Creating Community - Stroller Strides Style

I was reading a mystery novel the other day and in it the detective was talking about using blogs, Google searches and chat rooms to help him solve his case. Gone are the days of having limited resources to find out information and research suspects. If you've said it, done it, written it or taken a picture of it be prepared to have "it" find it's way to the internet. Crazy!

In the same way there has never been a time like this when we can strike up virtual friendships with people thousands of miles away and feel like they're right next door. Suddenly community is not just your neighborhood or your town. It's at the end of our fingertips, right on the screen in front of us.

Stroller Strides and LUNA Moms Club are both wonderful local communities of women who are experiencing similar life stages - babies & kids! But sometimes it is scary to try to crack into a group of women who knows each other, who has a history together. Luckily, we have the internet to help us.

Resources such as meetup.com and cafemom.com are great ways to connect with others before you ever show up for an Stroller Strides class or LUNA Moms Club event. By joining one of these groups, or one similar, you can talk to other members, develop relationships and learn more about each other all in the privacy and security of your own home. There's no risk.

Hopefully, once you feel secure, like you "know" someone else or even a group of people, the natural progression is to go out and meet them in person. What could be better?

I love having these types of tools. I love being a part of a community of women who are all doing life together and who can meet and chat and laugh together both virtually and in reality. I may never crack a big mystery or catch a suspect, but I am meeting wonderful women who are moms, wifes, girlfriends and daughters. Together we are sharing experiences and becoming a community of strong, healthy moms who support one another and are available for each other all the time. That, to me, is the essence of community - Stroller Strides style.