The Baby Care Company

Tommy’s, the pregnancy and baby charity, has launched a Pregnancy Health Information Questionnaire to understand how key pregnancy health messages are shared across the UK, and whether they are reaching people when they are most needed.

The survey questions how pregnancy health information is accessed, how it's understood, and whether women feel they have received enough guidance to support a healthy pregnancy. It will also identify gaps in communication, with the findings informing future messaging.

Women who are currently pregnant or who have been pregnant in the last three years are invited to take part, including those who have experienced baby loss - pls find a link to the survey below.

https://tommys350839.pro.typeform.com/to/YVbtqDlF?typeform-source=www.tommys.org

https://www.tommys.org/

Saving babies' lives | Tommy's | The pregnancy and baby charity Tommy's is the largest UK pregnancy and baby loss charity, funding research into stillbirth, premature birth and miscarriage and providing trusted pregnancy and baby loss information and support.

Just came across a new app called Konker listing baby and toddler friendly places to go. My boys loved the which I see listed as a place for toddlers. You can search by age of your child and area.

Nobody tells you what going back to work after maternity leave actually feels like...

Going on maternity leave is a strange, singular moment.
You leave in the last weeks of pregnancy, heavier, exhausted, desperate to lie on your stomach again. Excited to meet your baby, but quietly anxious about the sleep deprivation, the feeding schedule, the building project you've somehow taken on at the worst possible time (we were doing the loft, the ongoing suspense of whether the builders would show up was its own adventure).

You hand everything over, tie up loose ends, make sure clients know who to call. Then you step away from a career you've been charging at and suddenly you have time, for the first time in years, to actually look back at it. That pause is rare and it can be quietly powerful.

I remember the strangeness of being in my neighbourhood mid-week, mid-morning, seeing a whole world of people I'd never noticed before, the bustle of Northcote Road at 11am. Those few weeks of rest before everything changes are precious, even when you don't realise it at the time.

Because then everything does change.

You're responsible for someone else now. You can't sleep until they sleep. You can't leave unless they're cared for. The person you were before is still you, but changed, permanently, with new priorities layered on top of everything else.

Good friends on mat leave with you can make an enormous difference, especially when you miss your colleagues and the rhythm of an office.

And then comes the return.

Can you even remember your passwords?
What's changed while you were gone?
What are you going to wear?
How do you walk back in, after everything that's happened, and pretend nothing has?

The confidence knock is real as is the guilt of leaving your baby behind. But so is the quiet thrill of using your brain again, of being purposeful, efficient, intentional in a way you never quite were before.

You find yourself unwilling to waste time on things that don't matter. You have a sharper sense of what you want your career to look like and how you're going to go after it differently this time.
But for some people, it doesn't feel that clean.

It can feel like you don't quite belong. Like people are watching, expecting you to be tired, expecting you to need to prove yourself. The throwaway comments about "proving yourself now you're back" land harder than they should. Things that never used to bother you suddenly do. You feel like you're under a magnifying glass.

Often it's about getting perspective, rebuilding confidence, finding your footing in a life that looks genuinely different from the one you left.

That's exactly what I work on with people in my back to work coaching sessions.

One thing many returners don't realise is you can often ask your employer to fund it. Many managers have a personal development budget that quietly goes unused and coaching sits squarely within it.

So if you're heading back after mat leave and navigating that strange in-between, the new juggle, the knock to your confidence, the question of what you actually want now, I can help.

Drop me a message or comment below.

A free, fun day out for families

Home - The Great Exhibition Road Festival The Great Exhibition Road Festival is an annual celebration of science and the arts in South Kensington, London.

Enjoy free audio books on World book Day

Audiobook Archives Welcome to World Book Day’s World of Stories, where you can bring story time to life with audiobooks of your favourite books FOR FREE.

Did you know pregnancy actually changes the brain?

Researchers at Amsterdam UMC have discovered that both a first and second pregnancy leave a unique mark on a mother's brain.

A first pregnancy primarily affects the networks involved in self-reflection and social connection, while a second pregnancy brings changes to the networks that support attention and responsiveness, qualities that are so important when caring for more than one child.

The research also highlights a meaningful link between these brain changes and maternal mental health, including postpartum depression. It's a powerful reminder of just how profound and transformative the journey into motherhood truly is, in more ways than we perhaps realise.

The effects of a second pregnancy on women’s brain structure and function - Nature Communications Extending their previous findings of brain changes in a first pregnancy, the authors show that a second pregnancy uniquely alters women’s brains, involving both a further fine-tuning of first-pregnancy effects and distinct changes in other networks.

Some Aptamil and Cow & Gate formula milk has been recalled due to the possible presnce of the toxin certitude. The batches affected are listed below.

Danone recalls several Aptamil and Cow & Gate First Infant Milk and Follow on Milk formula products because of the possible presence of cereulide (toxin) Danone is recalling several Aptamil and Cow & Gate First Infant Milk and Follow on Milk formula products because cereulide toxin may be present in some batches of the products. This recall is an extension to the Aptamil First Infant Formula product recall issued on 23 January 2026. Only the dates li...

Lovely 5 star google review from the second baby class earlier this month.

If you’re expecting your second baby and would like to learn everything you need to know about juggling two, a reminder of newborn care and meet your local group, classes are held every month in the evenings.

Just returned to work after maternity leave?

Are you running on two hours' sleep wondering how you'll get through today's client meeting?

Are you constantly scrambling to juggle childcare and work and feeling like you're failing at both?

Are you panicking every time your phone rings incase it's nursery saying your child is sick?

Are you lying awake at night wondering if you can actually do this?

You're not alone.

- 72% of returning mothers struggle to juggle childcare responsibilities.
- 35% feel their work set-up is unsustainable.
- 47% of those unsatisfied with support plan to leave within the year.

{Source: From Labour Ward to Labour Force Report -
The Female Lead & Peanut App (November 24)}

I work with mums in financial services and corporates navigating the return to work after maternity leave.

I help you work through challenges, make a plan and take action, so you can stay in the job you’ve worked so hard for.

Feel free to get in touch to learn how I can help.

Second BABY PREPARATION CLASS

Expecting your 2nd (or 3rd!) baby? Wondering how life will change with two? Join this practical, down-to-earth class covering:

-How to juggle newborn care with an older child
-Mealtimes & sibling jealousy
-Getting out & about with two
-Bed & bath time routines
- Feeding your baby while keeping your toddler entertained
-Newborn sleep, routines & feeding refresh

📍Upcoming class dates (7:30pm) – In-person & Zoom ( grouped by due dates)


10th/11th February
9th/10th March
20th/21st April
10th /17th June
1st/8th July
18th/25th August

Feedback from the class this week:

“This class is perfect for 2nd time parents! Some really useful tips and ideas for dealing with two children and a refresher on life with a newborn. The classes were really informative, well structured and Eilish is very knowledgable and approachable and has helped us connect with other local parents too. Thank you Eilish, would definitely recommend to others!“( Kate and Gavin, January 2026).

Have questions? I’d love to help you find the right class based on your age gap, due date.

If you can’t see a date that suits, just get in touch

Eilish

SiblingLife