IComLeavWe: June 2012

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 June list is now closed.  The July one will open up at the end of the month.
  
• 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. Adrift on a Dandelion Breeze (stillbirth, secondary IF, IVF)
3. Lavender Luz (open adoption, living mindfully, yoga)
4. The Future Fords (unexplained infertility, TTC)
5. Nest Building 101 (family, DIY, photography)
6. 1000 Oceans (twin loss, ivf, very early pregnancy)
7. Looking For That One (IVF, waiting, ttc again)
8. Outrageous Fortune (twins, cerebral palsy, self-publishing)
9. Searching for our silver lining (FET#2, RPL, balance)
10. Life As I Know It (twins, toddler, life)
11. Created Family (ttc #1, social worker, unexplained infertility)
12. The Road From There To Here (pcos, faith, simplifying our lives)
13. A Page In My Book (family, differently abled children, support)
14. My Lady of the Lantern (parenting after IF and loss, jittery, adapting)
15. Breathe Gently (IVF, PCOS, anovulation)
16. Feeling Beachie (life, humor, family)
17. Musings of a Hormonal Egg Basket (parenting after infertility)
18. Our Pathway to Parenthood (IVF #1, infertility, hope)
19. CD1 Again (infertility, TTC, life)
20. It Is What It Is (Or Is It?) (pg w donated embryos, ttc#2, pg over 45)
21. Babylicious Tales (motherhood, unexpectedly expecting)
22. I’m Just Ducky, Thanks (surrogacy, adoption, rpl)
23. Baby-Making Merry-go-Round (IVF, pregnancy, quads!)
24. My Journey to Get Fit and Battle PCOS (early pregnancy, pcos, weight issues)
25. The Elusive Second Line (miscarriage, PCOS, TTC #1)
26. Life is hard!! (stillbirth, living children, almost ttc again)
27. A Life of Choice (life, infertility, couchsurfing)
28. If You Don’t Stand For Something (MFI, geekiness, general life ramblings)
29. Bring on the Babies… (recurrent loss, IVF, preterm labor)
30. A Blanket 2 Keep (IUI, life, hope)
31. Syringe Sisters (IVF, pregnancy, twins)
32. Our Growing Gardunn (secondary RPL, septum removal, iui)
33. Infertile FirstMom (IVF with donor eggs, birthmotherhood/adoption, general infertility)
34. Waiting for Baby (pcos, vasectomy reversal, ttc #1)
35. Doping For Baby (IVF, humor, gratitude)
36. Waiting for Little Feet (pregnancy, infertility, life)
37. The Eloping Stethoscope (newlyweds, DIY, life)
38. Wanted: Family of Three (ivf #1, MFI, TWW)
39. Modern Medicine Miracle (military life, donor sperm, ttc)
40. Glitter & Rainbows (infertility, break, life)
41. Detour (surgeries, pain, hope)
42. Baking & Babies (infertility, ttc, baking)
43. Searching for the Missing Piece (adoption, life, creativity)
44. Parenthood for Me (adoption infertility coping)
45. holly’s narrative dream (secondary infertility, writing, life)
46. ErnieGirl (thyroid, pregnant, birthmother)
47. The Crafted Cure (diy, lifestyle, newlyweds)
48. A Writer In A Wheelchair (disability, books, life)
49. Poetry Sans Onions (poetry, life, change/loss)
50. My Life is About the Journey (recurrent loss, TTC #1, jealousy)
51. Dog Mom Chasing the Stork  (TTC, clomid, relationships)
52. The Barreness (art, infertility, reflection)
53. Tales from the Waiting Room (unexplained infertility, ivf, ttc #1)
54. A Journey of Emotions (fertility, emotions, challenges)
55. My (In)fertile Confessions (twins, making baby food, life)
56. for all the things we hope for (endometriosis, long-term infertility, birth doula business)
57. MRKH Musings (wombless life, surrogacy)
58. The 2 Week Wait (infertility motherhood hope)
59. She’s Gone Crunchy (parenting after infertility, crunchy stuff, toddlers)
60. IUI to Roux-en-Y (weight loss, surgery, ttc again soon)
61. Return To Go (PCOS, RPL, unemployment)
62. Why Not Us? (infertility, life, ttc)
63. Mommy Summers (mom after pcos)
64. Hapa Hopes (IVF, endo, life)
65. Weathering Storms (transracial adoption, parenting, life)
66. Living Our Miracle (embryo adoption, premature ovarian failure, motherhood)
67. Upper Middle Mom (parenting after IVF, twins, starting over)
68. Tiny Bits of Hope (IVF #1, teaching)
69. Things Couldn’t Be Better (embryo adoption, humor, and other random happenings)
70. Conceptionally Challenged (IF, life, me)
71. Who Is This Fertile Myrtle (IVF #2, unexplained infertility)
72. My Life in a Nut Shell (pregnancy after loss, repeate miscarriage, coping)
73. Dwelling on Dreams (pregnancy, RPL, miscarriage)
74. Compromised Fertility (failed cycles/RPL, feelings, PCOS)
75. Our Journey Through This Lovely Life (ttc, loss, adventures)
76. A Little Blog about the Big Infertility (RPL, endometriosis, repeat IVF failure)
77. It’s Just a Box of Rain (open adoption, parenting, parenting after IF)
78. Waiting to Expand (infertility, loss, mothering)
79. The June list is now closed.  The July one will open up at the end of the month.

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 red, the next month it will be green, 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.