Thursday's Connections Abound

Welcome to today's edition of Connections Abound. The point to Lost and Found is to level the support playing field. When LFCA works correctly, the newest blogger with the smallest readership can receive the same level of support as the oldest blogger with the largest readership. Anyone can submit news to LFCA by clicking here.

Lost and Found is open to anyone in the infertility, pregnancy loss, adoption, pregnancy-and-parenting after infertility, assisted conception, living child-free after infertility or loss community (as well as anyone I inadvertently missed on that list). Please support the list as well as anyone posting announcements below.

Connections Abound

MISCELLANEOUS NEWS
New

• Kirtsy'd Pick O' the Day: Please vote for this one from Weebles Wobblog. An absolutely brilliant post in a series about her daughter's reunion with her birthfather which is not only interesting to read, but important to really understand the intricacies of adoption. How do you vote? Simply by clicking on the words "this one" above and then clicking on the post's title. Why the Kirtsy'd Pick O' the Day? Click on that link in the header navigation bar above for the story. And send me stuff!
• Um...not to toot our own horn, but one of our Kirtsy'd Pick O' the Day choices was sent out yesterday in their newsletter as one of the top 5 posts in January (it was "To My Dear Friend on the Day After her Wedding"). 100% of our posts have made it to the front page of Kirtsy daily, which means they are seen by those outside the general ALI community. So please keep clicking because it's not enough to speak to the choir--you got to sing it to the general world too. And please keep sending me links. Click on the button under the header to read more about the project and pass links my way.
• Resolve: The Midwest Region of RESOLVE is holding its Annual Family Building Conference on Saturday, February 21st in Minneapolis. The conference includes: (1) FREE giveaway -- over $20,000 of prizes to be given away (including 2 IVF cycles, half off an adoption study, and much MUCH more!!), (2) 19 infertility and adoption workshops, (3) FREE expert advice from Reproductive Endocrinologists, Adoption Agencies, Alternative Therapy Practitioners, Attorneys, Psychologists and other fertility and adoption specialists, (4) Keynote speaker Michele Tafoya, one of the most respected reporters in television sports, will share her experiences with infertility and adoption, and (5) Largest conference of its type in the Midwest. For more information, please visit the Conference's page on RESOLVE's website.
• Opportunity: Paul Berger, a freelance journalist recently submitted a request for stories to the Miscarriage, Stilbirth, and Infant loss blog directory. He is... "researching a story for a national UK publication about how blogging helps mothers deal with the loss of a child. The purpose of the article is to highlight how blogs can go some way towards dealing with grief by providing an outlet for thoughts and feelings as well as building a support network via the larger blogging community." He can be reached via email at pdberger AT gmail DOT com.
• Question: So Dear and Yet So Far has questions about how to get a birth and death certificate for Jacob and how this all affects her taxes. Go help if you can.
• Question: Megs is looking to find out any information regarding natural vs. stimulated IVF or a personal experience with deciding between the two. Please head over to her blog if you can help.
  

Old

• Opportunity: Mrs Spock is looking for more infertility/loss stories for the Our Bodies, Ourselves project. This time, they are specifically looking for stories about: (1) Living childfree after infertility, (2) Adoption after infertility or (3) Women who chose not to undergo treatments. These stories will be chosen at the editor's discretion and published anonymously on the book's website. You can email your story, or suggest someone else, to mrsspock9@gmail.com.
• Creme de la Creme: The Creme de la Creme list was posted. I continue to add to it daily and update the date/time link on the right sidebar whenever there has been a change.
• Bridges continues to post and it continues to be an amazing resource for insight into a multitude of worlds. And I'm not just saying that because I work on it.
• If you notice another loading slow down or receive error messages for Stirrup Queens or Lost and Found, please let me know. Now I'm nervous every time I add anything to the side bar!

NEW BLOGS (started in January or February 2009)

• Trying for Only One Baby (PCOS)
• Cricket Songs (unexplained, IUI, foster care)
• May the Road Rise (general IF)

BIRTHDAYS AND ANNIVERSARIES (celebrate your birthday or blogoversary with the community. Send me date at any point and I'll post them on the correct day)

• In Ancient Starlight is celebrating her birthday next Saturday. Go sing her a little song.
• To Baby and Beyond is celebrating her birthday next Saturday too. Go eat a little cake with her.
• My Sanctuary is celebrating her birthday later this week. Go over and sing her a little song. She is mostly password protected, but she's friendly and will give out the password if asked.
• A Somewhat Ordinary Life is celebrating her birthday today. Leave her birthday wishes on this post if you do not have access to her password-protected blog.
• There's a Baby at the End of This, Right? is celebrating her third blogoversary on Friday. Go over and wish her congratulations.
• Dreams and False Alarms had her first blogoversary on January 25. It's not too late to wish her well.
  

LOSS REMEMBRANCES (send in the dates of loss anniversaries and I will post them on the correct day)

• None Today.
  

LOSS ANNOUNCEMENTS

• None Today.
  

MISCELLANEOUS SUPPORT AND CELEBRATIONS (scary scans, anxious waits, OHSS, and a host of other reasons why these bloggers could use some additional support right now. Also, celebratory retrievals, transfers, and other good news)

• Transfer has been pushed back to Day 6 for It's Not a Clown Car. Go give her support.
• A negative this cycle for Bloorb. Please go give her a hug.
• Go wish Fertilized congratulations on her new life--she quit her job yesterday and is forging a new path.
• Courtney had a BFN after her IUI. Go give her a hug.
• The funeral for Dee's Angelo will be on Saturday. In addition she is having a tough recovery from her c-section and Daniella has developed a complication. She could use a whole lot of support. Please go over.
• Whitney moved and was in a really bad car accident recently. She's ok, but could use a hug.
  

BEDREST BABES: on bedrest following infertility or loss and needing support. Drop in on them and keep them company.

• Elana had the cerclage and is now at home on modified bed rest.
• Heather is on bedrest for the foreseeable future after having a cerclage put in. Sweetpea is still doing great!

PREGNANCY ANNOUNCEMENTS AND NEWS

• Niki's surrogate K has a VFP and a SDFL- a Very Faint Positive and a Slightly Darker Faint Line! Go wish them both congratulations.
• Mary Ellen and Steve are back! Mary Ellen is ten weeks pregnant. Go welcome them back and wish them congratulations.
• Chhandita is pregnant! Go wish her congratulations.
  

BIRTH AND ADOPTION ANNOUNCEMENTS

• Reproductive Jeans gave birth yesterday to a boy, Oliver. Go over and wish her congratulations.
• Olivegirl gave birth to two healthy girls back on December 2. Go wish her congratulations.
  

Read and Support