http://kinderhavenbirthandfamily.com/

Kinderhaven Birth & Family Services, Milwaukee, WI (2025)

07/26/2025

Fall classes are filling up fast, but there's still time to sign up! If you are due this fall or winter, we have two class options for you. If you're due in September, October or early November, the One day Express/Refresher class is right for you! This Saturday afternoon class meets on September 6 and is designed for families without a lot of time to prepare who still want to get the basics down. It's also a great choice for families having baby 2+ to refresh themselves before the next birth.

If you're due between late November 2025 and March 2026, the 12 week Bradley Method® series is ideal for your family! This comprehensive series gives ample opportunities for partners to connect with each other and truly learn to work as a team during pregnancy, labor and beyond. The class provides you with a wide array of techniques you can use together to prepare yourselves physically, mentally and emotionally for your labor experience. It also covers postpartum recovery, breastfeeding, newborn procedures and care and more. This course meets on Thursday evenings at 7pm beginning September 4.

All classes take place at Authentic Birth Center • Wellness Collective in Wauwatosa.

Head to https://www.kinderhavenbirthandfamily.com/childbirthclasses to learn more about these class options, or to get registered.

11/30/2024

2025 childbirth class schedule! These classes fill up quickly, so don’t wait to get signed up for either the 12 week comprehensive Bradley Method course or the one day Express class! These classes are designed to prepare pregnant parents and their partners for labor, birth and beyond, encouraging confidence, knowledge and connection. They are appropriate for anyone birthing at any birth location. Head to kinderhavenbirthandfamily.com (link in bio) to find out more or get registered!

03/23/2023

Just two more weeks to get signed up for the Spring Six Week Childbirth class series! This course runs from April 6-May 11 at 7pm on Thursday evenings at Authentic Birth Center • Wellness Collective in Wauwatosa! The course is ideal for anyone birthing between late May and August, whether your planned birth location is in a hospital, at home or at a birthing center. This course prepares you and your support person to go through pregnancy, labor and postpartum with confidence, knowledge and support. Contact me to get signed up!

02/06/2023

Yes! Two areas I consistently see lack of representation in even “diverse” books - body size and gender conformity. This post on body size is great. I really wish there were more representation of people who fall outside “gender norms” - not just LGBTQ representation but basic stuff like girls with short hair and boys with long hair. So many books depict all females with rosy cheeks and big eyes and eyelashes. They don’t show body hair on females. Clothes are very gendered, as well as body shape. Wouldn’t it be nice if our books actually reflected the real people of our world?

01/20/2023

Today is your last chance to get signed up for tomorrow’s Express/Refresher childbirth class! This four hour partner-focused class is perfect if you don’t have much time before your due date or if you’re on your second+ baby and want to get labor prep fresh in your mind!

Class meets at Authentic Birth Center from 1-5pm Saturday January 21.

Contact me to get signed up for this or any future classes!

08/27/2022

Just one week left before my fall Bradley Method childbirth class series begins and another group of parents gets to start the journey toward confidence and preparation for labor together!

This class is a great opportunity to connect with your partner - getting you on the same page about your goals and preferences for your birth, and building a relationship foundation that will serve you well throughout pregnancy, labor and into the postpartum and parenting period.

Three spaces are left in the class, which will run from Friday, September 2 through November 18 - perfect for due dates mid-November through March! This class is appropriate for anyone birthing in a hospital, birth center, or at home.

Contact me today to get signed up!

08/25/2022

Wander into the comments section of any online article about unschooling, or even homeschooling, and you will discover many many people who […]

08/14/2022

Infant mental health is often a conversation filled with myths. Many people still believe that babies don’t remember what happens to them, which means they are not affected by what they experience. This belief is simply untrue.

Babies remember with implicit memories. What happens in the early years of life are the most crucial in terms of their mental health.

Caregivers, parents, and early childhood providers like day cares and preschools need to understand these myths so we can improve the mental health of children.

