Today we’d like to introduce you to Cara Dumaplin.
So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
Imagine a neonatal nurse and a pediatrician becoming parents, two professionals who have built a career out of caring for babies. You might assume the transition into parenthood would be quite simple. Well, I thought the same.
After bringing my daughter home from the hospital, I wondered, “how hard can this be? We know babies!”
Fast forward 8 months later and this beautiful baby girl was awake and nursing every 45 minutes ALL NIGHT LONG and this was our only way to get her to sleep. Honestly, mama, daddy and sweet baby were all a HOT MESS. Ella didn’t nap, only ate well at night and was constantly overtired. I was exhausted, overwhelmed and sad. Sleep deprivation was robbing me of being the mother I longed to be for Ella. Even though we were well-trained and experienced “baby professionals,” nighttime was still a nightmare. This led me on a journey to truly understand infant sleep.
Through hours and hours of research, we did get Ella sleeping through the night! And in her own crib! I can honestly say sleep changed our lives: I stopped dreading our nights. During the day, she began napping and she actually ate well, too. Sleep for everyone helped us to reclaim joy for our family.
Over the years, I became known as “The Baby Sleep Expert” among our friends as I learned more and more of the science behind baby sleep. With the knowledge and research I had gained, I saw that I could make a difference for exhausted parents and babies! And that’s how, “Taking Cara Babies” was BORN.
In the beginning, I started teaching newborn classes to help parents lay the foundation for sleep skills from the start with NO crying involved. I also coached parents of older babies one-on-one so that they could get their little ones sleeping. Eventually, in-person classes and coaching turned into online courses and digital resources, and my solo venture turned into a team of 4 working towards the same mission: teaching parents to help their babies sleep well and reclaim the joy of new parenthood.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
In the beginning, it was a fairly smooth road: Parents who attended my newborn classes were amazed that their tiny one could have great sleep habits with NO crying involved. Parents of older babies went from chronic sleep deprivation to joyful, well-rested families. It was exhilarating to see my passion for helping others turn into a career.
Parents shared with their friends about the success they experienced with Taking Cara Babies. Before long, my schedule was jam-packed with newborn classes in Scottsdale and coaching sessions all over the Valley.
As I tried to help more and more families, the road became a bit bumpy. Being a business owner, wife, and mom of 4 young children, I was working every waking minute. I was writing personalized sleep plans and mentoring about 8-10 families a month. But for every mom I helped, I had 10 waiting in line to get the sleep help they so desperately needed. I wanted to serve every family I could, but I couldn’t take on any more clients without sacrificing my own family.
This struggle led me to a monumental decision in my business: I needed to complement my live classes and one-on-one mentoring with online courses and resources. I started by creating an online version of my live newborn class so that I could teach families all across the globe. Then, I created online classes to help parents of older babies to create and customize a plan that would help their baby become a great little sleeper.
When I published these online courses, I found that by myself I still didn’t have enough hours in the day to serve my customers with the personalized support they needed. Taking Cara Babies grew from just me to a team of four now investing in the lives of families.
Taking Cara Babies – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
Taking Cara Babies understands that many new parents struggle with sleep deprivation. We created the solution to help babies get the sleep they so desperately need so parents and families can thrive.
Taking Cara Babies believes that parents are the most important part of teaching and loving a baby. So our courses and resources equip them with the tools to teach their little ones while supporting them with the personalized guidance and support that they need along the way.
Our newborn class “Will I Ever Sleep Again?” is the #1 Prenatal/Newborn Class in the Valley. The live class (taught in Modern Milk) sells out several times each month as new parents learn how to set up healthy sleep habits from the beginning. The online version of the class is now being watched all over the world and parents are discovering that they can truly enjoy the newborn stage.
We also have digital resources and classes for babies in both the tricky 3-4 month stage and the 5-24 month age range. The families we serve are able to see major strides in sleep and have babies sleeping through the night. These resources share the same philosophy of empowering parents to help their babies and return to the parenting experience that they dreamed of while never being left alone in the journey.
What is “success” or “successful” for you?
Success at Taking Cara Babies looks like being able to help more and more families conquer sleep deprivation and reclaim the joy of parenthood. When the parents that we serve are empowered, confident and loving a well-rested family life with healthy and happy babies, we know we’re moving in the right direction.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.TakingCaraBabies.com
- Instagram: @TakingCaraBabies
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TakingCaraBabies/
Image Credit:
alybartphotography, kieragracephotography
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