Coordinator's Corner

Board games always seem to make it on my wish list for Christmas and birthdays.  A cabinet in the living room is dedicated to holding our game collection – some of the games are fun and loud, others require careful thought, the winner may be determined completely by chance, or skill may be needed to come out on top.  I have many memories of playing games with my family.  Most of these memories are happy ones - laughter and silliness, the satisfaction of winning, the joy of time spent with people that I love.  There are the not-so-happy memories as well - name-calling, a crushing loss, angrily tumping the board, or the boredom and tediousness of a never-ending game.

I have experienced many of those same emotions since becoming a mother – more laughter, satisfaction, joy, and love than I had ever dreamed; and my fair share of hurt feelings, anger, and the tediousness of never-ending diaper changes!  And like those board games, motherhood is also a mix of skill and chance, silliness and careful thought.  This year at MOPS we will be using this game analogy to help each of us learn and strategize ways to be the best mother we can be.  We call it Mom-opoly: Being Bold, Loving, and Sensible in the Game of Motherhood.

The “game” of motherhood is a classic, played by generations of women before us.  The trouble is you won’t find any rules in this box, and while our mentors and fellow teammates offer what has worked for them, we soon discover that each of us has received our own special edition of the game.  We need great advice, and then we need the wisdom to sift through that advice and come up with a strategy that adjusts to the unique needs of our children, our families, and our own personality and values.   This is the challenge that we’ll be tackling this year at MOPS!

As we play the game of Mom-opoly together we will learn about and discuss topics that impact how we live every day – our friendships, the challenge of toddler discipline, how to love your mate, tips for budgeting, conflict resolution and more.  We will cheer each other on, laugh at crazy mishaps, give a hug to the one that is hurting, and soothe those of us who are stressed (and who isn’t?).   So I hope you are as excited as I am to start this MOPS year.  Whether it’s your first year or your tenth, let’s all jump in, roll the dice, spin the spinner, deal the cards, and have fun playing the game together!

Christy Mast, Coordinator