moms groups
We had a ball at moms group today, and I thought I would share today what a rich time is available for those who have the chance to gather with other mamas of babies their baby's age.
I have the great opportunity to facilitate a couple moms groups a week within the Providence system. These are gifts as far as Providence is considered, free and available to anyone in the system (and very inexpensive for anyone outside the health system). Providence provides the instructor time, meeting area, and small budget to keep the program well supplied.
The moms supply the wisdom and real life examples by bringing their babies every week (or what ever weeks they are able to) and sharing their tales of sleeplessness or feeding struggles with other moms who have questions or similar struggles. I try to keep the machine going in the same direction, and add in my 2 cents (ok, it is a lot more, but this post is about the group, not about me!) and connect mamas whenever possible.
The moms get to hang with their babies and they get to build relationships with other new mamas that they may never have met--even if they live in the same neighborhood (just happened last week for some new mamas). Moms get to ask the silly questions, observe how others feed, diaper, burp and soothe their babies. And learn from each other.
Today was slightly unusual in that we had a guest speaker, lots of goodies to give away (thanks to GreenSprouts yesterday) and still got all the way around the circle only going over time by a quarter hour! This might not seem that impressive, but every mommy gets the floor for her turn, and some turns take longer than others....
What I loved was that almost every question the mamas asked, someone had the experience to answer. Makes my job very easy, and very fun when that happens.
If you have a local moms group that you are able to attend, try it out. If there is nothing nearby, consider starting one and hosting it. You will build your mama village, boost your know how, and hopefully feel more confident in your own growing skills to nurture your baby.
I am ever thankful that those of us in PDX have many opportunities for such rich interaction, and I am proud to be part of a system that gives so much to the mama community. Thanks Providence!