Spring Swap and Shout Outs to Cool Bloggy Friends!

A few weeks ago I participated in the Spring Swap hosted by Shortmama over at Family of Shorts. She sent me a very fun package filled not only with things for me, but goodies for the girls as well! She got me a Jennifer Weiner book, Good In Bed, along with some notepads, a picture frame, hand sanitizer, and hand cream. The girls were super excited by their new stickers, book, and sidewalk chalk. And special Springtime Oreos were the icing on the cake, which we all chowed down on. Thank you so much, Shortmama!

Since it's the weekend and I'm off having fun at a friend's bridal shower (The Father Load is in charge of the hooligans), I am sharing some cool peeps with you. Please go pay them a visit, tell them I sent you, and click on that little follow button! Yes it's a long list. No, I don't do awards. But this is my way of passing along some bloggy love. I did two similar lists last month and am continuing the tradition today. Suffice it to say that these people are faithful commenters, loyal readers, and incredibly witty bloggers. So please introduce yourselves and say hello to:

Jane over at Aging Mommy

Monique over at A Day in the Life of a SurferWife

 T.J. over at Any Given Moment

Ian over at The Daily Dose of Reality

Daffy over at Batcrap Crazy

Tracie over at Stir-Fry Awesomeness

Heather over at Gerber Days

Life According to Candice

Mama Bird's Nest

Kiran over at Masala Chica

JoAnn over at Laundry Hurts My Feelings

The Purse Blogger

Consider it pure JOY

Cara over at The Gone Again Smiths

Elaine over at The Miss Elaine-ous Life

Kate over at Busted Plumbing

Happy Go Lucky---and Remembering Those Ducks

Yesterday I was doing some shopping for Shortmama's Spring Swap, and of course I also found a little something for myself--an inspiring set of earrings from one of my favorite stores, Stuff. I love Stuff because it features the work of local artists, sells lots of environmentally-friendly, or "green" things, and there are always plenty of unique gifts to choose from.

(it may be hard to see, but the top one reads "lucky" and the bottom one reads "happy.")

I splurged on these as a reminder, because sometimes I get so bogged down by the daily grind that I forget how lucky I am.

This time of year the grass is getting greener, the birds begin singing their sweet songs again, and our allergies turn us into snotty, sneezy fools. And I'm reminded of the ducks that befriended me in late March of 2005.

One day while I was getting a drink in the kitchen, I heard some quacking coming from my front door. I thought I was simply delusional from all the fertility drugs coursing through my veins. But I looked out the window and sure enough, saw this pair cruising my front yard:

They let me get close and feed them by the 2nd day (I'd prepared with lots of cheap Wonderbread just in case).

We don't have the photos to prove it, but they also later ate the bread right out of my hand...

(I look like total crap, but in my defense I was going through a lot and was in a funk)

These ducks were the only reason I got out of bed every day during the last week of March, 2005. It was the end of the road---our second round of IVF (in-vitro fertilization). I was convinced that like all the other things we'd tried before, it was going to fail. But the ducks kept coming back each morning. I concluded that they were a couple, a male and a female, and sure enough I discovered their nest nearby with several eggs inside.

These ducks were sent to me. We needed each other. We needed hope. Just as they were foraging for food and tending to their eggs, my own little embryos were growing in a Petri dish in the lab:

Those ducks kept me alive that week. I looked forward to their visits and waited anxiously for them each morning. They didn't disappoint. I talked to them, told them about my fears in low whispers while they gobbled the hunks of bread from my hands. Their dark, probing eyes consoled me while tears dripped down my cheeks. They quacked that things were going to be alright. They embraced me so easily and so fully that I began to feel my dream of becoming a mother was just within my reach.

Then we got the happy call from the embryologist that we were ready to go. My doctor transferred two really good lookin' embryos to my uterus. And during my mandatory bed rest afterwards, my mom (who flew into town to make sure I remained horizontal) faithfully fed my ducks for me.

About 18 weeks later I looked like this:

And now we have these (pictured with The Father Load):

We are indeed happy. And lucky.

Spring Swap, or, Let's Send Fun Presents to Each Other!

Shortmama over at Family of Shorts is hosting a super fun Spring Swap!

So what do you send for a spring swap? That is up to you! What are your favorite things about spring? What reminds you of spring? Does your town, city, state do something special in the spring? Does your family have spring traditions? These are all ideas you can pull from to come up with your items. You can buy things, make things or both!

If you're interested, please link up to Shortmama's post about the swap here to view the rules and sign up.
 
 
Secondly, I've been trying to convince Hubs to do a post here at The Mother Load. He's been dragging his heels, perhaps for lack of proper inspiration. So I was thinking if you guys submitted some questions, it might spur him to actually do it. Arizona Mamma over at Our Daze in the Dessert did this last week with her husband Andy, and it was so cute. You should go read it over here! And then send me your questions for him. Thank you in advance!