IComLeavWe: April 2011

Welcome back to IComLeavWe. It stands for International Comment Leaving Week, but if you say it aloud, doesn’t it sounds like “I come; [but] leave [as a] we”? And that’s sort of the point. Blogging is a conversation and comments should be honoured and encouraged. I like to say that comments are the new hug–a way of saying hello, giving comfort, leaving congratulations.

Here is the vital information, pure and simple (a more detailed set of rules follows below the list):

• The list opens the 1st of every month. It remains open until the 21st. You can add yourself at any point. The list is open to everyone in the blogosphere–blog writers and/or blog readers.
• Add yourself to the list by filling out this form: The list is now closed.  The May list will open 5/1.
• Click here to cut-and-paste this bit of code to add to your sidebar (if you have the old code from another month, remove it and replace it with this one). You need to add the icon or a link to the current list on your blog (see below) and will not be added until it’s up.
• Commenting kicks off every month on the 21st. Please mark it somewhere (calendar, post-it note taped to your computer…), though I will be sending out an email reminder on the 20th. Commenting week runs from the 21st to the 28th. Every day, leave 5 comments and return 1 comment for a total of 6 comments. You are highly encouraged to choose the blogs you comment on from the participants list below, but this is not required.
• I will send a second email on the 28th to remind you to remove the icon from your blog.
• Read below if you want to find out about Iron Commenters.
• The commenting ends on the 28th. We catch our breath and the whole thing starts again the next month on the 1st. Drop in and out according to what is happening in your life between the 21st and the 28th.

