Mothers and children play with modeling compound at the home of Suzanne Cole. The play date was just one of the many activities the group Moms and More offers mothers and their families. Shown are (clockwise from left) Erica Burch (standing), Suzanne Cole, Tiffany and Jordan Wilson, William and Marisa Winfree, Conner Waybright, Malia Winfree and Kate Gordon.
CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- These women hold wine tastings, themed dinners and offer massages and spa treatments. They belong to a book club, film club and have private yoga classes and lessons in soccer.
Their full social calendars are tempting enough to make you want to have a kid -- or two.
They are mothers who belong to area organizations that focus mainly on providing one another company, fun and support.
"I have made some fantastic friends," said Dr. Suzanne Cole, social coordinator for the Charleston Chapter of Mothers and More.
Cole is an oncologist at the David Lee Cancer Center at Charleston Area Medical Center. "I am a transplant from Texas," she said. When she and her family moved here in the summer of 2010, she found it kind of hard to make friends. It seemed that many people had grown up in Charleston and had their own set of longtime friends and nearby family.
After joining Mothers and More about a year ago, "My social calendar became very busy," Cole said.
"It's been a godsend and a lifeline for me, I have to say," Anita Byrd said about MOPS, a Christian-based group for mothers of preschoolers. "The early stage of motherhood can be kind of isolating and depressing -- you're not sure if you're messing up your kid."
With MOPS, the Big Chimney mother of two said she is with a group of like-minded women who are in the same phase of life.
When Chastity Moore's maternity leave was up with her first child, the Scott Depot resident had to decide whether to return to teaching. After she decided to be a stay-at-home mom, "I realized I was going to go crazy. I personally needed other moms to talk to."
She's president of Moms Offering Moms Support, serving Teays Valley and the Cross Lanes area.
"Teays Valley is a transient area," she said. "Fifty percent or more of our moms are from out of state. It's a great group for them."
Moore said she didn't know anyone either when she and her husband moved into their neighborhood, a midway point between their jobs in Charleston and Huntington. "My neighbor invited me to a play date," she recalled. There, she and the other moms exchanged potty-training tips, discussed why their child wasn't sleeping and told birthing stories.
If she had stayed in Dallas, Cole said she probably wouldn't have needed a group like Moms and More because -- like Charleston natives -- she has family and established friends there. But for newcomers to any town, where, she asked, are you going to meet like-minded people?
"I feel quite well rounded and balanced in my life because I have had the opportunity to tap into this circle of knowledge and activities to allow my family to be active in our new home of Charleston," she wrote in an email.
Byrd enjoys the moms'-night-out events, where "we're able to be girls again. We don't necessarily talk about the kids -- it's just that we're finally out of the house."
Here are summaries of three area groups for mothers of young children:
Moms and More
Cole recently emailed a three-page list of the activities of the Charleston chapter of Moms and More, a national organization.
In addition to the formal monthly meetings, the group of about 40 women have Moms Night Out, which may mean going on ArtWalk and having dinner afterward at Ichiban, and Moms' Morning Out, which could be just getting together for coffee at Frütcake.
Within Moms and More are groups for twice-a-week walks, monthly viewings of independent films and a monthly book club -- February's selection is "Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mom" by Amy Chua.
"Some moms work and can only come in the evening. Weekends are sacred for others," Cole said. "If you go to an evening event on a Friday night and one on Tuesday morning, there will be a different set of people. It's whatever works for you."
Cole said Moms and More welcomes new members and it doesn't matter whether the moms work full time or part time or are staying home with their children.
Although fathers can't join, they're included in family events, such as monthly potluck dinners, swim parties, pumpkin painting at Capitol Market and trips to Live on the Levee, the Clay Center, library events and baseball games.
There's also Couples Night Out and some recent dates include bowling, attending a symphony concert, gambling at Mardi Gras Casino or just dinner and drinks.
Cole said she often holds events, such as a children's clothing swap or magazine exchange, at her house, after her 1- and 3-year-olds are put to bed.
"I am a cancer doctor, so I deal with sad stuff throughout the day. It's nice to do something light after work," she said.
Then there are the play groups. "This is traditionally what attracts moms to groups like ours -- they need opportunities for their young children to get together," she noted.
Typically, she said there are eight planned play groups a month: four in the morning, two in the evening and two on weekends. Over the past six months, she said moms and their children have taken hayrides, nature walks and gone fishing and ice skating.
