Parenting in the First 3 Years Podcast #84: Navigating Toddler Sleep Disruptions When a New Baby Arrives with Joanna Clark How have you and your family personally coped with disrupted sleep patterns? Parenting is a journey filled with...
Parenting in the First 3 Years Podcast #83: Simple Ways to Create Mental Space Daily As a mom, the days often feel like a whirlwind of responsibilities and cherished moments with our little ones. However, amidst the chaos, we must carve out...
Parenting in the First 3 Years Podcast #82: Why Young Children Bite (and How to Respond) What are some effective strategies parents and caregivers can employ to help their children outgrow the biting behavior while maintaining a supportive...
Parenting in the First 3 Years Podcast #81: The Benefits of Risky Play with Dr. Catherine O'Brien How can we empower our children through risky indoor and outdoor play and embrace a facilitator parenting approach? Play is an essential part...
Parenting in the First 3 Years Podcast #80: Mom Story: How I Created Financial Wealth As a Single Mom with Eileen Joy Wondering how you can secure your family's finances without missing out on those precious moments with your kids? We've got you...
Parenting in the First 3 Years Podcast #79: A (Step) Dad’s View: How to Connect with Your Kids with Michael Gonzalez Are you curious about how to nurture your kid's social-emotional growth while also creating a community with other parents? We all...
Parenting in the First 3 Years Podcast #78: Q&A - Breastfeeding and Pumping with Dr. Andrea Braden Embarking on the incredible journey of breastfeeding brings a mix of complexities and wonders. Let's unravel the myths, delve into the fluid...
Parenting in the First 3 Years Podcast #77: Stages of Play - What to Expect from Your Child When They're with Other Kids with Gabrielle Holt How can parents help their child transition from playing primarily with them to playing with other...
Parenting in the First 3 Years Podcast #76: How to Get More Energy so You Aren't Slugging Through the Day with Krizia Graham Have you ever experienced the mix of exhaustion and reward that comes with being a mom of a toddler? Being a mom of a toddler is...
Parenting in the First 3 Years Podcast #75: Mom Story: I Became an Entrepreneur so I Could Stay Home with my Babies with Kelsey Newcomb How can a mom entrepreneur overcome challenges and achieve empowerment in both their professional and parenting lives?...
Parenting in the First 3 Years Podcast #74: The Good and Bad of Social Media for New Parents with Julie Bogart Have you ever experienced the mixed emotions of being both motivated and disheartened by what you see on social media? How do these...
Parenting in the First 3 Years Podcast #73: Setting Up Your Home for Learning with Jeanne-Marie Paynel Have you ever wondered what to do or how to set up your home when you have other children over to play? In this episode, Jeanne-Marie Paynel, M.Ed,...
Parenting in the First 3 Years Podcast #72: Understanding the Stages of Parenting with Ellen Galinsky Our children go through developmental stages from the moment they are born, but how many of you know that parents also go through stages of...
Parenting in the First 3 Years Podcast #71: Mom Story: Recognizing My Son's Autism Symptoms with Diane Fleming Did you know that you can often recognize the signs of autism around 18 months of age? In this episode, Diane Fleming explains what it was...
Parenting in the First 3 Years Podcast #70: Overcoming Common Fears of Parenting In this episode of "Parenting in the First Three Years," Ann discusses the common fears and worries parents may experience. She shares a recent personal story of feeling fear and...
Parenting in the First 3 Years Podcast #69: What New Parents Need to Know About Food Allergies with Katie Larson, PA-C In this episode of "Parenting in the First Three Years," host Ann McKitrick interviews Katie Larson, a physician's assistant with personal...
Parenting in the First 3 Years Podcast #62: Mom Story: I want to normalize my “mom struggles” with Christine Amerman Being a parent and an entrepreneur simultaneously can be challenging yet rewarding. Balancing the responsibilities of parenthood with the...
Parenting in the First 3 Years Podcast #61: How to Make Tummy Time Fun with Michelle Napierkowski If you are a new parent, then you have probably heard that tummy time is important for your baby. It’s equally important to be knowledgeable about the container...
Parenting in the First 3 Years Podcast #58: Mom Story: What It's Like Being a New Mom and an Entrepreneur with Allie Martin New moms love to hear each others' stories and today Allie Martin, an entrepreneur who's a visibility expert and owner of Fame...