1. Stirrup Queens (twins, books, writing)
2. The Pursuit of Pregnancy (IUI, RPL, clotting disorder)
3. I Want to be a Daddy (male infertility experience)
4. Among the Blossoms (life, infertility, randomness)
5. The 2 Week Wait (TTC, humor, infertility)
6. Hannah Wept, Sarah Laughed (infertility, advocacy, hope)
7. Feeling Beachie (life, humor, family)
8. A Nuttier Life (PCOS, doxies, randomness)
9. CD1 Again (infertility, family)
10. Are We There Yet (parenting after IF)
11. Hausfrau (kids, crafts, cookery)
12. Balancing Act (parenting, military, multiples+1)
13. Cradles and Graves (2nd-tri losses, infertility, pregnant)
14. The Ladies in Waiting Book Club (book club, support, friendship)
15. Just us and the cat (fet, tubelessness, life)
16. Diary of taking small steps toward baby steps (IVF, FET, PCOS)
17. Your Great Life (infertility, emotional support, fertility health)
18. Dealing With DOR (high fsh, infertility)
19. Misconceptions About Conception (donor egg, feelings)
20. My Daily Mooosings in the Netherlands (simplifying life, culture, Netherlands)
21. Empty Whole (azoo, MFI, healing)
22. A Half Baked Life (parenting after loss, food, life)
23. Trying to conceive (IVF, support, ICSI)
24. Bio Girl (family, infertility, FET)
25. Reverie (adoption, parenting, infertility)
26. Babies, Balanced Translocations, and Being in my 30’s (IVF/PGD, miscarriage, ttc #1)
27. Will Train For Cream Cheese Icing (secondary infertility, being an athlete)
28. We Say IVF They Say FIV (infertility, IVF, parenting)
29. Pink In The Sheets (lesbian, love, lifestyle)
30. for all the things we hope for (infertility, nursing school, married life)
31. Somewhere In The Middle (infertility, adoption, waiting)
32. From Ms to Mrs…& back to Ms (canceled wedding, family)
33. Musings of a Hormonal Egg Basket (baby after IVF)
34. Mommy Odyssey (miscarriage, healing, humor when called for)
35. Chasing Our Stork: Our Journey with Infertility (ivf #1, unexplained infertility, graduate school)
36. The Road Less Traveled (pregnancy after loss, embryo donation)
37. Storm in My Teacup (FET#2, greyhound, VWbus)
38. Momsmith (parenting, infertility/PCOS, randomness)
39. A Field of Dreams (parenting, weight loss, humour)
40. Where’s Our Stork? (infertility, pcos, azoo)
41. Dragondreamer’s Lair (parenting, secondary infertility, crafts)
42. Aisha Iqbal (motherhood, parenting, life)
43. On Tap for Today (life, humor, Boston)
44. The Bushey Life (pregnancy after IF)
45. Coffee and Crafts (crafts, coffee, randomness)
46. Mephistos (green-living, alpha-geek, libertarian)
47. Failed Genetics (marriage, infertility, adoption)
48. Poor Lucky Me (neonatal loss, trying again)
49. As Good As It Gets (parenting after infertility)
50. InDueTime (life, infertility, pcos)
51. Baby Steps to Motherhood (ivf, MF, ttc)
52. The Stork Drop Zone (humor, infertility, positivity)
53. Our Stork Isn’t Great with Directions (infertility, parenting, work)
54. Eighteenyears (infertility, hopeful, psoriasis)
55. Joyous Birdie (de ivf, 49 years old, pregnant with twins)
56. Survive and Thrive (infertility, EFT, survival)
57. ReeWrite (breastfeeding, mommyhood, animals)
58. A Year On…. Our New Beginning (hopefully) (stillbirth, infertility, IVF)
59. The Daily Miracle (ivf, secondary if, humour)
60. Diary of a Mad Infertile Woman (injectables, infertility, coping)
61. Here We Go Again (dead baby, parenting, random)
62. Bodega Bliss (miscarriage, loss, grief)
63. My Hormonacoaster (ivf, mfi, pcos)
64. 2’s Company. 3’s a Family (female-factor infertility, loss, TTC)
65. The One in Eight Couple (unexplained infertility, family, life)
66. Stumbling Gracefully (parenting, photography, waxing philosophical)
67. Second Hand Happiness (buying nothing new for a year)
68. Broken Birds & Bees (infertility, humor, life)
69. Traditionally Nontraditional (family, TTC, infertility)
70. Palm Trees & Rainy Days (ivf, infertility, ttc)
71. Mission: Fertile Soul (fertility, joy, humor)
72. Searching for the Missing Piece (adoption, life, creativity)
73. MissConception (IVF, PCOS, TTC#1)
74. Whitney & Erick (miscarriage, IVF, cooking)
75. I’m Very Far Away (infertility, IUI, asia)
76. A Greater Yes (embryo adoption, parenting, infertility)
77. Elusive Take Home Baby (recurrent miscarriage, friendship, health)
78. One Wheeler’s World (life, love, parenting after if)
79. The Inadequate Conception (infertility, humor, new book)
80. My Daily Mooosings in the Netherlands (simplifying life, culture, Netherlands)
81. My Hopeful Journey (infertility app, hope, support)
82. Someday (pregnant, IVF, azoospermia)
83. Hearts Joined, Hands Fast (MFI, IUI, TTC)
84. The Journey Continues (kids, IVF, life)
85. Mommy In Waiting (pregnant from IVF#4)
86. This non-American Life (travel, expat life, Europe)
87. Flogging the Muse (art, painting, creativity)
88. Compromised Fertility (iui, two week wait, working with toddlers and preschoolers)
89. In Case You Need Proof (parenting, family, life)
90. Then Comes the Baby in the Baby Carriage (infertility, emotions, books)
