The Tiny Big Joys

Part 1 is the beginning.

Not the fears, not the allergens, not the lists of what to avoid — those come next week. This half is about the part that comes first: working out whether your baby is ready, what you actually put in front of them, and why the broccoli comes before the banana. Charlotte Stirling-Reed is the nutritionist who put vegetables first on the map for a generation of parents, and she is clear that the whole thing rests on one word — confidence.

In this episode:

✔️ Why confidence matters more than getting it right
✔️ The three signs of readiness — and why the calendar isn’t one of them
✔️ What to do when the guidance where you live says four months, not six
✔️ The first meal, step by step: one meal a day, one single vegetable
✔️ Why babies are pre-programmed for sweet — and what that means for apple purée
✔️ Veg-led weaning, and the research behind starting with the hard flavours
✔️ The face they pull at broccoli, and why it isn’t a no
✔️ Why a food can take 10, 15, 20 goes before it’s accepted
✔️ Already started with fruit? Why the window hasn’t closed
✔️ Purées or baby-led — and why the NHS has recommended both for years
✔️ Finger foods: the size of an adult finger, soft enough to squash
✔️ Why purée should be a short stage, not the whole first year
✔️ What to do when most of it ends up on the floor
✔️ The step most parents miss: eat with them
✔️ Letting your baby eat off your plate

No fear, no pressure. Options to consider, not the way you have to do it.

About our guest: Charlotte Stirling-Reed is a Registered Nutritionist and the author of the Sunday Times bestseller How to Wean Your Baby, the UK’s number one weaning book. She began her career in the NHS after degrees in nutrition and human biology and in nutrition and public health, and has since supported thousands of families through her books, her online weaning course and her Instagram community of 370,000 parents. She is mum to Raffy and Ada.
Part 2 is next: gagging and choking, allergens, salt, sugar and honey, iron and supplements, portion sizes, and the practical side of feeding a family. Follow the show so you don’t miss it.

The Tiny Big Joys: Pregnancy & Birth — Questions from Parents Like You is out now on Amazon. Created by founder Paula, it brings together real experiences, expert guidance and some of the most loved conversations from the original podcast series — honest support without pressure, fear or overwhelming advice.

Join our newsletter community for a direct line to our team: share comments, suggest topics, and send questions for future guests. https://thetinybigjoys.kit.com/profile
If you found value in today's episode, the greatest compliment you can give us is a share. Send it to a friend who needs it, or post about it — your word-of-mouth is what allows us to keep creating content like this. Thank you!

www.thetinybigjoys.com | Instagram @thetinybigjoys
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Part 2 is where the myths come out.

Where Part 1 covered the early weeks of latching and weight gain, this one goes further: pumping that works with your body rather than against it, why the old mastitis advice has been turned on its head, and the "thrush" diagnosis that, as Olivia Hinge explains, very often isn't thrush at all. Then she looks ahead to starting solids, moving on from formula, night feeds, and breastfeeding through a new pregnancy. And she ends with a message for the mum who is finding feeding hard right now.

In this episode:

✔️ Flange fit: why most of us were given the wrong size, and how to measure
✔️ Pump more often, not longer: frequency matters more than time
✔️ Power pumping vs micro pumping, and which one makes the difference
✔️ Combining pumped milk safely with the pitcher method
✔️ Milk storage at room temperature, in the fridge and in the freezer
✔️ Mastitis: why it's now ice, gentle lymphatic massage and rest, not heat and deep massage
✔️ When mastitis does need a GP and antibiotics
✔️ Blocked ducts explained, and the gentle "breast gymnastics" technique
✔️ The thrush myth, and what burning and itching usually mean instead
✔️ Starting solids: why you don't need to change milk feeds, and why iron matters
✔️ From formula to cow's milk at 12 months, and why follow-on milks aren't needed
✔️ Night feeds and night weaning: there's no magic age
✔️ Breastfeeding through pregnancy, tandem feeding, and sibling connection
✔️ A message for the mum who's finding feeding really hard right now

No fear, no pressure. Options to consider, not the way you have to do it.

About our guest: Olivia Hinge is an NHS midwife, lactation consultant, author and mum of three. She became a lactation consultant after finding it deeply hard to breastfeed her own first child, even as a midwife, and she now helps families find skilled support early.

