Gathering with friends

I belong to a moms group (Mothers & More). We get together once a week for a different activity each week - book club, game night, dinner out, etc. Some of us also get together on a Sunday for drinks and a movie. We do that every month or two. This group was a lifesaver for me when, in 2004, I moved 600 miles from a city I had lived in since college. I made some of the best friends ever through that group!

In 2007, we were transferred back to the city where my husband and I graduated college. I transferred my Mothers & More membership to the chapter here and have made a lot of new friends.

But I still keep in constant contact with those women I met in 2004. For the third year in a row, we are going on a moms and kids trip. There will be about five moms and 12 or so kids touring St. Louis and doing fun family oriented stuff during the day and resting and having cocktails by the pool in the evening. We made this trip to St. Louis last year, too. It's about a 1/2 way point between where I live now and where they still live. The year before that, we crashed a different city.

I also try to make it to at least one lake trip with these women each year. Unfortunately, I can't go this year and my attendance record at these "every four months" getaways is starting to get tarnished. I hope to do better next year!

Keeping in touch with "old" friends is so important. Obviously, due to distance, we can't do Wednesday Spaghetti, but we can do Occasional Spaghetti! So that's what we do and I am thankful for every moment of time we are together.