Written by Emily Darwell. Becoming a mother, entering lockdown and getting to know the new norm, 2020 was quite the year for our new family! When thinking about writing this, it has made me think a lot about other families and how this past year has effected everyone individually. I want to make it clear I am aware we are all on our own journey, the saying ‘we are all in the same boat’ got thrown around a lot in 2020 and I very much disagree with it, yes we have all had challenges and it is of course affecting us all, however, our ‘boats’ are all very different!! I know I am very lucky, having a garden and living in the Yorkshire Dales which suddenly became a huge benefit of 2020 life, I think the new mum in a small flat, home schooling two older children, with zero outside space living in a city would very much agree, we are not in the same boat! Though saying this and recognising I am lucky to live where I am doesn’t mean emotionally it hasn’t taken its toll, but it has enabled me on harder days to always see that silver lining, knowing I am lucky to have what I have! As mothers we should always try to remember we are on our own parental journey, completely individual to us and our wee ones, pandemic or no pandemic - just trying to do our best with what we have and somedays just finding the energy to get to bedtime is more than enough!

Written by Abby Wheeler. When Abby became pregnant, she couldn’t have imagined the way the world would look when her son was born. Here she tells her story of bringing a baby in to the world during lockdown - it’s a story that many of you will identify with - there have been tough times, positive moments and now hope for the future...

Having a new baby in September 2020 started in much the same way as many new parents - once we were home, we could have visitors to meet our new little man for the very first time and I even managed to get out to cafés a couple of times to meet friends. I set into a new rhythm of life as a mum, trying to work out things on the baby front but also learning how to fill my days.

Based on research carried out by Dreams. The pandemic has been difficult for everyone but teenagers have been really hard hit - at a crucial time in their development they have been isolated from friends and missed out on face to face education. In addition to that, some interesting research from Dreams has found that 68% of teenagers have struggled with poorer sleep health since the start of the pandemic. Dreams spoke to 2,000 teenagers aged 13 - 17.

Written by Claire Burgess, Family Consultant. Hitting, like biting, can be a very normal part of a child’s behaviour. However, just because it’s normal it doesn’t make it right, but it’s important to understand that your child is not doing this to be unkind or to hurt anyone, it is often linked to how they are feeling or what they are experiencing at the time.

Written by Claire Burgess and Emily Darwell, Family Consultants. This blog will take you through what is considered a ‘short nap’, why not sleeping for long enough might be a problem and how you can help your babies and toddlers to sleep for longer!

Written by Claire Burgess, Family Consultant. This is one of the most common questions that I get asked in relation to toilet training. The process of learning to use the potty or toilet is individual to each child, some seem to take a couple of days and others might take that little bit longer to master it…often doing a poo is what holds them back.

Written by Claire Burgess, Family Consultant. During the first 12 months of life, the bottle for some babies provides comfort and positive associations. Looking to stop the use of bottles and moving to a cup can often make parents feel sad and question if it is fair on the child to make them give it up because they seem to love it so much. While it can be hard and there can be an attachment, there are good reasons to look at stopping it once your child is over 12 months.

Written by Claire Burgess, Family Consultant. As I am writing this blog we are in lockdown 3.0 - back to home schooling and trying to come up with ways to keep our children entertained all day long! Even before lockdown I think we were all coming to accept that screens are a part of our everyday lives. They aren’t going anywhere, and I think we would all agree that they’ve been really valuable through lockdown in keeping us all connected with friends, family and with work or school.

Written by Claire Burgess, Family Consultant. Co-parenting or shared parenting are terms used when two people who have been in a relationship, have had children together but then separated. The important thing to remember about co-parenting is that you don’t stop being a parent, you just stop being in a relationship with the person that you have had children with. You both still have a responsibility to your children to provide them with a stable and secure environment in which they can grow and develop.

Written by Claire Burgess, Family Consultant. In recent weeks this is a question that I have been asked several times and so I thought that I would write a blog on the topic! Headbanging is a behaviour which often causes adults great distress - seeing a child repeatedly banging their head is very hard to watch and to understand.