Just a heads-up: a few links in this post are affiliate links. If you buy through them, I might earn a small commission—at no extra cost to you.
Get my Postpartum Playbook
If you’ve ever tried juggling a newborn and a toddler at the same time, you know it feels a little like spinning plates while someone throws Legos at your head. Some days flow, some crash, and most are somewhere in between. When I first brought my second baby home, I didn’t even try to set a toddler routine or build a perfect schedule. My only goal was survival: keep everyone fed, changed, and loved. And honestly? That’s enough in the early weeks.
But now, three months in, I’ve found a rhythm that makes life with two under two a lot less chaotic. It’s not picture-perfect (no mom routine ever is), but it works for us, and it keeps me from drowning in dishes, diapers, and laundry piles. I’m sharing it here because if you’re a stay-at-home mom trying to balance a toddler and baby schedule, you deserve to see a realistic glimpse into what a day can look like — not the glossy, staged version.
Why I Waited Three Months Before Creating a Routine
In the beginning, I was waking up at all hours, nursing around the clock, and honestly just trying to get through the fog. The thought of a toddler routine schedule felt overwhelming. I knew the basics — breakfast, naps, bedtime — but I didn’t pressure myself to create structure right away. And I’m glad I didn’t.
By month three, things started to feel a little steadier. My newborn was breastfeeding in longer stretches, my toddler was adjusting to life as a big sibling, and I was finally ready to set some anchors to our day. Not strict times, but predictable rhythms that help both kids know what’s coming next — and help me feel less like I’m scrambling.
My Morning Routine (AKA the Hour of Sanity)
If the baby hasn’t kept me up all night, I wake up about an hour before both kids. I don’t spend this time scrolling Instagram, although I used to haha — I use it to do a couple intentional things that make me feel like a human before the chaos hits.
- Wash my face + moisturize (non-negotiable, even if it’s quick).
- Check emails and do a little work to get things started
- Read or plan out my day
- Get dressed — nothing fancy, something comfy that helps me feel ready.
- Make the bed
That quiet pocket of time is what helps me feel ready. It’s not always possible (some nights I just sleep in as long as I can), but when I do manage it, the whole day runs smoother.
Breakfast With Two Under Two
When I hear the kids waking, I start with my toddler. I get him up, changed, and dressed, then move on to diaper duty with my three-month-old. Once everyone’s dry and dressed, I sit down to breastfeed the baby.
Here’s where the juggling act starts: my toddler is always hungry as soon as he wakes up. To buy myself time while feeding the baby, I give him a little breakfast snack — usually fruit or a muffin I already baked. His favorite are my banana bread muffins, I make them with greek yogurt to add in a little extra protein. Once I finish nursing and burping the baby, I place him in the swing so I can actually cook breakfast.
Meal prep has been my saving grace. On good weeks, I’ll batch-make pancakes, waffles, or scrambled eggs and reheat them each morning. That way breakfast doesn’t take forever, and my toddler isn’t melting down waiting for food.
He’s also picky, so switching it up and having food ready to go keeps him excited to eat. I will prep a couple of meals beforehand like banana muffins to have on hand and freeze them.
Pumping While Eating Breakfast
One new tool that has been a total game changer this time around: my hands-free pump (linking the one I use here). I’ll put it on while I’m eating breakfast so I can pump and eat at the same time. That extra stash means I’ve got milk ready in the evenings when my baby prefers a bottle. It’s multitasking at its finest — no lost time, no juggling flanges, and I can still move around if I need to.
Mid-Morning Play + Household Chores
After breakfast, I clean up dishes while my toddler either helps me (by “help” I mean hands me spoons or puts away safe items) or plays nearby. Sometimes I turn this into a game — he loves pretending he’s “washing” or “fixing” things.
Once the kitchen’s decent, we move into active play. This usually includes:
- Indoor tumbling on play mats.
- Short games like hide and seek or “throw the ball in the basket.”
- Quick art activities like coloring or stickers.
His attention span is short, so I keep activities brief and switch them often. The goal is to keep him moving so he burns energy and naps better later.
