MOPS

No, I’m not talking about those long-handled cleaning implements in your kitchen. I’m talking about Mothers of Preschoolers. If you’re a mother, then you were the mother of a preschooler at one point in time. I’m sure whether it was last year or 20 years ago, you can remember it. The struggles, the joys, the tears – both your’s and your preschooler’s.

Last year I joined my local chapter of MOPS. Brady was just over a year old and I had just come out of a very rough 18-month period. I was laid off from my job when I was six months pregnant. Naturally, no one will hire you at that point, so I was unemployed until Brady was four months old. I got unemployment checks, but we were beyond broke. Lennon was working two jobs and that left me home alone with Brady quite often. Many weeks I might not leave the house for 3-4 days at a time. As a result, I went through a very dark period of post-partum depression. By the Grace of God, I found a job the week before my unemployment ran out. It was an uphill climb at that point. We had so many bills to pay, I had to adjust to working again and to Brady being in daycare. So many things were going on. The following summer we had to move unexpectedly and once again, our lives were up in the air. God came through again and provided a place to live, even better than where we were.

Now we hadn’t been going to church since moving to Greenville. We had visited places, but nothing stuck. I worked in an office of all men. I was really hurting for some female companionship and that’s when I heard about MOPS. So I signed up and went to my first meeting. It was like a breath of fresh air (the theme last year actually was Fresh Air). Here I was in a group of women who I had something I common with – we all had children under 5. It didn’t matter whether we worked outside the home or stayed home, whether we were divorced or married, nothing. We all had a common thread. Those meetings were so great and I met some great people as a result. Don’t get me wrong, there were some days I would go and not talk to hardly anyone. That was probably more my fault than theirs. After practically being in hiding for so long, I really had to re-learn how to get out there and meet people. I had been so close to becoming a hermit, but I was slowly dragging myself out of that pit. God knew what He was doing! You can come to MOPS and be yourself. You get to eat a meal without cutting someone else’s food or having to catch the bowl of applesauce as it’s being hurled across the room. You can listen to a speaker without having to change a diaper. You might even have a full conversation with someone. We love our children dearly, but it’s nice to have a few hours to yourself to remember who you were before you became Mommy.

The best thing about MOPS for me? It led us to the church we’re now attending. We probably never would have visited there if my MOPS leader and other women hadn’t invited me. After being away from church for so long, it felt so good to find a “home” We’ve joined a fabulous Sunday School class of couples our age, we’ve gotten involved in the children’s ministry and I’ve even joined the Beth Moore Bible Study on Sunday afternoons. I had forgotten what that family was like. To have people say they’re praying for you, to ask how you’re doing means so much.

I know some people who really aren’t interested in groups like MOPS. They have problems leaving their child with someone else or they just don’t have time. But I also know people who feel as passionately about this as I do. It’s a great, great organization for new moms, young and old. We need support. We think we can do it all and granted, some women come close. But most of us are being pulled in a thousand different directions and we need some friends who relate. So if you know a mom with a preschooler, suggest MOPS to her. It just may be the lifesaver to her that it was to me.

http://www.mops.org/

Just because he's cute!