Missed Part 1? Sleepy babies, tricky latches, tongue tie, weight gain and cluster feeding. Listen first if you can.

The Tiny Big Joys: Pregnancy & Birth — Questions from Parents Like You is out now on Amazon. Created by founder Paula, it brings together real experiences, expert guidance and some of the most loved conversations from the original podcast series — honest support without pressure, fear or overwhelming advice.

Join our newsletter community for a direct line to our team: share comments, suggest topics, and send questions for future guests. https://thetinybigjoys.kit.com/profile
If you found value in today's episode, the greatest compliment you can give us is a share. Send it to a friend who needs it, or post about it — your word-of-mouth is what allows us to keep creating content like this. Thank you!

www.thetinybigjoys.com | Instagram @thetinybigjoys
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Olivia Hinge is back, and this time your questions lead the way.

Part 1 covers the early weeks of feeding: the sleepy baby who drifts off at the breast, the latch that looks right but still hurts, the weigh-in that leaves you second-guessing, and the evenings when your baby wants to feed on and off for hours. NHS midwife and lactation consultant Olivia Hinge answers each one calmly and practically, and almost every answer starts in the same place: look at the whole picture, not just one moment.

In this episode:

✔️ Is my baby's poor sleep because of my milk supply? Where to start
✔️ Helping a sleepy baby feed: skin to skin, no gaps, and the foot-stroke trick
✔️ Breast compressions, the most underrated feeding technique
✔️ When the latch looks good but still hurts, and what to check first
✔️ Tongue tie: why releasing it should be the last piece of the jigsaw
✔️ Assisted births, bodywork, and the gentle power of baby massage
✔️ Normal tenderness or time for help? Clear signs to know
✔️ Chin first, not nose to nipple: a small shift that changes the latch
✔️ A slow return to birth weight, and why big babies sometimes "catch down"
✔️ Topping up: formula, expressed milk, and why triple feeding should be short
✔️ Cluster feeding: why evenings are the hardest, and when to get it checked
✔️ Growth spurts, mental leaps, and why green poos can be perfectly normal

No fear, no pressure. Options to consider, not the way you have to do it.

About our guest: Olivia Hinge is an NHS midwife, lactation consultant, author and mum of three. Her first episode in our pilot series was one of our most listened-to, so we brought her back to answer the questions you sent in after it.

Coming next week, Part 2: pumping and flange fit, milk storage, mastitis and blocked ducts, the thrush myth, starting solids, night feeds, breastfeeding through pregnancy, and Olivia's tiny big joy.

The Tiny Big Joys: Pregnancy & Birth — Questions from Parents Like You is out now on Amazon. Created by founder Paula, it brings together real experiences, expert guidance and some of the most loved conversations from the original podcast series — honest support without pressure, fear or overwhelming advice.

Join our newsletter community for a direct line to our team: share comments, suggest topics, and send questions for future guests. https://thetinybigjoys.kit.com/profile
If you found value in today's episode, the greatest compliment you can give us is a share. Send it to a friend who needs it, or post about it — your word-of-mouth is what allows us to keep creating content like this. Thank you!

www.thetinybigjoys.com | Instagram @thetinybigjoys
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Part 2 is the "so what can we actually do?" half.

Part 1 was about what's normal. This one is the practical side, with no cry-it-out and no rigid plan. Sleep consultant Lucy Bagwell walks through simple bedtime routines, day and night, nap transitions and every way there is to settle a baby. She also takes on the idea that feeding your baby to sleep is a "bad habit". Then come three real questions from parents: nursery naps for a toddler who's always been fed to sleep, the baby who sleeps in the cot until midnight and then wakes every hour, and the 8.5-month-old with false starts. She is clear that you're not mucking it up.

