Tali Kleiner of Brooklyn, NY helps exhausted mothers restore calm to their homes.

Although I always loved babies, I didn’t know what I wanted to do when I grow up, even once I grew up. I have many creative interests, and just couldn’t narrow down a career path. My parents encouraged me to start a college education while I explored my options.

What I learned very quickly was that an academic profession wasn’t where my heart lay. So following in my mother’s footsteps — she’s a well-known sheitelmacher — I started dabbling in hair and wigs on the side, until I felt confident that this was something I’d enjoy doing full time.

I was living in Israel as a young married, starting my sheitel business, when my bechor was born. My mother, who’d always been great at keeping kids on a schedule, gave me a book, 12 Hours by 12 Weeks. The techniques it taught for getting kids onto a good sleep schedule worked well for me.   Although I’m good at intuiting what kids need, he was also a naturally easy kid.

Still, people saw that I seemed to know what I was doing with babies. Friends and neighbors began to ask me for advice, and I guess I did know something, because I was able to help a lot of people. They began to ask me, “Why don’t you do this professionally?” and I’d be like, “Really? Is that even a thing?”

Personal Practice

Then I had my second. In terms of sleep and schedule, she was a nightmare — even now that she’s older and well-trained, she’ still a spirited kid. She tests me in so many different ways, I’m sure Hashem has given her to me to practice my skills. I’ve learned so much from caring for her unique needs and personality.

At the same time, I was writing a small food blog, which gradually morphed into lifestyle and baby topics, and it began to attract a small following.

By the time I moved back to the US to be closer to my family, COVID had hit, and with more spare time to fill, I announced I’d be opening three sleep-training spots. I was able to really help my first clients, and it took off from there.