I had such high hopes for this class, but ultimately it was taught by a doula and not a certified birth instructor and therefore the doula was not knowledgeable about medication, hospital interventions etc and was instead pushing themselves to be hired. Almost no emphasis on breathing techniques in class. Save your money and time and look elsewhere. read more

Ignored all emails before the class and for our questions post class. I should have canceled the class when our email was ignored before the class started. Not recommended. Ignoring emails is extremely frustrating and basically feel totally ripped off. The class had dated materials and made a big deal they wouldn't hand out stuff. More worried about someone taking their presentation, that their own customers. New Moms and Dads. read more

Great benefits that this organization offers to help educate and help expecting parents prepare for this important stage in the life of their family. Coupled with the other offerings associated with this organization to help them prepare to enter the life of a parent, the services are invaluable. Excited to see the growth of this organization and their other offerings as they expand their education for parents and improve the program. read more

What an amazing organization! Jennie and her team are the best! We attended both the Childbirth and Infant CPR class, as well as having a birth and postpartum doula and we couldn't have been happier. They are highly professional, dedicated and so friendly! They helped us be as prepared as we could for the birth of our first child and understand our goals and help us make informed decisions. Jennie is amazing! read more

This class gives some generic information but lacks enough detail to actually be helpful for when you go into labor. It didn't prepare me well for my labor, and lacks up to date research and information on techniques to help with labor. They had no information on what happens to your pelvic floor in labor, the importance of pelvic floor therapy during or after pregnancy, the role of hormones in labor and how hormones change postpartum, how induction differs from spontaneous birth, pros and cons of c sections vs vaginal deliveries, degrees of tearing or symptoms associated with each, pushing and breathing techniques ("push like you're going to poop" is inaccurate), benefits of delayed pushing, information and risks of assisted vaginal deliveries (forceps and vacuum), or any common afterbirth physical difficulties such as incontinence or prolapse. This class offers nothing a quick google search wouldn't just give you and I would recommend looking elsewhere. read more

So, now I realise, this class was of no use for me. They really did not give the clear picture about breastfeeding, pumping, supplementing formula etc I don't have any external help, so I was relying a lot on this kind of class. read more

Took the childbirth and new born class with my wife and could not have asked for a better class. Jennie was absolutely amazing. You could tell she genuinely cared about every expecting parent at the class and was happy to answer any questions any one had. She even stayed after the class was over to help people who still had some questions or were struggling with diapering or swaddling. I highly recommend Prepare the Nest for any expecting parents read more

My wife and I took the Childbirth, Newborn Care, & Breastfeeding class and it provided everything we needed to feel prepared for the arrival of our first child. Our teacher (Jennie) had an immense amount of knowledge and practical tips to guide us through each step of pregnancy, labor/delivery, and postpartum care. After the class we knew immediately that we wanted Jennie as our doula. This was the best decision we made! Jennie has a true gift. It's hard to put into words how much she helped us. Her ability to be present with us and give us her undivided attention, made us feel like we were her only priority. She instilled confidence in us as first time parents and never left us feeling unsure or uneasy. She was very organized and professional with well thought out plans for the process. Jennie has a great ability to switch between various roles of encouraging, empathetic, authoritative, and pragmatic given the situation and need. She went above and beyond our expectations, and was with us through a very long and difficult labor and delivery that didn't go as planned, steady and strong as ever to help us through each phase. I can't say enough great things about Prepare The Nest and Jennie Mills! read more

New parents here and they could not have been better to learn from. I would def recommend this class to all new parents or parents that just need a little guidance. read more

Not very informative. A quick briefing that costs 200...not worth the money. The teacher seems to be anti Overlake hospital.... read more

Prepare the Nest is a great alternative to the traditonal hospital-sponsored new parent class experience. My husband and I took the Childbirth and Newborn Care class this past weekend (one five hour class on a Saturday) with Nicole (the owner) and it was GREAT. Nicole went through the entire labor process and explained all labor and delivery options in detail. After that, we went through basic infant care, including diapering, bathing, and swaddling. We asked all of our questions and Nicole was open and honest about her experiences as both a mother and a labor and delivery nurse. The class was fun, relaxed, and encouraging. We are also registered for the Infant CPR and Breastfeeding clases. Looking forward to getting solid, honest information to prepare us for the imminent arrival of our little one! I strongly recommend Prepare the Nest for your new parent needs. We came home feeling that, hey, maybe we CAN handle parenthood :-) read more

