©Lisa Gendron | Agroterra Birth
“To describe my mother would be to write about a hurricane in its perfect power. Or the climbing, falling colors of a rainbow.” ~ Maya Angelou
Now, through Parent and Baby classes, I’ve found exactly the kind of emotional and physical support that I need to care for my baby without losing my sanity. Every time I leave the class I feel so encouraged by the confident reassurances that what we are all going through is normal, often difficult, and always magical.
-Our Newborn + Breastfeeding Workshops, Infant Developmental Movement Education, Parent + Baby Yoga Classes, Infant Massage + Doula Support provide time for you and your baby to receive respectful and knowledgeable support.
Life for parents of babies is intense! Discovering who our babies are and what they need, and learning who we are as parents is joyful and exciting, but also exhausting and overwhelming.
You may delight in your miraculous baby’s soft skin one moment, and the very next wonder if you will ever understand them or get to do something for yourself again. You are not alone!
In connection with other families, join us to discover that challenge, curiosity + exploration are all part of growth + parenting.
Learn more about what Open Circle Values for Little + Big Babies (all of us). [coming soon]
©Lisa Gendron | Agroterra Birth
Group Infant Discovery Sessions
Infant Developmental Movement Education
Please email or text 401-338-5466 to register while we are updating the website
When: Sundays June 11 – July 16 from 11:30am – 12:45pm
Sundays July 22 – Aug 26 from 11:30am – 12:45pm
Sundays + Tuesdays starting in October
Cost: $25/drop-in, $120/6-week series
Ages: 4-weeks through Early Walking
Come connect with other families and babies while together we can observe and delight in the infants’ curiosity, growth and development. We expect babies to be babies! Fussing or crying (either of you!), feeding, pooping, sleeping, arriving late or needing to leave early. . . .are all expected and welcomed! This is a time and space to be in community just as you are; without apology or need to ‘fix’ anything.
Each meeting begins with a check-in and discussion about infant development or family well-being. For example, we might:
- Talk about creating the physical space in your home to support your baby’s learning
- Explore strategies for holding and moving your baby which support their development
- Brainstorm how to meet your own needs while simultaneously taking care of your baby
- Discuss how responding to early signs of hunger or tiredness can help you and your baby have calmer and happier days / nights
Following the group discussion, we observe together what the babies are showing us about their growth, enjoy socializing and chat about parenting experiences + questions. Each meeting closes with a movement or meditation practice to nourish your hard-working parent body-mind.
Private Appointments :
Infant Developmental Movement Education
©Agroterra Birth Photography
* Adult vaccination is required for all group parent + baby classes.
Help keep the babies safe + healthy by not attending if anyone in your family has been ill or had any symptoms of illness in the past 24 hours.
Private Infant Developmental Movement Education
60-90 minute sessions are available by appointment.
When setting up your appointment, please share your questions and goals for our time together. We will collaborate, using your knowledge of your baby, observation, touch, movement, connection and play as we engage with and learn from your baby.
All topics are welcome! Things families have explored include:
- How to hold + carry your baby to support comfort + development (great during pregnancy!)
- Head preference, torticollis or physical patterns which appear “stuck” or overly dominant
- Helping ease gas, constipation, hard belly, excessive spitting up, etc
- Supporting sleep
- Practicing floor time on tummy, back and sides to build strength and coordination
- Frequent “head-bonker?” Help your baby learn to safely change levels + positions
- Helping “sensitive” or easily over-stimulated babies regulate, orient and find comfort
- Decreasing breastfeeding difficulties connected to physical position or poor latch
- Addressing quesitons or worries about developmental milestones
- And more!
What is Infant Developmental Movement Education, or “IDME?”
Infant Developmental Movement Education (IDME) was created by the collaboration of Body-Mind Centering Founder Bonnie Bainbridge Cohen, Leore Grubinger and Sandra Jamrog. IDME is a gentle and detailed approach to working with babies and their parents. It uses relationship, touch, movement and play, all with the goal of supporting development, resilience and self-agency.
