When I was pregnant with my first baby I did what millions of other newbie moms do, hit my local Buy Buy Baby to stock up for the arrival of this new human. If you are registering or shopping at one of these baby emporiums, you are usually handed a pamphlet (sidenote: is it not crazy the number of pamphlets you are handed when pregnant?? just sayin) and in this pamphlet is the baby checklist. The list of every single thing you’re going to need to successfully get that kid through his/her first few days, weeks, months of life; the baby essentials!! Everything you need to be the bestest mom ever! WOOT WOOT LOOK AT YOU GO!
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| Pregnant with baby #1 and so blissfully unaware (pamphlets not pictured) |
Fast forward 4.5 years and 2 kids later and I can say with 1000% certainty:
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| These women…love them (photo cred: Katy with the good hair) |
This was the #1 response from each mom asked; have mom friends. Like lots of mom friends. This seemed a no brainer but the more mom friends I collect, the more thankful I am to have them. Like any good friend, someone who knows where you are in life, what you’re dealing with and who can say with complete honesty, “Girl, I KNOW!”, is an actual lifesaver.
I have friends in all stages of life and each holds a very special place in my life, but my mom friends? I would probably be dead (or heavily medicated) without them. There’s nothing like being able to say to your mom friend, “I’ve created the thing that will destroy me” and having them respond, “I know, how has life continued for so many thousands of years?!”
– Playgroups/Meetups –
YES. I can’t tell you how many times a playgroup has saved me from a total mental breakdown. Having a place and time for kids to run off energy and socialize and for moms to get in some adult conversation is invaluable. As a SAHM, there are days when adult interaction is truly minimal (like I find myself trying to engage with the checkout girl at Aldi just so I can feel 35 again) and on these days it is my playgroups that give me life. They’re super great for the kids too…but ya know, most of their lives are super great anyway 🙂
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| Post playgroup…and well worth it. |
– Zoo/Museum Memberships –
A few years ago my aunts (I have 4 on my mom’s side) decided that for Christmas they were going to go the group gift route. Instead of yet another toy to fill my house, they decided to give us a membership to one of the many family focused attractions in Chicago. We were given a years membership to a fabulous zoo and have renewed the membership the last 2 years. Literally the best gift ever. On a beautiful day, perfect outing. On a crappy day, the indoor children’s zoo eats up so many hours.
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| Happy, tired kids. #zoowin |
And being members means I don’t have to figure it into our weekly budget. When I worked out the numbers, within 5 visits we had made the membership worth it. So if you don’t have 4 aunts to hook you up, spend the money once a year and reap the benefits.
– Amazon Prime/InstaCart/Any Delivery Service
This one also touches on the “worth the investment” thing. One of the things you learn quickly as a mom is that children are the least efficient human beings on the planet. And something that was once a quick, simple activity, grocery shopping for example, now requires the planning and patience of a space mission. Enter the food/house and baby supply ordering services!
I think we may have single handedly turned Amazon into the multi-billion dollar company it is. Amazon Prime is a total life saver, Instacart is genuis, our local grocery store now has order online, pick up at store. Anything that keeps me from having to physically get children into and out of the car and navigate a store, sign me up.
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| How many times per week is too many times per week? |
– The Group Message –
I have a love/hate relationship with the group message and text thing. It can be an actual pain in the ass or hours of entertainment. I am part of one that is just a bunch of mom friends and it is the greatest written account of our collective lives. At any time of the day or night you might get a message about explosive poop (our or theirs), family that’s making us crazy, kids who won’t stop getting sick, periods that are killing us, husbands that we want to flick in the face, etc. Just this morning one of the ladies messaged about what to do when older kids are being jerks to your toddler and she got a WIDE range of advice 🙂
Bottom line, these are safe places where as a mom, wife and woman we can vent, laugh and scream while everyone else shakes a collective head and goes, “I know, me too”.
– Older Mom Friends –
As a young(ish) mom of young kids I would be remiss to not learn from those who have mom-ed before me. I have a few women in my life whose wealth of parenting experience has become invaluable to me. I adore them and every mom should be lucky enough to have friends like these.
– Wine –
So cliche. So basic. So true.
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| It’s called self care, you guys. |
I should run this list past Buy Buy Baby, might open up a whole new department for them. And a new pamphlet.
xoxo
