This week I attended my first “Meetup” with a local mom’s group I found on meetup.com. At least a half dozen of us moms met at a park in our community while our kids played together at the playground. It was very casual and informal, and nice to meet others who live near me.
I discovered meetup.com a few months ago while searching the Internet for low-cost activities for moms & their kids in the Twin Cities. Since my husband and I both work outside our own city, I wanted to meet other moms in our area while introducing my kids to other kids their ages as well.
Well, it turns out there are quite a few groups for every interest in the Twin Cities area (and beyond). There are a number of groups just for moms from “Sassy Working Mamas” to “Crunchy Mamas,” to different mom’s groups for just about every geographical segment of the Twin Cities metro area. Some are bigger, including the St. Paul Mom’s Group and the Minneapolis Mom’s Group.
I ended up joining two local mom’s groups; one covering a wider area and one covering just my own neighborhood. The latter is the one I met up with this week.
Meetup.com is very user-friendly; you sign up, join one or more groups, and then you get emails regularly with new activities posted. Activities are added frequently in many groups.
Most groups are free, others cost a nominal fee (the St. Paul and Minneapolis Mom’s groups are $5 a year, but you can try them out free for a month first).
There are many activities in local mom’s groups that appeal to frugal moms like me, as MANY are free or budget-friendly. Most of the activities added to my groups are: playdates at local parks or other areas of interest including zoos and wading pools, as well as at moms’ homes; potlucks; meal swaps (bring frozen meals to share and bring home some of each shared); clothing swaps, and a variety of “moms only” get-togethers. Many are largely for support (like for new or breastfeeding moms), and others are just for fun!
Anyone can be kept very busy with groups on meetup.com! If you’re a mom looking for all kinds of local activities for you and your kids, I highly recommend visiting the site to see what kinds of groups appeal to you!