Bringing Baby Home

The OCEA Bringing Baby Home class was developed in 2004 by Erin Shaheen to fill an information gap for expectant families on the transition to parenting after birth. With a strong background in mental health counselling, post-partum Doula support and a variety of additional certifications (CPR, Car seat Installation, Breastfeeding counsellor, Infant Sleep Educator, Circle of Security Training, and Self-Reg with Stuart Shanker), Erin brought all of this information into a six evening session or four mornings across two weekends (9am-12pm)

As our other classes have shifted back to in-person or online, the BBH class remains exclusively online. This has allowed us to present resources, websites and videos in ways not possible in person. We acknowledge that this also increases inclusivity for those who face barriers to in-person attendance due to transportation limitations, for participants outside the City of Ottawa, and for those who may be on bed rest or have an immunocompromised condition.

This is not your average online class!
With over 25 years of experience supporting expectant and new families, Erin brings a wealth of knowledge to every session. From her work as a postpartum doula and parent coach to her deep understanding of community resources, Erin’s approach is grounded, supportive, and always delivered with a gentle sense of humour.

This class welcomes all families, including families giving birth to babies, or having babies join through adoption or surrogacy.

We ask that all participants keep their video on throughout the small online class. Like an in-person class, this creates a sense of community and safety. If you prefer not to be seen, we recommend a private one-on-one session with one of our instructors. Online classes are accessible to anyone across Canada and run over four weekend mornings from 9 am-12 pm or online over six evenings.

Our Bringing Baby Home class is a hands-on parenting class for expectant parents, including

Choosing daycare and managing the wait list
Building your after-birth support system, including filling in service gaps when you do not have a Family Doctor
How to decide what items to purchase for life with a baby
Basic baby care, including bathing, swaddling, and holding the baby
The difference between cloth diapers, disposable diapers and diaper service and the diaper loaner program
Benefits of babywearing and how to pick baby carriers for ergonomics
Infant Feeding and Introducing Solids
What you need to know when purchasing a car seat for your baby
Learn how to properly and safely install your car seat
How to properly restrain newborns in car seats
How to deal with choking
Babyproofing: how to make your home safer for your baby
Learn the most common causes of injuries and how they can be prevented
Where to purchase home safety products

The cost of the class is $230 (CAD) (per couple).
*A couple is defined as a pregnant person and one support person (which can be a spouse, partner, friend or family member)

Refund Policy: Classes cancelled from the time of booking until 14 days before the class start incur a $25 administration fee. Classes cancelled between 7-14 days; 50% cancellation fee. Classes cancelled with less than 7 days’ notice; no refund

People who took our class had this to say:

We dearly want to support the health of expectant families.

We had a great 6 weeks with Julia! We really enjoyed her facilitation of the prenatal class and topics/information presented and discussed. It was very helpful and informative. We really appreciated Julia's down-to-earth nature and very realistic views and presentation of the topics. Julia was very detailed but kept it light and realistic with no sugar coating :) - which is just what we needed!

Pre Natal – with Julia Wykes

This class helped my spouse and I feel more prepared, calm, and excited about the birth of our baby. We would recommend it to any new parent.

Pre Natal – with Brandie Lekovic

Erin was an amazing educator. She had such an amazing personality! Her presentation was very captivating. She was confident and knew what she was talking about. I really appreciated how she shared both side or opinion (e.g. sleep training vs not sleep training) in a way that was i formation but still allowed us to make our own decision. She was also great and know previous guideline and rational for why they change. Loved the rational. She also did such a great job at making the class interactive through open ended questions, chat box. Loved how she would use our names when we would contribute in the group. Made it that much more personable. For topics like feeding which might be more personal, she did a great job at offering for people to private message her. Absolutely amazing instructor.