Every Mama Needs a Village--Even Before Your Baby is Born

Every Mama Needs a Village--Even Before Your Baby is Born

Erin Burt

I'm a new mom of a 6-week old baby girl, and when you're pregnant waiting for your first child to arrive it really is a magically beautiful time. It's also an anxiety riddled time full of uncertainty, doubt, and confusion and these only become heightened as the due date approaches. Rather than turning to Google when you inevitably have a million questions (because I promise no good can come out of Dr. Google), start to build your mama village early.

 

Let's be honest that finding new quality friends can be hard, like I need to find my soulmate and have 3 kids before I'm 30 hard. And having a newborn is exhausting enough without having to network yourself. For me, hearing stories and advice from women I trusted that already had the experience, made the transition to motherhood so much easier in terms of breastfeeding (which requires a support network all in its own), baby wearing (which I had never even heard of), what products you need and what you could do without (and there is A LOT out there you can skip buying) and what your body goes through post-delivery (we won't even get into that right now). It's also just nice to be able to text somebody to vent that you are currently sitting in only your underwear because the baby projectile vomited all over you and refuses to be put down, and you know they get it. I felt very fortunate to have had my mama village guide me and I want that for every mom-to-be out there because trust me, you need it even if you think you don't.

Remember that friend that you were really close to a few years ago but she ended up having kids so you fell out of touch? That one. She will be one of your best resources for all things pregnancy and new motherhood, and happy to share her experiences. And the best part is that you already know each other so it's not like an awkward first date.

If your totally comfortable with the mom friend first date, there is a new free app for iOS called Peanut that connects to your Facebook profile and lets you connect in a Tinder-like fashion to other pregnant women or current moms. Girlfriend Social is a site that is for ladies only looking to make friendships, and many are moms looking for other mom friends. There is also meetup.com that has all kinds of existing mom groups in your local area. These exist and they work because we're not alone and other moms get it. However it's done, build your village because moms supporting moms is pretty much amazing.

Lisa is a breastfeeding, baby wearing, stay-at-home mom of a 6-week old baby girl. She loves running, yoga, video games, craft beer and hopes to one day see those things again when the new mommy fog lifts!

 

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