I’ve been thinking about writing something for Mother’s Day this year.

I wrote a snarky post last year for SchoolFamily.com.
I’m sure there’s more snark where that came from.

But I’m feeling introspective this year.
We’re moving…  and that means once again I’ll be saying goodbye to friends and moms I’ve seriously love. (We’ve moved 5 times in our marriage already!)

I can honestly say in the past I ‘KEEP’ one or maybe 2 of my best buddies after I move away. As in, keep up with them on Facebook, chat with them on the phone a few times a year, ACTUALLY see them once in a blue moon and yes, exchange Christmas cards.

That number just isn’t acceptable this time.

I have a mom-awesome amazing posse of mommy friends here in my tiny rural Oregon town. We play basketball every Tuesday night. Okay, fine. Old Lady Ball, whatever. We’re willing to gather on random evenings with barely any excuse at all. {You need help wrapping presents for your kid’s birthday? I’ll bring the hummus!}

We find crazy ways to celebrate:

• Renting a Gorilla suit to surprise/scare one of the moms while at basketball

• Toilet Papering a little old lady in town for National Toilet Paper Day (And then cleaning it up the next day—she loved it by the way!)
• Toilet Papering the INSIDE of one Mom’s house the next year for National Toilet Paper Day—I’m talking we literally wrapped everything in her living room

• Bookclubs that would knock your socks off, Downton Abbey themed parties and of course the requisite gathering to watch all 5 Twilight Movies (kill me)

• Dressing in black thief attire complete with ‘staches and kidnapping one mom for a surprise baby shower

• And most recently a Mom-trip to California for an LA Confidential group birthday celebration

If new friends are silver but old friends are gold… I intend to keep these golden oldie ladies close for a long time. More like Platinum is what I’d call my friendships here. You know, like a really good credit card with extra perks?

We babysit each other’s kids. We listen when one is down. And we laugh… oh how we laugh, when the laughter medicine is needed. We answer the ‘I ran out of gas’ call faster than a diaper-removing toddler. We make ‘dump-runs’, we Mermaid Café as needed and most of all… we group text late at night with inside jokes sometimes so lame only WE are able to understand. (And husband’s shake their heads.)

I’m very worried the moms in Charlotte have no idea the level expected of them?
The bar has been set very high.

I may need to plan to return to Oregon NEXT YEAR for Mother’s Day?
Because right now mother’s day means: keeping lasting relationships with the mom-friends in my world. I’m ready to make new friends, but I’m determined to ‘keep the old’.

Happy Mother’s Day all my mom-friends!