I’ve definitely seen the switch of Charlotte going from infant to toddler lately. She is always busy on a new adventure, has learned to walk, eats all of my food (seriously don’t remember the last time my meal was just mine 😂) and has a fully developed and hilarious personality.

While this stage of life is incredibly fun, my mama heart can’t help but miss a few parts of babyhood. One part of it that Miss Charlotte doesn’t seem ready to give up though is breastfeeding. While it’s frequency and duration have both definitely decreased, she is showing few signs of being ready to completely end this stage. She drinks and loves cow’s milk but it doesn’t come along with that special time with mama the way that nursing does. I really can’t say I mind it either. If asked 9 months ago if we would’ve made it past a year, I wouldn’t have thought so. I overproduced so much in the beginning that the entire process was very unenjoyable for a while. But, Charlotte always knew what was best for us and I’m so thankful. For the past 4 or 5 months, my body has been conditioned to go 13-14 hours at night while she is asleep and not nursing (have never pumped) and long stretches throughout the day as she gets older with no pain or leaking. I wasn’t sure I would ever get to that point. I had several Instagram questions on how I was dealing with her baby shark teeth (😁😂) and honestly, she doesn’t use them very often! It’s pretty rare, probably once or twice per week, that they get used while nursing.

Ultimately, the ball is in her court here as far as how much longer we will share this time. The vast majority of her desire to nurse is in the morning and late afternoon with very little desire for a bedtime session which is generally not the case for others. This may be a sign of the beginning of the end or that she’s always just ready for sleep by the end of her day. Regardless, I am thankful for this time.

I am also very pleased with her current schedule. We’ve been on it for several months now and it works flawlessly for our family.

Charlotte’s *Typical* Schedule:

7:30 AM – Wake up, diaper change, play in bed with mama

8:00 AM – Breakfast

8:30 – 11:00 AM – Playtime and snack,

11:00 – 11:45 AM – Typical nap period IF she takes one. If wake up is after 7:30, she will sometimes not nap.

12:00 – 12:30 PM – Lunch

12:30 – 4:45 PM – Playtime and snack

4:45 – 5:30 PM – Dinner and kitchen clean up

Then, we’re off to bathe her and get her ready for bed for the next hour. At 6:30, she’s in her crib falling asleep and will sleep for the next 13 hours.

This schedule is so helpful for Charlotte because she is able to be very well rested and her attitude in the morning fully reflects that. We love that the vast majority of her sleeping is done at night and she is able to play and enjoy her day with us. It’s also so nice and important to have that time in the evenings as just a couple or for some alone time and self care!