About - Your Kid's Table

Welcome to
Your Kid’s Table!

Your Kid’s Table is a website run by pediatric occupational therapists.  With nearly 50 years of combined experience and collectively treating nearly 1000 children directly, and thousands more online, we want to share the best, proven ways to help kids with sensory issues, picky eating, sensory diets, feeding milestones, and toddlers/babies that refuse to eat!

Our Mission

As OT’s, we’ve seen first hand that when a child isn’t eating well or sensory issues are present the stress it can cause everyone in the family. 

Unfortunately, how to help kids overcome these challenges isn’t common knowledge, and parents are often given a lot of bad advice, if any at all.  

We believe it’s possible for EVERY family to enjoy mealtimes, manage picky eating, help sensory issues, and confidently meet feeding milestones like learning to eat table foods, drinking from a straw, and using a spoon.

This is only possible with education, and that is the drive behind Your Kid’s Table. We desperately want to teach parents and professionals just like you, so that we can begin to make a real change about how parents help their children eat and engage in sensory activities.

We continue to share new articles on the blog, and every Wednesday we send out tips and resources right to your inbox in our weekly newsletter!

Our Team

Alisha Grogan, MOT, OTR/L

Alisha created Your Kid’s Table in 2012 because of the deep felt need for simplified picky eating and sensory strategies for parents. As a pediatric occupational therapist and mom she wanted to share how change is possible. Since then Your Kid’s Table has grown to a small team of occupational therapists. Alisha continues to be deeply involved in content and supporting students the picky eating online course Mealtime Works and the sensory course RISE with Sensory.

Alisha’s Professional Background

Alisha Grogan graduated from Duquesne University with a Master’s Degree in Occupational Therapy in 2004. During her career she has worked in the early intervention program for Allegheny County in Pennsylvania, which provides in-home therapy to children 0-3 years of age. Her experience also includes Easter Seals of Pittsburgh as a school based occupational therapist in approved private schools and directly in students’ homes through PA Cyber Schools, as well as at Lynne C. Israel and Associates (now Sensational Kids Therapy) in Washington D.C.   As an OT in this private practice, she had the opportunity to work at an innovative therapy based summer sensory camp, provide outpatient occupational therapy, and treat directly in the school setting.

Throughout these various settings, Alisha has worked with children from birth through 21 years old.

Alisha has also completed a variety of continuing education courses on children’s feeding skills and sensory processing, such as S.O.S. (Sensory, Oral, Sequential) Approach to Feeding and Talk Tools. In part, those courses have shaped her clinical approach and expertise.

Alisha is licensed as an occupational therapist in the state of Pennsylvania and nationally certified by the National Board Certification of Occupational Therapist (NBCOT).

Desiree Helbig, MOT, OTR/L

Project Manager, Customer Service

Desiree’s Professional Background

Desiree graduated from University of Pittsburgh in 2007 with her Master’s Degree in Occupational Therapy.  During her field work experience at the Children’s Therapy Center she found her passion for working in pediatrics.  

Desiree then continued her career as a pediatric OT at  Positive Steps Therapy providing Early Intervention and Outpatient Services to children all around the Pittsburgh area. During her last 5 years at Positive Steps, Desiree Served as Facility Director in the Gibsonia Clinic. Desiree went on to provide tele-health occupational therapy services to children through the cyber school system including PA Cyber and Arkansas Virtual Academy.

Desiree is certified in S.O.S. (Sensory, Oral, Sequential) Approach to Feeding , Therapeutic Listening, Interactive Metronome and Handwriting Without Tears.

Desiree is licensed as an occupational therapist in the state of Pennsylvania and nationally certified by the National Board Certification of Occupational Therapist (NBCOT).

Laura Mau, OTD, OTR/L

Content & Social Media Coordinator

Laura’s Professional Background

Laura received a Clinical Doctorate in Occupational Therapy from Belmont University in 2015. She completed a residency project with New Trails Learning Systems in Texas, to develop a sensory-based curriculum for children and adults with neurodiversity and sensory difficulties. 

She began practicing in Colorado pediatric home health, providing services to a diverse and complex caseload in a mixed urban and rural setting with limited access to medical and healthcare. 

