Friendships

Raleigh and I have been going to a play group once a week for a few years now. In Montana it is a good thing because it guarantees that we get some socializing (both mother and child) at least once or twice a week when the weather's bad. This group of mommies were a tremendous support to me when I was coming out of my hole from Raleigh crying for the first 6 months of her life. Not only did they encourage me but also gave me creative ways of approaching "dealing with Raleigh". I owe most of my sanity to these ladies....

This summer, one was in Fort Collins in training with Crusade with her family, one had a baby, and another was deathly ill. I saw two of the women when I went and helped them and their families, but we had not all been together for several months. Tonight we hosted a barbeque and when Raleigh saw them coming down the street she shouted their names at the top of her lungs....

Of course, at the barbeque conversations were disjointed and there was a lot of crying and fighting for toys (7 kids under the age of 3 years old) but when the dust settled I think the overall sentiment is that we are all SOOO thankful for each other!!! Our girls are exhausted and our hearts are full because we are proud to be friends to each other and moms to our adorable bundles of love and friendship. Maybe these pictures will share the sentiment better than I. They are standing in a "Holy Board" game that the mommies were trying to play without the interference of 'our little helpers.' I am really looking forward to another year of bonding (both big girls and little girls) and learning from one another!