Mommies Group on Blast, Part Deux

In Mike's previous post, he ranted about the invitation, and subsequent disinvitation, from the mommies group in our neighborhood. Since I am still eligible for the group and because another mom had sponsored/recommended me, I thought I would take a look at it to see what kinds of things they do.

First of all, when I went to view the group's page on Meetup, it was a private page, and due to overwhelming demand, they had closed the group to new members. Fine, I can understand their desire to protect their kids' privacy, but I did think it's weird that they refer to themselves as members. But then I also noticed that the first two weeks are a free trial period, and after that, you pay $10 membership dues. Hmm...strange. And then I read the mini application that you have to submit to Big Momma before being approved by the group. I kid you not, here are the questions that you must complete:

• Introduce yourself
• Upload your photo
• Because we love our children and want what is best for them, we require a screening process to join our group and an attendance policy to stay in the group. Do you agree to these terms?
• What are the names and ages of your kid(s)?
• What would you like to get out of this group?
• If you were stranded on an island, what would be your choice of movie, cd, and beverage to have?

Like I said, I understand why there is a screening process. With that being said, I was surprised at how formal the group is. I just want my kid to play with other kids his age, I'm not trying to pledge a sorority, which is kind of what it feels like. I was also a little turned off by the fact that it's required to submit a photo. Does Big Momma only approve pretty mommies? Maybe I'm being biased, because of the previous injustice doled out to Mike, but I just didn't care for the elitist tone of the whole page. I haven't decided if I'm going to join or not, but I thought I could use my free two-week trial period to check it out and see if I like any of the other moms or not. As always, I'll let you know if my first impressions were confirmed or negated.

Anyways, let me know what you think about the mommies group and vote in the poll to the left.