Every member of Mirella’s team is experienced, professionally trained, and certified in at least one area of expertise if not more.

Dana Marion – Labor, Postpartum, Bereavement, and Adoption Doula

Dana is a trained labor, postpartum, bereavement, and adoption doula. She has trained with Stillbirthday and Doula Trainings International (DTI). Her belief about birth work is that it’s a holistic and spiritual approach to bringing a new life into the world.

She feels that labor & postpartum support for new moms-to-be or even mothers who have previous children is very much needed. Especially helping the family get adjusted to their new family dynamic by creating a routine that works for them.

With her being a mother and going through childbirth twice, she is the go-to for her family & friends for pregnancy, childbirth, and postpartum advice. Dana loves to share this abundance of experience with other moms-to-be / new moms. She is excited to be the support system to new or seasoned moms during this major change that is going on in their lives since it can be an intimidating time. Dana also supports adoption (birth & adoptive moms) and bereavement mothers.

Jackie Escobar – Postpartum & Infant Care Specialist

The desire to provide non-judgmental, full-spectrum support for families led Jackie to pursue her career as a doula. She completed the ProDoula Postpartum Training in 2016, right alongside Mirella Alexis.

The saying “It takes a village” has always meant much to Jackie, but in 2009, when she began work as a full-time nanny, that saying became a personal motto. In her time as a nanny, Jackie felt like a team member working alongside parents as they care for their children. Always eager to provide the very best care, she regularly attends child development workshops, seminars, and conferences. With professional development and her nanny experience, Jackie has become very knowledgeable in all aspects of infant care. She excels at anticipating the needs of growing families.

In her spare time, Jackie enjoys knitting, playing board games with friends, and tasting craft beers at local breweries. She also loves visiting art galleries and acquiring new pieces for her collection. Jackie can’t wait to support new and growing families with her experience, companionship, and solidarity as a Doula.

Jordan Ortiz – Postpartum & Overnight Doula

Jordan is a CAPPA-trained postpartum doula specializing in daytime and overnights with singletons and twins. Prior to becoming a postpartum doula, she was a well-loved nanny. Jordan is passionate about learning and providing tailored and evidence-based care to her clients. Jordan is currently in nursing school to become an RN, and her goal is to become a NICU nurse. Over the past 5 years, she has worked with 3 sets of twin girls and is also very familiar with and comfortable supporting families with preemies. One of her many strengths includes helping families establish both daytime and overnight routines for their babies. She knows how important this is for many families and also knows that this can truly help babies with their development.

Jordan is a true professional and appreciates that she can support families during this transformative and amazing time. She feels so grateful that she is able to provide professional, caring, and tailored care to each family that she supports. Families love her kind and gentle techniques and love the commitment and passion she has for this work. Jordan loves building and maintaining relationships with her clients, and clients can truly see how much she cares.

When not caring for her clients, Jordan LOVES cooking and can cook anything. She also loves to travel as she has been to 30 states and 3 countries!

Ellen Beth – Professional Nanny, Sitter & Overnight Care

Ellen Beth has always had a strong passion for children and music. Born and raised in Chicago, Ellen graduated from Columbia College with a Bachelor’s Degree in Arts, Entertainment & Media Management. Upon graduation, Ellen accepted a job with the Warner Music Group, where she worked for several years.

While pursuing other endeavors, Ellen continued to work with children. She has worked at a daycare center and church nursery, as well as as a professional nanny and household manager. She is CPR/AED/First Aid Certified and certified in Red Cross: Babysitting Training Courses, Virtus Training: Protecting God’s Children, Creating a Positive Child Care Environment, and Literacy for Infants & Toddlers. She participated in the National Nanny Training Day 2015, Chicago Nanny Training Day 2016 & Nanny Stella of the TV series Nanny 911.

She has worked with children with special needs: Autism, Epilepsy, ADD/ADHD, developmental/sensory/speech delays, behavioral problems, sensory processing disorder, and asthma.

