What is Montessori Education?

The Montessori method was developed as a result of Maria Montessori’s dedicated work with children spanning her entire lifetime. She used her medical and scientific background to bring the art of observation into the orphanages and classrooms she spent time in and while traveling extensively around the world. Her educational approach supports the development of the whole child and seeks to foster foundational skills that will unleash the child’s full potential. The child is at the center of her pedagogy and much of the approach in the first 12 years of life focus on supporting a child’s functional, social, and emotional independence.

Do You Offer Remote & Virtual Services?

Yes! The majority of my clients are in Alaska but my services are available to any family in need. For local clients I offer some services in-person but the majority of my work is done virtually via video or audio conversations. Alaska Standard Time is four hours behind Eastern Standard Time.

Do You Only Work With Young Children?

My toilet learning services and my in-home reorganization services are geared towards the child under 4 years old. However, my sleep coaching services are open to children of all ages and I have many strategies for working with older children.

Is Sleep Training the Equivalent to “Crying It Out”?

Absolutely not. The “cry it out” or “extinction method” is only one form of sleep training. I believe that a family should approach sleep using whatever tools they feel most comfortable implementing - this will ultimately lead to a more positive relationship with sleep for everyone and quicker results. There are many ways to help a child learn to fall asleep or fall back asleep independently ranging from physical and verbal assistance to a more hands-off approach. If you are not sure what works for you, I am here to have those conversations and help you make a plan.

How Do I Know If My Child Needs Help With Sleep?

Is the current routine around sleep, and the quality of sleep you’re getting, working for you and your family? If the answer is no, it might be time to seek some one-on-one guidance. There is not one solution to sleep training and what works for one family will not necessarily work for another family. Is your child falling apart by the end of the day, not able to stay awake for age appropriate wake windows, waking up upset or crying? These can be signs of too much or too little sleep. Every child is different and every parent knows their child - if you sense something might be amiss, reach out and let’s chat!

Why Did You Become a Parent Coach and Sleep Consultant?

In my years teaching I often heard toddlerhood referred to as “the terrible two’s” and yet, what I was witnessing in our prepared class environment was very different. Yes, a prepared class is much different than a home environment and I don’t strive to recreate a classroom within my clients homes. However, preparing a space that is purposeful and functional for young children, can make a huge difference in their behavior and self confidence. I want to help caregivers get to a place where they can experience the joy of toddlerhood and live, as much as possible, with their child in the present moment.

Similarly with sleep, I heard so much talk about “sleep regressions” and blogs and media warning parents of those dreaded weeks or months. The more I read about them, and as I witnessed my son work through some of them, I realized they are really “sleep progressions”. They tend to correspond to big developmental leaps in physical growth or an acquired skill, teething, or the child’s ever growing state of consciousness. Your child is doing so much in their little brains and bodies that it is inevitable their sleep will be disrupted. My goal is to guide parents as they help their child develop a solid sleep foundation that can handle the twists and turns affecting sleep in those early years.