91. Creating a Family (infertility, adoption, adoptive parenting)
92. Maternal Hope (pregnancy IVF twins)
93. The Panda Diaries (newborn, depression, life)
94. Exploring Chaos (IVF, parenting, TTC#2)
95. The Rocky Road to Motherhood (infertility, pregnancy, life)
96. It Is What It Is (Or Is It?) (domestic adoption, adult adoptee, life)
97. ~*Sam and Corey*~TTC #1 (infertility, pregnancy, me)
98. No Kidding in NZ (childless infertility survival)
99. Savor The Moment (pcos, life, love)
100. The Conceivable Future (RPL, infertility, life)
101. On the Road (vasectomy reversal, ttc, life)
102. Sunshine on Jupiter (IVF, pcos, loss)
103. I Believe In Miracles (RPL, motherhood after adoption)
104. Wistfulgirl’s World (infertility, life, A to Z blogging challenge)
105. Tippy and Tidy’s Tumultuous Trip to Toddlers (ttc#1, unexplained, multiple ivf)
106. Inconceivable! (ivf, step-parenting, life)
107. My Infertile Confessions (pregnant with twins after IVF)
108. One Wheeler’s World (infertility, parenting after if, life)
109. Grafting a Branch Onto the Family Tree (post attempted surrogacy, renewed TTC, weight loss)
110. Delayed in Dinkville (ttc#1, recurrent miscarriage, life)
111. Marriage 2.0 (marriage, infertility, life)
112. My Angel Baby…Aiden William (love, loss, hope)
113. IFSerenityNow (ivf, fet, loss)
114. A Woman My Age (adoption, infertility, parenting after 40)
115. More Room in my Heart (secondary infertility, diminished ovarian reserve, IVF#5)
116. Wonderfully Ordinary (parenting, infertility, life)
117. The Barreness’s Blog (parenting after infertility)
118. A peek into our Journey (infertility, waiting, IVF)
119. Ready Now to See it YOUR Way (ttc, god, life)
120. Lissie’s Luck (PCOS cautious hope)
121. Almost There (foster, adoption, secondary infertility)
122. Our Life Journey (infertility, life, faith)
123. Take Home Baby (pregnancy miscarriage infertility)
124. Uncommon Nonsense (infertility, pregnancy, advocacy)
125. Our New Plan A (life after ivf )
126. The Barreness (art infertility memories)
127. My Little Eye (art life craft)
128. Infertility in China… A Journey (ivf, infertility, expat)
129. Cinderella Wore Glass Slippers (IVF, coping, unexplained IF)
130. Everyone else but me (parenting after IVF, attic project, ectopic pregnancy)
131. Busted Plumbing (PCOS, parent after loss, awesomeness)
132. InfertilityUnexplained (unexplained infertility, iui, culture)
133. Not Exactly What I Had Planned (ivf, mfi)
134. For We Are Bound By Symmetry (ttc #1, unexplained infertility)
135. The (In)fertility Diaries (pregnancy, adoption, life)
136. Body Diaries by Lucy (family, pcos, if)
137. Infertilitee (secondary IF, 2yrs ttc, robot sex)
138. No Baby Ruth (3rd trimester, IUI, PCOS)
139. Diary of a Residency Widow (residency life, TTC#1, PCOS)
140. IUI to Roux-en-Y (surgery prep, weight loss, IF)
141. Pursuing Parenthood (Previously “Grafting a Branch onto the family Tree”) (post surrogacy attempt, resarting TTC, weight loss)
142. Raising Cain (someday) (IVF, infertility, waiting for #1)
143. My Rotten Eggs (repeat loss, idiots, everyday life)
144. Creating Our Miracle (IVF # 2, TTC # 1, MFI)
145. Watering Faith’s Seed (fet, faith, ttc)
146. Crazy [Beautiful] Dream (adoption, pregnant after infertility)
147. The Infertility Overachievers (pregnant after IVF)
148. Just Relax (humor, pregnancy, infertility)
149. Blawnde’s Blawg (pregnant after infertility)
150. The Unfair Struggle (mfi, speedskating, trying again?)
151. One day at a time (hypothyroidism, army, IF)
152. AFM (pregnancy after loss, RPL, parenthood)
153. Pontifications of a Twin Mom (twins, humor, parenting)
154. Getting There (adoption, life, settling in)
155. The Fertility Daily (infertility, coping, humor)
156. GoTeamBaby (ivf, infertility, forty-two)
157. Life’s everyday adventures! (life, randomness, volunteering)
158. It Is Tuesday, Right?? (ivf, motherhood, sarcasm)
159. Salvageable (motherhood, TTC, stress)
160. Just Us…For Now (FET, miscarriage, infertility)
161. Beyond the Wallpaper (infertility, balanced translocation, miscarriage)
162. That’s My Answer (question of the day, fun, life)
163. Outside My Head (marathon, running, life)
164. Family of Two: The Adoption Chronicles (adoption, life, marriage)
165. Trying not to scream (infertility, loss, trying again)
166. The Sun’ll Come Out Tomorrow (I Hope) (pregnant after RPL)
167. About My Uterus (PCOS, loss, TTC#2)
168. Created Family (infertility, life, social work)
169. This Is Mommyhood (motherhood, life, humor)
170. Weathering the Storm (international adoption, health, thoughts)
171. My Dusty Uterus (humor, pregnancy, eggs)
172. Infertile in a Fertile Land (infertility, india, hope)
173. Just Stop Trying and It Will Happen (infertility, life, snarkiness)
174. Hope Springs Infertile (de ivf, parenting, life)
175. The Life of Miss Conception (high fsh, ridiculosity)
176. Life As I Know It (twins, life, baby)
177. Life as I know it… (infertility, IVF, life)
178. The Great Big IF (parenting after infertility, infertility, IVF)
179. The list is now closed.  The May list will open 5/1.

