10+ Fun and Fulfilling Activities for English-Speaking Moms on Parental Leave in Munich
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This post is NOT sponsored and the courses are recommended purely from my personal experience.
If you are encountering this post, you may relate. Before becoming a mom of two, I strongly identified myself by my career and social network. I categorize myself as a pretty social, ambitious, and productive person, and I remember wondering during my first pregnancy, how on earth I would occupy all my "free" time during an entire year of parental leave (Elternzeit) in Munich. At the time, I did not know anyone who's maternity leave would coincide with mine. In addition, my husband would be working all day, and I was a foreigner in Germany with no family around, so the potential for boredom, or worse loneliness, felt high.
Today I am already on my second round of parental leave in Germany following the birth of my second child - but this time it was different - I looked forward to my maternity leave because it meant spending quality time bonding with my baby while getting to know other moms in Munich.
If you are reading this and thinking, "I'm not 'that' mom" and "mommy groups aren't my thing," I would encourage you to stay openminded and put yourself out there anyway. Motherhood is a experience of its own and while a lot of it is not in your control, some of it is, and it is worth getting out there to find your tribe to help make your experience as positive as possible. My goal for this post is to help you love your maternity leave, too.
My Favorite Classes for English-Speaking Moms & Babies in Munich, Germany
Pippagina by Lynn Darbyshire
Lynn is a midwife and British expat who also birthed and raised her children abroad, so she understands first hand the struggles of becoming a mother in a foreign country and has made it her mission to create a fruitful community for women to connect in a safe space. I first discovered Lynn through her birth prep course, and stayed for the mommy & me courses: New Beginnings, Tiny Tots, and Little Movers (plus I hear Little Explorers, the fourth course may be making a comeback!), which accompany you and baby through the first year of life. It is a small group for moms and babies and each week is centered around an age-appropriate topic and activities, such as massage, songs, or story time. Lynn also insists on forming a WhatsApp group and everyone going for coffee together after class together to ensure the connections extend beyond the studio. If you only do one class, I would recommend this one.
Last note on this: New Beginnings may seem like it starts too soon as a new mom, but just sign up and get there. My top advice for new moms is to leave the house sooner rather than later. It is good for you and it is good for baby and gets easier every time. New Beginnings is a safe space and judgment free zone. It will quickly be your favorite excuse to leave home.
Music with Julia
We started Music with Julia with some friends from Pippagina around 6 months of age and it was such a joy each week! Julia is American and offers music classes for different ages groups in both english and german. She brings instruments that engage the age group and incorporates movement in the class as well. The songs are timeless and it was fun for myself to be remind me of all the fun children's songs I hadn't thought about since childhood. I cannot carry a tune whatsoever, but fortunately my boys don't know that yet - ha. While Pippagina feels more like it is for mom, this one is something more for the babies and oh do they love it. Dads are also welcome, too!
Little by Little Studio
Little by Little is a mama-founded studio in Schwabing offering all sorts of courses for moms, children, and babies in german and english, although the offerings are predominantly german. Don't be intimidated by the language though, I took their "Post Baby 1" course in german and the instructor Amalie (also one of the founders) is Danish and led the course in a mix of both english and german.The other class participants were all german but they were all very open and kind and happy to speak english with me. Their studio is beautiful and I love how they stock all the necessities to make you feel comfortable attending class with a baby, such as BabyBjörn Bliss bouncers and loungers. If any of the babies were fussy, Amalie also often held one so that mom could keep on working out - so sweet! Little by Little has a wide variety of offerings, such as various workouts with and without baby, mommy and me formats, baby massage, and even dance courses for toddlers.
Evolve Fitness
Evolve Fitness prides itself as "Munich's Leading English-Speaking Fitness Studio" and offers a weekly "Mums & Babies" training session. Their offering is y ideal because you can purchase either a one-off class or buy a discounted 10-pack of courses to use whenever you feel like going, so e.g. if you are on vacation or someone is sick, you don't miss a class and lose the money (as opposed to many of the other course formats). Workout classes can be intimidating postpartum, but the trainers at Evolve Fitness really cater to you and don't push you to your limit (unless you want to be, then they are all for it). It is a one hour full-body strength workout with some mat training and some circuit training integrating equipment.
Others Mama / Parent / Baby Courses in Munich Worth Checking Out
If none of those are piquing your interest, there's plenty more options to explore! Seek out something you and your baby can enjoy together. I have not had the chance to try out most of these, but wanted to share the offerings I have heard about from other moms here as well.
Baby swim classes at Aqua & Soul or one of Munich's many swimming pools
Learn to sign with your baby at Sing & Sign with Amanda
Fun indoor play, music, and more at Gymboree
Mom & Baby Yoga at Fem Yoga Center, Hairu or YogaBee
Dance Class with Baby Carrier
Improve your german language skills at Mama learn Deutsch
Baby Massage
Breastfeeding Groups such as La Leche Liga
Additionally there are other family-centric studios like Haeberlstrasse 17 that offer various courses in english as well. It is worth checking out family centers in your neighborhood as well.
Ways to Meet Moms Online
If you prefer connecting online first, that is always an option too. Nevertheless I find this option inferior to the in-person courses as the reliability of the IRL options is much better.
Facebook Groups
(Insert Year) Babies & Parents München
LMBB (English Speaking Women in Munich)
Peanut App
Neighborhood-centric WhatApp Groups
What were your favorite activities during maternity leave? If there is something I missed that you loved, I would love for you to share with the community in the comments.
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