Leibster Blog Award!

Thank you, Julia at http://intunewithmyautoimmune.wordpress.com/ for nominating me for a Leibster Blog Award! This award is granted to up-and-coming bloggers with fewer than 200 followers who deserve some recognition and support to keep on blogging. Like my nominator, this is my first blog nomination. I hope everyone gets to know me a little better from this. 

Liebster is german for "Favorite," so this is award of the favorite blog award. 

The instructions are:

1) to answer the 11 questions written by your nominator. 2) to nominate 11 other bloggers who have less than 200 followers. 3) to write 11 of your own questions for each nominee to answer. (I don't think I have 11 people to nominate, but I'll participate in answering the questions, and nominate a few!)

1. What song has impacted you the most?

This will sound strange, but lately I have loved Jason Mraz's song I Won't Give Up. This song touches me in so many ways.  It starts with my love for my husband, and how I will never give up on us, but it goes further into this fertility battle. It's me saying that I won't give up on this until I literally can't move any more. Giving up is not an option for me, or for us. 

2. Describe your best friend.

Handsome. Goofy. Loving. Driven. Passionate. Athletic. Fun. Silly. Great Friend. Thoughtful. Caring. Stylish. Smart. Good Listener. Tidy. Sexy. Strong. And so much more. 

We could have fun in a cardboard box. These are the reasons I married him.

3. How did you meet your spouse?

Well, the short story? In a bar. But I have to tell the long story too. It was really mutual friends that brought us together, it just so happened to be at a bar. Terry Myspaced me after we met, and asked for my number. I guess the rest is history. 

4. Where would you go if you could go anywhere?

I'm a beach/ocean person. I want to go to Bora Bora and stay on a little hut on the ocean. For a long time. 

5. How many times have you cried this past year and why?

I can't count them, but I can say that 99% of the cries have been related to our journey. Miscarriages, cancelled cycles, no answers, failed cycles, fear of what may never be.... I imagine the other 1% of cries came from the hormones related to all of those things!

6. What are you most thankful for this time of year?

Our families, dogs, and friends. We are so lucky. Both of our families live very close to us. My parents and sister live like 7 minutes from us, which is so wonderful. My sister is one of my best friends and she lived so far away for college and grad school. I love that she is just down the street now. I am very close with my grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins. I get to see them all the time. Terry's parents live 3 houses down from us, which works out great. I am just so thankful that my family is close. 

I also can't imagine life without my friends. I have a group of girls I graduated high school with that (for the most part) ended up marrying a bunch of boys from Mesquite. It works out so wonderful because when we all get together, all the boys are friends already so they do their thing and us girls do ours! I have an amazing friend from college who I am so thankful that I met and that we did not lose touch. I have a friend from my first job after college that is one of my favorite happy hour buddies. I have friends that I met through Terry, and some that I knew many years ago and they have came back into my life again. I also have my friends at work, that probably know more than they ever wanted to about me, but they like me anyway. :) i've been blessed with so many friends, and I am so very thankful for that. 

7. Why did you choose to blog and do you share your blog on Facebook?

A friend posted a blog (Amanda at teamholdbrook.blogspot.com). I had no idea what journey her and her husband had been on until I read her blog. It helped me so incredibly much to read her story, that I figured if I could help just one person the way she helped me, then it would be worth it. My blog is not on Facebook. I have a lot of Facebook friends that I am not really "friends" with. I am not ready for all of them to know the intimate details of my life. I would rather my blog circulate by word of mouth. I want to share our story, just not on Facebook.

8. How has blogging helped you?

I never knew how much this would help. It helps me get my feelings out. It helps my friends to know what's going on without feeling like they are bugging me (which you aren't!). It's also a journal. I like to look back at where I was in certain cycles, so this helps me keep track. 

9. If you could change it all, would you?

Wow. I have never really thought about this. This one took me a minute to answer, but after thinking about it, I would not change anything about the journey we are on. Don't get me wrong, it has not been easy and I don't wish it on anyone else. But this journey has changed who we are. It has strengthened our relationship and made us more of a team than I ever thought we could be. It has changed our relationship with God, and it has opened up my eyes to a world I did not even know existed. I have learned more about how your body works then I ever would have known had we not been through this, and I am so thankful for that.

10. Do you watch reality television and what are your favorite shows?

I used to love reality tv, but I haven't been watching much tv lately. I do love the Bachelor and American Idol. And Mad Men. and SNL. 

11. If you could share one thing about infertlity, what would it be?

You have to stand up for yourself and be your own advocate, because no one else is going to do it for you. You have to ask questions, question answers, and take notes about everything. You have to choose to trust your doctor, and if you don't trust them, find a new doctor you can trust. You can get a million opinions from friends, Dr. Google, or a random person you meet at a wedding. And you can drive yourself crazy listening to all of those opinions. I have learned to listen to those opinions, but in the end, I trust what my doctor says. And last but not least, you can NEVER GIVE UP. You have to pick yourself back up after the hard times and keep pressing forward. You have to stay strong, for your family. 

Now the next step is to choose eleven blogs that have impacted me and ask them eleven questions. I only have 4, if I don't count the person that nominated me. It won't hurt my feelings if you don't participate, but I thought this was fun. I hope you will consider passing along the blogger love.

Nominees:

teamholdbrook.blogspot.com

http://onepercentchance.wordpress.com/

http://mybumovaries.blogspot.com/

http://intunewithmyautoimmune.wordpress.com/

http://www.fromiftowhen.com/

1. What's been your biggest influence?

2. Why did you start your blog?

3. What have you learned on your fertility journey? 

4. What is your favorite thing about your spouse? 

5. What's the last thing you do before you go to bed?

6. What is your favorite non-blog website?

7. What is your favorite quote or saying?

8. If you could change it all, would you? (I had to repeat it!)

9. If you could find out one celebrity was following your blog, who would you want it to be?

10. If you could meet anyone in the world, who would it be?

11. What is one thing you would want people to say about you behind your back?