10 to 12 hours at night.

In the day they may be on two to three naps. Our longest nap was always the one just after lunch, but some babies prefer a bigger snooze in the morning.

When do you drop milk feeds for baby?

As the month progresses you may find you drop a milk feed. In my experience the lunchtime milk feed goes first as my babies still wanted their first-thing feed in the morning.

You can drop this bottle once baby is eating a proper solid lunch and is not indicating they are hungry before or during their afternoon nap.

Feeding your 6-month-old 

When introducing solids, try to start with breakfast first. 

This is a time when your baby should be at the their most hungry plus they will be fully awake and alert first thing in the morning. 

Continue to offer milk first so that your baby is calm when they come to eat breakfast. 

Start with baby cereal or baby rice in tiny amounts. 

After a couple of weeks of this, you could start introducing other tastes at lunch time. Begin with vegetables such as carrots, broccoli, squash, potato, swede, squash, and cauliflower. 

You can also offer small amounts of fruit too. 

As weaning progresses you can gradually start to puree food less (assuming you are not following baby-led weaning) so that it has more texture. 

If you are using baby-led weaning then you will be offering soft foods in small pieces that your baby can hold in their fist. 

Bananas, cooked carrot sticks, cucumber and spaghetti are all great for this type of feeding. 

The first milk feed to go will generally be the lunchtime feed. This is dropped as your baby eats more for their lunch and may take until they are around seven to eight months to go. 

Next may be the morning feed, which you can replace with a snack instead. 

By the time your baby is one, they may still be having milk in the morning and just before bed, but otherwise just having water in between. 

However not all babies are exactly the same, so don’t expect yours to conform. As long as your baby is eating good amounts of solid food by the age of one, then you’re doing great. 

There are loads more tips and a meal planner for getting started with weaning at six months over on this post.

I also have a huge checklist of first foods for baby here.

Six month old still isn’t sleep through the night

It is not uncommon for a six month old to not be sleeping through the night.

This study found that 57% of babies studied were not sleeping through at six months. So relax, even if other parents say their babies are sleeping through you certainly are not alone.

A few things you can try if your baby is waking frequently at night:

• If possible, try to avoid allowing your baby to sleep beyond 5.30pm as this may disrupt their sleep at bedtime. 
• If you are happy that your baby is feeding well in the day, growing and getting on with weaning OK, then you may want to try sleep training. This isn’t for everyone and you do not have to do it. All babies sleep through eventually.
• There are lots of gentle sleep training methods you can try to improve your baby’s sleep. 
• Check your bedtime routine. Turn down the lights and keep your voice quiet. If baby wakes up, keep lights low and your voice soothing.
• You may get some tips from this post about baby sleep hacks and this post about helping babies to fall asleep without being held.

Playtime with your 6-month-old 

At six months your baby either can sit up unaided or is on the way to being able to do so. 

They may also be rolling over and as the next six months go by they will learn to crawl. By the time they are one they might be pulling themselves up to stand and trying to walk. 

So as you can imagine, playtime with your six-month-old baby gets a lot more physical. 

Your baby will enjoy exploring toys that make noises and have buttons so they can see cause and effect in action. 

The best toys you can give your baby at this time aren’t necessarily toys at all. Just a wooden spoon and a pan to bang on will probably delight them as much as any toy. 

Find lots of ideas for activities to do with your baby here.

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The perfect routine for a one-year-old

Baby sleep hacks

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