Thankful for Community

Today is Thursday, which, in my small stay-at-home-mommy world...means it's PLAYGROUP DAY! woo hoo! Marshall and I love the opportunity to get out of the house (unless we're hosting that week), play with the other kids, and enjoy some adult conversation, even though it's sporadic and interrupted (we typically have about 5 different conversation strands going by the end of playgroup and rarely finish them).

We had a blast hanging out with our buddies today from the neigborhood, who happen to all have kids under 2! So they're not really "playing together" at this stage. But heck, it's an excuse to get out of the house!

I was just thinking about how wonderful it is to have a group of moms, all about the same age, all with kids about the same age, within walking distance of our home. I could literally think of about 10 families in the neigborhood that I could call up at anytime of day and say, "Hey, you feel like meeting at the park?" What a blessing!

Before I left work to stay home, I was told by several moms that one of the biggest challenges of staying home is the feeling of isolation and lack of adult interaction throughout the day. Perhaps knowing this in advance, I made an intentional effort to get to know other moms around me. The park has been a fantastic place to meet them, as the kids are swinging next to each other or going down the slide together, it's easy to strike up a conversation and learn that you are four houses down from one another.

I am so grateful how God has provided these friendships. It's so sweet to watch our kids grow up together, knowing they will most likely be attending the same school, possibly the same grade and even in the same class! It makes me want to really put roots down with these families, knowing this is a long-term investment, where we are committed to loving one another and loving each other's kids, as they come over for snacks after school or spend the night parties or just a quick "do you mind watching them for an hour while I run an errand?"

I can just imagine the teenage years when we're having to play the 007 role and call each other up and say, "Okay, Marshall said he's spending the night with Levi tonight. Is that the truth?" Then we have to make the walk down to the park together, busting them when we see they've got a sixpack of beer and a pack of cigarettes. Please Lord, be gracious to us as parents! We know you don't give us more than we can handle!

Seriously, I couldn't be more grateful for community. I'm excited to see how the Lord leads us and teaches us through one another and our kids in the years ahead.