mama monday (JPM)

I'm often struck by how lucky I am to have found some amazing mama friends. They are the reason I am able to solider on some days (well... solider on without having a complete mama-mental breakdown). I've been meaning to feature some of these lovely ladies in my ramblings here and as I sat laughing last night with some of them, I resolved to make it happen.

JPM: always a camera; always a laugh

Jennifer (JPM for short) is our group's de facto leader. She organizes play dates and mama's nights out while volunteering (a lot of ) her time and energy to community groups and causes near-and-dear to her heart. She is a true believer that involvement can effect real change. Her optimism is infectious. 

JPM collects friends the way some women collect shoes, and the resulting eclectic group of mamas is fan-freaking-tastic. There is no way to stay strangers with JPM for long. She opens her home regularly, never batting an eye as all our children destroy her living room, eat her food, and jump on her bed. Her home is truly open to us all. And we are a family of friends.

JPM is rarely in pictures because she is behind the camera, lovingly documenting my boys' childhoods. Some of her photographs are the most precious gifts I've ever received.

But my favorite thing about JPM is her laugh. Her joy. Her endless hugs and kisses and squeezes. Her heart is so full of love that it spills over and surrounds everyone she meets. Every group needs a Jennifer and ours is the most Jennifer-y Jennifer around. 

Our lives are enriched by her unfailing enthusiasm and boundless capacity for love. I am lucky to have her. My kids are lucky to have her. The East Side Mamas are lucky to have her.

Jennifer, Te quiero mucho.

olive juice, okay?

emily

p.s. a song for JPM

p.p.s. some sweet pictures from my birthday...

photo by Jennifer Potter-Miller

photo by Jennifer Potter-Miller