So how did I manage to get myself out of that funk?  I joined my first mommy meet up group.  My daughter had just turned 9 months and she needed to learn how to socialize with other babies, and her mama desperately needed some mommy friends.  

I was very nervous before my first meet up.  It was almost like I was the new student all over again in high school.  What were these women going to be like?  Will they like me?  Will I like them?  What will they think of me?

I was meeting a few other moms at Child’s Play, an indoor play gym, located about 12 miles away.  I sent the organizer of the group an email letting her know that I wouldn’t be able to find her in a crowd, and let her know what I would be wearing so that she could look for me.  My husband dropped us off and said to call him when I was done.  I’m pretty sure he stood outside and watched us for a few minutes to make sure I wasn’t meeting some crazy psycho moms.  My daughter and I proceeded to play by ourselves.  No one came up looking for me.  There were a few other children about her age, and I started talking to their moms.  It wasn’t until we were getting ready to leave when the organizer of the group showed up.  She was very nice, so the fact that she was an hour late didn’t bother me much.

I joined a few other meet up groups, but I was often faced with the problem of not having transportation.  This is when I began to open up my house and host weekly play dates.  we turned our front room into a play room and had about 6 – 10 mom and their kids over once a week.

I soon had a great group of mommy friends and my daughter had lots of other kids around her age to play with.  A few of the women lived in our neighborhood and often offered us a ride to play dates.

I was now starting to feel like my old self, no longer feeling depressed or isolated.  I had fun meeting new mommies going through the same things I was going through.  I was looking forward to planning events, parties, and going out with the ladies for our mom’s night outs.

All of a sudden, that original mommy group I joined had over 100 members and I had only personally met about 20 or so moms.  It made me a little nervous that there were so many people out there knowing what we were doing and when we were doing it.  So this is the reason I decided to start my own group.

Southern Highlands Moms, Babies, and Tots is meant to bring together both working and stay at home moms who live in or near our small community.  We are all moms going through the same things and can often use a girlfriend to talk to , cry on, and laugh with.  We don’t just meet for play dates.  We have family BBQ’s, attend each others’ children’s birthday parties, and have the occasional well deserved mom’s night out.  The goal of the group is to connect moms with each other, and build friendships for ourselves, our children, and our families.

To those working moms out there who are reading this and thinking, so this is it?  She’s happy and feeling productive because she’s planning a few play dates and going out for the occasional drink with her mommy friends? That’s not at all what I’m trying to say.

What has changed, is the fact that I feel like I belong again.  I realized that my passion and purpose in life are my children.  I am there for them every waking and sleeping minute.  Every conscious and subconscious decision is made with them in mind.

I have found the meaning of life and have chosen to share it with the world.