Play Date with New Friends!

We had some new friends over today! We met Melissa and Ashley while shopping in Target before the holidays. After a lengthy conversation about our babies and motherhood, Melissa and I exchanged phone numbers in hopes of getting the babies (and mommies) together for a playdate sometime in the future. Me, being the smart cookie that I am, wrote her name and phone number on the back of my shopping list. We all know how busy the holidays are, so amongst all the chaos of Christmas, house hunting, and shopping, I didn't think about calling our new friends. Once the holiday craziness settled down, I thought I should give Melissa a call to see if she wanted to get together... now where did I put that number?? After remembering that I wrote it down on a list, I was absolutely 100 percent for sure that I had lost the number. I was pretty bummed because we had hit it off quite well at the store! All I could do was hope that she felt the same about me (... does this sound like the end of a first date to anyone but me??) and that she would call. I kid you not, the very next day, I got a call on my cell phone... it was Melissa! Yay! We chatted for a while on the phone, then set up a playdate.

Today was the day they came over and spent a few hours with us. We let the babies socialize, and since Ashley is a couple of months younger than Maya and not yet mobile, we basically spent that time trying to keep Maya from attacking poor Ashley. Even though Maya was a little aggressive at times, she never brought Ashley to tears (whew!). Melissa and I dished about all things motherhood... from our experiences so far to our hopes, dreams, and fears about the future for our daughters. The conversation flowed easily, and we found that we shared some similar interests (like we're both total picture-freaks). The funny thing is, she lived in Grand Haven for a very long time and just recently moved to Grand Rapids, while we are just getting ready to move out to the lake shore! She still has family out there, so she offered to show me the ropes around town once we move. That will be SO HELPFUL! I can't wait! The playdate was lots of fun, and we made tentative plans for playdates every Wednesday. Yay! Oh, also, after she found out how many dates Will and I have been on since having Maya (one, and that was five months ago), she offered to babysit Maya, so Will and I could go out! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!

You just never know where you'll find a new friend. Next time you happen to be shopping and see a mom who looks friendly, strike up a conversation! What do you have to lose, except the possibility of some great future playdates?!