Having over 20 years of experience with children of all ages, Ellen quickly creates a strong bond with the children she meets. She genuinely loves children and is committed to teaching through play. Ellen encourages reading, crafts, imaginative play, and singing. She enjoys engaging children in different activities and challenging them toward success. Her silly and fun approach leaves a lasting impression and a positive one. In recent years, Ellen has become an overnight care specialist for children ages newborn and up. 

Shanell Harris – Career Nanny & Sitter

Shanell Is a dedicated and loving nanny of over a decade. Born and raised in NY, at the age of 16, she and her family relocated to NW, Indiana, where she finished high school and college. She graduated college in 2011 with an associate in medical assistant. 

Halfway through college, she realized this wasn’t the route she wanted to pursue; however, she had a firm personal belief in finishing what she had started. Shortly after graduating and failing to find a job in the field, she started working at ABC Academy, which was a preschool. She stayed at the preschool for about 2.5 years before being offered a live-in nanny position in Chicago. 

She moved to Chicago in 2013, where I became a live-in nanny for 7.5 years. During this job, she finally discovered what she wanted to do. She knew she was to be a professional nanny. She loves the bond that is created with not just the children but also the parents.  

To best describe her nannying style, it would be structured. She believes children thrive off of routine and structure. She views children as humans, just smaller. She believes they have emotions and feelings just like we do. So, she respects children and, in return, is respected. She also believes in following the parents and being on the same team. So if that looks like a tight schedule to follow or planning everything. She prides herself on communicating effectively with both adults and children. 

The Beauty of working in a preschool is that Shanell was able to work with all age groups, from Infants to elementary kids. So every age group is great. Naturally, starting with a family with babies works best because she’s able to build a stronger bond. However, she’s able to connect with every age group. 

Shanell has a big heart and a lot of love to share. She is passionate about nannying and serious about this being her profession.

Brittany Glidden – Nanny, Sitter, Night Nanny, House Manager & Family/Personal Assitant

Brittany has 16 years of experience and a background in cosmetology, early childhood education, child development, and nursing. She has experience with all ages, from premature newborns to preteen. She has experience with multiples, newborn care, night nanny, nanny shares, house manager, personal assistant, and family assistant roles.

She loves to be active and explore the city with kids; she’s comfortable transporting them by bus, walking, train, or car. She also loves going to kiddie classes, parks, zoos, museums, etc.

She strongly believes in treating children kindly, respectfully, and as whole individual people. She is a big believer that emotional and psychological health is just as important as physical health.

She’s very organized and open-minded; she comes with lots of knowledge and experience but prides herself on continuously learning and growing. She enjoys attending continuing education conferences and taking classes online to broaden her skill set. (That’s how she met mirella!)

She’s a hard worker and willing to learn anything she doesn’t know or build on her current skills and talents. She shows her appreciation by going above and beyond and taking initiative.

She loves to laugh and have fun. Is serious when called for, firm while still flexible. She believes in leading by example, positive parenting practices, helping children through their emotions, not sweating the small stuff, setting clear and concise boundaries, and consistent natural consequences. She believes in building confidence by setting children up for success and teaching responsibility, kindness, and empathy.

Her experience has taught her to have realistic expectations of children, their abilities, and their limitations, which helps her stay calm, cool, and collected in high-stress situations. She values the safety and the bodily autonomy of children.

She loves to spend the summer at the beach. She can sew and crochet, loves to paint, and is a giant math & science lover.

Katie Ford – Nanny, Sitter, Baby Enthusiast

Katie’s passion for childcare emerged very early in her life. Around age 5, she knew the feeding schedules of all the neighborhood babies so she could help feed them. She started babysitting as a teen and eventually found nannying to be the perfect career. She has bonded deeply with all of the children she has cared for. Becoming a mom in early 2020 only gave her greater insight into the needs of new parents. Helping families brings Katie great joy!