After relocating to Billings, Montana, Laura became the occupational therapy representative for Montana Feeding Matters, a partnership between local hospitals, outpatient clinics, and early intervention services to provide a collaborative approach to feeding and eating difficulties. This experience in multi-disciplinary feeding therapy was foundational to her continued interest in pediatric feeding disorders. She is now back in Colorado, working in the outpatient pediatric and adult setting at Rehab For All Therapy Services

She is licensed as an occupational therapist in the state of Colorado and nationally certified by the National Board Certification of Occupational Therapist (NBCOT).

Dive Deeper

Sensory Activities Workshop

Free 1 hour workshop with a workbook to learn 3 expert secrets for wielding the power of sensory activities to calm and focus your child!

Therapist Resource Center

Are you an OT, SLP, PT, teacher or other professional working with kids? We’ve got you covered with tools and freebies to support your practice.

Turn Around Picky Eating Workshop

Get the most essential first steps taught by Alisha to help your child eat new foods, no matter how picky they are!

Shop Our Store

Our best resources including our AOTA approved courses for parents and professionals, sensory diet cards, and 8 week meal plan for picky kids!

More About
Alisha Grogan

Alisha Grogan is the primary author of hundreds of detailed blog posts on Your Kid’s Table LLC, and thousands of social media posts, based on her professional expertise as a pediatric occupational therapist that has specialized in feeding (picky eating and babies having difficulty learning to eat to solids) and sensory processing (sensory seeking, sensory sensitivities, sensory diets, etc.) She has been featured in various publications and media sources, as detailed below.

Publications

Alisha Grogan has created leading American Occupational Therapy Approved (AOTA) online courses in picky eating (Mealtime Works), sensory (RISE with Sensory), and transitioning to table food (Table Food School) that thousands of students around the world, both parents and professionals have participated in.

She is also the author of numerous products including Sensory Diet Cards, 8 Week Meal Plan for Picky Eaters, and Printable Handouts for Therapists to use as a resource for clients on their caseload. 

Alisha has shared her expertise on reputable expert websites such as Super Healthy Kids, The OT Toolbox, and The Inspired Treehouse.

Professional Speaking

Alisha presented at the 2021 Talk Tools Conference teaching, How to Identify and Treat the Sensory Component of Pediatric Feeding Difficulties to hundreds of occupational therapists, and has spoken at local parent community events about picky eating. Alisha has also been a guest expert on CBS Pittsburgh on multiple occasions to discuss Healthy Snacks for Picky Eaters, Healthy Eating for Kids and Parents, and Helping Picky Kids to Eat Dinner. 

Alisha has also joined other experts on their podcasts, such as The Nourished Child with Jill Castle, and Anxious Toddlers to Teens with Natasha Daniels to discuss sensory processing issues in children.

Contributions

Alisha Grogan has been sought after as an expert and contributed her expertise in Parents magazine and The Huffington Post.

She has also spoken at her alma mater, Duquesne University’s School of Occupational Therapy, and shared on several panels to discuss occupational therapy entrepreneurship and online practice. Alisha has also been interviewed by occupational doctoral candidates from the school, as a feeding expert on various occasions.

Featured On

Alisha’s body of work on Your Kid’s Table has been shared and cited as a resource on a large number of websites, including The American Journal of Occupational Therapy’s OT Practice Magazine, Healthline (Best Sensory Processing Disorder Blogs), Feedspot (Best Kids Food Blogs), The Friendship Circle, and Romper.

In 2023, she was featured in the Fun & Function sensory catalog.

Our Favorite Your Kid’s Table Articles

Learn how to help your child or toddler with picky eating. Get practical tips and strategies you can start today for the picky eater in your life! #parenting #toddler #pickyeating #pickyeater #yourkidstable #kids
Learn the important symptoms and signs of sensory processing disorder in toddlers and children from an occupational therapist, and how to get a diagnosis and treatment options for SPD.
Is your baby or toddler gagging on foods all of a sudden? Does your toddler chew food and spit it out? Or, your baby won't put food in their mouth? Find out what's normal and what's not from a pediatric occupational therapist.
The ultimate guide to sensory diets that includes a sensory diet template PDF, powerful sensory diet examples, and 4 steps to create your own sensory diet today!
Get these easy home or school lunch ideas for picky eaters with lots of no cook healthy options that are totally do-able!
Want to know how to handle a hyperactive child? I've got you covered with three big strategies and over 20 simple activities that can change everything for hyperactive kids. Improve focus, attention, learning, and communication! #parenting #parentinghacks #toddler #childhood

Find Us On Social Media

Have a question? Or want to collaborate? Email us at hello@yourkidstable.com

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