Maternity leave can be such a daunting and lonely place , in fact for me that’s exactly what it felt like in the early days! Working full time right up until I was 37 weeks i really found it difficult to relax and I wasn't used to being on the go (I soon got used to relaxing though and maybe a little to much lol). After my fiancée returned to work I felt as though i was at a loose end. Watching Jeremy Kyle and this morning everyday was boring and I found my self clock watching and starting to feel isolated, It just wasn’t for me.
After a few weeks I decided I needed to get out there and meet new people to socialise with by joining groups with other moms. I’m going to share some classes and groups we attended when I was on Mat leave !
Baby Massage ~ 4 week course
I found Nikki’s course on Facebook and it was something I really wanted to take Aria to as she suffered a lot as a newborn with colic and constipation and I had read on many different websites that baby massage could help. At the group I met other mom's and babies of a similar age to Aria and Nikki was always friendly and welcoming which put me at ease.
The massage course offered different techniques to massage my baby in a lovely chilled out atmosphere which made a nice change to the stress of being a first time mom. The course really helped me with my anxiety, I had felt so uptight and helpless when I couldn’t do anything make Aria better. The feeling soon eased up a couple of sessions in. There were a few techniques where you sang nursery rhymes to your baby, which felt silly at first but as soon as i realised Aria loved the sound of my voice i decided i didn't care if anybody else didn't after all its not X factor. At the end of the session there was sensory play and biscuits for the adults (who doesn't love a biscuit).
After the session Nikki gave out a handout and even emailed us material from the session so we could recap when we got home, this was awesome as baby brain was in full flow and i couldn't remember if i had eaten that day let alone all of the techniques. This also gave me the chance to tell me fiancée about what we had done in the session . I always tried to include my partner in everything as much as i could because I feel like Men really miss out when they go back to work, so it was lovely at bath time as we could all do baby massage together and have so all important family bonding time.
If you are from the Solihull area you can find Nikki on Facebook link attached
http://www.nurturewithnikki.co.uk/ her site offers more information and bookings.
Hartbeeps ~ Solihull
I also take Aria to hartbeeps in Solihull. This class is one of our favourites, Aria loves it in fact i wish I would have taken her when she was even younger as we only started attending this group when she was 10 months old . If your baby loves music this is a perfect class for you to go to .
Each week there is a different theme with opportunities of imaginative play , using all sorts of fun props and my favourite dressing up, although im not sure it was Aria's however she is fond of the different hats. When we first started attending Aria was reluctant to participate but she soon got involved when she realised chewing the wood sticks and leaves was a option (see below). The interaction with other babies at this class is brilliant and really helped to develop Aria's social confidence even if this did involve tumbling over other children. Aria is a super confident little girl now and i think this class definitely played a role.
As I returned back to work three days a week getting to classes can be quiet difficult ,hart-beeps allows you to pay on the go instead of just paying in a block booking, this flexibility is perfect for me.
We have been to lots of other groups lovely groups , however these two stand out as our favourite .
KLO x
