My Blogging Quest

Jen @ Semantically Driven started a blogging quest ...

• When did you start blogging?

July 1st ,2005 was the very first day I started to blog...

• Why?

I had just started the first part of my IVF cycle . I read an article called "Falling Pregnant" about Tertia and Julie and their blogs in the June 2005 Australian Readers Digest. I wanted what they had ...the circle of friendship and support There were other infertility blogs too and they all really inspired me to start. Though it was a false start. I accidently started a new blog instead of a new post, got all confused ...then gave up.
I started blogging properly again, when my boys were almost 11 months old, after Tiff at Three Ring Circus inspired me.

• What did you expect in the beginning?

Originally I wanted to journal my grief and trying to conceive via IVF. After adopting 15yrs ago, my first natural pregnancy ended when our daughter was stillborn at 26 weeks gestation in 2004. Six months later in 2005 we went down IVF path .Women I met through online parenting forums gave me the knowledge and courage to try again and pursue IVF because of our long history of infertility. A few had blogs.
I wanted to have my own 'space' (blog) in 'cyber' space to do and say my own thing ...add links and write a ton of stuff anonymously. I couldn't do this on forums.
I had no real expectations. I just thought what the heck it if sounds this good I'll try it.

I had intense soul searching to do.I didn't want to tell family or friends in case we failed to get pregnant or suffered another loss.I wanted to journal our IVF experience 'privately' ... well with hundreds of strangers. I wondered if anyone else lived my life ...

• Have your expectations been met or did something completely different happen?

Since I cast my new found blog aside after a few days... feeling a technologial failure. Something completely different happened from what I had planned...I retreated back to IVF sections on the parenting forums to lay low and forgot all about my blog. I got pregnant with twins.
I started blogging again after the birth of my twin sons.
I was glad to see others struggled with the same things and that I wasn't alone. Not that I would wish life difficulties and loss on anyone.
I wanted to be able to look back on the hard parts that were difficult to get through and at the same time, the good parts that were/are amazing, wonderful.

• What’s blown you away about blogging?

The friendship and the connections. The honesty of some bloggers in revealing their own adversity , adventures and truimphs. The fact all over the world people want to be friendly with me. The comments ...

• Have you encountered adversity and had adventures in your blogging quest?

Adventures absolutely .Truly I could never have expected. For many months I had only a rare visitor to my blog.I almost gave up till I started to get comments...don't we all love comments.
Adversity, only in the sense that it sometimes takes too much time away from my family and real life maintaining the special connections within the blogosphere. It is a difficult balance.
I have seen people come and go in the blogland and I guess it is easy for people to forget about you if you stay away.
Adversity also through reading the blogs of others who are going through the darkest of days.

• Why do you continue to blog?

To journal my life with my boys , our cheeky little treasures that fill our lives with much love, joy and laughter. I hope it will be a record for them and to share a little with others going through the same joys and struggles.
I learn alot by reading other blogs and they share a wealth of information and links I might never have known about.
Blogging isn't just about daily dribble.
I can’t blog much about friends or family because some of them read my blog and they would get very upset.That is why sometimes I don’t write about emotional things.
I do love to peek in the windows of other blogs to see how the manage what I am going through but can't ask for advice on publicly. I have made so many special connections with people I may never meet and I know better than some real life friends. I cherish my bloggy friends, they make me both laugh and cry, help me out, hold me up. It is a great community. I also learn so much about cooking, planning, photography,current affairs and general history.
I love to put myself in their shoes and walk a mile with them ...well quite not in their shoes.
Mostly I enjoy the personal stories of others going through similar struggles and of course sharing their joys and mine.
I love humour, the acts of random kindness stories and the everyday fun with kids and spouses.I love competitions too ;).Blogging has been so much fun and therapeutic plus you can win cool prizes. I'm not sure I could stop. ...did I mention I have won a few very cool prizes.

• How do you see the future of blogging?

Right now I am pondering that ... There are a lot of things I can't say on a public website ...unlike some others. I wish sometimes I was more anonymous.
I cringe sometimes whilst thinking how brave (or stupid) some people are.
I try not to fill my blog with the mundane things in life but sometimes that is all there is. I hope I'll always have my blog to express the things that mean something to me and share them with others.
♥

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