In this episode:

✔️ What working with a holistic sleep consultant actually looks like
✔️ A bedtime routine can be four simple steps, and no element is compulsory, not even the book
✔️ Day and night: why newborns don't need to nap in a blackout room
✔️ Sleep pressure explained, and why a big day of naps shows up at night
✔️ Signs your baby is ready for a nap transition, and why you cap before you drop
✔️ Never make a big change after one bad night
✔️ Listener question: longer first nap or longer second nap at 8.5 months?
✔️ Separation anxiety at bedtime: act like you're never leaving
✔️ How long a bedtime routine needs to be
✔️ Feeding to sleep: biologically normal, very effective, and not a bad habit
✔️ Night weaning, honestly, and why nobody should push you into it
✔️ Listener question: nursery naps for a 13-month-old who's always been fed to sleep
✔️ Listener question: in the cot until midnight, then hourly wakes
✔️ The red flags worth checking: mouth breathing, snoring, feeding discomfort, low iron

No fear, no pressure. Options to consider, not the way you have to do it.

About our guest: Lucy Bagwell is a certified gentle and holistic infant sleep consultant (Level 6 OCN), mum of two, and founder of Second Star to the Right Sleep. She supports families all over the world through one-to-one consultations, guides and webinars, with no cry-it-out, ever. Her approach looks at the whole child: red flags, feeding, temperament, development and what each family actually wants.

Missed Part 1? What normal baby sleep looks like, why babies wake, sleep regressions, high and low sleep needs and the "sleeping through the night" myth. Listen first if you can.

The Tiny Big Joys: Pregnancy & Birth — Questions from Parents Like You is out now on Amazon. Created by founder Paula, it brings together real experiences, expert guidance and some of the most loved conversations from the original podcast series — honest support without pressure, fear or overwhelming advice.

Join our newsletter community for a direct line to our team: share comments, suggest topics, and send questions for future guests. https://thetinybigjoys.kit.com/profile
If you found value in today's episode, the greatest compliment you can give us is a share. Send it to a friend who needs it, or post about it — your word-of-mouth is what allows us to keep creating content like this. Thank you!

www.thetinybigjoys.com | Instagram @thetinybigjoys
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Part 1 is the "is this normal?" half.

Before any tips or techniques, sleep consultant Lucy Bagwell goes back to the question underneath almost every sleep worry: is my baby actually sleeping badly, or is this just what babies are like? She covers the waking, the regressions, the "sleeping through the night" comparisons and the pressure to fix it all by six months, and she is clear about one thing: how your baby sleeps is not a measure of how well you are doing.

In this episode:

✔️ What "holistic" sleep support really means, and why how your baby falls asleep isn't the priority
✔️ What normal sleep looks like in the first year: up and down, changeable, and that's okay
✔️ 80% of six- to 18-month-olds wake up to three times a night
✔️ Why babies wake so much, and why needing comfort is a valid need
✔️ Sleep regressions reframed: a heightened need, not a step backwards
✔️ "You give support because they need it, not they need it because you gave it"
✔️ What "sleeping through the night" actually means in the studies
✔️ High and low sleep needs, and why the wake window chart might not fit your baby
✔️ Sleepy or just bored? The "one new thing" test
✔️ Listener question: a baby who wakes every one to three hours
✔️ Sensory seekers, sensitive sleepers and the bedtime chase that changed everything
✔️ Listener question: do naps matter if nights are good?
✔️ Overtiredness, undertiredness, and why we can stop being frightened of a tired baby
✔️ Listener question: what to actually be intentional about in the early months

No fear, no pressure. Options to consider, not the way you have to do it.

About our guest: Lucy Bagwell is a certified gentle and holistic infant sleep consultant (Level 6 OCN), mum of two, and founder of Second Star to the Right Sleep. Her fascination with sleep began with her own son, and today she supports families all over the world with no cry-it-out, ever. Her approach looks at the whole child: red flags, feeding, temperament, development and what each family actually wants.

Coming in Part 2: what you can actually do. Bedtime routines, day and night, nap transitions, settling and feeding to sleep, and whether "bad habits" even exist.

The Tiny Big Joys: Pregnancy & Birth — Questions from Parents Like You is out now on Amazon. Created by founder Paula, it brings together real experiences, expert guidance and some of the most loved conversations from the original podcast series — honest support without pressure, fear or overwhelming advice.

Join our newsletter community for a direct line to our team: share comments, suggest topics, and send questions for future guests. https://thetinybigjoys.kit.com/profile
If you found value in today's episode, the greatest compliment you can give us is a share. Send it to a friend who needs it, or post about it — your word-of-mouth is what allows us to keep creating content like this. Thank you!

www.thetinybigjoys.com | Instagram @thetinybigjoys
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.