About a year ago a friend and I at church started a 'Moms and Tots group', thinking it would be great to get to know other moms with young ones in the congregation. Over the past year the group has morphed so much, and I absolutely love it. What started out as just the two of us and our kiddos meeting in the church basement every Wednesday morning (hoping someone else would eventually join us) has turned into a group of 20+ ladies and their children from all over the West Island of Montreal. Not all are regular attenders, we're usually about 8 moms or so with a mess of kids each week.
We've gone on outings (Quinn farm, local park, pet store, petting zoo), but mainly meet in people's homes, sharing the responsibility of bringing snacks for everyone and the burden of tidying before/after a crowd's arrival.
I've learned over the past year that there are many, many of us at home with kiddos in search of community. A place where our struggles, desires, and daily events are similar to those around us. (Makes the insanity feel normal, I guess?) And it is incredibly important to have a place to ask for help, and a place where we can be of help to others - with both aspects being equally important.
I also can't help but notice that, although one year of parental leave is fabulous compared to many countries, it's still pretty short. Especially when kids require 'integration' into the childcare system prior to mom returning to work at the end of the year. Aside from, like, 3 of us moms, the rest are moms of wee ones. We should really change the name to Moms and Babies (with a few random toddlers throw in for good measure and some violence). Watching others go down a path my family didn't choose has reaffirmed our choice in me staying home with the boy(s). I know its not for everyone, but it's been the right choice for us and am confirmed in that choice almost every week.
Not really sure where I'm going with this... I guess it's just my thoughts driving home after play group this morning and contemplating life with wee ones and how everyone's reality is different, yet we all yearn to fit in somewhere.
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