At a play group before Christmas, the moms made wreaths while the children played. And at the December monthly meeting, the women brought paper and ribbon and wrapped gifts. Some in the group even took a break from the holidays and met for coffee on Christmas Eve.
Moms and More members pay $45 in annual dues, which pay for liability insurance.
Interested mothers may attend two meetings before officially signing up. Moms and More welcome guests at 7 p.m. on the first Tuesday of every month at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation in Charleston.
CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- These women hold wine tastings, themed dinners and offer massages and spa treatments. They belong to a book club, film club and have private yoga classes and lessons in soccer.
Their full social calendars are tempting enough to make you want to have a kid -- or two.
They are mothers who belong to area organizations that focus mainly on providing one another company, fun and support.
"I have made some fantastic friends," said Dr. Suzanne Cole, social coordinator for the Charleston Chapter of Mothers and More.
Cole is an oncologist at the David Lee Cancer Center at Charleston Area Medical Center. "I am a transplant from Texas," she said. When she and her family moved here in the summer of 2010, she found it kind of hard to make friends. It seemed that many people had grown up in Charleston and had their own set of longtime friends and nearby family.
After joining Mothers and More about a year ago, "My social calendar became very busy," Cole said.
"It's been a godsend and a lifeline for me, I have to say," Anita Byrd said about MOPS, a Christian-based group for mothers of preschoolers. "The early stage of motherhood can be kind of isolating and depressing -- you're not sure if you're messing up your kid."
With MOPS, the Big Chimney mother of two said she is with a group of like-minded women who are in the same phase of life.
When Chastity Moore's maternity leave was up with her first child, the Scott Depot resident had to decide whether to return to teaching. After she decided to be a stay-at-home mom, "I realized I was going to go crazy. I personally needed other moms to talk to."
She's president of Moms Offering Moms Support, serving Teays Valley and the Cross Lanes area.
"Teays Valley is a transient area," she said. "Fifty percent or more of our moms are from out of state. It's a great group for them."
Moore said she didn't know anyone either when she and her husband moved into their neighborhood, a midway point between their jobs in Charleston and Huntington. "My neighbor invited me to a play date," she recalled. There, she and the other moms exchanged potty-training tips, discussed why their child wasn't sleeping and told birthing stories.
If she had stayed in Dallas, Cole said she probably wouldn't have needed a group like Moms and More because -- like Charleston natives -- she has family and established friends there. But for newcomers to any town, where, she asked, are you going to meet like-minded people?
"I feel quite well rounded and balanced in my life because I have had the opportunity to tap into this circle of knowledge and activities to allow my family to be active in our new home of Charleston," she wrote in an email.
Byrd enjoys the moms'-night-out events, where "we're able to be girls again. We don't necessarily talk about the kids -- it's just that we're finally out of the house."
Here are summaries of three area groups for mothers of young children:
Moms and More
Cole recently emailed a three-page list of the activities of the Charleston chapter of Moms and More, a national organization.
In addition to the formal monthly meetings, the group of about 40 women have Moms Night Out, which may mean going on ArtWalk and having dinner afterward at Ichiban, and Moms' Morning Out, which could be just getting together for coffee at Frütcake.
Within Moms and More are groups for twice-a-week walks, monthly viewings of independent films and a monthly book club -- February's selection is "Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mom" by Amy Chua.
"Some moms work and can only come in the evening. Weekends are sacred for others," Cole said. "If you go to an evening event on a Friday night and one on Tuesday morning, there will be a different set of people. It's whatever works for you."
Cole said Moms and More welcomes new members and it doesn't matter whether the moms work full time or part time or are staying home with their children.
Although fathers can't join, they're included in family events, such as monthly potluck dinners, swim parties, pumpkin painting at Capitol Market and trips to Live on the Levee, the Clay Center, library events and baseball games.
There's also Couples Night Out and some recent dates include bowling, attending a symphony concert, gambling at Mardi Gras Casino or just dinner and drinks.
Cole said she often holds events, such as a children's clothing swap or magazine exchange, at her house, after her 1- and 3-year-olds are put to bed.
"I am a cancer doctor, so I deal with sad stuff throughout the day. It's nice to do something light after work," she said.
