Nurturing Life Connections

05/11/2025

A passionate local team is transforming how children grow and learn through play and nature.

04/11/2025

🌿 The Many Types of Play — and Why They Matter 🌿

👉 Read the full blog: www.nurturinglifeconnections.com.au/blog

Play is Powerful. Let’s Nurture it Together.

At Nurturing Life Connections, we believe play is where connection and growth begin. It’s how children make sense of their world, develop life skills, and build relationships that help them thrive.

Families linked in with our services have access to a growing suite of exclusive resources created by our therapists — inspired by real trends and topics requested by families, teachers, and the wider community. These resources are designed to support everyday learning, connection, and emotional development through play.

Play isn’t “just play” — it’s the foundation for learning emotionally, socially, physically, and cognitively. Here’s a look at some types of play and why they’re so important 👇

🎭 Dramatic Play

When children pretend to cook, fly, or care for a teddy, they’re building empathy, problem-solving, and communication skills — all while having fun!

🌈 Messy Play

Mud, paint, and sand may look chaotic, but they help children explore their senses, build coordination, and express emotions. Messy play is powerful for sensory learning and self-regulation.

🧩 Puzzles & Manipulative Play

From stacking cups to Lego, these activities develop fine motor skills, concentration, and early maths and language concepts.

📚 Stories & Books

Storytime strengthens connection and imagination. Reading together builds vocabulary, emotional understanding, and a lifelong love of learning.

🎲 Board Games

Games teach teamwork, patience, and resilience — plus, they bring families together through laughter and connection.

🎨 Creative & Art Play

Art lets children express feelings, explore identity, and build confidence. It’s not about the finished product — it’s about the process of discovery and joy.

👣 Sensory Play

Exploring textures, sounds, movement, and smells builds brain pathways, focus, and calm. Sensory play supports emotional regulation and learning through experience.

💚 Final Thought

Play is the heart of childhood — and the pathway to growth, belonging, and wellbeing.
At Nurturing Life Connections, we see every kind of play as an opportunity to build joy, imagination, and resilience.

Play is Powerful. Let’s Nurture it Together.

19/10/2025

💛 See the World Through Their Eyes 💛

When we slow down and get down to a child’s level, something magical happens we enter their world.

A world filled with wonder, curiosity, and connection.

To a child, eye contact means “you see me.”
Sitting beside them means “you’re with me.”
Joining in their play means “what matters to me, matters to you.”

These small moments build trust, safety and belonging the foundations of every child’s growth.
When we see the world from their perspective, we learn just as much as they do. 🌿

Let’s keep kneeling, crouching, and sitting beside our little ones because from their view, the world is full of possibility. 🌈

12/10/2025

We’re excited to share that Nurturing Life Connections is expanding to the Macedon Ranges and greater Melbourne surrounds from March 2026.

Our mission is to help children aged 0–12 build confidence, emotional regulation, and connection through meaningful play. As a Registered NDIS Provider, we deliver flexible, family-centred supports in the environments where children learn and grow, including schools, early learning centres, and community settings.

We’re now accepting referrals for children starting in March 2026.
Submit a referral here: https://www.nurturinglifeconnections.com.au/refer-a-child-form

To learn more about our services, visit www.nurturinglifeconnections.com.au

Play is powerful — let’s nurture it together.

05/10/2025

🌿 We’re Growing Our Team 🌿

Nurturing Life Connections is expanding, and we’re looking for a passionate Occupational Therapist or Mental Health Social Worker to join our team across Cairns and surrounding areas.

If you’re values driven, love supporting children and families, and want to be part of a team that genuinely nurtures connection, this could be the perfect fit.

💫 Why Join Nurturing Life Connections?
• Flexible working hours and hybrid options
• Supportive, family-friendly team culture
• Paid team development and resource days
• Regular supervision and professional growth opportunities
• Access to creative therapy resources and beautiful community spaces
• Competitive pay rates and travel reimbursements

You’ll be working with children aged 0 to 12 through play-based and nature-based therapy in home, school, community, and clinic settings, making a real difference every day.

Find out more and apply here:
👉 https://www.seek.com.au/job/87504117?type=standard

Join us in creating spaces where children feel safe, connected, and empowered to thrive.

Empower lives across FNQ with a rewarding Allied Health role. Competitive pay, work-life balance, flexibility & growth.

21/08/2025

🎉 Congratulations to our Expo Winners! 🎉

A huge congratulations to:

- Fred – Winner of the Hamper (Purple Ticket D21)
- Sandra – Winner of the $100 Voucher (Purple Ticket D25)
(Winners have been contacted)

Thank you to everyone who visited us and entered the draw at the Cairns Disability Expo at Raintrees. We loved connecting with you all and sharing the fun of our sensory box game!

Videos of the draw are in the comments, special thanks to Mrs Cate for being our ticket lady and to Mrs Tracey for filming the draw.

We do have limited available spots for play-based therapy in Cairns and Mossman. If you would like to engage with our services or have a chat about how we can support your family, please complete our online referral form via our website.

https://www.nurturinglifeconnections.com.au/refer-a-child-form

Thank you again for your support, we look forward to connecting with you soon.

