This spring, Open Arms Perinatal Services and PEPS started a peer support group for Spanish-speaking families. Open Arms hosted these meetings at El Centro de la Raza and coordinated additional support for the mothers who attended. Maria, Community Connector at PEPS, and Betty Hernandez, a doula at Open Arms, led this first-time pilot group. Betty is also an obstetrical nurse and acts…
Shall I Compare Thee?: Parenting Thoughts from a Poet’s Desk
by Jessica Towns I was five months pregnant when I waddled into my first poetry class on the heels of a gifted poet friend. There, with the help of a dedicated teacher, I saw another side of the thing I’d hated most in high school English. I found an outlet for my feelings as I transitioned into parenthood, and then…
Raise a Good Human: Bring them to the Theatre
by Heather Gautschi, Communications Manager, Seattle Children’s Theatre If you’re looking to enhance your child’s artistic activities and experiences, bringing them to live theatre is a great opportunity. The theatre is an amazing place to be utterly, blissfully yourself, and it can be really powerful for children to feel welcomed for precisely who they are. Theatre can be an anchor in an otherwise…
Biking with Baby
Recently we reached out to families with young children in our area who are primarily using bikes for transportation. Families are using bikes for a variety of reasons, including cost, traffic, active lifestyles, environmental reasons and a passion for biking. Amanda Wanner is birth and postpartum doula at Cygnet Doula Services. Amanda uses her bike as a parent, and also…
Preparing for Baby: Emotional Changes and Challenges
by Kimberly Chan This post was originally published at https://www.oktobeimperfect.com/preparing-baby-emotional-changes-challenges/. Emotional changes and challenges should be expected with the arrival of a new baby. As I prepare to lead a PEPS Newborn group discussion on Emotional Changes and Challenges and prepare for the arrival of our second child, I want to share my approach with other new and expecting parents…
Creative Thinking & Imagination for Child Development
by Cassie McKeown, Bright Horizons Early Education and Preschool Cleo, a 4-year-old preschooler, excitedly told her Mom, “…and then we drank purple milk that came from a purple cow.” Webster defines imagination as “the ability to form a picture in your mind of something that you have not seen or experienced; the ability to think of new things.” Every child is…
PEPS Spotlight: Wendy Powell, Childish Things
Childish Things is a children’s clothing and toy resale boutique located in Crown Hill. The owner, Wendy Powell, is a local Seattle mom who started her business in 2008. She took a few moments this month to chat with us. Childish Things has been a partner of PEPS since 2012. Thank you! What factors do you weigh when deciding which organization…
Sow the Seed to Reap the Harvest
from PEPS Sponsor, Washington College Savings Plans Fresh air. Brisk mornings. A beautiful kaleidoscope of leaves. Squirrels are storing food for the winter, geese are flying south, and crops are being planted. Fall is here! A lot of time, energy, and planning goes into preparing for what’s next (whether it be the next season, the next promotion, the next child,…
I love my baby, but I miss my old life
by Laurie Ganberg, LICSW “I love my baby but I feel trapped.” “Maybe having a baby was a mistake.” “Every part of my life has changed. I miss my old life.” I often hear these statements hesitantly shared by women experiencing ambivalence and regret after a new baby—along with, “I can’t talk about this in the new moms group.” But it is…
One Year In, With Twins
by Leah Wyatt My fraternal boy-girl twins turned one last week, and we hosted the requisite first birthday bash, complete with cake smashing photo op. As with all first birthday parties, ours was really for the parents. In addition to allowing my husband to sip wine with other adults without leaving our house, the planning and execution of the event…
