Exploring the Pacific Northwest as a resident has been a remarkable experience for this born-and-raised southern girl. A couple of my fellow Poms2Moms ladies have made it out west, and I’ll speak for the rest of the PNW when I say I’m lucky to live in a truly gorgeous part of the country.
When you find out you’re pregnant, exercising may not be the first thing that races through your mind. No pun intended. This is especially true during the first trimester because it seems like sleeping 24/7 wouldn’t even be enough. It can be very difficult to find the energy during pregnancy to get up and workout, but for me (and so many others), it was SO worth it.
Long distance is a familiar term to the Marren family.
Brad and I lived in separate cities for approximately 3 of our 7 married years. Frankly, it was frustrating and painful at times – but surprisingly, there were huge benefits too.
For those families facing geographic separation, today I wanted to share 1.) the surprising perks to a LDR, as well as 2.) tips on how to manage.
Did you know it has been estimated that the average human being has around 50,000 thoughts per day? (That’s insane!)
You may not have realized the scale of that number, but have you ever considered the kinds of thoughts you allow into your mind? How many of the 50,000 are positive? How many are negative?
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve started and stopped writing this post.
On this attempt, Lilly sits on the couch watching a movie (she’s feeling a little under the weather) and I start jotting down my thoughts laying on the floor next to her. She looks so perfect in that moment, that I kiss her little foot—which has lost all of the extra delicious baby chunk it once contained. It’s long, skinny, and it has Barbie pink toenails. It’s not the foot of a baby; it’s the foot of a little girl.
To start, I’m grateful for my friends and their (judgment-free) blog. I am proud of their accomplishments, especially as mothers, professionals, and all-around-badass women. But for those ladies facing internal conflict over the transition from Miss Independent to Baby Momma, my article is for you. To all who have yet to take the leap into motherhood, this is my contribution:
Have you ever carried a screaming child out of Target? Or had a philosophical debate with an opinionated toddler about wearing pants? Or rocked yourself in a corner in the fetal position because your kid JUST. WON’T. EAT. DINNER?
Oh man. Things just got real…
Family, friends, and new pals we’re meeting through the wonder of the internet – THANK YOU for checking out Poms2Moms. We couldn’t be more thrilled to have you as the very first visitors to our site and hope you’ll come to love this project as much as we do.
So without further adieu…
Poms2Moms is a random group of six women who decided to create a blog together.
Say what?
Just kidding.
The authors behind Poms2Moms WERE complete strangers 12 years ago until the decision to attend Appalachian State University brought us all to the small town of Boone, NC (pop 17,120.) Little did we know that cheerleading at ASU would also bring us close teammates, invaluable friendships, and three back-to-back-to-back National Championships. Oh, and this epic beatdown at The Big House.
Kaitlin: Bottom, third from left; Trisha: Bottom, fifth from left; Karey: Bottom, first on right; Cayla: Top, third from left; Jenny: Top, fifth from left; Shelley: Top, second from right
But I digress…
After graduation, we all went our separate ways “off the mountain.” Some married, some got jobs, some went to graduate school… but one thing remained; our friendship. We celebrate Thanksgiving/ “Friendsgiving,” host Christmas parties, and make a very deliberate effort to stay present in one another’s lives, despite the distance. We also started a group text circa 2010 (14 alum strong!) and still talk to each other every day.
Why a blog?
Now that some of us have gone on to birth tiny team members of our own, we still absolutely rely on each other for advice, vent sessions, and support. During one of these group therapy sessions, we couldn’t help but notice the similarities in our experiences, and the grace and humor it required to survive this escapade of motherhood. We thought, wouldn’t it be fun to get outside of our group text comfort zone and really document those experiences to share with one another?
We also thought, if we were able to leverage our support system to make it through—couldn’t others?
And from there, Poms2Moms was born.
Former “pom?” Current mom? Yay to both or nay to either? There’s something here for you. Our six different opinions mean six different perspectives on parenting, health, religion, social issues, careers, and more. For more information on each of the moms, visit our Meet The Moms page. Please feel free to reach out to any one of us—that’s why we’re here!
What’s in it for me?
Hopefully… a ton of fun. And maybe a sounding board for the journey you’re enduring. Every week, at least 3 authors will be sharing their experiences on Family, Food, Fitness, Faith, Finance, & Fun. We can’t wait to hear your feedback, so be sure to leave comments on our posts and via social media.
Outside of regularly scheduled posts, from time to time we also expect to share:
- collaborative content (posts from all six authors in one!)
- “celebrity” spotlights —excerpts from our friends and colleagues
- pictures and videos from our get-togethers
- polls on topics and features that you would like to see
- social engagement on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, Google+
- contests… and much more.
And while those college glory days have long departed us, please understand that we sang the ASU fight song at all of our weddings and could still throw up a mean 2.5 high pyramid if so called upon. Being said, if the above topics sounded like junk to you but the idea of some decrepit 30-year olds throwing other 30-year olds in the air sounds entertaining, there will be plenty of that, too. We still stunt… basically during every get together. And when short a stunt group member, we involve our husbands. Hilarity ensues. They obviously resent us.
What’s next?
Join our community and sign up for our emails to stay in touch and receive the most up to date information on our content for the week, announcements, contests, and more.
And be sure to follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, & Google+ through @poms2moms for exclusive content you won’t see on the blog.
Oh, and if our website breaks or something, just remember we’re new in town. If you notice anything funky, please send an email to info@poms2moms.com and someone this side will pour a glass of wine and start Googling the answer.
If you’ve read this far, truly… we couldn’t be more excited to get this off the ground and are so incredibly thankful to have you join in our adventure.
To building your own squad,
Cayla, Jenny, Kaitlin, Karey, Shelley, & Trisha
