Maintaining friendships is difficult when you're a busy working mom!

This past week, my son Jack and I went to visit my husband who is working at camp. And while I was there, an amazing thing happened to me. No my loyal readers, the young staff didn't mistake me for supermodel Gisele Bundchen. That only happened to me once. And that misunderstanding ended abruptly when my alarm clock went off. What I experienced at camp was something that I didn't expect. I made a new friend. She was also up there visiting her husband and family so we had plenty of time to get to know each other.

At first, I think our friendship started because we were both looking for someone over the ages of 4 and 6 to have a conversation with. But once she told me she brought up the complete first season of Glee on DVD and was a Gynecologist, I knew this new friend of mine would be what I call "a lifer." That's someone who I believe will be part of my life for the long haul. And being a 36 year old working mom, meeting a lifer can be harder than finding a straight man at a Liza Minnelli concert!

Maintaining friendships is difficult when you're a busy working mom. After all that you "have" to do, who has the time and energy to catch up or get together? We sacrifice a lot when we become mothers. But in my humble opinion, there's a difference between healthy and unhealthy sacrifices. Take this past weekend for example. After we left camp, my son and I continued our vacation and stayed at my in-laws newly acquired cottage for a few nights. My brother-in-law and sister-in-law were also there so Jack and I stayed in the room with the bunk bed. Trying my hardest not to project my total dislike for top bunks, I tried to convince Jack how much fun it would be for him to sleep on top. It was obvious that he wasn't buying what I was selling because he responded with, "then you sleep up there." Drats! Note to self. Stop giving Jack Omega fish oil enriched with DHA. It's making his mind too sharp.

So you may be wondering, how does my sleeping on the top bunk become a motherly sacrifice? Allow me to explain. I'm a frequent night peer. So as a result of me climbing up and down a medal ladder in the dark multiple times, by morning my legs looked more bruised than a turbulent shipment of Costa Rican bananas. But for the safety and well-being of my child, I took one for the team. That's a healthy sacrifice. What I won't do, however, is sacrifice my happiness and well-being for the sake of others.

Intimate relationships and friendships feed your soul. Make the time to reconnect with your closest friends. Nurture those relationships and value the importance of them. Because a good "lifer" is hard to find.

Carly Cooper
		About the author:
		Carly Cooper is a certified Life Coach for 'Moms'. She gets motherhood because she is a mother. She understands the struggles with guilt and finding a work/life balance as she herself is a working mother. For more information about Carly, her services and to request a complimentary coaching consultation visit her website at www.balance-the-mother-load.com.
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