Let’s Get Ready with Cedar Valley Publishing

I love what Jeff and Jodi are doing over at Playgroups USA.  I am a HUGE fan of playgroups!!!

I admit it – I was a bit lonely being a stay-at-home mom in a new house in a new town.  It was an Oprah show that reminded me that networking is key!  I had a friend who was in a playgroup and asked if I could come along to see about starting one in my own neighborhood – it was fabulous!!!  To start our own local group, I would network with other moms at the local playgrounds and parks and if our kids were playing together I would invite the mom to bring their kids to our house for an informal play date with other moms from the area.  I explained that I was new so if they wanted to bring a friend along, that would be great!  Our playgroup network turned into our PTA and, to this day, includes some of my closest friends!

Playgroups USA, LLC (www.playgroupsusa.com) founded by Jeff & Jodi Van Lom is a growing, online community that helps parents and caregivers with young children to find the perfect playgroup.  Jeff and Jodi believe in the need to provide a resource that helped reduce the amount of isolation and anxiousness of new parents. Playgroups provide a built in support system and a way for children to learn to socially interact in preparedness for school. To provide even more assistance to young families, Jeff & Jodi took it one step further.  A sister project in Oregon called RaisingFamilies will soon provide a comprehensive resource of services all in one place so parents can gain quick access to qualified providers.  RaisingFamilies will link families to resources that provide services for many categories including autism, neglect, childcare, baby brain development and, of course, finding a playgroup.  Like Playgroups USA, the Raising Families project at www.raisingfamilies.org will one day serve a national audience.

Hip hip hooray for playgroups!