Friday, July 22, 2011

Spotlight Blogger: Meet Michelle R

This week's featured blogger is Michelle R of More Than Just a Birthmom.  We're excited to feature Michelle as she actually blogged for BirthMom Buds in the past!  Let's find out a little more about Michelle....



First, please tell us a bit more about yourself (name, age, where you live, what led you to making an adoption plan, and anything else you feel comfortable sharing).

My name is Michelle R. (C and H's Mama according to my blog), I’m 28, and I live in Southern California. I was 22 years old when I was a single mom to my son who was barely a year old and found out I was pregnant again. Parenting another child was definitely not an option for me, as I was still living with my parents, working a part time job, and going to community college. I had scheduled an abortion, but as I was on my way, a higher power and faith intervened. Through lots of prayer, I realized that adoption was the best choice for me.

One of my coworkers niece's had just adopted through HFS so she gave me her contact information and everything seemed to fall into place after that. At the beginning of August 2005, I met my daughter's adoptive parents and instantly fell in love with them. We decided on a semi-open adoption and agreed on pictures and letters 4 times a year. She was born on September 9, 2005 and I last got to physically see her and hold her in my arms on September 11, 2005.

It has definitely been a journey since then, but I don't regret any of the decisions I have made before and after placement, as it has helped me to grow and mature into the woman I am today.
When and why did you begin blogging?

I started my blog in April 2011, mainly as a place to vent and write about my life, my feelings and frustrations. I have always been the type of person to verbalize my feelings, but as I have gotten older, I have realized that it hasn't always been the most effective strategy for me, as I usually don't think about what I am saying in advance. I felt like there was a lot I had to let out and so I created a place where I could do it at as effectively as possible. Alot of people don't know that I am a bmom, so blogging is my first step to "coming out the closet" and sharing with the world my "secret".
Tell us more about the title of your blog. Why did you choose it?

I picked 
"More Than Just a Birthmom" as the title of my blog because I'm just that, More Than Just A Birthmom. I see a lot of blogs written by birthmoms, as well as discussions and forums where people mainly identify themselves as just a birthmom and don't see that there is so much more to themselves beyond that title. There's more to me than just being a birthmom. I am also a mother, a daughter, a sister, a girlfriend, and friend. When I created my blog, I knew that my blog wasn't just going to just be about the adoption and my feelings and thoughts towards it, but also about the rest of my life.
Has the response to your posts been mostly positive, mostly negative, or a mix of both?

While I have shared the link to my blog to some of my friends who know, as well as to people in the adoption world, I really didn't think that anyone was reading my blog. I know that my boyfriend has really appreciated reading my blog because it has helped him to understand me better. I have mostly gotten positive feedback from the friends I have shared it with as well, especially friends who didn't know I was a bmom to begin with.
Do you have any advice for someone thinking of starting their own blog?

If I had any advice for people wanting to start a blog, I would suggest not being afraid to express yourself. A blog isn't about correct grammar or spelling, it's about creating a place where you feel comfortable to let out your thoughts and feelings about one topic, or a bunch of them, like mine. When writing, don't worry about who is reading, write for yourself. People are always going to have an opinion, but what they say really doesn't matter ;)

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