Creating confident parents & happy, healthy children

Expert guidance to give you & your little one the best start to your new adventure

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Know exactly what to expect from your baby & when! Grab the free 0-12 month developmental milestones chart

See our
courses

Products we
recommend

Visit our
Youtube
Channel

Know exactly what to expect from your baby & when! Grab the free 0-12 month developmental milestones chart

See our
courses

Products we
recommend

Visit our
Youtube
Channel

What do you need help with?

All
  • All Topics
  • Development
  • Eating
  • Other
  • Play
  • Sleep
  • Toileting
Filter by my baby’s age
  • All Ages
  • Still in the belly
  • 0 - 6 Months
  • 7 - 12 Months
  • 1 - 2 years
  • 2 Years +

Courses

  • Peaceful Dreams – 0-6 Month Baby Sleep Course

    Your Evidence-Based Guide To More Restful Nights, Better Naps and Less Stress

    Peaceful Dreams – 0-6 Month Baby Sleep Course

    Gentle, effective strategies to help with all the challenges of 0-6 month-old sleep, while also building a strong foundation for great sleep in the future

    See Course
  • Happy Place

    Effectively Manage Challenging Toddler Behaviour

    Happy Place

    Learn how to manage your toddler’s tantrums and meltdowns effectively, teach emotional self-regulation, and build confidence, connection and resilience, without reinforcing or encouraging challenging behavior

    See Course
  • Play, Develop, Thrive

    The Complete Guide to Development For Your Baby's First 12 Months of Life

    Play, Develop, Thrive

    Learn how to provide the best developmental foundations possible for your little one, ensure they hit all of their developmental milestones, avoid preventable positional conditions, build a secure attachment with them that lasts a lifetime, foster communication and language skills, and much more.

    See Course
  • Beyond Birth

    Postnatal exercise program

    Beyond Birth

    A physiotherapist-developed postnatal exercise program to gently and safely strengthen your body after pregnancy. 20 weeks of guided exercises specifically tailored for women who've recently given birth to help you heal and feel like strong, confident self again.

    See Course

What makes Brightest Beginning special?

Expert Advice

At Brightest Beginning we’re passionate about providing you with expert advice based on clinical best practice and evidence based research. No myths, old wives tales, or unproven fads.

Fun

Being a parent is meant to be fun! While we can’t promise there’ll never be another ‘tear your hair out moment’, or times when you want to scream into your pillow… We’ll help you enjoy the journey and make sure you don’t miss out on the joy that comes with being a parent.

Simple. Practical. Effective

We’re here to make parenting easier. That means giving you practical advice that works. We keep it simple, solving your parenting problems without making it complicated or confusing.

Hi There!

I’m Emma!

I’m a mum of 3, and a Paediatric Occupational Therapist with over 10 years of specialised experience.

I’m passionate about making life easier for new parents by sharing practical tips and advice that make those common (often stressful) challenges easier to navigate. And because we all want the best for our little ones, my goal is to help you do this in a way that’s also best for your child. It’s all about doing what’s best for both you and your beloved little one, not sacrificing one over the other.

I started Brightest Beginning to provide a place that parents can rely on to get reliable, practical information that takes the guesswork and uncertainty out of parenting, and gives them the peace of mind that they are giving their little one the best start to life.

One place for all your parenting advice

Everything you see on Brightest Beginning is created by experts in their respective fields – from Occupational Therapists, to Speech Pathologists, Physiotherapists, and Paediatricians.

When you learn from us, you’re getting the most up to date information available, based on what is proven to work.

And we’re also parents.

We know how it feels to be physically and mentally exhausted, trying to do the very best you can with the energy you have. Those feelings of uncertainty, questioning whether you’re doing the right thing for your little one, wondering ‘is this normal’, and even questioning whether you’re good at this whole parenting thing (p.s. the answers are YES, YES, and YES!).

Which is why everything we create – from free blog posts and videos, to our paid courses, is created with the challenges that come with being a new parent in mind. It’s designed to help you solve the problems you’re struggling with in a way that’s quick to consume, easy to follow, and actually works.

Happy parents (with happy, healthy kids)
are what we’re all about

Kathryn MacRae

"My little girl was about 2.5 months when I joined. This program helped to ease my anxieties as a first time mum, providing evidence-based activities and information from a trained professional. Being able to go back to parts I had already watched was an added bonus, as sometimes my tired brain didn’t hold onto the information given."

Janice

"As a new first time mom, I am constantly wondering If I'm doing the right things. Play, Develop, Thrive has really helped me be a more confident mother. There is no judgement or a feeling of the right or wrong way, but good solid facts and recommendations. Thank you!"

Jessica Friedman-Lamdan

“Thanks so much for sharing your awesome content! I came across your YouTube channel and find your info so helpful! You're seriously amazing. Giving over information in a thorough and non judgmental way.”

Aboli Joshi

“You are so wonderful. I am a first time parent and I absolutely love the way you teach and your videos are very informative, easy to follow and understand. Wish you more success and I hope more parents/caregivers start following you.”

Ludmila Volozonoka

"Thank you so much for your knowledge and efforts sharing it! All your videos are super informative and applicable to real life scenarios 😃 you helped me a lot."

Happy parents (with happy, healthy kids)
are what we’re all about

Kathryn MacRae

"My little girl was about 2.5 months when I joined. This program helped to ease my anxieties as a first time mum, providing evidence-based activities and information from a trained professional. Being able to go back to parts I had already watched was an added bonus, as sometimes my tired brain didn’t hold onto the information given."

Janice

"As a new first time mom, I am constantly wondering If I'm doing the right things. Play, Develop, Thrive has really helped me be a more confident mother. There is no judgement or a feeling of the right or wrong way, but good solid facts and recommendations. Thank you!"

Jessica Friedman-Lamdan

“Thanks so much for sharing your awesome content! I came across your YouTube channel and find your info so helpful! You're seriously amazing. Giving over information in a thorough and non judgmental way.”

Aboli Joshi

“You are so wonderful. I am a first time parent and I absolutely love the way you teach and your videos are very informative, easy to follow and understand. Wish you more success and I hope more parents/caregivers start following you.”

Ludmila Volozonoka

"Thank you so much for your knowledge and efforts sharing it! All your videos are super informative and applicable to real life scenarios 😃 you helped me a lot."