My Mama Group, Bagels & Babes!

Thank you to the Chinet® brand for sponsoring this post.

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One of the hardest parts of early motherhood for me was finding a group of mom friends I could connect with on a local level. I felt lucky to have two close friends with kids already but was longing for a support group that I could vent with, have play dates with and just hang out with. Being a work-from-home mom can feel isolating at times and I know how important it is to have the support of other moms —  it truly does take a village. I felt a little lost in how to find this group of women — I had plenty of support online but since Piper was at home the first two years of her life, I didn’t have too many opportunities to connect with other moms in my neighborhood.

I met Christina (above) through this blog and she’s one of my closest mama friends now – thanks internet! 

Slowly but surely, I started connecting with moms throughout my work and life and decided why not just invite them all over at once for brunch? I kept it simple…. just bagels + babes. I’ve since had the group over a few times and it’s one of my favorite gatherings to host. I love that I’ve been able to connect these mamas to other women who may be having similar issues with teething babies or picky toddlers, or just want to get together to chat mom stuff — something that can be hard if you don’t have a ton of mom friends!

I always keep it simple and though the kids are invited, we always say next time it’s going to be ‘moms only’ since it can be hard to get a word in sometimes — you know what I mean! I usually pick up bagels from our local bagel shop and have coffee and mimosas. I just discovered the Chinet® Comfort Cup® insulated hot cup which is the perfect, sturdy coffee cup for a group of moms trying to wrangle their kids. The easy-fit lid makes for fewer leaks and spills, and since they are disposable, cleanup is easy for me. Chinet Comfort Cup insulated hot cups perfectly hold a single-serve pod from our Nespresso — or French press, whatever your preference. :) I’ve been using my milk frother to serve lattes lately and it’s such a treat for my mamas to take on the go when they leave. You can learn more about the cups here and find them at most major retailers.

Here are some tips for starting your own mama group — I also highly recommend this book which I read in a week since I couldn’t put it down. It really inspired me to find a group of moms to connect with on a similar level.

-Use Facebook as a tool to find other friends who may be interested in getting together or use a social platform like Instagram or Peanut to meet other mamas

-Join local Facebook groups in your area

-Don’t try to over-achieve and meet too frequently, most moms are BUSY. I’ve found that it’s most likely we’ll be able to meet every other month

-Poll the group to see what time is best with naps and feeding schedules

-Set a start and end time — I suggest 2 hours. People will always stay longer and show up late. Think of it more as a window

-Have light snacks (and always coffee for the mamas)!

-Have an activity for kids of age — it will give them something to focus on and allow you to chat more, versus just having ‘free play’ all over the house

My top & jeans // Piper’s dress 

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I was selected for this opportunity as a member of CLEVER and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own. Chinet® and Comfort Cup® are registered trademarks of Huhtamaki, Inc. in the U.S. and other countries.

 

Images by Lauren Swann