The instructor (Nicole) knows basic information which you can get from other much cheaper classes. Don't expect answers to any questions that are not basic. Someone asked whether or not drugs in IV are opium-based, the instructor actually admitted that she was asked that before but still has no idea ( and no desire to find out as I understand). She's also very, VERY fake which gives an awkward impression and doesn't add any trust for her knowledge. We left after the first half of the class (despite paying $220 for the whole thing) and saw about 4-5 other couples leaving in their cars, so I guess it's says a lot. Nevertheless, I wasn't going to write a review. However. We were asked to leave an email, so we can get the notes from the class. Well, I've got them several weeks ago but now I'm getting spam from them about how they are hiring registered nurses and what not. I didn't ask for this kind of totally irrelevant info and consider spamming your customers highly unprofessional and disrespectful. So if you still decide to take this class, at least don't leave them your email. read more

It was a really well put together class that gives you actual helpful information. Nicole is very knowledgeable and a very fun person to learn from. As a guy, I've found a lot of info online or around is rather down about what we as partners can do to help our person. Nicole was constantly telling us this or that to help at this stage or that stage. Will be looking to learn more! read more

I am so grateful to Nicole and Prepare the Nest for their caring, supportive and knowledgeable class. My husband and I immediately felt very welcome and listened to. Going through our first pregnancy unearthed so many questions, which Prepare the Nest acknowledged and addressed. We felt at ease and comforted knowing we had such support from a much needed resource in our community! Thank you, Nicole and Team, for your passion in supporting expectant parents! read more

Great intro course to pregnancy, delivery and then what's next (including breastfeeding basics, swaddling, changing diapers...). Nicole is a great presenter. read more

My husband and I chose this class to fit into our busy schedules, without checking the class content. We had a reasonably good experience, especially considering the two-session time limit. The instructor was pleasant and friendly, the facility is beautiful, and the class atmosphere was relaxed and welcoming, with snacks and beverages provided, and hands-on practice at skills like diapering and swaddling. There was also a commendable focus on modern baby-friendly practices such as immediate skin-to-skin contact after birth and professional care from a lactation consultant. That said, unfortunately, I can't recommend this class to anyone planning an unmedicated childbirth, especially with a hospital midwifery practice or birth center. The instructor favors and recommends OB/GYN-supervised in-hospital birth with epidural anesthesia, and although she made a genuine effort to make us welcome in her classroom (which we appreciated) despite our plans for a drug-free in-hospital birth with midwives, she simply had very little information or practical coping skills to offer us. Even the brief lesson on breathing exercises was presented simply as something to help women "get through" early labor until an epidural could be administered. In the end, we learned very little that proved helpful during our actual delivery. Also, the childcare class covered only disposable diapering, and the instructor provided no materials for hands-on cloth diapering practice. We were referred to her website for more information, but it was minimal and discouraging at best. (We chose to cloth diaper anyway, with instruction from Google and YouTube, and it's been a very positive experience for us.) Finally, although one of our biggest hopes was to meet other parents-to-be in the area, there was no encouragement to get to know our classmates beyond very basic introductions. Even in such a short class, I would have appreciated at least a few minutes' focus on forming connections with each other. With all that said, Prepare The Nest does seem like a solid option for parents-to-be with limited time and an approach to childbirth that aligns closely with the instructor's. It just wasn't a good match for us. If you're planning to birth without an epidural, don't make our mistake; do your homework, and choose either a class with a broader curriculum covering multiple birth options, or one that focuses specifically on unmedicated birth. read more

Prepare the Nest's Childbirth, Newborn Care & Breastfeeding class was such an excellent experience for my husband and I. We are first time parents, and felt overwhelmed with what to expect with the birth and care of our child. Nicole Shanks is a wonderful teacher, and with her engaging, energetic approach and labor and delivery nursing background, she made us feel calm and much more educated and prepared for the upcoming birth of our baby. The classes were small and taught in a relaxed setting, and Nicole was great at encouraging questions and participation from each couple. We liked that instead of attending six weeks worth of classes like many other birth courses, Prepare the Nest offers a two-night class (three hours each, spread a week apart) which was more conducive to our busy schedule. Thank you, Prepare the Nest, for helping us to be ready to meet our baby! I would highly recommend this class to others. read more

We attended the Childbirth, Newborn Care&Breastfeeding class, Nicole is very knowledgeable and very helpful. We are now more prepared for our upcoming baby and know what to expect. read more

Prepare the Nest is a wonderful resource and class! My husband and I took this class and loved it! We felt that this class covered all of the information we needed for labor and preparing for the baby's arrival! We also got to meet a lovely fellow couple (with a due date within 1 day of ours). It was such an excellently efficient use of our time as well informative and enjoyable! read more