My Mommy Group = My Sanity

I was really worried when I was pregnant that I would have my baby, leave work, and never leave the house again. Thankfully, I was wrong. Now don't misunderstand me, if I had waited for friends to come to me, I would still be sitting on my couch at home watching HGTV. But I didn't wait, because really, how can you make friends when you never leave your house? So I did just that, I left my house, with a newborn in toe. I did not wait the recommended two months before I took E out of the house. In fact, he was in his first restaurant at 4 days old (oops). I just couldn't stay inside. So when E was 5 weeks old, I decided it was time for us to go make some new mommy friends. Up until this point my friends were women with no children, and if you ever want to bore your childless friends to death, talk about breastfeeding and strollers for thirty minutes. They look at you like you have 3 heads. So I did what my mom and husband told me to do, "make mommy friends". I had no idea where to look. Are there secret hideouts, or mommy only clubs. Well, kind of. I stumbled upon meetup.com. My savior. There I joined a group for moms of babies, hey, that's me! And then I did the really hard part, I actually showed up to something! My 5 week old son had no clue he was at a "playgroup" because he slept all the way through it. But I on the other hand, had the time of my life. I could talk about car seats, nursing, c-sections, bottles, doctors, swaddling, diaper bags, vaccines, tummy time, jumpers, crawling, stretch marks, reflux, and just about anything and everything that has to do with baby and new mommy. And the best part is, the other ladies didn't give me bored eye rolls, because they themselves were in the same situations.

So if anyone else out there is a stay-at-home mom, I know how hard it is. Not only to be in isolation for several hours on end, but to make friends. But it doesn't have to be. Join mommy groups. Then actually go to the meet ups! I have found several great friends, and I have only been in my group for 3 months. In fact, I have more in common with these new friends then any of my other friends from BB (before baby). Our typical week of meet ups include the park, the pool (my favorite), and mall walking. If I don't get out at least 3 days a week, I go crazy. I feel more motivated to clean the house and actually take a shower and do my makeup when I venture out for meet ups! So I guess you could say that for me "A happy mommy makes a happy family"!

Join a meetup group by you at: www.meetup.com