I am honestly amazed sometimes at how well social media connects people. I know social media can be a double-edged sword, but for me, my experience with social media has been mainly positive.
When I started my blog in 2006, I connected with numerous people in the China adoption community. Many of them were not local to where I lived and if it weren't for blogging, I would have never "met" them at all.
I am blessed to have many China adoptive families locally that I stay in close, personal contact with. But if someone is not local, the best and easiest way to stay in touch is through social media. I continue to blog to this day, but I would say that 98% of my blog friends have shifted over to FB...
I miss the blogging days. Facebook is definitely more of a snapshot way of staying connected. I miss reading about people's lives and feelings. But, I am still grateful for FB because I can still see what is going on in people's lives - even if the updates are short and sweet.
Many of us in the community have followed each others lives for years. We waited together for our China children to come home and now we are able to watch them grow up in pictures and videos. A few people I know dropped out of the China adoption program due to very long wait times and ended up finding other ways to grow their families. Despite that, most of us have remained connected.
There are some people that have fallen off the social radar and I am not aware of what they are doing anymore. But that's ok ~ it was nice knowing them at the time.
And when an online relationship can be taken into "real life," it is really amazing. I have met a number of non-local bloggy/FB friends in person - and it is so cool.
For me, meeting blog friends that didn't live locally all started with some "bloggy bashes" that were thrown at my local friend Melissa's house back in the day (2007 and 2008)...
I am still in touch with a number of these girls.
And over the years, I have had a number of amazing ladies (and their families) come from different parts of the country to stop by and see me (and some of my local friends too) while they are coming through or visiting my neck of the woods.
My bloggy friend Lisa was in town in 2009 and met up with me and Bri...
My bloggy friend Noemi and her family also came through in 2009 and ate dinner with me and a few friends (The picture below is actually of my friend Melissa at the dinner where we met Noemi. I stupidly didn't take a pic of Noemi when she came to visit. I still kick myself for it.)...
My bloggy friend Stephanie and her family came through in 2014 and stopped by to see me and Bri (this is her daughter Ashton)...
These are her girls ~ Butterfly and Ladybug (local friend Maisie is on the right)...
My bloggy friend Sandra and her two lovely girls Jazzie and Tahlia drove through this past June...
And most recently (August 3), my bloggy/FB friend Fliss came through town with her husband and daughter Shauna (also with local friend Lisa)...
I've even run into bloggy friends while on vacation! Below is my bloggy/FB friend Robin and her family. We bumped into each other while we were at Disney in 2009...
Robin's daughter Maddie and Bri...
My bloggy friend Liene came to visit years ago, and not long after she moved to GA for a few years and then she and her family sadly moved away again...
Luckly, Bri got to meet and spend time with her kids Eriks and Emilija...
Bloggy/FB friend Tracy, who I met at the bloggy bashes, moved to GA and still lives here (her daughter E is second from the left in the pic below; and non-local bloggy friend Mary Ellen was visiting her when I snapped this pic (2010) ~ her daughter Sophie is second from the right; local friend Melissa's daughter Harlow is on the right)...
I had another bloggy/FB friend (I won't mention her name) also move to town a couple of years ago (about an hour away). Bri and I met up with her and her girls at a local mall to welcome them to town. We had stayed friendly and connected through FB and then several months later, inexplicably, she unfriended me. (A bit rude after I tried to be nice). Oh well ~ it is what it is.
The kids at least had fun when they met that day...
And Doug, Bri and I took a trip to Florida this past April and we visited my wonderful bloggy friend Dawn and her spectacular girls Rosie and Lily...
What's been so amazing about meeting up with my bloggy friends is that even though I had never met any of these online friends before in person, it felt like we had known each other for years when we did eventually meet face to face. It was comfortable and easy because we had followed each others lives online for so long.
There are so many bloggy/FB friends that I would still love to meet in person (and some I would love to visit with again!). I have so many bucket lists that it's ridiculous. If I do come your way, know I'll be giving you a ring. And if you are coming to my neck of the woods, please give me a holler. :)
3 Kind Words:
I loved meeting you, Lisa! I just wish we could have chatted longer. I really feel like I could have spent the entire evening chatting with you. It felt like you were simply one of my friends :-)
I just know we are going to meet one day Lisa.........just know it!!!
It was such a wonderful day.
This is an amazing post. I loved seeing all the bloggers you've met.
P.S. good thing you came when you did, Ed transfered to a new new school
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