12/08/2025

We’re heading to the Cairns Disability EXPO!

On Tuesday the 19th of August 2025, our whole Nurturing Life Connections team will be at Raintrees Shopping Centre for the Cairns Disability EXPO – and we can’t wait to see you there.

We’ve prepared a unique sensory experience at our stall. You’ll need to put your senses to the test, and those who take part will have the chance to go in the draw for some exciting prizes. The details? You’ll have to visit us to find out.

A big thank you to the amazing volunteers from Cairns Disability Network for all the hard work they’ve put in to make this event possible.

Come and say hello, meet the team, and join in the fun.

Location: Raintrees Shopping Centre
Time: 9am – 5pm
Date: 19 August 2025

More about us: www.nurturinglifeconnections.com.au

11/08/2025

Every seed we nurture shapes the way we grow.

We help children build confidence, regulation, and connection, so the seeds of hope become skills for life. Our team works alongside families to create practical, personalised strategies that support real progress at home, school, and in the community.

Find out how we can support your family:
https://www.nurturinglifeconnections.com.au/

09/06/2025

🎉 Exciting News from Nurturing Life Connections! 🎉

We’re proud to share that Nurturing Life Connections is now a Registered NDIS Preferred Provider 💙

This means we meet the highest quality and safety standards set by the NDIS Commission and are prepared for any future NDIS changes that may require providers to be registered. We’re here for the long run offering trusted, consistent, and high-quality care for the families we work with.

🌱 We’re also excited to announce that our Online Resource Hub is now LIVE created especially for the families we support.

The Hub includes practical, evidence-informed resources to help you at home, including:
- Play-Based Therapy at Home
- Emotional Regulation Strategies
- Self-Care as a Parent
- Building Strong Parent–Child Connections
- Supporting Your Child’s Transition to School
- The Power of Play

Please note: Access to the Resource Hub is exclusively available to parents and carers of clients currently linked in with our services.

If this is you, keep an eye on your email for your access link and password soon!

We’d love to hear what you’d like added to the Hub—email us any topics or ideas at learnplayexplore@nurturinglifeconnections.com.au so we can tailor it to your needs.

Thank you for being part of the NLC community 💛

21/05/2025

Now Accepting New Referrals – Limited Availability with Mrs Tracey

We’re pleased to share that Mrs Tracey has fortnightly availability on Wednesdays and Thursdays, with only two spots remaining.

Tracey is a qualified Social Worker who delivers play-based therapy using a warm, relational, and evidence-informed approach. She supports children and families to build emotional wellbeing, strengthen relationships, and navigate challenges in a developmentally appropriate and engaging way. You can learn more about Tracey’s philosophy and therapeutic style and link in with our services at nurturinglifeconnections.com.au.

Therapy sessions are available in a range of settings to best support your child and family, including:

- At our dedicated therapy space in Cairns

- Your child’s school, daycare, or kindy

- In your home environment

Service areas include:

- Cairns City to North Cairns (fortnightly on Wednesdays)

- Atherton and Mareeba (fortnightly on Thursdays) – available within your child’s school, daycare, kindy, or home environment

If you are interested in accessing play-based therapeutic support with Tracey, please don’t hesitate to get in touch. Availability is limited and filling quickly.

✨ Coming Soon – Our Resource Hub
We’re excited to announce the upcoming launch of our Resource Hub in June, available exclusively to families linked in with our services.

These free resources have been developed in response to the needs and feedback of our families, as well as key themes emerging from our work across:

- NDIS goal setting and understanding

- Supporting communication between families and schools

- Broader trends and guidance within the disability sector

Watch this space. We can’t wait to share these supports with you.

24/03/2025

✨ Our Blog Is Live – Explore, Learn & Grow! ✨

https://www.nurturinglifeconnections.com.au/blog

We are thrilled to announce the launch of our new blog at Nurturing Life Connections! Our goal is to provide valuable insights to support children and families on their therapeutic journeys.

In our first posts, we explore topics such as the significance of self-care for parents and the transformative power of play-based therapy within the NDIS framework. These articles offer practical advice and personal experiences to help you navigate the complexities of parenting and child development.

Visit our blog to read more and join us in nurturing connections that foster growth and well-being. We look forward to sharing this journey with you!

🌟 Exciting News – Our Resource Hub is Coming Soon! 🌟

We’re building a Resource Hub for families engaging with our services! This hub will feature downloadable resources designed to complement our support, providing practical tools to assist you and your child. Stay tuned for updates! 💙

22/01/2025

🎉 2025 Kick-Off at Nurturing Life Connections! 🎉

🌟 We’re excited to start the new year supporting our incredible families across the FNQ region!

💡 Current Service Areas:
📍 Atherton & Kuranda
📍 Mossman
📍 Northern Beaches, Cairns, & Edmonton

🌱 Save on Travel Costs!
We’re already traveling to these locations, and travel costs are shared between at least 3 participants to make it more affordable.

✨ Complete our referral form now to secure a spot for your child with us: https://www.nurturinglifeconnections.com.au/refer-a-child-form