She asked her over and over again if she should cancel the cruise because of her baby, and she said «no» until the last minute.

A lot can change in a friendship when one friend has a baby, and the other doesn’t. Every emotionally mature person knows that a baby needs more attention and care from their mother than an adult needs from their best friend. Nevertheless, that fact doesn’t make the emotional sting of a friend giving you the brush hurt any less. It’s no fun to no longer be the 1st or 2nd-most-important person in your best friend’s life. 

It’s essential to give your exhausted parent friends some space, especially in the first year of parenthood. They probably won’t be able to hang out multiple times a week or go on vacation, and that’s okay! As long as they’re able to communicate what they need from their friends and what they can’t do, there’s no reason a friendship should have to end because of a new baby. Some parents need their friends to come over once a week to hang out and give them a break from the baby, and some need to take a sabbatical from friendship for the first year of their firstborn’s life; neither is inherently good or bad.