I've felt very cared for by everyone I've encountered here throughout pregnancy and postpartum, but…read morewanted to especially highlight Ocean Berg. In just a couple lactation consultancy appointments, we've made so many breakthroughs in feeding with Ocean. I love how she attentively watches our baby for cues before trying to come up with a solution. She is super encouraging and strikes the right balance between being a great listener and getting right to the action, which makes for very productive sessions where we get a lot of practice in. We had also attended her childbirth class when I was pregnant, which I had found pretty educational. For example, she had made us feel very comfortable with fentanyl as a painkiller during labor, which turned out to be extra important for me since the anesthesiologist wasn't available to give an epidural before my baby came out so I had to rely on fentanyl during labor. My main complaint is that introductions took quite a while because every couple in attendance answers 5 or so questions, and it was hard to schedule the class online and also reschedule it when the dates changed. Lastly, I love that Newborn Connections has Saturday lactation consultant appointments available. And also the appointments end up very affordable after being billed to my insurance!

(1) Lactation Consulting. Christen Chang is an amazing lactation consultant. She's super patient,…read moresuper gentle, super knowledgeable, and super caring and empathetic. We met with her several times in the first two months of our journey with breastfeeding. The initial first few visits were to learn the ropes, and the second month's visits were to troubleshoot challenges that arose. Christen is so great, no amount of praise or explanation could do justice to just how truly excellent she is. (2) Classes. We also took first aid, child birth prep, and breastfeeding classes with Newborn Connection. The sign up process and web interface is unintuitive, but the classes themselves were helpful, fun to do with partner, and a good opportunity to meet other expectant couples in the same phase of life as you. (3) Rentals. Lastly, we rented a hospital grade breast pump here. If your insurance covers it, or if you can afford it, it's great to have because it's much more effective than retail breast pumps. If you plan on pumping for more than 24 months (i.e., 2+ babies for 12+ months), buying hospital grade might be cheaper than renting hospital grade.

TLDR; YES if you're a first time mom considering Kinspace, you need to sign up. It might seem…read moredaunting (another thing I need to do NOW?) but trust me it's worth it. My baby and I started at 2 months postpartum, have done a full year of Kinspace, and just "graduated." We've learned so much! Susan is phenomenal. The community is amazing and supportive. You'll meet local moms with babies of the same age, and together tackle a bunch of parenting "firsts" in the first year. I can't imagine going through it all without Susan and our mom group.

Hands down, this was the #1 best thing I did for myself and my baby postpartum…read more Susan has created such a safe and welcoming place for moms to meet other moms and learn about all things motherhood. Motherhood can be incredibly lonely and isolating and meeting up with the other moms weekly was truly a blessing. We learned so many tips and tricks and Susan always answered all of our questions. I not only came out of the group with so much knowledge but now I have a whole group of mom friends and friends for my son! I am so incredibly happy I joined Susan's group and I encourage every new mom I know to do it too.

I am a HUGE fan of Hand in Hand. From one generation to the next, societies learn to be more gentle…read moreand loving as parents. Hand in Hand is the next huge wave of goodness to wash over the important work of parenting. I thought I was a pretty-darned-good mother before I took the Building Emotional Understanding class through Hand in Hand. I had no idea how much I could improve! I am so much more accepting and understanding toward the difficult feelings my girls experience now. I appreciate the full range of feelings that children and parents experience and understand how important it is to feel them all as fully as possible instead of stuffing the harder ones and welcoming only the happy ones. As a result, my girls really tell me what is going on in their lives -- the happy things and the hard things. And they both have amazing courage to put themselves out there in the world and try their best at whatever they do. They know they can count on me to listen to them if things don't go well instead of judging their efforts. More and more they are trusting in their own ability to figure things out. More and more they are feeling their own power to make positive change in their own lives.

