The Ames Public Library is more than a place to check out books; it also offers a space for parents and caregivers to come together for a program called The Mothering Circle.

“Being a parent, being a mother, especially with all the changes in your body, is a pretty challenging process and a pretty lonely road, especially in today’s world where we are such a mobile society. We are not by other family members that can tell us, ‘Oh, yeah, this is what I went through,’ so this is a program where moms can come together, see that they’re not alone and have some guidance,” said Jerri Heid, youth services manager for the Ames Public Library.

The guidance is given to parents who attend the programs by Karen Danley, someone that Heid said has training and knowledge to offer to parents that the librarians cannot.

“Of course they talk about diapers and feeding, sleeping habits, but they also talk about reading and how important it is to talk with your child and have those conversation terms,” Heid said.

Though the name of the program is “The Mothering Circle,” Heid said anyone who identifies as a caregiver is welcome.

“I use the term ‘moms’ generically; it is called the ‘The Mothering Circle,’ but it’s also for fathers; it’s for anyone who has a child in that infant to toddler range that needs support,” Heid said.

The Mothering Circle takes place from 9:15-10:15 a.m. and 10:30-11:30 a.m. on the first and third Thursday of every month in the Teen Space of the Ames Public Library. The next session of the program will take place March 19.

“We have two times each time we hold this program,” Heid said. “We have an earlier time, and then an hour and a half later, we have it again. […] We needed that second time because sessions were getting too full, and we wanted to allow everyone time to speak and ask questions.”

Heid said it is like any other of the library’s programs in that just because it is scheduled at a certain time does not mean that parents have to arrive right on time or even stay for the whole time. Parents and caregivers are welcome to come and go as they need based on their own needs and the needs of their children.

“We put the sessions in the teen room because it has really nice furniture, there are a couple of sofas in there and they set it up so we corral the kids in there so they cannot get out of sight, so there is that worry taken away from parents,” Heid said. “And then, it’s basically just conversation.”

Topics of the sessions are up to those who attend. Heid said one session may be all about potty training, and another might be about “My child is not eating, what do I do?” or she said it might be all of those things. Danley acts as a facilitator during sessions and can answer certain questions people have, but Heid said a lot of the questioning and answering is a natural process through the conversation.

Heid said The Mothering Circle has been around for about four years; it started when Danley approached the library about starting a program where caregivers could come together for the community.

“It is not lecturing, it is really a circle of conversation about what is happening because we know babies are not the same, and even within the same family, two children can be completely different,” Heid said. “My oldest granddaughter was totally different than the second granddaughter. My second granddaughter cried from the second she came out into the world till about kindergarten.”

To learn more about events at the Ames Public Library go to the library’s website.