I would love to offer a workshop on this topic if there’s any interest.

We must see babies as whole people worthy of respect and capable of being impacted by their relationships or lack there of.

Even traumatic birth experiences can impact our babies mental health and development. We need to be aware so we can learn how to prevent trauma, loss, and uncertainty for infants and toddlers.

The good news is,
children’s brains are malleable and the sooner we get them the support they need to recover from early life adversity, the more positive the outcome.

To learn more join my private group Emotiminds - Education and Resources for Childhood Trauma or subscribe to my newsletter at bethtyson.com.

07/22/2022

Using feedback I received from middle schoolers while conducting a simple yet powerful exercise described in my latest book, , I’ve discovered a short list of behaviors adults can avoid to increase their chances of being invited into the sacred spaces of kids’ lives.

EASY-TO-BE-AROUND ADULTS…

• Don’t always expect conversation. They accept that quiet is needed – and even welcome or create periods of connective silence with the kids they love.

• Don’t take bad attitudes and grumpy dispositions personally. Easy-To-Be-Around Adults know fear and anxiety often present themselves as defensiveness, sarcasm, and control. When these characteristics are present, it is not a call to lash back, ignore, or lecture, but rather a call to be calm, compassionate, and curious.

• Don’t interrogate. Instead of peppering kids with questions, Easy-To-Be-Around Adults make themselves available and approachable. When the young people DO talk, the adult sets aside what they are doing to express genuine interest.

• Don’t judge decisions. Maybe it’s not the choice the adult would have made, but that does not mean it’s wrong or won’t result in a learning experience. Easy-To-Be-Around Adults express curiosity instead of judgment by saying something like: “I’d like to hear more about why you took that route.”

• Don’t have all the answers. It’s hard to be around someone who knows it all, especially when it comes to one’s own personal life. Throughout a teen’s path to independence, Easy-To-Be-Around-Adults serve as a trustworthy sounding board.

• Don’t expect perfection. Easy-To-Be-Around Adults communicate that mistakes are part of life. Not only do they commend kids for owning their mistakes, but they also share their own, becoming a safe person to turn to when things go wrong.

• Don’t comment on appearance. Easy-To-Be-Around Adults trust that their kids are showing up in whatever way they feel most comfortable. They accept young people “as is,” knowing that even the most well-intentioned “suggestions” regarding appearance feel like rejections of who they are.

By Rachel Macy Stafford, from the book

*Feel free to add what you find makes an Easy-To-Be-Around-Adult in the comments. I believe these characteristics are welcomed by people of all ages, not just kids and teens.

*If you would like information on ways you can offer guidance to kids & teens that honor their self-expression and bolster their self-esteem & independence, please refer to my book. It is all there.

Image description: On a white slide in a scrap of notebook paper with a peach colored paper clip. In red text, is the very last characteristic of an Easy-to-be-Around Adult listed in the caption above.

07/03/2022

“I am 2. I am not terrible…I am frustrated. I am nervous, stressed out, overwhelmed, and confused. I need a hug.”

From the diary of a 2-year-old:

Today I woke up and wanted to get dressed by myself but was told “No, we don’t have time, let me do it.”

This made me sad.

I wanted to feed myself for breakfast but was told,
“No, you’re too messy, let me do it for you.”

This made me feel frustrated.

I wanted to walk to the car and get in on my own but was told, “No, we need to get going, we don’t have time. Let me do it.”

This made me cry.

I wanted to get out of the car on my own but was told “No, we don’t have time, let me do it.”

This made me want to run away.

Later I wanted to play with blocks but was told “no, not like that, like this…”

I decided I didn’t want to play with blocks anymore. I wanted to play with a doll that someone else had, so I took it. I was told “No, don’t do that! You have to share.”

I’m not sure what I did, but it made me sad. So I cried. I wanted a hug but was told “No, you’re fine, go play”.

I’m being told it’s time to pick up. I know this because someone keeps saying, “Go pick up your toys.”

