You are here:
Home / Blog
What is a baby planner?
A baby planner is similar to a wedding planner except instead of helping couples plan for their wedding, a baby planner helps couples plan for the birth of their baby or babies. A good baby planner is a good listener, non-judgmental, and truly understands that every pregnancy, like every person, is unique.
What type of services does a baby planner offer?
It depends on the baby planner but a number of baby planners offer a host of select services that generally fall into the following five categories:
Birth Prep – Oftentimes, moms-to-be want to know about their birth options (e.g. midwife, OB, homebirth, natural, medicated, etc.). A baby planner can discuss each birth option and recommend providers that have been highly rated by other families who desired similar birth experiences. A baby planner can also provide referrals for labor and postpartum doulas as well as lactation consultants. Finally, a baby planner can help with designing and stocking the nursery, getting the car seat installed, organizing the baby shower, packing the hospital bag, and doing other big or little things that the parents may appreciate as part of the birth preparation process. Baby planners can help adopting families prepare as well.
Support-Many moms I speak with through my baby planning business are interested in some form of support in the postpartum period. It’s important for moms to have a period of recovery from childbirth and time to bond with their brand new baby. They may need support with breastfeeding, and/or help with other children, housekeeping, and making meals. A baby planner can help moms get the help they need by recommending and/or interviewing helpers on behalf of the family. The baby planner sees to it that the helper meets the parents’ basic requirements and has the appropriate experience and/or training.
Products – A number of parents use baby planners to help with the baby registry and product selection. There are a plethora of resources to help parents select baby products wisely, but some parents don’t want to spend their baby preparation time shopping. Some parents are paralyzed by the sheer number of product choices and/or are concerned about the number of recalled baby products and really would like an expert to help them select the baby products that fit their values, lifestyle, and budget. This second group includes parents who want environmentally friendly baby products. A good baby planner should not push certain products because she or he receives a commission from their sale or works for the store that sells the product. It’s important for the baby planner to offer her or his client families an objective viewpoint.
Childcare – For moms heading back to work, finding someone to watch over and care for their baby is a priority. For moms staying home, they still need a few hours here and there without the baby, so they may look to hire a mother’s helper. In any case, a baby planner can visit daycares, interview and screen nanny candidates, and help coordinate nanny shares. The baby planner doesn’t actually select the provider but she helps the parents narrow the choices to viable candidates who would be a good fit for the family’s needs.
Concierge – Families can use baby planners to find reputable providers in baby related services, such as baby photographers, childbirth educators, child proofers, doulas, lactation consultants, night nannies, etc. Some baby planners may also offer concierge services themselves (e.g. doula services, child proofing, etc).
How much does a baby planner cost?
Baby planners generally cost about $75/hour and up, depending on the market. Some baby planners will do projects on a flat rate basis. In addition, concierge services may be complimentary depending on the baby planner.
Are baby planners certified by any organization?
Many professional baby planners belong to the International Baby Planner Association (www.internationalbabyplanners.com). Unfortunately, there is not yet a third party certifying organization for baby planners. The International Baby Planner Association is working on a third party certification program that would meet the needs of parents in evaluating baby planners
What type of questions should you ask when interviewing baby planners?
It’s important for parents to understand exactly what to expect from their baby planner, so possible interview questions include the following: What experiences do you have that are relevant to baby planning? Do you belong to any professional organizations for baby planners? Do you have references that I can contact? How will we communicate? How often? How many clients do you take at one time? Will you provide a written summary of services? Which resources do you use for your research? Will you keep our information confidential? How long do you keep client files? How much do you charge? Do you offer flat rate services?
Should people who use baby planners have children?
Many people question the need for baby planners. Their general viewpoint is that the parents and their respective families should themselves be able to handle baby preparation, birth, and the postpartum period. However, many parents don’t have much or any family support, some parents undergo unanticipated changes during pregnancy (e.g. bed rest, moving across country for work, death of their own parent, etc.), and some parents find they need more assistance than originally anticipated. The baby planner’s role is not to judge who truly needs a baby planner or not, but to serve families with compassion, integrity, and professionalism.
Congrats to International Baby Planner Association member, Amber Crosby of Baby Bump Planning on her October 11th feature in Daily Candy Kids Chicago. Amber offers services in Chicago and Tulsa and her specialities as a baby planner include baby registry, nursery design, and more. IBPA is proud to have Baby Bump Planning as a member and congratulates Amber on a job well done!
