Moms Night Out: Your Questions Answered

mno november

Just in case we haven’t given you enough reminders, here is one more:  We are hosting our second Moms Night Out event on Monday, November 18th at Iron Hawk in downtown Iowa City!  Tickets are on sale now (click here to purchase), and don’t forget that the early bird rates of $12 (plus the option to pre-order raffle tickets) end one week from today, on Friday, November 8th.  Beginning Saturday, November 9th, tickets will be $17.  Remember, there will NOT be any ticket sales at the door, so buy your tickets now before it’s too late!  And after you buy it, read the following info on what to expect, what to wear, what to bring, and what you get to take home with you!
By the way, if you weren’t at our first Moms Night Out, then check out this post to see how much fun we had!  You can also view our slide show of amazing pics (courtesy of Ruby Ellen Photography) on our Events Page.  At this event in June, the evening was full of good food, great prizes, and swag for everyone to take home (which all happen to be on the agenda for this time as well!) , but the very best part of our first Moms Night Out was seeing SO many moms come out for the evening, many of them alone, to meet new mom-friends and have a good time.  That is what the Iowa City Moms Blog is all about!
On November 18th, our guests will enjoy delicious appetizers and soft drinks from Iron Hawk, delicious desserts from a surprise local business, their name entered for some great giveaways (to see some sneak peeks at the giveaways and raffle prizes, be sure to follow us on Instagram!), one complimentary raffle ticket for even more amazing prizes, and each guest will go home with a swag bag full of samples and coupons from all of our amazing local sponsors! And the best part remains: an evening out, without the kids, to socialize with a TON of other local moms who completely understand the insane day-to-day life that we are all living as moms of little ones!
What to wear?  Great question! There is no official “dress code” for the Moms Night Out. Iron Hawk is a nice restaurant, but this is definitely not a ball-gown type of event, no worries! If you have a great dress that you’ve been wanting to wear, this would be the time! If dresses/skirts aren’t your thing, then pair your favorite jeans (or leggings) with a cute shirt, and you’re set to go!  If you still can’t decide what to wear, then check out our Instagram (@icmomsbl0g) to see what some of US are thinking about wearing! Better yet, when you decide what you ARE wearing (or when you narrow it down to a couple choices), post a picture of your outfits on Instagram with hashtags #icmbmomsnightout and #iowacitymomsblog! We’d love to see what you’re thinking about wearing to the event!
What to bring? Another great question. First things first, if possible, bring a friend! (or a co-worker, or a neighbor, or your sister, or your mom…spread the word!).   Also, we will be collecting donations for El Grupo Manantial and their amazing holiday charity program (more on this next week).  We will collect these at the door, and we truly appreciate your willingness to support such a great organization in our community.   And lastly, I know the question that’s on all of your minds: Will you need cash?  All of the above-mentioned items (food, soft drinks and dessert) are included with your ticket; specialty drinks, on the other hand, will be 1/2 price all evening, so you will need a little bit of cash for that.  Also included with your ticket is one complimentary raffle ticket, however there are a lot of great raffle prizes, so you may want to purchase more than one ticket! (Tickets will be $1, 6 for $5 or 15 for $10)  We will also have a few sponsors at the event with display tables (Robinson Family Wellness, LiteRite Photography, Stella & Dot, Catherine’s and Mary Kay), and a couple of them will have items to sell if you are interested.  So, I guess the answer to the question is yes, bring some cash, but it’s really up to you how much you will spend. You could certainly have an amazing evening with only the items included with the ticket! :)
What to do? This event has one goal behind it:  to connect moms and to continue this close-knit community of local moms in the Iowa City and surrounding areas.  Our hope is that you meet new people, exchange numbers (or Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc.!) and make new friends!  As we’ve mentioned, we are always so excited to meet our readers in person and to put a face to all of these names that are faithfully reading our blog and commenting and interacting with us! We appreciate you all so much, and we are so excited to have another in-person event! That is the beauty of the Iowa City Moms Blog–we are not just an on-line community, we are a real, live community!  That being said, we do not have many “activities” planned for the evening, because we do not want to interfere with all of you mingling, chatting, and getting to know each other.  We want you to enjoy the food, meet some of our sponsors, and relax in an evening without little hands pulling on your clothes or spilling food on your lap.  :)
Frequently Asked Questions…Is it OK to come alone?  Yes!!! In fact, MANY moms came alone to our first event, and they left with a ton of new friends!  We are so proud of those moms who come to these events solo, and show their amazing effort to form a mommy community in this area.  The answer to this is a big fat YES, come alone, but leave with new friends!!