Parenting in the First 3 Years Podcast #56: Surviving the First Year of Motherhood with Becky Viera, Author of Enough About the Baby Surviving the first year of motherhood can be an incredibly challenging experience, yet many of the struggles that new...
Parenting in the First 3 Years Podcast #55: 5 Myths about Newborns with Deborah McNelis It's easy to feel lost and overwhelmed when it comes to caring for your newborn, but don't worry! Let me introduce you to Deborah McNelis, who's here to help guide...
Parenting in the First 3 Years Podcast #54: Mom Story: How I Helped My Only Child Welcome a New Baby with Zlata Stankovic-Ramirez When she found out she was pregnant, today's featured mom wondered how she could help her only child welcome a new baby...
Parenting in the First 3 Years Podcast #52: Mental Self-Care for New Moms with Colleen O'Grady What are the habits new moms can begin now to ensure a healthy mindset throughout the all the stages of parenting? In this episode, Colleen O'Grady explains...
Parenting in the First 3 Years Podcast #43: Attachment Parenting Explained with Diane Goyette and Gabrielle Holt There's a lively conversation on social media about attachment parenting and sometimes it feels like just one more thing to get right, or...
Parenting in the First 3 Years Podcast #42: How Your Enneagram Type Affects Parenting with Rochelle Bridges What's your Enneagram type? I'm a 9 all the way, straight up. I have all the quirks and characteristics of this Enneagram personality type. I'm...
Parenting in the First 3 Years Podcast #41: 5 Ways to Soothe a Crying Newborn with Dympna Kennedy The sound of a crying newborn... oh my goodness. It sends shivers up our spine, creates emotional tension and we just want to do all we can to help them....
Parenting in the First 3 Years Podcast #38: What to Expect in the Fourth Trimester with Meg & Carly of Fourth Trimester Foundations The "fourth trimester" is the term coined for the first 3 months after birth. Those first weeks are beautiful, memorable and...
Parenting in the First 3 Years Podcast #35: Postpartum Mental Health: Are These Feelings Normal? with Sherry Duson Postpartum mental health is often a not-talked-about-enough topic. Most new parents experience up and down emotions in the first weeks and months...
Parenting in the First 3 Years Podcast #33: How to Break Negative Cycles in Parenting with Lorena Seidel, Joyful Parenting In this episode, we discuss parenting strategies that enable you to break free from negative cycles you may have experienced as a child....
Parenting in the First 3 Years Podcast #31: How New Parents Can Support Secure Attachment with Annie Brook, Therapist & Founder of the Brook Institute In this episode, Annie Brook and I explore ways to support secure attachment between parents and...
Parenting in the First 3 Years Podcast #29: How Motherly Helps New Mothers with Liz Tenety, Co-Founder of Motherly Liz Tenety, co-founder of Motherly, gives behind-the-scenes insight on trends, what she sees as a big source of struggles for new mothers,...
Parenting in the First 3 Years Podcast #28: Exploring Parenting Styles: RIE with Erica Orosco Cruz Finding your own personal parenting style when you first have a baby takes time. There are so many people and approaches to glean from as you find what...
Parenting in the First 3 Years Podcast #27: The 6 Stages of Parenting with Ann McKitrick Just as our children are going through phases of development throughout their lives, we too are going through stages of parenting as our kid get...
What’s the difference between a pregnancy cookie and a regular cookie? Do labor cookies really make your labor begin?
When do you really need to start reading to your baby? Now's a good time! Early literacy begins early. Research shows that newborns are born equipped to respond to the language they've heard in the womb. They've been listening to you all this time and they love your...
It's one of the first things people ask, "Is he keeping you awake at night?" (Um, yes he's awake at night, he's a newborn) This week I sat down with Joanna Clark of Blissful Baby Sleep Coaching to talk about sleep patterns for newborns. I asked her what you should...
Talk about adulting. This is it. Likely one of the first big decisions you'll make when you become a parent. It's a decision that will deeply impact your family, especially your baby. The folks who care for your baby while you work will become your partners in...
Oh my goodness... I don’t know about you but it feels to me like unknowns of COVID are lasting a lot longer than I expected. As this all unfolds, new parents are faced with questions that weren’t even in our grid 8 months ago! Pregnancy can be filled with a lot of...
