As a new parent, you deserve to feel nurtured, protected, and cared for as you nurture, protect, and care for your baby.
You deserve to have a partner that knows how to nurture, protect, and care for you.
And while they hopefully are great at that, parenting is a new thing when we are first time parents, and your partner is not a mind reader.
So if we’re going to be able to know how to care for our partners well (and to be cared for by our partners well), it’s important to:
solidify our skills to keep our friendship strong and
to be able to regularly and clearly express our needs
so that they don't build up and explode into criticism, sarcasm, or mockery, which is divorce-predicting behavior.
“How will I be able to get my needs met so that, rather than exhausted and depleted, I can emerge stronger and more whole from this transformation (to parenthood)?”
Let me help you get your needs met so that you emerge stronger and more whole, and FALL IN LOVE WITH PARENTING… TOGETHER
“I feel so supported. My partner jumped in immediately after our son was born and has been really involved. It’s been really cool to watch him transition to fatherhood. I can’t imagine doing this with anyone else.”
“While my partner was pregnant, she was necessarily more connected to the baby and I was more focused on helping her deal with everything that goes along with pregnancy. We took the class to ensure that once the baby got here, we were equals as much as possible in parenting while not forgetting to support each other and prioritize our own relationship. Four months in, we’ve learned from each other and I feel as capable as she is in parenting. There have been difficult moments, but we’ve had the tools and foundation to make it through them, and they’ve been far outweighed by the joyous and fulfilling moments. I feel that our relationship has only deepened as we’ve watched each other become parents.”
Welcome to Little Elf Family Services! I’m Lara Elfstrand, new parent sanity specialist. I look forward to getting to know each other better.
First off, are you…?
We are expecting a baby.
We have a relationship worth keeping and would like help preparing for life with a baby.
We have a newborn.
I need my baby to cry less, smile more, and sleep better; and I need more intimacy with my partner.
We have a “tiny terrorist” or a “threenager.”
I would like help with managing their behavior, my behavior, and my partner’s behavior.
My Vision
To reduce divorce, community violence, and the impacts of learning disabilities by building strong families that make our world a safer, kinder place to live.
My Mission
To build families where each person feels KALM (known, appreciated, loved, and motivated to learn at a pace that is right for them—not too hard and not too easy).
“One of the greatest predictors of performance in school turns out to be the emotional stability of the home.”
Find Little Elf Family Services on social media:
I was recently interviewed on Your Healthy Living, a show that inspires healthy and natural lifestyles. Hosts Alexandrew and Dr. Shasta Tierra interview a new guest every week about their professions in helping lead others to healthier lives both physically and mentally.
