Small Steps, Big Leaps LLC

Do you know where your tongue should be resting at?

When we aren’t talking, eating, or drinking, our tongue should naturally rest suctioned to the roof of our mouth. Your sweet babe is no different!

Your baby’s tongue that rests up on the roof of their mouth helps support:

✨ Healthy oral and facial development
✨ Proper jaw growth
✨ Development of a wide palate (roof of the mouth)
✨ Efficient swallowing patterns
✨ Feeding development foundations
✨ Stability of head, neck, and body positioning

When the tongue rests low in the mouth, babies are more likely to develop an open-mouth posture, which can contribute to increased mouth breathing.

🌀Why is nasal breathing so important?

Our noses are designed for breathing! Nasal breathing:
💨 Acts as a filter
🦠 Helps trap germs, allergens, and particles
😴 Supports better sleep quality
🧠 Promotes optimal oxygen and carbon dioxide balance in the body
💪 Supports proper tongue posture and oral muscle development

If you frequently notice your baby resting with their mouth open, snoring, struggling with feeding, has milk tongue, or having difficulty maintaining the tongue-up posture, reach out so we can work together to optimize your baby’s airway.

At Small Steps, Big Leaps, we look beyond milestones and consider how foundational skills—like breathing, tongue posture, and feeding—can impact a child’s development from the very beginning.

As pediatric OTs, we get to play for a living—and there’s so much more to it than meets the eye!

What looks like an obstacle course, a game, or a fun challenge is actually a carefully crafted opportunity to build skills. We take engaging, motivating activities and adapt them to target each child’s unique therapy goals—helping a child gain skill and confidence along the way.

The best part? Kids are having so much fun they often don’t realize how hard they’re working.

Play is a child’s most natural way of learning. Through play, children practice new skills, overcome challenges, build confidence, and experience success in a meaningful way. That’s why so many children love coming to therapy—they get to do what they do best while gaining the tools they need to thrive in everyday life.

At Small Steps, Big Leaps, we believe the most powerful learning happens when children are engaged, empowered, and having fun. 🤎✨