By Desiree Miller, www.BottlestoBritches.com
Parents know babies are curious and nearly everything they touch ends up in their mouth, including dangerous things like coins or batteries. What most parents don’t know is there’s an increased threat with certain kinds of batteries found in items all over the house, many of which are well within a child’s reach. From your TV remote control to your garage door opener to your bathroom scale or even musical greeting card, the round lithium battery commonly used in household gadgets could pose a lethal threat to your little one.
Cara and Terry George want to get the word out about the danger. Their 18 month old daughter Brenna died after ingesting a battery that they didn’t know she swallowed. “We scoured our house and we have no idea where it came from,” her father explains. The couple now works to build awareness about these batteries and the threat they carry. It’s the best way for them to honor Brenna, Cara believes.
They are not the only ones fighting to protect other children. Safety groups want parents to know lithium batteries are more than a choking hazard. The batteries can still produce a charge inside your child’s body and damage internal tissues and organs. Dr. Toby Litovitz with the National Capital Poison Control Center explains the damage would be similar to dropping Drano in tiny drops down the child’s esophagus. The Poison Center gets calls involving about 3500 cases of battery ingestion each year and the calls are now more serious than ever, with 13 deaths and 73 severe injuries…injuries that can lead to feeding or breathing tubes, or death. The number of incidents involving lithium batteries is on the rise, climbing from just one percent to 18 to 20 percent in the last decade.
Groups such as the International Association for Child Safety and the National Capital Poison Control Center are working to build awareness about the dangers; hoping parents will take steps to keep these batteries away from children. They want companies using these batteries in their products to put warning labels on the packaging where parents will see them. They are also asking manufacturers to change the battery compartments to help protect children. The recommendation is to change those compartments to require a screw. Their statistics show 62% of children are getting the batteries right out of the gadgets and the hope is that will change if they are harder to remove. Meantime, Colleen Driscoll with the IAFCS says parents can be sure to store the batteries out of a child’s reach. “They can secure junk drawers and be sure not to toss them in a trash can, where children have been known to find them in the past,” Driscoll says.
Cara and Terry George want others to understand the risk is real. They truly hope others will learn from their heartache. Cara explains their work now is done in Brenna’s name, “Our only hope is to save lives and if we can give one child his or her future and spare one family this unimaginable pain and devastation then we’ll be doing something for her.”
What uniquely qualifies you to be a baby planning expert?
As a mom of three wonderful kids under the age of four, Shannan is a “frugal mom” who has spent the last four years researching and testing many of the baby gear items available on the market today and finding some of the best deals on those items.
After struggling to conceive her son, every choice Lisa made for him seemed so much more important. Lisa spent hours upon hours searching products and reviews online, reading books and testing gear in stores. This continues as his needs change and develop.
What qualities should an ideal baby planner have?
The most important quality for a baby planner to have is to understand that every family is different. Products that might be ideal for one family may not work for another. An ideal baby planner needs to take the time to understand the expecting family’s lifestyle and needs.
What are your specialties as a baby planner?
We love to help families find the products that will work best for them. Shannan is a “frugal mom” who understands that babies are expensive and will make sure that parents aren’t spending more than they have to. Lisa believes that we can make small changes and informed choices to make our homes healthier for our kids and ourselves while reducing our impact on the environment.
Tell us a little bit about your background.
Both Lisa and Shannan have a background in accounting but their experience as moms is what has made them great resources as baby planners. No one knows what works and what doesn’t as well as someone who has been there and done that. Since Shannan has been either pregnant or nursing for the past 5 years, she is well versed on the latest and greatest products out there.
What is your biggest piece of advice for a new parent?
When everyone is offering up unsolicited advice, listen. Sometimes the craziest sounding tips are the most useful. Also, don’t be afraid to ask for and accept help. Being a new parent is a huge adjustment and a lot of work.
Our favorite piece of advice is “Don’t be afraid to “spoil” your baby. Enjoy every minute with them!”
What is the nicest thing a client has ever said about your business?
Heather Mankes
Expectant Mommy
I am expecting my first baby in September. This is both exciting and a little nerve wracking at the same time. There is so much stuff to buy, research, and learn about that I didn’t even know where to start. Bottles to Britches have been my saving grace through my pregnancy and my planning and organizing for the soon arrival of baby Abigail. They have given me advice and suggestions on baby products, organization, and have been available to ask pregnancy related questions, which you can only ask someone who has been there. I would recommend Bottles to Britches to any expecting mother. They are a wealth of knowledge and resources; and only an email or phone call away.