Then there are the play groups. "This is traditionally what attracts moms to groups like ours -- they need opportunities for their young children to get together," she noted.
Typically, she said there are eight planned play groups a month: four in the morning, two in the evening and two on weekends. Over the past six months, she said moms and their children have taken hayrides, nature walks and gone fishing and ice skating.
At a play group before Christmas, the moms made wreaths while the children played. And at the December monthly meeting, the women brought paper and ribbon and wrapped gifts. Some in the group even took a break from the holidays and met for coffee on Christmas Eve.
Moms and More members pay $45 in annual dues, which pay for liability insurance.
Interested mothers may attend two meetings before officially signing up. Moms and More welcome guests at 7 p.m. on the first Tuesday of every month at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation in Charleston.
To learn about the next activity, a mom may email membership coordinators Emily Hopta or Jean Storm at Charlestonmothers@yahoo.com.
To join, visit www.charlestonmothers.webs.com or www.mothersandmore.org.
Mothers of Preschoolers
Anita Byrd describes MOPS "as kind of a ministry," chartered in a church, although its members may go to different churches and some perhaps not at all.
Its main purpose, she said, is "to feed the mothers, to grow through relationships."
MOPS meets twice a month at River Ridge Church on Greenbrier Street.
"Each MOPS group is able to design meetings around their needs. The one in Elkview, for example, meets in the evening."
Her group meets in the mornings at 9:30 a.m. Day care is provided and members take turns bringing breakfast food.
"We take time to talk and chat. We have a speaker on a timely and relevant topic. We've had speakers on early literacy for boys. We've had speakers give health and safety tips. Police officers have checked our car seats," she said. "And sometimes we do fun stuff. We had a spa day with massages from students of the local massage school."
About 35 to 40 members out of the 70 registered online usually attend the meetings. "We try to make time to break out into discussion groups -- four of eight or nine each," Byrd said. "That's when we develop our community, make play dates. If a new mom has just had a baby, we minister to her by bringing food or if someone is having a rough time, we love on that mom."
MOPS also is open to both working and stay-at-home mothers and to new members as long as there is room for the children. "Come check us out and see if you like the group," Byrd said.
Once a MOPS member's last child enters kindergarten, they have to graduate out. The national organization lists groups for moms of children through the teen years.
MOPS meets at 9:30 a.m. on the second and fourth Tuesdays of every month at the church, 2090 Greenbrier St.
National dues are $30 and local dues are $40 a year.
For more information, visit www.mops.org.
Moms Offering Moms Support
Although the MOMS Club in Teays Valley has a few working mothers, most members are stay-at-home moms. Except for one.
"We do have a stay-at-home dad," Chastity Moore said.
And he's an active member, having earlier this month arranged an outing with the children to tour the post office and then make pizzas.
MOMS Club International has chapters all over the world, and is specifically for stay-at-home moms. But Moore said if a mother should go back to work, "it's not like we're kicking moms out."
Her group holds a monthly business meeting at St. Timothy in the Valley in Hurricane to plan activities. Usually, MOMS has two or three weekly events that include children and a monthly Moms Night Out.
By themselves, Moore said members have gone to restaurants, dinner-theater mysteries and held game nights at someone's house. "We try to mix it up a bit," she said.
Activities with children have ranged from crafts in the park to library visits to field trips to Heritage Farms in Huntington and Sassafras Junction puppet theater in St. Albans.
One of the requirements of the national organization is that the local chapters undertake service projects.
"We coordinated the tot trot at the Healthy Kids, Healthy West Virginia health fair," Moore said. "And we went to the Ronald McDonald House and cooked a meal for the residents."
At Christmas, they provided food and presents to a needy family selected by the state Division of Health and Human Resources.
To raise money for its projects, MOMS holds a big yard sale. This year it's June 2 at St. Timothy's, the Episcopal Church at 3434 Teays Valley Road.
"St. Timothy's been so great to let us use their fellowship hall and to have a play group on Wednesday mornings in the gym," Moore said.
Dues for MOMS is $25 a year. To join or for more information, visit http://teaysvalleymomsclub.weebly.com.
Moore said the regional coordinator of MOMS is looking for volunteers to start more state chapters in Southern West Virginia. Those interested in starting a chapter or finding a nearby chapter, should visit www.momsclub.org.
Reach Rosalie Earle at earle@wvgazette.com or 304-348-5115.
