Local Mom Groups

Serenamarr · May 2015

So I will be the first to admit-- I have no friends! We just moved in December and I haven't found any opportunities to put myself in any kind of social situation to meet anyone in the area. FI is literally the only person I interact with, and I think if that continues after I have LO I may go insane.

I have looked for mom groups locally and found essentially nothing worthwhile. My mom suggested that I start one of my own. I'm not totally opposed to the idea, but I have no idea where to begin! How do you find others? How do you get the word out while simultaneously making sure not to attract 50 year old men in a van down by the river?

For any STMs who have been in Mommy groups, what does it entail? What do you do at get togethers? Not a natural born leader here. Any experience helps!

Knottie64157109 · May 2015

Ditto when I moved to Cali. I used meetup.com for woman only hiking groups and now pregnancy groups. It's an easy way to break the ice.

laurendutch · May 2015

I belong to a twin Mommy group.

A friend of mine in So Cal took a Mommy and Me class from the Park and Rec and was able to meet people that way. I think you can find local music classes, gymnastic classes, yoga classes, and swim classes that are geared towards an infant and Mom interaction.

lilitaliangirl · May 2015

Not sure if this is your thing or not, but this is a mom's group site you can find a local group. They are Christian based.....
https://www.mops.org/groupsearch/

karaelaine1991 · May 2015

Have you checked with your pediatrician or OB? both of mine have flyers for local mom groups that meet up in the area. Some are purely for socialization, others are like breastfeeding/new mom support groups. Good luck!

KaLikeAWind · May 2015

My local YMCA has 'shrimp dip' classes for babies starting at 6m. I plan to do that to meet some other adults with kids the ewoks age. Also, @karaelaine1991 clued me into this - the local library has lapsit programs for parents and kids, even kids as young as infants (I don't remember the exact starting age, but I remember being surprised at how young it was when I went to my library and checked out their schedule)

karaelaine1991 · May 2015

mellymar said:
My local YMCA has 'shrimp dip' classes for babies starting at 6m. I plan to do that to meet some other adults with kids the ewoks age. Also, @karaelaine1991 clued me into this - the local library has lapsit programs for parents and kids, even kids as young as infants (I don't remember the exact starting age, but I remember being surprised at how young it was when I went to my library and checked out their schedule)

Yes, thank you for the library shout out, @mellymar! Ages for baby lapsit vary from library to library, but most of the libraries in my area say you can start bringing your baby as soon as you're comfortable doing so! I personally would recommend at least 2 months because of vaccinations, but as far as my library is concerned, whenever you're ready!

KaLikeAWind · May 2015

No prob, @karaelaine1991! Its really a good idea and I'm looking forward to it. I'll probably start going in September once the weather starts to get cold up here. We'll have started vaccines by then and will probably be ready for a change of pace from hectic first months.

dancegurl1118 · May 2015

We moved somewhere new without the opportunity to meet many new people. My job makes it somewhat tough to do groups etc (nights and a varied schedule). I'm hoping I'll be able to at least join some mom groups, because all my friends from different points in life don't have kids/aren't anywhere near having kids. It's a bit isolating, especially for my husband as well. He's a very social person and it's hard for him to not have a core group where we live.

valeriemarie24 · May 2015

Meetup.com has all kinds of different groups you can search through and become a member of.
Also check out community centres or YMCA in your city, some of them have mom groups and mom & baby exercise classes, and they are a great resource for meeting new people.

lovethatcolosun · May 2015

It happened organically for me and the friends I met. I didn't really start venturing out until around 4-5 months. I started with the library book babies program and met a friend there. She had play dates where I met other friends she met along the way through her breast feeding class, parenting class and neighbors.

Honestly in the beginning play dates are just an excuse to get moms together for some adult conversation. The kids don't do much playing until they're mobile.

Serenamarr · May 2015

Thanks for the suggestions ladies! I guess I would feel more comfortable starting a group if I had at least one other mom I knew on board. Hopefully I can meet someone in the places suggested above and we can put something together!

laurendutch · May 2015

I think it's important to be proactive in meeting people. It's almost like dating again where you have to be a little uncomfortable asking for a number or a play date. But just remember that most Moms are in the same boat as you and would love some interaction with other Moms.

HoosOnFirst · May 2015

I'm in the same boat and the biggest pet peeve is that many of these groups don't assume moms actually work. The last "meetup" they had was at like 10 am on a weekday. This should probably go in the gripes thread!

karaelaine1991 · May 2015

hoodoll82 said:
I'm in the same boat and the biggest pet peeve is that many of these groups don't assume moms actually work. The last "meetup" they had was at like 10 am on a weekday. This should probably go in the gripes thread!

I plan to be a SAHM, but after working in the library, I've really become aware of how little there is available for working moms! My supervisor is awesome, but she refuses to work after 4PM and avoids working weekends like the plague - which means that 90% of the library's programs for kids are only available for kids during the weekday, excluding 1) all the kids who go to school and 2) all the families with 2 working parents. After observing this, when I eventually do become a children's librarian when LO's a bit older, I fully intend to commit at least one night of the week to programming for working families. It's not right that they're excluded from so much.

Serenamarr · May 2015

@hoodoll82 even though I don't work, the only existing groups in my area are so dreadfully specific and I don't fit into any of them so i get what you're saying. There is the Italian American mom group, over 35 mom group, Jewish mom group, and a lesbian mom group. That's about it here. My town is a beach town so the amount of people who actually live here year round is small, and there are virtually no young people here, I believe the average age of a year round resident in my town is 54. That's why I'm thinking I will start my own! Maybe you could start a 'working mom's group'.

mccall35 · May 2015

I would also suggest meetup.com (again it can be biased towards SAHMs, but I've also seen Working mum meetup groups, so depending on your location there may be more offered).

Parks and Playgrounds and Splashpads! They're a hotzone for meeting mums (and dads). Take full advantage of nice summer days

I'm also a regular at our library's Storytime programming. There are 8 branches across the city and they all do storytime on different days and at different times (some conducive to working parents).

Lastly, we have Early Childhood Education Centres that offer free programming Mon-Fri 8-5, those are great for when the weather is nasty and you want to play/hangout inside, I've met a few good ladies there as well.

ETA: Like anything in life, you get out what you put in. Making friends can be a challenge at any age, but having a baby/toddler/child can be a great icebreaker! Good luck!

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