Today on The Mag we have Valerie Trumbower, founder of New Parents Academy. Learn more about Valerie and what inspired her to start New Parents Academy, the most common question she gets from new parents some tips for turning your passion into your business and much more!

Introduce yourself, your family, and your brand.

My name is Valerie Trumbower. I'm a mother of three including a set of twins! My husband, Doug, is a third grade teacher, our daughter is 14 and we have identical twin boys who are 11. I'm also a Postpartum Doula, a certified Lactation Counselor (CLC) and the creator of New Parents Academy! New Parents Academy is online courses for expecting and adopting families!

What inspired you to start the New Parents Academy? And does your own experience as a mom of 3 influence what you teach?

As a Postpartum Doula & CLC I work in the homes of new families in the weeks and months after they bring their baby (or babies!) home. During this time I show them soothing techniques, teach them about newborn care, help them to get breastfeeding off to a good start if they're nursing and help them to get good systems in place.

After working for years in the homes of new parents I would so often see that when people felt like they didn't know how to care for their newborn they had no confidence as a new parent and in turn all of the soothing and caring of this new baby would fall to the partner who felt like they knew what they were doing. That's no fun for anyone, it's overwhelming for one parent and leaves the other person feeling left out of getting to know this new little person!

That's why I created New Parents Academy! I wanted to share with expecting and adopting families what I had been teaching people in their home for years. My goal with all of the content that I create is to help people feel confident and prepared when their baby arrives!

Is there one question that almost every new or expecting parent asks you? How do you respond?

A lot of people have questions about breastfeeding - how will they know if their baby is getting enough, what if their body doesn't make milk? I totally understand these concerns - feeding another human off your own body likely brings on many thoughts and concerns! I tell people that it's important to find a breastfeeding class that will give it to them straight so that they have the info they need to make that transition to parenthood as smooth as possible and that's what I do inside my online courses. I also tell them to show themselves GRACE as they get to know their baby, as he or she adjusts to life outside the belly and as they get comfortable in their new role as parents.

When I'm working with families who are preparing to adopt they often have a lot of questions and concerns about bonding with the baby. I try and give them strategies that they can start from day one (like skin to skin) to help that bonding process from the beginning!

What are some tips you can share with parents who want to turn their passions into full time careers?

I love working in people's homes as a Postpartum Doula and I feel blessed to have turned that passion for helping new parents into an online business! My advice for others that have a business idea is two things. . .#1 START, you have to start somewhere, so go for it! #2 DONE IS BETTER THAN PERFECT! At the time that I began creating my first online course, Expecting 101, I had never even taken an online course. Every day my to-do list was full of things that I legitimately had no clue how to do. Those days I spent a lot of time on YouTube watching tutorials or asking questions in facebook groups but little by little things started to come together and I have now helped hundreds of families prepare for life with their new babies! But through it all and even to this day I always have to remind myself that done is better than perfect. I'm creating online content for parents not an Emmy nominated film. You might hear my dog bark in a YouTube video or see Instagram videos that could have been edited better but I realized years ago that what's important is that I get the helpful info I have in my head out into the world to help expecting and adopting parents!

Name other small businesses that you admire.

Tichanda Thompson is a birth doula and childbirth educator who started a membership called DoulaBox. Each trimester (including the fourth) expectant mamas receive a subscription box full of things to help at that stage of pregnancy. It's an amazing gift for expectant mamas!

Michelle Brewster is a newborn photographer who during the time of covid recognized that new parents would not feel comfortable talking their babies anywhere for newborn pictures so she created an online course giving parents tips on taking their own newborn photographs.

Hilary Pope is a labor and delivery nurse who has an online prenatal course that helps couples prepare for their baby's birth!

And finally, where can we find you?