Meanwhile, I breastfeed the baby as needed and try to knock out one or two simple chores. I’ve started picking just one task a day — dusting, wiping doors, cleaning bathrooms, folding laundry — so that by the weekend, the house doesn’t feel overwhelming. Including my toddler in these chores keeps him busy, makes him feel helpful, and turns boring jobs into fun.
✨ Stay-at-home mom tip: If cleaning constantly feels like you’re running on a hamster wheel, try focusing on one zone or chore each day. It makes the house manageable without eating up your whole routine.
Why I Swear by My Robot Vacuum
One product I didn’t think I needed but now can’t live without is my robot vacuum. With a toddler dropping crumbs every five minutes, it saves me from vacuuming multiple times a day. I’ll run it mid-morning while we’re playing, and it quietly cleans the floors so I don’t have to. Initially my husband wanted this and I thought we didn’t need it. Now seeing how crumbs migrate all over the house it is well worth it! I recommend if you have toddlers you need a robot vaccuum. That small investment has freed up so much time for me to focus on my kids and my work-from-home tasks.
Workout + Quick Shower (a Stay-at-Home Mom Fantasy That’s Real)
When I can, I squeeze in a short workout. Usually it’s 20-25 minutes. If the baby slept well, I’ll do it before the kids wake up. If not, I’ll aim for mid-morning or after breakfast. Even 20 minutes makes me feel better. If I workout when the kids are around my toddler usually wants to be part of it so I let him join in!
Showers are lightning-fast, but doable thanks to our baby gate (another product worth linking). I’ll set the toddler up with safe toys, put the baby in the swing, and jump in for the quickest shower known to mankind. It’s not glamorous, but feeling fresh keeps me from spiraling into “frumpy, cranky mom” mode.
Lunch + Nap Transition
By 11:45, I start prepping lunch. I rely heavily on meal prep here too — leftovers, frozen meals, or easy fresh options like cut fruit, cucumbers, or simple sandwiches. My toddler eats while I breastfeed the baby, then I sit down to eat myself.
After lunch, we play a quick clean-up game (running to see how fast we can toss toys into bins). Then I read a book to my toddler to help him wind down before nap.
Nap time is golden. If both kids are down at the same time — miracle! — I work on blogging, respond to emails, or do something that feels like it’s for me. If the baby wakes up early, I bring him to my workspace and let him hang out while I type.
If you’re a new mom in survival mode, you might like my Postpartum Playbook where I share routines, boundary scripts, and recovery tips that saved my sanity.
Afternoon + Evening
When my toddler wakes, my husband is usually home. He’ll take our toddler outside to burn energy while I prep dinner with the baby nearby.
Because I pumped earlier, we have a bottle ready for the evening (he prefers that to nursing at night). After dinner, we clean up, play with Dad, and move into bedtime routines.
Bedtime Wind-Down
Our bedtime flow:
- Toddler bath + pajamas.
- Storytime and snuggles.
- Lights out.
For the baby, we use the Dreamland Baby weighted sleep sack, which has made a huge difference in how well he settles. My husband usually gives the last bottle while I finish dishes or tidy up.
Once both kids are down, my husband and I try to spend at least 5–10 minutes connecting — talking through the day, what worked, what didn’t, or just decompressing. Sometimes I’ll sneak in more work or reading before bed, but that little window of couple time helps me reset.
Final Thoughts
Life with two under two is never going to look like a Pinterest-perfect grid. Some days feel like survival, some like small victories, and most like a mix of both. But having a flexible mom routine — with toddler and baby activities, predictable rhythms, and a little prep work — has helped me reclaim sanity in the middle of the chaos.
If you’re in the trenches right now, know this: your daily routine doesn’t need to be rigid. It just needs to work for you, your baby, and your toddler. And on the days when nothing goes to plan? Grace and frozen waffles count as survival skills.
✨If you’re prepping for birth, grab my free Hospital Bag Checklist — it’s the one I wish I had before baby #1.
