Mom Tribe

Over the weekend, while celebrating my first Mother's day, I began thinking about how grateful I am for the mom tribe in my life. Motherhood is a pretty exclusive club, doesn't matter how you become one, but once you do...you're in, and motherhood does not come with a manual, but it should come with a mom tribe. 

My mom tribe began long before the baby arrived and the chaos set in. Lots of check in's from those girlfriends asking how you are feeling, what you need and what to expect. Passing on their cute maternity clothes and tips. Chats about decorating the nursery, what you need to register for, and the excitement of labor. 

Then once the baby arrives, the real talk begins. The conversations you save until she is officially ready and questions pop up like, "when am I going to sleep again?" and "what if my baby wants to cluster feed again all night tonight?"

The on going text conversations of "is this normal?" and responses of "try this!" and "you are doing a great job" Mom tribe members that just leave coffee on your door step and text you to let you know, or pack you lots of snacks to keep in your fridge for lunch time. The ones who just come sit on your couch and tell you how great you look just because you are in real clothes, or tell you how to use your breast pump. 

The best Mom tribes are made up of brand new moms, seasoned moms and everyone in between. Those veteran moms give all kinds of perspective, and encourage you that this too shall pass and to just try to take it one day at a time, and they know all the tricks! The moms who are just a couple stages ahead of you, give you a glimpse of what fun and exciting mile stones are headed your way, and those fresh moms who are right there in the middle of it with you, know exactly how you feel and you are figuring it out together. 

I read an interview one time with Kate Middleton, who spoke openly about the day to day challenges of being a new mom, and how it can sometimes feel isolating. This coming from a woman who arguably has more help than any other mom in the world, and because she is a human and a mom, she gets it! 

The beauty of the mom tribe is that it's instant support from friends near and far who are right where you are, or have been, or will be again soon. If you are a soon to be mama, or a new mom and maybe you are the first of your friends to have a baby, I will be the first to be in your tribe. It turns out that one of the best parts about motherhood is all the other Mamas. The ones who have already walked through whatever season you are in, and show you how, and the ones in the exact same season as you, helping cheer each other on.