MOPS 2008: Adventures in Mothering

Dear Mothers of Preschoolers,

Mothering can feel like a combination of the many carefree and, at times, anxious or thrilling feelings we have on rides that loop up and down and around and around, screeching to a halt or spinning faster and faster. Mothering is one great adventure! Our theme for MOPS this year is "Adventures in Mothering" with the backdrop of an amusement park. The adventures of a mom have the great highs of a rollercoaster and at other times can feel like the constant around and around of a carousel.

Our Steering Team met recently for a retreat to pray and plan for the coming year and I am very excited about the year we have planned! Each meeting will feature an informative and/or inspirational speaker, discussion time with other moms, and good food. In addition, we will have craft projects approximately every other meeting that I'm sure we'll all enjoy creating and keeping!

We will meet on the 1st and 3rd Friday of each month (with the exception of January) from 9:30am to noon at Georgetown Church of the Nazarene. The dates are as follows:

September 5th and 19th

October 3rd and 17th

November 7th and 21st

December 5th and 19th

January 9th and 23rd

February 6th and 20th

March 6th and 20th

April 3rd and 17th

May 1st

We are also planning an open house on Thursday, August 21st, from 6-8pm at GCN. Bring your children to meet their new MOPPETS teachers, invite friends who would like to join our group, and get reacquainted with friends made in MOPS last year.

Registration is open until all MOPPETS and MOPS space is filled. This is on a first-come, first-serve basis. Registration is $60 per semester. This covers childcare, crafts, and supplies for MOPS and MOPPETS. It also covers your MOPS International dues which entitle you to encouraging weekly emails, a bimonthly publication MomSense Magazine and the new 2008 theme book The Mommy Diaries: Finding Yourself in the Daily Adventure. Registration can be split into two payments of $30 with payment in full due by October 17. We will reduce the semester dues to $55 or the yearly dues to $100 (best deal) if paid by September 5. Scholarships are available upon request.

I have attached both the MOPS and MOPPETS Registration Forms. Please fill out one MOPS form for you and a MOPPETS form for each of your children who will be attending this year. You can bring the forms and your registration dues (checks made out to GCN MOPS) to the open house, our first meeting, or you can mail them to me (Wendy Mery, 1710 Fallen Leaf Lane, Round Rock TX 78665). I also ask that you please respond to this email if you are planning on attending MOPS this year. We need an accurate count of moms and kids to make sure we have enough MOPPETS teachers and to plan for crafts. Please provide your name and your kids names and birth dates. You can also inform me of other moms who wish to join our group.

Also attached is our Teen MOPS Sponsor Letter. If you know of a person or business who would like to advertise with us to help fund our Teen MOPS group, feel free to pass on this letter. We need checks by August 15th. Any questions can be directed to myself or Sarah Brown at sarahbrown5@suddenlink.net.

In our adventure, we will find out we are not alone, ever, even on our worst days. Even when we are sick and the kids are sick, too. And when our husbands or other supportive people in our lives are away from us. I invite you to connect with other moms and to see how our adventures in mothering shape us.

Let the adventure begin!

Wendy Mery

MOPS Coordinator 2008-09