Girlfriends — Hello Someday

I had a lot of mama-friends stress to me how important it is to not only get out of the house, with and without your newest bundle of joy, but that hanging with other moms is super important and helpful. I took this advice very seriously. The Little Monkey was one-week old, we packed the car like we were going on vacation (obviously!) and headed to our first Mommy & Me meet-up. I took it so seriously I even showered before going, which I found to be shocking and impressive to the other moms (but that was really just my way of tricking myself into thinking I was awake and normal and ready for the real world).

I LOVED the group. Hearing from all the other moms. All the tips on how to do this and that and the other thing, like teaching your nugget the difference between daytime and nighttime with the hopes that they will learn to sleep at night! (Lord, please let her sleep at night!) Ailish was the tiny one. And it has been nothing short of awesome watching her grow into the “big kid,” seeing the newest cycle of newbies come in and to be able to share what I’ve learned with those exhausted mamas.

It was a saving grace having my mom-friends checking in and stopping by. Facetiming and texting, to see how things were going. To find out if I was sleeping or losing my mind and to remind me that “it WILL get better.” (thanks, Mel & Sharon!) The thing about this newborn stage is that as soon as you finally get the hang of it, it changes. And that can drive you up the fluffin’ wall. But it helps to have someone to commiserate with. “Misery loves company,” right? (winky-face here, Katie!)

I’ll be honest, I was so focused on figuring out how to “spend time with other moms” I was a bit surprised and relieved and so stupid happy when my other girlfriends (sans kids) still wanted to hang out! I mean, I wasn’t surprised in that they wanted to come over and meet “the talk of the town” but that they put in A LOT of effort to continue to include me. Becoming a mom, you go through the inevitable identity crisis (Who am I now? It’s not the same anymore! WHAT HAVE I DONE!) so it was nothing short of a miracle to have my other friends reaching out too.

I don’t know about you, but for me, being at home with the baby can make “home” feel more like a tiny little box you are trapped in and desperate to escape from, but you can’t figure out where the damn flaps are that push open. And one (me!) can forget to reach out. To make plans. To put in that effort. So, to all the girlfriends out there, those with and without kids… THANK YOU! Thank you for making that effort. I wish I had done a better job with my friends that had become moms before me. And to you, I’m so sorry. I had no idea what a difference it makes. You really made this girl feel super loved and I won’t take that for granted ever again! I know as a Mama Bear it's my job to make sure that Ailish is a good friend to others, so we're starting that now.

(and that concludes this week's mushy post. The End.)