A 10-day old baby will present many different changes from when it was brought into the world. Here are some of the changes that you may want to watch out for…
While infant attachment is sometimes overlooked by some parents and caretakers, it matters to the baby’s communication development a lot. Here’s how the process usually begins and the reasons why it’s vital for the baby’s progress…
Having baby feeding essentials with you before the baby comes is important. For that reason, here’s a list of items you may want to get before the big day.
Every baby is unique, and you are the expert on your own child. I do everything based on a career in early childhood education, coaching early childhood teachers and parents.
Are you a new parent looking for parenting tips? Read about why the first 3 years are important for your child’s development and learn how you can help.
How do you know if your little baby is taking in enough formula in order to get what they need nutritionally to grow? In this article, I will talk about some guidelines to follow that will help you decide on how much to feed your baby.
For many new parents, the first time they hold their tiny bundle of joy triggers an instant bonding. In the early years, a baby’s brain grows rapidly making millions of neural connections, so a variety of experiences and exposure aids physical, cognitive, social and language development. Read about a few ways in which bonding and baby development in the early years can go hand-in-hand.
I was recently in Minneapolis, hanging out with the grandkids. I get up there a couple of times of year - usually once in the dead of winter and once to enjoy their beautiful summertime. One way I cement a long distance relationship with them is to have consistent...
You are really, really important to your child. You see it in the way your baby gazes at you, prefers you over others and cries when you leave. We know we’re important in our child’s life but do we truly understand this? Attachment researchers tell us that we become...
Love on your baby. Then they'll be really smart. Love is in the air. Even though Valentine's day focuses on romantic love, it’s a great time to hone in on the love connection between you and your child. It’s amazing to realize that your child’s brain...
When I became pregnant with my first I quickly realized how few friends I had in the same boat. The handful of friends I had with kids lived in different states and I found myself scrambling to find friends undergoing the same life transition. Having a community full...
5 tips for new parents Anytime you begin a new job there’s a period of orientation. And depending on the complexity of the work you’ll be doing, you might have months of training before you’re on your own with full responsibility. When you become a parent, while...
We really can't help ourselves. Something inside us kind of melts. Have you ever noticed the feeling you get when you see little tiny puppies or kittens, or even a baby elephant at the zoo? Or had complete strangers stop to talk to you as you walk your puppy? We...
I love new beginnings. Today we not only ring in a new year, but a new decade. Your baby will be doing all kinds of things in 10 years! As we begin the new year there are so many things to think about. Goals, intentions, dreams and visions. I don't know about you,...
That little person is very tuned in to you. From the moment they're born, babies are ready to listen, respond and try to figure out how to be in relationship with you. Research gives us really interesting insight into how equipped newborns are to do this. Let's take a...
I was surprised at the amount of downtime I had with a new baby. I remember the first few months of staying home with my first baby. I assumed I’d be swamped with my new tasks of parenthood: nursing around the clock, diaper changes, rocking baby to sleep, etc....
I’ll never forget the stress I felt about miscarriage when I was pregnant. Every day I worried the pregnancy might end. I remember counting down the days to when I’d be past the first trimester, longing for it to come. I was sure once I made it past that date, my...
The moment a pregnancy test is positive or the foster/adoption approval comes through, you begin to wonder... What am I going to do? What does it feel like to be a parent? How will I be the same and how will I be different? Will I still be able to be spontaneous, do...
Even people who say they have "no clue what to do with babies" will instinctively do exactly what's necessary to enhance development as they singsong talk, make faces and gaze at their face as they hold them. We act differently with infants than we do with adults or...
Odds are, someone else will care for your baby at some time in the first year. The average length of maternity/paternity leave in US is 12 weeks (often unpaid) with many moms returning to work when the baby is 6 weeks of age. In fact, of the 12 million infants and...
All I ever really wanted to be when I grew up was a mom. Like many little girls, I played 'house' all the time as a kid, treating my baby dolls with love and care, teaching them and handing out discipline when they needed it. As a teenager, I did lots of...
Pregnancy is an amazing time. While there are definitely some discomforts along the way, let’s celebrate some really wonderful things that you can ONLY experience during pregnancy… Permission to focus on...
We all know 0-3 month olds pretty much eat, sleep, and poop. But what do we do with them when they’re awake? Learn 20 ways to play with your 0-3 month old.
I’m a child development specialist, parent coach and teacher trainer. I’ve cared for countless babies in child development programs, plus 3 kids, 3 grand babies and 5 foster babies! I LOVE babies and would come hold yours if I could. ❤️