Nicole Bierbower – Sitter & Nanny

Nicole has tons of experience behind her. She started working in childcare at the park district when she was in high school, doing before and after care; she met a family and started her first nannying job when she was 19. She had her first child when she was 20. She began working at a hospital for the next 7.5 years as a nursing assistant, so you can rest assured that she has CPR and first aid experience. She was in the nursing program and withdrew when her son was 4 years old and diagnosed with autism. Her son is 16 now. Therefore, she has first-hand experience with special needs. She left the hospital and began working in u46, the second biggest school district in Illinois after CPS. She worked in health services and managed 16 schools by herself, including floating between 8 junior high schools and 4 high schools. When COVID struck, she had to stay home with her two small children until they could return to school. At that time, she began teaching preschool and coaching youth gymnastics and cheer. She was PTO president for 2 years and on the executive board for another 4. She was a Girl Scout troop leader for a few years with her daughter, who is now 10. years old. And was a youth teacher at her church. She loves children. She loves to play and is very creative. You can rest assured your child will be safe and given some of the best care with Nicole.

Julia Clemens – Sitter Extraordinaire

Julia is thankful for this opportunity to be able to work with such an amazing team at Mirella Alexis Childcare! She has always had a love for children, animals, music, live events, and giving back to the community! Before moving to Chicago, Julia attended Florida State University, where she graduated with her Bachelor of Science. She hopes to gain as much experience as she can in this role and help children reach their goals!

Kelly Avila – Sitter

Kelly is in her last year of college and is a pre-med student. She is from the city’s northwest side and is the oldest of seven siblings. She loves children and being a caregiver. She’s been babysitting since she was a young teenager and is always excited to learn more about being a parent. She loves cooking, reading, and especially going on nature walks and long drives. 

Karma Plomin – Sitter, Nanny & Mother’s Helper

Karma has had a variety of childcare experiences over the past 12 years, from providing care for up to a dozen kids at once (ages 1-10) to full-day nannying of a 1-year-old. She specializes in supporting children aged 3 and under and encourages them to become expressive and aware as they explore the world around them. She is passionate about mental health and researches various therapy modalities and parenting styles in her free time. Karma is creative, light-hearted, and empathetic. She has a knack for bringing those qualities to her daily interactions, including childcare experiences.

Onix Martinez – Professional Nanny & Sitter

Onix Martinez is 42 years old and a brand-new mom! She’s passionate about children, to say the least. She loves and adores children of all ages. She has been a professional career nanny for over 18 years and specializes in infants. Therefore, nurturing and taking care of children is indeed her specialty!

Nekaiya Herring, The Farm Doula – Holistic Labor & Postpartum Doula

As a compassionate advocate for mothers, babies, and the families that support them, Nekaiya is a Certified Holistic Labor and a C.A.P.P.A trained Postpartum Doula. She serves women who desire an empowering, autonomous, and transformative birth. Her services include placenta encapsulation, lotus birth consulting, belly binding, and nutritional guidance, including postpartum herbal remedies.

Nekaiya cherishes the need for the mother to feel comfortable, peaceful, and supported during her postpartum recovery. She believes that serving the mother is the top priority in a family unit since the wellness of the family comes from the wellness of the mother. She studies her family’s structure, strengths, and challenges and positions herself as an extended member, intuitively filling the gaps that are needed to build a strong, supportive family around the new mother and baby.

She enjoys assisting families in understanding their baby’s development as well as the new dynamics, routines, and home organization that are necessary for creating a cohesive and symbiotic relationship between the family and the baby.

When Nekaiya is not supporting families, she enjoys teaching children in her homeschool co-op and growing food for her family and clients.

Families love Nekaiya’s warm nature, expertise, and commitment to their wholeness.

Kara Alexander – Postpartum/Labor Doula, Newborn Care Specialist, Lactation Educator

Alyssa Stasiak – Labor & Postpartum Doula

Alyssa Stasiak is the spunky middle child of 10. Yes, you read that correctly—10! She’s been a caregiver for as long as she can remember. Siblings, cousins, nieces and nephews, and now as a labor support and postpartum doula. She previously worked full-time as a childcare professional for over 8 years, since transitioning to assisting families with bringing their babies earth-side and immediately following. She specializes in working with sets of multiple and queer, same-sex and trans families. Her goal is to help facilitate a seamless transition with your newest member(s) of the family. She is here to educate and advocate for the families she works beside. In her free time, she is with her husband, wrangling 4 cats and 3 Great Danes.