Grounded in the study of developmental embryology, neurology, relationships, psychology + somatic practices, IDME is baby-guided, inquiry-based and collaborative between practitioner + parents.
Supportive for babies who are developing with ease, as well as those experiencing challenges or developmental differences, IDME is oriented toward recognizing the health + capacity of each baby within their own spectrum of potential. Rather than assessing through a lens of illness or pathology, IDME strives to witness each parent and baby within their unique wholeness and sacredness.
Doula Care For Families With Infants
Doula Care (60-120 min)
By Appointment;
Self-pay and insurance-based pricing options
Ever wish you had someone you could call who would listen carefully, be compassionate and non-judgmental, and help you learn more about your baby and parenting? That’s what we’re here for! Sessions provide a time for you to share excitements, worries and questions about your baby + parenting.
Together we will explore your baby’s growth and development, your own needs and the needs of other children or family members, and how you can feel more resourced and confident as you parent.
Specialized doula care is available for parents of infants with medical conditions, illness or trauma histories, and to support birth parent’s healing and return to physical activity. Learn more here.
Focused on Your Parenting
Questions + Goals
During Your Baby’s First Year
Including:
•Touch + Holding Skills
•Feeding Support
•Inside a Newborn’s World
•Soothing Strategies
•Is My Baby Overstimulated?
•What is My Baby Telling Me?
•Should My Baby Sleep All Night?
•Is Sleep Training for Us?
•Can I Spoil My Baby?
•Are Milestones Important?
•Does He Need Stimulation to Learn?
•Do I Need to Teach Her to Roll, Crawl, Walk. . . ?
•Why Does My Baby Always Want to Be Held? And more. . .
©Kaeli Sutton
Infant Massage Series + Private Appointments
Group 5-Week Series
When: Sundays July 22-August 27
Price: $150
Ages: 4 weeks to walking
Meeting once a week over five weeks, you will learn to give your baby a full body massage to support their health and build connection. You will massage your own baby while the instructor demonstrates on a doll. There are many benefits from infant massage for both babies and their parents, including lowering of stress hormones + bonding, as well as supported sleep, digestion and weight gain for the baby. Special sequences + techniques to support babies with colic or digestive issues and those with special needs or sensitivities will also be covered.
Each series explores topics including:
- the benefits of infant massage
- learning your baby’s cues
- massage to support sleep
- helping babies with digestive challenges
- helping sensitive babies find comfort
- supporting movement development
- understanding infant behaviors + awareness states
Private 60 Minutes Appointments
Income-Based Pricing $30-100
By Appointment
Ages: 2 weeks – 1 year
Learn how to massage your baby to support their health and development, and help you bond. 60 minute sessions offer time to discuss your goals, learn more about your baby, practice massage and benefit from the relaxation and stress relief that it offers you as well as your baby. You will massage your own baby while your teacher demonstrates on a doll.
The benefits of infant massage are vast, both for the baby and parent’s or caretakers. These include lowered stress hormones for the whole family, improved mental health, increased parenting confidence, and for your baby, sleep and digestive supports, decreased fussiness, and facilitation of cognitive, relational and physical growth.
©Agroterra Birth Photography
— Parent + Baby Services —
©Agroterra Birth Photography
Group classes
Classes provide parents (or caregivers) a relaxed space to connect with their babies and other parents, while learning about themselves and their babies. Infant Discovery Sessions, Parent + Baby Yoga, Infant Massage and more. . .
Doula + Private Sessions
Private consultations with families to support infant care + development, parenting confidence + skills, whole family adjustment, sleep support, navigating medical systems, boundaries and support from family + friends, and more. . .
Newborn Education
Join other expecting families to prepare for life with a new baby. In childbirth education, you’ll learn self-care practices + how to understand newborn needs + development to help you care for your baby, yourself and your family.