Category — Friday Blog Roundup

I’m back. Clearly. Friday the 13th feels like an ominous day to launch a new post, but it is what it is.

I find it difficult to get back into the swing of things after taking a break. It may be why I frequently don’t take breaks — because I know it will be so much harder to get started again afterward, and I’d rather not deal with this period where everything feels uphill both ways.

So, on that cheery note, what did you read that you loved these past two weeks?

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Stop procrastinating. Go make your backups. Don’t have regrets.

Seriously. Stop what you’re doing for a moment. It will take you fifteen minutes, tops. But you will have peace of mind for days and days. It’s the gift to yourself that keeps on giving.

As always, add any new thoughts to the Friday Backup post and peruse new comments to find out about methods, plug-ins, and devices that help you quickly back up your data and accounts.

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And now the blogs…

But first, second, helpings of the posts that appeared in the open comment thread last week. To read the description before clicking over, please return to the open thread:

• None… sniff.

Okay, now my choices this week.

Infertile Phoenix is back with some updates, including an exchange with a friend where she explains she is 100% sure she is not going to have kids. She writes: “When I feel grief, I really feel it. I let myself. When I feel joy, I really feel that too. I allow it. My grief comes from the loss of my children; my joy comes from my continuing to live anyway.” Love this.

Lastly, not IF-related but I liked this post by Swistle about how the only people we don’t look like ourselves to is ourselves. Truly, it makes sense if you click over and read the whole thing. And this: “My sister-in-law and I were discussing how we’ve both recently even found ourselves doing some distressing Age Math. Like: how many more years can we reasonably expect to live, even if all goes extremely well—that kind of math.” There is a lot here that I think about, too.

The roundup to the Roundup: I’m back. Your weekly backup nudge. And lots of great posts to read. So what did you find this week? Please use a permalink to the blog post (written between August 30 – September 13) and not the blog’s main URL. Not understanding why I’m asking you what you found this week. Read the original open thread post here.

I am going to take a short break from blogging to sit with my feelings as the twins return to college. It will not be as long as last year, but similarly, I have jumped back into the archives and pulled up a post that ran on the same day many years earlier. So, a blog post from September 1, 2010 will run on September 1, 2024. I clearly have a lot of posts to choose from after 18 years of blogging.

Apologies for the repeats.

*******

Stop procrastinating. Go make your backups. Don’t have regrets.

Seriously. Stop what you’re doing for a moment. It will take you fifteen minutes, tops. But you will have peace of mind for days and days. It’s the gift to yourself that keeps on giving.

As always, add any new thoughts to the Friday Backup post and peruse new comments to find out about methods, plug-ins, and devices that help you quickly back up your data and accounts.

*******

And now the blogs…

But first, second, helpings of the posts that appeared in the open comment thread last week. To read the description before clicking over, please return to the open thread:

• None… sniff.

Okay, now my choices this week.

The Barreness has a hard post about the situation with her parents, and she could really use a virtual hug. She writes: “I described it to The Barren the other day like this: it is like I have lost both my parents, but they are still here and I am left watching it all disappear each day in a new way. Like an extended period of grief and mourning. It breaks my heart in new and different ways every time I call them.” Please go give her kindness.

Lastly, No Kidding in NZ talks about holding two conflicting feelings at the same time. She explains: “While I feel the loss of not exploring the world with my kids, in the way they are able to, I can also see the freedom and benefits of a No Kidding lifestyle that still allows me to explore. Gain and loss, loss and gain, both sides of the same coin.” It’s about how the same situation can lead to very different feelings at the same time. I loved the reminder about the complexity of everything.

The roundup to the Roundup: Sitting with my feelings. Your weekly backup nudge. And lots of great posts to read. So what did you find this week? Please use a permalink to the blog post (written between August 23 – 30) and not the blog’s main URL. Not understanding why I’m asking you what you found this week. Read the original open thread post here.

Summer is wrapping up. We just got back from a trip (more on that soon). The twins are preparing to return to college. Two weeks before they came home, I woke up feeling like I was awakening from hibernation. I had so much energy. And now we’re winding down, and I’m returning to that quiet space.

I told myself all summer that I couldn’t be sad until August. But once August hit, I could feel whatever I needed to feel. I’ve been feeling all of the feelings this month.

A little bit comes from not knowing if I’ll have everyone home next summer or if they’ll be away on internships or jobs. I just have to live in the waiting zone until I know. So the second year is the same but different: I know more about how it will feel to be far away from them, which is a good thing (knowledge is power?) and a bad thing (now I know how much my heart will hurt).

*******

Stop procrastinating. Go make your backups. Don’t have regrets.

Seriously. Stop what you’re doing for a moment. It will take you fifteen minutes, tops. But you will have peace of mind for days and days. It’s the gift to yourself that keeps on giving.

As always, add any new thoughts to the Friday Backup post and peruse new comments to find out about methods, plug-ins, and devices that help you quickly back up your data and accounts.

*******

And now the blogs…

But first, second, helpings of the posts that appeared in the open comment thread last week. To read the description before clicking over, please return to the open thread:

• None… sniff.

Okay, now my choices this week.

Finding a Different Path and I read the same book and went through the same emotions about the infertility subplot. She writes: “It’s funny how time changes you as a reader. This is a book that, had I brought it on vacation even 5 years ago, I would have DEFINITELY thrown across the room and then put on indefinite pause within the first 25 pages.” I highlighted many of the same quotes (and many others), and I started plotting out a trip to Newport, RI because I was so moved by the story.