Briana Oden – Labor & Postpartum Doula

Briana is a full-spectrum doula who has a lot of passion for birth work. She has supported family & friends throughout their pregnancy & breastfeeding journeys for years before becoming formally trained & certified. Being a full-spectrum doula gives her the ability to support your family through birth and/or the postpartum period. She is patient, nurturing, reliable & emotionally present with her clients. Briana is confident & eager to support you through your birth experience. She primarily works overnight when supporting postpartum families.

Briana decided to become a doula after experiencing her own birth trauma, as well as listening to others share their stories. She noticed a common trend in lack of knowledge & support surrounding pregnancy, birth, breastfeeding & postpartum care, which has led too many women, especially those from marginalized communities, to experience unnecessary birth trauma. She started her doula journey believing she would only help with homebirths but quickly understood the NEED for her presence, advocacy & support in hospital settings where most birth trauma occurs. Her main goal as a doula is to educate & provide emotional & physical support for clients, thus giving them the confidence to make the right decisions for themselves, decreasing the chance of an undesirable birth experience.

When Briana is not out fighting for birth justice, she is homeschooling her 2 young boys (ages 7 & 9), being a soccer mom, and running her own bath & body business. She clearly loves to stay busy through service & pouring into others.

Audrey Schillinger – Educator, Nanny & Sitter

Audrey is a 27-year-old from Chicago IL, currently living on the Northside for the last 3 years. With 7+ years in professional childcare, ages 6 months to 11 years old, she genuinely loves children. First, starting her career working in customer service, she has been able to transfer her skill in situational awareness to her current field of work. Believing patience, empathy, and effective communication, no matter the age, are the building blocks in aiding a growing mind. Working through COVID-19 as a Nanny and E-learning teacher, she can handle chaotic/high-stress environments with a clear mind, knowing a calm demeanor is better received.

With an open schedule, she can accommodate most scheduling changes, even at the last minute! Audrey is used to having multiple children in the home as she is the oldest cousin on both sides of her family and the oldest to twin younger brothers. She spends her summers with friends doing various outdoor activities such as water parks, road trips to other state beaches, and dog parks with her dog. With a lot of excitement, Audrey is ready to meet with you and expound on her love for her career and the skills she has learned through all of her amazing experiences.

Jenni Lopez – Sitter

Jenni loves caring for children because she wants to be part of molding our future leaders for when it’s their time. She loves to know children are safe, loved, and cared for. Her experience with children includes taking care of newborns, toddlers, school-aged children, preteens, and teens for friends and family. Her current position is as a part-time after-school nanny in Oak Park. Her favorite hobbies are weightlifting, reading, arts/crafts, and exploring new places.

Natalie Dias – Nanny, Sitter, Nurse

Natalie Dias has been a career nanny for over 12 years, a nursing student, and the mom of a beautiful toddler boy. She resides in Logan Square and loves serving all the families around the Chicagoland area! 

Beatriz Gonzalez, LCSW. Has an undergraduate degree and a Master’s degree in Social Work from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She is bilingual in Spanish/English and enjoys working with a diverse population. She’s currently working as a therapist and has extensive experience working with children and families in a daycare setting, tutoring setting, and throughout her therapeutic work. When she is not at work, she enjoys long nature walks, trying out new coffee spots, or catching up on the newest binge-worthy TV show.

Nikaya McWilliams – Educator, Nanny & Sitter

Nikaya McWilliams is an early childhood educator. She has worked in early childhood education for over 13 years, in which she has had numerous roles. She has been an infant, toddler, and preschool teacher, as well as an assistant director. She has also nannied for the last four years. She has a master’s degree in early childhood administration and enjoys every minute she gets to spend with children!