How do you stay current on trends in the baby and child industry?
We keep up with pregnancy and parenting publications plus many social media outlets which prove to be the most valuable sources of information. In addition, we keep in touch with the other baby planners in our company and throughout the industry as well as manufacturers of prenatal and baby products. We also test as many of the new products as possible and always test something before recommending it.
Of course, first-hand experience is a huge benefit, and we have a lot of it!
Filed under News · Tagged with
What uniquely qualifies you to be a baby planning expert?
I’m an experienced NYC mom of two kids (two years apart), who had zero support or guidance when I became a mother. I had no friends or family with babies nearby, so I spent my entire first pregnancy researching every aspect of new motherhood. I read and insane number of books, interviewed moms in baby mega-stores and on the street about the products they bought, and attended every class I could, to prepare me for becoming a mother. What I found was an abundance of conflicting advice and information about just about everything. As a woman who’s experienced fertility issues, difficulty with childbirth and breastfeeding, severe postpartum depression, and every aspect of the new mom lifestyle options (full-time work, part-time work, stay-at-home and work-at-home mom), I have a genuine passion for helping new moms throughout the journey to motherhood. I am also a dynamic part of a diverse community of wellness and service providers throughout NYC, and I’m good at matching clients with the right professionals and products that work with their lifestyles.
What qualities should an ideal baby planner have?
The ability to listen is key, and the number one quality a baby planner should possess. I believe that a good baby planner should listen more than they speak, and ultimately be a non-judgmental sounding board for an expectant couple. A baby planner should empower new parents with information that speaks to their values, and help them make their own decisions, to gain confidence about their intuitive parenting skills, versus being told what is “right” and “wrong”. A baby planner’s job should be to facilitate and gently guide new parents, and to help with whatever they need, whether it’s a book or product recommendation, physically showing new moms how to use a breast pump, or delivering a home-cooked meal after the baby is born.
What are your specialties as a baby planner?
I love to research, and my specialty is taking the information I learn from an initial consultation, and transferring it into an actionable monthly plan, including a short list of recommended books, childbirth education and fitness classes that are convenient for my clients, and matching them with the right wellness and service providers. I also love researching products and shopping for the best prices. I’m a big fan of online shopping and free shipping (crucial for New Yorkers!), and I love saving my clients valuable time and money by recommending the top 1-3 products for them (including where to purchase), to allow them to choose from a short rather than long, overwhelming list of products available.
Tell us a little bit about your background.
After five years of traveling abroad and a short career in documentary TV and film journalism, I worked as a travel consultant for a luxury tour operator in NYC. For 13 years, I planned once-in-a-lifetime, privately-guided tours to exotic locales in Asia, Africa, the South Pacific and South America. It was oddly very similar to baby planning in that I traveled frequently to keep up with luxury travel trends, listened carefully to clients requests, and then advised them (based on their interests and my first-hand knowledge of the destinations and hotels), what I recommended for them, as well as orchestrated the details so all they had to do was show up at the airport with their passports!
What is your biggest piece of advice for a new parent?
The two most important pieces of advice I can offer new parents are to ACCEPT help from friends, family and professionals, in every way possible before, during and after their babies arrive, and to make it clear to all the helpers that the new mom needs caring for first and foremost. Many well-meaning friends and family will offer to “help with the baby,” but many of them forget that the new mom needs caring for more than the baby. A new mom needs someone to put food under her face and do laundry more than she needs someone to hold her baby!
What is the nicest thing a client has ever said about your business?
“I don’t know what we would have done without you.” This is the reason I do what I do.
How do you stay current on trends in the baby and child industry?
I subscribe to every baby and parenting publication (online and print), and I consistently meet with other service providers in the industry, to keep my fingers on the pulse of what’s happening in NYC. Social media is another way I keep abreast of what’s going on with products, services and trends in the baby and child industry. I’m an active member of several expectant and new mom groups (both nationally and locally), so I am in daily contact with what other new moms are experiencing, what products they love, hate, etc. In addition to reading an insane amount of product user reviews online, I frequent smaller maternity, baby and nursing boutiques in NYC, to source unique products beyond the Skip Hop, Baby Bjorn and other mainstream products.
Filed under News · Tagged with
