MOPS in a Nutshell!

Not that it's really possible to sum up MOPS so easily ... but many of our non-US friends have been asking about MOPS as it's something Jenny is involved in ... so here is an attempt to give you a little glimpse of what it's all about!

MOPS stands for Mothers Of PreSchoolers (www.mops.org) and in Coshocton there is a group that meets on the second Friday morning of each month during the school year. This year (end of last summer) we kicked off with a fun day for the whole family to enjoy with a BBQ and homemade water slides down the hill.

It was lots of fun and as you can see Abigail enjoyed chilling out, fully clothed, in one of the little paddling pools!!

There are other fun events planned throughout the year, last month we had an overnight lock-in ... a chance to hang out, play silly, games, enjoy a spa room, watch movies, get crafty and have some kiddie free time ... except for a couple of newborns who joined us for the event and got cuddles from all the mums there! There are also a couple of resale mornings where you have the chance to either sell off all your old baby stuff or get things you need for a fraction of the price ... the next one is just days after Bubble is born ... so if it's boy ... we'll be first in line to purchase a whole new wardrobe when the doors open!!! ;o)

When we meet each month we have the chance to drop our kids off in different groups and a great team of volunteers come and play/teach them (depending on the kids ages) giving us a couple of hours of 'mom-time'. It's all very flexible though and different children will decide that they would rather stay in with their mum's from month to month ... we all understand how it is!! Our monthly meetings have a different theme each time we meet. The overall theme for this year is 'Mom-ology - The Science of Being a Mum'. Sometimes we watch one of the official MOPS DVD's and discuss set questions, another time we may have a seasonal theme (Christmas Party!), this week it will be a cookery/nutritional theme. Below is a photo from a Spa morning ... a couple of the ladies had make-overs and we all got a 5 minute neck and shoulder massage ... and then practiced some of the techniques we learnt on each other!!

Each month the meetings start with food ... so if it's too rushed getting the kid(s) up and out by 9.30am there is always breakfast ready and waiting!! The main group is split into 5 smaller groups of which Jenny is one of the leaders ... and each month a different group is responsible for providing the food and drink so it's always a little different!! There is a real mix of woman who come, some married, some single, some church going, some not, some with one child, most with more (some have up to 7 kids!), some with their own kids, some with adopted or step-children ... so we really get a chance to learn from each other and be there for each other through it all!! In addition to the main monthly meeting the smaller groups try to get together at least once a month as well, either for a 'playdate' or something else ... this last weekend Jenny's group joined forces with another one and had a lunch/jewellery making party for a few hours which was good fun (see the photo's below!).

Within the Coshocton MOPS group there seems to have been an explosion in pregnancies this year ... with over half the mum's with newborns or expecting over the next few months. Since December, I think I'm right in saying that, there have been twin girls, another baby girl and four boys so far ... but from week to week this is changing and there are a lot more of us almost ready to pop too! It's great that we're all there for each other through this time of adjustment in so many of our families too!! We get to learn from each other and the Mentor Mom's ... a couple of ladies who have grown up kids who come and put a different and encouraging perspective on so many things!

There is a steering committee of 5 led by Amy, with Amanda, another Amy, Angie and Brenda ... all mum's of between 1 and 4 kids who do a great job of organising it all ... it's such a valuable time for all who come ... each one of the steering committee are complete stars for the time and commitment they put into the Coshocton branch of MOPS! ;o)