I am not sure what to do, I am waiting for someone to show me.

“What are you doing? Why are you just standing there? Pick up your toys, now!”

I was not allowed to dress myself or move my own body to get to where I needed to go, but now I am being asked to pick things up.

I’m not sure what to do. Is someone supposed to show me how to do this? Where do I start? Where do these things go? I am hearing a lot of words but I do not understand what is being asked of me. I am scared and do not move.

I lay down on the floor and cry.

When it was time to eat I wanted to get my own food but was told “no, you’re too little. Let me do it.”

This made me feel small. I tried to eat the food in front of me but I did not put it there and someone keeps saying “Here, try this, eat this…” and putting things in my face.

I didn’t want to eat anymore. This made me want to throw things and cry.

I can’t get down from the table because no one will let me…because I’m too small and I can’t. They keep saying I have to take a bite. This makes me cry more. I’m hungry and frustrated and sad. I’m tired and I need someone to hold me. I do not feel safe or in control. This makes me scared. I cry even more.

I am 2. No one will let me dress myself, no one will let me move my own body where it needs to go, no one will let me attend to my own needs.

However, I am expected to know how to share, “listen”, or “wait a minute”. I am expected to know what to say and how to act or handle my emotions. I am expected to sit still or know that if I throw something it might break….But, I do NOT know these things.

I am not allowed to practice my skills of walking, pushing, pulling, zipping, buttoning, pouring, serving, climbing, running, throwing or doing things that I know I can do. Things that interest me and make me curious, these are the things I am NOT allowed to do.

I am 2. I am not terrible…I am frustrated. I am nervous, stressed out, overwhelmed, and confused. I need a hug.

*edited to add: I have finally identified the author! Thank you, Dejah Roman for your POWERFUL words*

04/05/2022

A new study published in a special issue of the journal iScience links low doses of antibiotics around birth to significant changes in the infant microbiome. But not just that, neurological concerns as well! 🧠

“This research, “Effects of Early-Life Penicillin Exposure on the Gut Microbiome and Front Cortex and Amygdala Gene Expression,” may help explain the disturbing rise in neurodevelopmental disorders that we’re seeing in children in the United States and other industrialized countries around the world.”

In other words, due to antibiotic exposure, “the gut-brain axis is perturbed leading to organizational effects that permanently alter the structure and function of the brain,” according to the scientists.🤯

None of this is new to us practicing integrative and functional medicine, but I am glad to see it circulating for others to see.

1/3 of babies receive antibiotics before, during or after delivery in our country! 1/3‼️ Their microbiome is set up poorly from the start and there is no follow up to fix it. And even worse, antibiotics account for 80% of the medication that women consume during pregnancy; again altering the microbiome (prophylactic antibiotics included).

Here are some of the articles ⬇️⬇️

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2589004221007653

https://www.sciencedirect.com/journal/iscience/special-issue/102L86PHVSM

Photo credit:SBS

03/13/2022

Happy Saturday!
Today is our first Saturday open and we can’t wait to see everyone at Rooted MKE BIPOC Children’s Bookstore & Literacy Exploration! We’re open today from 9-5pm.
Come stop by, say hello, share a fist bump, tell us who you are, share your favorite children’s story, make a title request, join our frequent customer list, have your kiddo experience our toddler cash wrap and checkout experiences, grab a couple African Swaddles from our amazing vendor The The Rooted Baby Co., snag a beautiful snack cup (for yourself or a little in your life-I’m not judging) or number flash card teething set, stocked by Pretty Please Teethers. Browse the space or whatever else brings you in today.
Everyday I feel so blessed to be able to live out life in ways I didn’t think were even possible just a few years ago. Abundance is my theme this year. Life, a beautiful journey even on the darkest of days. Remembering that it’s a journey, not a destination, makes it more gentle to navigate. Today is going to be a good day, I’m claiming it!
See you soon

Kinderhaven Birth & Family Services

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08/27/2022

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07/22/2022

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03/13/2022

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