The principles are not complicated and make sense, that a child can't hear your advice when their…read morebrain is in a storm of emotion. After they unload that, their innate goodness and desire to connect guides wise behavior. They just need your acceptance and faith in them during the storm. Your child may feel diminished by focusing on consequences, as if they deserve to be punished for normal fears and instincts. The classes help you practice, answer your questions and vent your worries. Also they help you notice any resistance and envy if you were not raised with this kindness. Sure some ideas are in other books, but you'll appreciate the assistance in applying them.

We've had a wonderful experience with The Modern PlaySpace and are so grateful for the support…read morethey've provided our daughter. They've taken the time to understand our daughter's individual needs and have provided guidance and activities that support her growth in a way that feels natural, play-based, and child-led. Our daughter loves going to playgroup, and we've seen meaningful progress since starting. We are so thankful for Sandy and her wonderful team!

Wow, I can't believe it's been over 6 years! I met Sandy at…read moreher original location back when my nephew use to attend Modern PlaySpace. Fast forward to today, now my son attends Modern PlaySpace at the new location! Sandy has not changed, always so warm and friendly. All the new teachers I've met are just as amazing. Modern PlaySpace is always so clean and organized. When you walk in, it's so inviting with all the toys and colors. There's so many fun activities for the kids. My son is within autism spectrum and at Modern PlaySpace all the activities are so supportive of his needs. They do lots of sensory friendly activities and the kids practice living skills. Not to mention we have been accommodated with having my son's therapist arriving to give him his session there. All of my son's therapists love it at Modern PlaySpace too. We're honestly so grateful to be at Modern PlaySpace working with Sandy and all the teachers. Never in all my years have I ever felt pressured in any way. I truly feel comfortable having all the children in my family attending Modern PlaySpace. If you want a safe, clean, fun and small group setting for your children to attend, then I highly recommend Modern PlaySpace.

I interned with Christy from 2020-2021, & am immensely grateful to have worked with someone with a…read moretrue passion for what they do. Christy has stellar teaching skills-- both in working with her clients, and in helping me further my knowledge in the mental health field. I first assisted Christy with her wellness workshops for tech companies. Christy inspired me to implement these sustainable wellness skills into my own daily life as well, and I appreciated how Christy utilized an intersectional & inclusive perspective in her workshops. I also served as camp counselor at the Summer Group Intensive for children with selective mutism. While I had no prior experience in selective mutism, I felt confident and prepared going in to it because of the ample training that Christy provided in Parent-Child Interaction Therapy. Christy continually encourages growth thanks to her constructive feedback, and she pushed me to find ways to bring my own skills of creativity and imagination to the role. This hands-on internship was one of the most impactful and rewarding experiences I've had, and I would love the opportunity to work with her again in the future.

Christy is amazing! My child has selective mutism, which is a rare type of childhood anxiety, and…read moreChristy is one of the few therapists in the bay area who specializes in treatment for it. We commuted an hour every week to see her and it was well worth it. My child made huge improvements under her care and it has been amazing to witness. We are so grateful that we found Christy! She continues to support us when we need any advice or encounter a new hurdle.

I've seen people say great things about this place but I did not have that great of an experience…read more Note also I never participated in their services or activities. I brought my daughter who is two to visit and check things out and being a two year old she was acting unruly and noisy (yes, immaturity is the definition of being a toddler). One of the ladies there gave me a very unpleasant expression and outright told me that my daughter needed better manners and discipline. In my head I'm thinking, who are you to define what a two year old needs? Should I be complaining about your urinary incontinence and constipation problems when you have them, you old hag? Go take your osteoporosis medications. I left immediately and I've never looked back. I expected much better in a city of acceptance such as SF. My review is just a population of 1, so I'm sure that many reviews here hold true and am happy others have found a good experience because as parents, all we want is a good environment for our children to be in.