The Road Less Travelled will be presenting a webinar on September 16th for World Childless Week. It’s a beautiful tribute to the purpose of genealogy and why we should be interested in our family tree. She writes: “Hearing my parents talk about their own extended family members and what they’ve learned from them gives me hope that perhaps someday our nephews and great-niblings will remember us and tell stories about us to their own kids in the same way.” Lori helped me get started with researching my family tree years ago.

Lastly, Jewish IVF is on the 7th day of a mock transfer cycle, on the 315th day of an enormously upsetting time. She gets mixed up with the office location, and she ends up needing to reschedule the appointment. She wonders, “Why am I pushing it? I’m not sure. I recognize that doing this now doesn’t mean we’ve decided we’re transferring the last embryo. I want to believe that we’ll get there, and soon, but know it’s not just up to me.” I wanted to give her a hug through the screen.

The roundup to the Roundup: The kids go back soon. Your weekly backup nudge. And lots of great posts to read. So what did you find this week? Please use a permalink to the blog post (written between August 16 – 23) and not the blog’s main URL. Not understanding why I’m asking you what you found this week. Read the original open thread post here.

This is the 1000th (okay, 900th) time that I’ve written the Friday Blog Roundup, a weekly series that started back in 2006. It has always been a way to capture posts that stuck with me after I clicked away to read the next thing. Posts I wanted other people to read so we could talk about them. Posts I didn’t want to forget.

Can I just say that all of those posts have been my favourites?

Thank you for reading this series week after week, year after year. I am so grateful to everyone who commented, celebrated, and clicked over to read the posts over the last 18 years.

*******

Stop procrastinating. Go make your backups. Don’t have regrets.

Seriously. Stop what you’re doing for a moment. It will take you fifteen minutes, tops. But you will have peace of mind for days and days. It’s the gift to yourself that keeps on giving.

As always, add any new thoughts to the Friday Backup post and peruse new comments to find out about methods, plug-ins, and devices that help you quickly back up your data and accounts.

*******

And now the blogs…

But first, second, helpings of the posts that appeared in the open comment thread last week. To read the description before clicking over, please return to the open thread:

• None… sniff.

Okay, now my choices this week.

The Road Less Travelled marked her own milestone recently. It would have been Katie’s 26th birthday; her daughter was born still 26 weeks into pregnancy. She had a lovely day remembering her daughter, visiting the cemetery, and doing things with her husband to find comfort and mark the moment. Sending a lot of love for a hard day that ended with a butterfly messenger.

Lastly, Slaying, Blogging, Whatever received a beautiful email that made my throat close up from emotion. I’m not going to say anymore because it is brief and the impact is feeling all of the love behind the words. Yes, this post is outside the time frame, but I was late reading it.

The roundup to the Roundup: 1000th Friday Blog Roundups — celebrating a milestone. Your weekly backup nudge. And lots of great posts to read. So what did you find this week? Please use a permalink to the blog post (written between August 9 – 16) and not the blog’s main URL. Not understanding why I’m asking you what you found this week. Read the original open thread post here.

I survived my first colonoscopy and do not have to return for another for 10 years. There are a few things that made prep easier, and I pass them along in case they help you, too. You can have dye-free lemon or lime Italian ice or popsicles. I bought both and ate them through the day, and I never got too hungry. In fact, I worked up until I started drinking the prep in the evening.

I added lemon Crystal Light to the gallon of prep before adding water (skipping the provided packet), but I only used half the amount of flavouring for the amount of water. I worried a stronger flavour would be harder to get down. Not sure if this theory was correct, but I had zero issues chugging a 12-ounce glass every 10 minutes for 2/3rds of the bottle. It tasted like salty lemonade. I had a harder time with the final third and had to sip it, but got all of it down without issue.

So I pass along these tips to you in case they help you make your appointment. Glad to have it behind me, no pun intended.

*******

Stop procrastinating. Go make your backups. Don’t have regrets.

Seriously. Stop what you’re doing for a moment. It will take you fifteen minutes, tops. But you will have peace of mind for days and days. It’s the gift to yourself that keeps on giving.

As always, add any new thoughts to the Friday Backup post and peruse new comments to find out about methods, plug-ins, and devices that help you quickly back up your data and accounts.

*******

And now the blogs…

But first, second, helpings of the posts that appeared in the open comment thread last week. To read the description before clicking over, please return to the open thread:

• “Talking About My Freedom” (No Kidding in NZ)

Okay, now my choices this week.

Dear John took a road trip with her daughter and unfortunately ended their journey with the big Delta flight cancelation situation. But in between, it sounded lovely, with unexpected detours and beautiful sights. There is an ache behind the words, missing her husband while appreciating the time with her daughter.

Lastly, The Next 15000 Days has a post about hanging up a child’s art. A new friend comments they couldn’t hang up a child’s drawing in their house because “seeing them would break her heart every time. I told her I understood – that 15 years ago, I could never have had the drawings there either. But now I can.” It’s a lovely post about where life is now.

The roundup to the Roundup: Colonoscopy tips. Your weekly backup nudge. And lots of great posts to read. So what did you find this week? Please use a permalink to the blog post (written between August 2 – 9) and not the blog’s main URL. Not understanding why I’m asking you what you found this week. Read the original open thread post here.