All the things you recognize when you are the mom of your friend group

My girlfriend group is at first glance a collection of different types. My best friend is incredibly creative and gentle, another friend has such a busy social life that I often wonder if we have the same number of hours in a day, and yet another friend is a mega career tiger. And me? I am the mother of the group. Unwillingly, I must say, I don't actually want to be this. Unfortunately, the control freak in me and my friends' inability to plan practically forces me time and again to take on the mother role.

Are you also the mother of your girlfriend group? Then you undoubtedly recognize yourself in the following things:

1. You are the planner of the bunch. Without you, a lot of parties, birthdays, and vacations would completely fall through. True story: I once organized a girlfriends' vacation down to the last detail, where my friend was so little involved that she only asked on the plane how warm it would actually be at our destination. Packing without going over all the information about our accommodation at least five times? I could never.

2. You often wonder how it is possible that your friends go out with a tiny bag, or even without a bag. Until you see your own suitcase, that is.

3. In that suitcase, there is always sunscreen, paracetamol, lip balm, a bottle of water, an extra pair of sunglasses, and all the stuff your friends don't have room for in their small bags. My friends are sweet enough to occasionally take that bag off my hands. Mama needs a break sometimes.

4. You are the peacemaker of the group. When two friends are at each other's throats over a tiny problem, you solve it with your common sense in no time.

5. You stand up for friends who don't dare to do it themselves. Whether it's about an annoying ex, a boss on a power trip, or a rude hospitality worker: you will address them. There's a hundred percent chance that those people will treat your friend with much more respect in the future.

6. No matter how hard you sometimes try not to be, on a night out, you are always the most down-to-earth of them all. And even if things sometimes get a bit out of hand for you, if something happens to your friends, you immediately become sober again and make sure everyone is safely in a taxi home within 0.3 seconds.

7. You are more aware of your friends' schedules than your friends themselves. You also plan all your dinners and coffee dates because you know exactly who is free when.

8. You give the best advice and often hear your own advice back from your friends, even if they don't seem to listen to you at first. As my mother always says: ‘Just because you don't listen to me doesn't mean you don't hear me.’ Wow, I really am starting to look like her.

9. You also hear your own parents in your advice. Phrases like: ‘make wise choices’, ‘apply sunscreen when you go outside’, and ‘it's for your own good’ regularly slip out of your mouth without you even thinking about it.

10. No matter how strict you sometimes are with your friends, you always let them know that you love them. Whether it's a sweet card, an encouraging text, or just a big hug that only mother-friends can give: as a true mother should, the love for your friends is never, ever hidden.