Is it OK to come if I’m not a mom? Yes! We welcome all types of moms in our community, and this includes aspiring moms.  Keep in mind, however, that you will be in a room full of moms…so if you aren’t up for “mommy talk”, then you may not want to join us! 🙂

Is it OK to come if I’m pregnant? Also, YES!  In fact, we LOVE seeing the baby bumps at our events!  Many of you have asked about Iron Hawk being a bar, and while it does have a bar, it is in fact a restaurant, and you should feel nothing but comfortable at the Moms Night Out!  Enjoy some soft drinks and yummy food, get yourself a mini-makeover from our Mary Kay reps (oh yes…did we not mention that yet?? FREE mini-makeovers!), and relish in the chance to enjoy an evening out in your best (maternity) clothes with your friends, new and old.  We love all of you expectant mamas!

Where should I park?  In case you hadn’t heard the amazing news yet, it was recently announced that all downtown parking garages are FREE for the first hour of parking.  Therefore, we highly recommend choosing this option!  Besides, street parking in downtown Iowa City can be a nightmare (understatement of the year), and you do not want to be rushing out to fill the meter after an hour!  You might miss out on a giveaway if you have to do that!  **Iron Hawk is centrally-located at 122 E. Washington Street.  If you ask me, the best choice is to park in the mall parking garage, walk through the mall (especially if the weather is cold), and then you only have one block to walk.  Easy as pie!

Should I feel weird going out downtown, with all of the college kids around?  Um, NO.  You are all beautiful, hard-working mamas, and you deserve a night out on the town just as much (cough, cough…more than) as all of those dorm-dwellers.  And here’s the great news:  Iron Hawk has graciously offered to close the restaurant to the public on the evening of November 18th, so when you walk through the doors, you will be welcomed by a room full of women who understand the fact that your sweater smells like vomit and you have a matchbox car in your purse.

What is a “swag bag”?  The fact that some of you are asking this question tells us that you definitely need a night out!  Every guest at this event (yes, everyone) will be going home with an amazing swag bag (provided by Underground Printing) filled with goodies and coupons from our sponsors.  We are still adding to our swag as we write this, but as of today we can share the following sneak peek at what you will find in our swag bags: lip gloss samples from Mary Kay, yummy squeeze-pack samples from Happy Family and Mamma Chia, and coupons from Revival, Aspen Leaf Frozen Yogurt, Beadology, Whitties Knitties and Just Duckie Blankies.  **And that, my friends, is just the swag bag!  Not to mention all of our amazing giveaways (can you say Freshly Picked moccasins?!) and raffle prizes!

WE CAN’T WAIT TO SEE ALL OF YOU ON NOVEMBER 18th AT 6:30!  IT’S GOING TO BE A GREAT NIGHT!

**One thing we would LOVE for you to do at the event is to participate in our Social Media outlets. Post pics of you and your friends on our Facebook page, Twitter, and Instagram (using hashtags #icmbmomsnightout and #iowacitymomsblog)! We’d love to see all of you on there!

**If this post did not answer all of your questions about the event, please don’t hesitate to contact us at sara (at) iowacitymomsblog (dot) com or kaitlyn (at) iowacitymomsblog (dot) com! We’d be happy to chat!

 

Iowa City Moms Blog
At Iowa City Moms Blog we’re a group of local moms who are passionate about connecting other moms to one another and to our community! Whether you’re an experienced mom, a newbie, expecting, or aspiring to be a mom someday, this blog is for you! Join us as we navigate this journey that is motherhood in the Iowa City area!

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