Friends with kids.

My husband is out of town tonight.  Can we come over and hang out?
Want to join us for dinner?
Can I watch Caroline for you when you pack?
Can you babysit James Wednesday afternoon?
Pool today?
Zoo tomorrow.  Be there or be square.
Anyone headed to the library today?
Splash pad on Thursday?
How do you treat hand-foot-and-mouth disease?
Meet at Chick-fil-A for lunch? 

These are snippets of recent texts, phone calls, and conversations between me and some of my sweet friends here in Columbus.  While they may seem trivial, and oh-so-SAHM-ish, these interactions represent a life line for me. 




(Halloween, 2011)

Sometimes it's a support group.

Or a free counseling session.

Maybe a most-needed distraction during the witching hours of 4-6pm. 

Sometimes it's free babysitting.

Or a morning activity.

Or else an advice line.

It's a group of young moms in the trenches.  We're all trying to discipline toddlers, stick to a grocery budget, love Jesus, and even make dinner from time to time.  I'm honored to call these girls my friends, and as we're wrapping up our last weeks in Columbus, it pains me to think of leaving them.



It's a community.

I crave community.  As a Jesus-follower, I believe Biblical community is essential to spiritual growth.  As a mother, I know the advice and support of other moms in similar situations is priceless.  And as an extrovert, I know that I need the regular company of others (older than two years, that is) to function properly.



I remember new mom-hood when Caroline was tee-tiny.  I loved being with her, but going from a full-time job (and interacting with other adults all day) to all day home alone with an infant was hard.  When Josh got home, I would talk his ear off and suggest all kinds of activities to do together.  As he's an introvert, he'd come home from work exhausted and craving some quiet time.  Needless to say we butted heads a few times.  And then he gave me some advice:


Get out more.  I don't care if the dishes get done. 

It's not as though he didn't enjoy talking with me after work.  He just knew that I would need to find some other at-home moms to chum with, especially during the day.  Or else I'd have a very hard time with motherhood.  He was right.

And God provided me with friends.  With kids.







I'm grateful for modern technology, which will keep me more connected to these dear ladies than if I'd have moved away 20 years ago.  There's email.  FaceTime.  This here blog (and those of you who don't blog back, PLEASE get on that!)  Instagram.  Facebook.

I don't know what our move to London will bring. I anticipate some lonely times. But I'm confident God will provide for me, as He always does.  Whether it's more intimacy with Himself or some new community or life lessons or something more than I could ask or imagine, He'll provide. While I'll always look back fondly on this season of life, and miss this community terribly when I move away, I'm grateful for the One who holds me by my right hand, wherever I am.