Author Archives: sarahlewispps

In April 2022, I started working with the wonderful organisation that is The Parenting Network. The Parenting Network is a non profit charitable organisation working to empower parents and build a supportive community of families who live within the city of Portsmouth. Over the past 9 months more opportunities have arisen for me, resulting in me nowContinue reading “A New Adventure!”

That might sound a bit odd, I mean, why wouldn’t I parent the way I wanted? Here’s the thing though; when I had my first baby, 13 years ago, I didn’t have a clue what I was doing. I was heavily influenced by mainstream parenting ideas – books, magazines, TV programmes. I was scared toContinue reading “How I learned to parent authentically…”

Welcome to my corner of the internet! Hello! Happy new year! (I think I can still say that – just!) It’s been a little while since I posted, so thought I’d better say ‘hi’ and reintroduce myself. I’m Sarah, a perinatal educator and postnatal doula in the Portsmouth area. I’ve been teaching antenatal classes andContinue reading “Hello!”

Starting solids with your baby can be daunting, but then you’re faced with all the equipment you might need! How do you know what to buy, and what’s just a gimmick? Here are some things to get you started! BIBS There are so many different types of bib out there, and you may well endContinue reading “Starting Solids – What Do I Need?”

When you have a baby, it can be tempting to race straight back to our pre-baby lives, doing all the things we think we should be doing, and feeling guilty if we don’t. We’re bombarded with media images of new parents looking immaculate, taking older children to the park, going to events etc. We mightContinue reading “Postnatal Recovery”

The idea of being at home on your with your new baby can be quite daunting initially. It may be that your partner was able to have parental leave for a couple of weeks, or you had a family member stay with you to help out, but now you’re facing those first days doing itContinue reading “Help – I’m Home Alone With A New Baby!”

“If you don’t put that baby down you’ll make a rod for your own back…” Hands up, who’s been told this before?! I know I had people tell me this when my children were little. But you know what? I have never thought “I wish I hadn’t cuddled them as much”. I have never regrettedContinue reading “Baby Cuddles!”

Sometimes it’s useful to know what questions to ask at appointments or during labour. You may find these useful in your journey. 1. ‘Am I or my baby in immediate danger?’ If the answer is ‘no’ then you know you have time to make decisions about your care, and how you want to move forward,Continue reading “5 Questions to ask during pregnancy and labour”

Now that you have your school place allocated, lots of people will start talking to your child about going to school, telling them that it’s exciting, asking them questions about it and making a big fuss. Unless they have older siblings then they’ve probably never set foot in a school, and they certainly won’t understandContinue reading “Starting School”

It’s amazing to think it’s a whole year since we were first told to stay home to protect the NHS. At the time we thought it would last a few weeks, and that we’d be back to normal pretty soon. We were told that in-person classes were no longer permitted and I made the jumpContinue reading “The Great Portsmouth Easter Egg Hunt!”