Q: What if I miss a day?

A: Catch up the next day by doubling your comments–12 comments instead of 6.

Q: What if I have two blogs? Can I sign up twice, listing both blogs?

A: Yes, but you also need to double your comments. If you have two blogs listed, you should be leaving 12 comments per day.

Q: What is an Iron Commenter?

A: Not for the faint-of-heart. People who wish to be an Iron Commenter and be entered on the Iron Commenter honour roll need to leave a comment on every blog on the participants list (exceptions are blogs that require you to have a special log-in, such as some LiveJournal accounts or other similar situations). You can spread out this commenting any way you wish over the whole week, but the final comment needs to be left by midnight on the 28th (EST). Reaching Iron Commenter status is done on an honour system. Please email me if you earn Iron Commenter status so I can add you to the wall of honour.

Q: Why do I have to add that bit of code to my sidebar?

A: The code is the latest icon (the icon changes colour every month so you know that you’re on the right list). This month, the icon is blue, the next month it will be red, etc. The reason is two-fold: (1) it enables more people to find out about IComLeavWe and (2) it gives you easy access to the current list once the commenting week actually begins and better ensures that you’ll use it. Too many times, people sign up and forget to actually do IComLeavWe and this icon gives you a daily reminder (with the dates on it) every time you open your own blog. The icon is linked back to the current list. On the 28th, remove the icon from your blog. A new one will be created for the next month.

Q: It’s the 23rd and I just saw this for the first time on my friend’s blog! I want to join the list–why can’t I?

A: Because IComLeavWe happens every month, once the list is closed, it’s closed. If you’re finding out about this on the 23rd, you can’t join the current month. But leave yourself a note to check back in a week on the 1st and you can sign up for the next month.

Q: You said the list closes on the 21st. Well, it’s still the 21st where I am. Why aren’t you moving my information onto the list?

A: All dates and times are U.S. Eastern Standard Time (UTC/GMT -5 hours). The list closes around 11 p.m. EST on the 21st.

Q: What if no one comments on my blog and I have no comments to return?

A: Well, that really doesn’t happen for the most part, but in that case, simply choose another blog and add an additional comment. The goal is to hit 6 comments daily as a minimum. Going over that is fantastic and encouraged.

Q: Mel, my question wasn’t covered at all. What do I do?

A: Email me; I’m quite friendly. It helps to place “IComLeavWe” in the subject line. You could also check this post which contains the history of IComLeavWe and see if you can glean anything there.

Looking for the comment section? It has been closed on this post. Use the form in the directions to add yourself to the list.