So DH and I have been party of a friendship group with 2 other families for many years. Met through the kids when they were babies and they are all grown up now.
We spent most weekends and lots of holidays all together through their childhood. All felt equal - nobody closer than anybody else. We all enjoyed being together and came as a package. Kids were all best of friends too.
Since the kids have grown up ours have moved away but theirs have stayed local and still knock about together so for us ties have loosened a bit as we don't have the kids in common any more.
But over the past year or so we are feeling increasingly left out. When we get together it's clear they've all met up in between, although they do try to play it down but when you're sensitive it's there to see. And we often feel like a bit of an after thought when we are invited these days. "We" are going do you want to come? And sometimes we are just not invited at all to stuff with other mutual friends where we absolutely would have been part of the gang before.
I'm sure it all sounds quite petty from me but there's a definite change the air. And I'm wrestling with whether to drift off because I feel rubbish when we are left out or to cling on because we have so much shared history.
The only thing that's changed that I can see is that we don't have the kids in common any more.
They say friends are for a season, reason or lifetime. I'm getting the feeling this friendship was for a season. The child rearing season.
I think I've answered my own question! Just looking for anybody that's been through similar and did you regret drifting off?