I used to take my son to the wednesday morning drop-in play group with Jenni Clancy, and we both…read moreloved it! Jenni and the other parents/nannies were were all really friendly and welcoming. The play group has unstructured play time for the kids for about one hour, and then a short circle time with songs, puppets, and bubbles. We haven't been for about 6 months due to a conflict in our schedule, but my son still sings and loves the songs he learned from Jenni's circle time. The play room is small, but I never felt like it was too crowded, and they have plenty of toys and activities for the kids to play with. I would say that the ideal age range is from 6 months to about 2.5 years. This is a great place to bring a crawling child because of the size and layout of the play space. It is also a bit cheaper than many of the drop-in play groups when you get the 5 time punch card.

I have had both family sessions and empowerment sessions with Rebecca. She is both compassionate…read moreand empathetic. She is genuine and exudes the love for her work. My family has gone through some positive structural changes after a few sessions and I am much happier. Rebecca offers a different perspective and at the same time made me feel listened to and understood. She helped me build my self esteem by using different techniques and finding the right one for me. She has a natural ability in what she does and I would strongly recommend her to everyone.

From the owner: WELCOME! This…read morepandemic has stripped humans of all of our ambitions. Many of us no longer have access to the career, social life or ambitions that previously drove our decisions. Today we are forced to sit with ourselves and for many of us that has been a difficult task. If you are feeling this way at this time, please reach out. I provide a free consultation to discuss how I can be of service in helping you heal and find peace during this troublesome time.

Felicia is absolutely the best. This class is very informative! I'd say the best part is Felicia is…read morealso my birth doula, which I'm extremely grateful to have her. She helped with me the best birth experience I can ask for. I'd strongly recommend every expecting mama to take this class AND hire Felicia as your birth doula if you are considering a doula!

Felicia is truly great! Super, super helpful class. Tons of information. Also great to have the CPR…read moretraining.

Coaching can seem more expensive than other forms of help (therapy, books, etc) but it's so much…read moremore powerful! With a skillful coach like Anya, I got priceless support with how to find a deeper connection with my kids. Since Anya's coaching, I have more confidence about my daughter and son being out in the world. We've had the talks and I know my kids have the values that are important to me. This work is not easy for me, and that's why I wanted Anya's help. In our second session, I was overwhelmed and embarrassed that I hadn't done my homework. Anya picked up on my fears, paused the planned session, and we explored what was holding me back from completing the very simple homework. After that gentle support, I had the resources to move forward with her program and I had better tools for talking with my kids. It just so happened that the night after doing that work with my daughter, she and her dad had a fight over the phone. I noticed that she and I were communicating with more rationality and empathy about the situation than we normally would have, and she was able to get emotional resolution more easily than ever before. If you want better communication with your kids no matter their age, no matter the topic (but ESPECIALLY about sex and relationships) run, don't walk, to Anya.

I came to Anya with a raw, open heart and she was so present with me, listening beyond just my…read morewords. Anya helped me see beyond my story and sorrow into my truth, and gave me access to the strength I forgot I had. I would recommend her to anyone looking for gentle yet direct, no bull$hit guidance. Andreea

Absolutely the BEST show for parents AND children!! Every child in the audience was called onto the…read morestage, no matter how old, and was able to participate in the magic tricks! The tricks and the comedy were geared to the age groups. My God! It was so funny! The magician is not only HILARIOUS! And had us in tears by the end of the show, but the magic was awesome and the kids absolutely loved the show!! Have lived in Seattle for years and have never been to the Palladium theater. It's quirky cool with a very personal and intimate feel. There are snacks and sodas available. You can pick up a glass of beer, wine, or cider before the show too. They even poor mimosas and champagne for all the moms in the audience! Free of charge! There really is no bad seat because the magician calls on ALL the children, even the back rows! Can't possibly rave any more for this show! Loved every second of it!

Entertaining and very funny. My kids (7 and 8) absolutely loved it and kept asking when we were…read moregoing to go back. The magic wasn't anything David-Copperfield level, but my kids were absolutely amazed by it. It was great fun and my kids loved that they got to go up on stage. There was one part at the end where they let a kid choose a card to see what they last trick will be. After he revealed what the cards really said, I was almost in tears from laughing so hard. A must see!