Our Classes

We are proud to offer

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, Self-Reg with Stuart Shanker), Erin brought all of this information into a full two day or six evening class.

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 immune-compromised condition.

This is NOT your regular online class! Erin has a Master's in Education, specializing in course development and has tailored the content delivery to an online, small-group format. We look forward to having you join the BBH class!

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: When cancelling a prenatal class after it has been booked, there is a $25 (CAD) administration fee. If cancellation occurs less than 14 days before the class, a 50% cancellation fee applies. If it is less than 7 days, no refund will be issued.  Requests for changes within 7 days of class will reflect a $75 fee.  Please remember this when booking classes and plan to finish your session by 35 weeks.

People who took our class had this to say:


We dearly want to support the health of expectant families.

The Bringing Home Baby course was an incredible learning experience for us. Our instructor Erin was passionate about the course content and is a very effective communicator. We enjoyed it so much we immediately signed up for the Pre Natal and CPR courses with Ottawa CEA as well. The course gave us the opportunity to ask questions about conflicting information we’ve heard about while preparing for our baby’s birth and hear how other soon-to-be parents are handling and setting boundaries relating to COVID. I feel this course has given us more confidence in our ability to become capable, calm parents.

Bringing Baby Home – with Erin Shaheen

The prenatal class through OCEA was amazing! It was so nice receiving information with my partner by my side. It led us to having continued conversations in our own home about pregnancy, our plans for labour, delivery, and postpartum. Brandie is an incredible educator. She makes everyone feel at ease, she is hilarious, honest, and nonjudgmental. She wants the best for each couple simply by making sure you are informed with the best information out there

Pre Natal – with Brandie Lekovic

Michelle is an excellent instructor. Her presentations and commentary were useful and very insightful for first time parents. I appreciated that she took the time to answer all questions that came up during class and handled difficult or more contentious topics with grace and nuance that respects that some solutions will have to be tailored to the baby, mother or family preferences. She also provided us with a wealth of resources that have been useful. My husband and myself both feel better-prepared for birth and the postpartum period thanks to this class.

Pre Natal – with Michelle Morra

Julia was really informative and full of excitement, so it was indeed a wonderful series of class

Pre Natal – with Julia Wykes

The Pre Natal course with Misty was phenomenal, she is beyond knowledgeable and research-based which made the learning unbiased and to the point. She answered every question and I feel much more prepared for birth than I thought was possible. Amazing experience!!!

Pre Natal – with Misty Pratt

Julie was very kind, attentive and informative. We found the course information credible and were comforted by the fact that she has midwifery training. We are strongly considering taking the "Bringing Baby Home" course as well. Thank you for adapting the course material.

Pre Natal – with Julia Wykes

Yes: Ottawa CEA provided us with the best educational experience out of the multiple baby classes we took. The content is very well researched, concepts are explained clearly. Multiple perspectives for many issues are provided with evidence and encouragement is given to make your own informed choices with extra resources. There is no "fluff" and we felt much better about bringing a baby home after. I will be referring back to the resources from this course often. I highly recommend Ottawa CEA for expecting parents.

Bringing Baby Home – with Erin Shaheen

Julia was phenomenal! Very kind, knowledgeable and a great educator!

Pre Natal – with Julia Wykes

Julia was so helpful and answered all the questions I had which really helped to ease some of the anxiousness I've been facing with covid19 restrictions in place and how it may impact my birth experience. I am so thankful for her knowledge and care!

Pre Natal – with Julia Wykes

The prenatal course was well worth the cost. I feel confident in my labor options and the role of my support person during labor. From a combination of hands-on exercises to stories and diagrams, I feel like I know what to expect from labor and postpartum. This course eased much of my anxiety!

Pre Natal – with Brandie Lekovic

She was very engaging and passionate about the information she was sharing. I enjoyed her teaching style.

Pre Natal – with Julia Wykes

Great use of zoom. Thank you.

Pre Natal One Day – with Brandie Lekovic


 
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  • Online

    Bringing Baby Home
    6 weekday evenings
    1 Registration Left
    Thu, Sept. 4 · Sept. 11 · Sept. 18 · Sept. 25 ·
    Oct. 2 & Oct. 9, 2025

    07:00 PM - 09:15 PM
    Online Class Using Zoom
    Register now

  • Online

    Bringing Baby Home
    6 weekday evenings
    1 Registration Left
    Tue, Sept. 16 · Sept. 23 · Sept. 30 · Oct. 7 ·
    Oct. 14 & Oct. 21, 2025

    07:00 PM - 09:15 PM
    Online Class Using Zoom
    Register now

  • Online

    Bringing Baby Home
    weekend
    Sat, Sept. 20 · Sept. 21 · Sept. 27 & Sept. 28, 2025
    09:00 AM - 12:00 PM
    Online Class Using Zoom
    Register now

  • Online

    Bringing Baby Home
    weekend
    Sat, Oct. 18 · Oct. 19 · Oct. 25 & Oct. 26, 2025
    09:00 AM - 12:00 PM
    Online Class Using Zoom
    Register now

  • Online

    Bringing Baby Home
    6 weekday evenings
    Thu, Oct. 23 · Oct. 30 · Nov. 6 · Nov. 13 ·
    Nov. 20 & Nov. 27, 2025

    07:00 PM - 09:15 PM
    Online Class Using Zoom
    Register now

  • Online

    Bringing Baby Home
    weekend
    Sat, Nov. 1 · Nov. 2 · Nov. 8 & Nov. 9, 2025
    09:00 AM - 12:00 PM
    Online Class Using Zoom
    Register now

  • Online

    Bringing Baby Home
    6 weekday evenings
    Tue, Nov. 4 · Nov. 11 · Nov. 18 · Nov. 25 ·
    Dec. 2 & Dec. 9, 2025

    07:00 PM - 09:15 PM
    Online Class Using Zoom
    Register now

  • Online

    Bringing Baby Home
    weekend
    Sat, Nov. 15 · Nov. 16 · Nov. 22 & Nov. 23, 2025
    09:00 AM - 12:00 PM
    Online Class Using Zoom
    Register now

  • Online

    Bringing Baby Home
    weekend
    Sat, Dec. 6 · Dec. 7 · Dec. 13 & Dec. 14, 2025
    09:00 AM - 12:00 PM
    Online Class Using Zoom
    Register now