GTKY - BMB

bumpybump

Jumping in here @PinkPrincessPiper and hoping you don't mind

GTKY - what made you want to be a member of a BMB (Birth Month Board)/why did you join the BMB?

AdvoCyndi30

I was a member of a January 2012 BMB and I am still friends (online and some in person now) with about 120 other mamas. It's so nice to have women who can relate to what you're dealing with at every age. It's nice to see what's "normal" and what isn't developmentally. 

The group I'm a part of is actually much more "left liberal" than I am (I'm pretty moderate and probably lean a *little* more conservative) and I love reading their opinions and viewpoints on a lot of topics. We definitely don't always agree, but there is a level of respect there that I love.

They're amazing women and their friendship and advice not has been invaluable!

littlebug2010

I was a member of the TTGP board, **tw** I joined the bump pre loss, but wasnt active, and then I had my loss, and joined TTCAL and found TTGP to fit me best **endtw**, and when I graduated, so did some other awesome ladies.  I didnt want to loose touch with those ladies, and wanted to be a part of a group to chat with.  I dont have any other girl friends who are close to having babies, and I knew that I would want a place where I could ask my questions and hopefully make some new friends.  

SouthernMama15

I was part of June 15 with DS. I still talk to a few of the ladies every day. Now that I'm a sahm it's super nice to have this outlet. I've learned a lot and it's a good place to make friends and learn at the same time. 

JWatt5

I joined The Bump in the fall once I started IF Treatments - I'm one of the few Canadians but the Canadian boards are super boring/not active. Also - getting an "american" perspective for IF treatments was great, the US is way more aggressive and if I had done IVF, may have gone to Buffalo for it - I was really active on the IF page and a bit on the TTGP page as well.  I've stayed active on the PAIF, BMB and messaging with a couple people from my November IUI group. 

kvh22

I'm an information junkie and DH and I are the first of our friends to be pregnant (at 28 and 30!). I honestly got way more out of the board than I even thought I would going in. It's probably not the best fit for everyone but I've really enjoyed getting to know all of you ladies and look forward to all of us having our little ones and staying in touch. I love seeing that some of you ladies are still in touch with people from your previous pregnancy boards.

bumpybump

Back In 2013 when I became pregnant with DD, I joined because I wanted a place to connect with other pregnant women and hear about their pregnancy and motherhood journeys. Otherwise, I was basically going to only hear things from my sister which, it turned out a lot of what she told me was wrong. 

Fast forward to 2016 and knowing how much I enjoyed and still do enjoy my DD's BMB, I joined TTGP. I had forgotten a decent amount of TTC info. Once we were KU'd, I knew I wanted the same connections I had with DD's BMB. Plus, things are always changing in the world of babies and kids and it's always a learning experience. 

and_peggy

I was a member of May 2016 board and we are all part of a Facebook group and talk regularly. It's been great to have people to share in my same issues and life stage. The support during the rough transitions, lack of sleep, postpartum depression, etc. was a huge thing for me. I'm glad to be sharing in the same stage with them now but looking forward to have that again.

middy411

I was a part of the Feb '16 BMB and felt like I learned so many things that I otherwise would have never heard or thought of. I enjoyed the community and the fun topics and support and it was nice to connect with people going through the same things as you.

lewliv

I have 0 experience with babies and thought that being part of a forum with fellow ladies going through the same journey would be fun and informative. I'm glad I joined! I already learned so much from all you ladies. 

imwithbaby

No clue, actually! I think I just stumbled upon the Community feature, and it definitely helped that I was assigned to a group (this one) for moms expecting around the same time. I've NEVER joined or participated in a chat forum before, so it was a little intimidating at first and I didn't know what I was going to get out of it (turns out, a lot!!). I didn't really start participating until 8-10 weeks since I was so scared of a loss, but even seeing some women go through that made it less scary (looking at you, @NYTino24) I'm so glad I did join, and I wish I had found the TTGP board since reading some of your experiences makes me think it would've given me the emotional support I do despearately lacked. 

PinkPrincessPiper

Perfectly fine, @bumpybump I've got my hands full over here! 

I have some pretty big age gaps between #s 1, 2 & 3, and didn't discover TB until I got pregnant with DD. I was part of the S15 BMB with her, and made a handful of really great friends (I wasn't a part of the FB group, and just keep in touch with specific people). Since I found the "community" helpful last time around, I joined this BMB. Pretty happy I did too.  

DeansGirl14

lewliv said:

I have 0 experience with babies and thought that being part of a forum with fellow ladies going through the same journey would be fun and informative. I'm glad I joined! I already learned so much from all you ladies. 

Same here! I was on TK extensively for wedding planning (still am over there, just not as extensively, under a different SN) so it was natural to move over to TB when I got pregnant. I figure, in both wedding planning and baby growing, better to join a group that's going through what I'm going through (or have been-there-done-that to give advice) than bug the shit out of my real life friends, hah! 

SpotConlon

I participated in a TTC forum on Reddit for a while, but once I got pregnant, I wanted something a little more private. I had heard of the the Bump and was excited that I really liked the group for August 2017

BlackNYellow

I was on TTGP and loved the community aspect and support system of that board (side note: also joined TCF which doesn't seem to be as active now). I learned a lot from the ladies over there and knew I had a plethora of knowledge to gain by joining a BMB! 

MetsGirl18

I was the first of my friends to have a child and when my oldest was born, I connected with a great group of local women who had babies around the same age.  Now, many of my friends are already done having kids and it has been 5 years since having DS2.  I hadn't been on here in a while, but wanted to connect with others who were going through this at the same time.

lwhrmomma

I lurked a lot on the June15 board,  but didn't post that much. I got so much reassurance from just lurking,  and seeing that other women were going through similar things to me.  With this pregnancy, I wanted to be more active,  and I'm so glad that I jumped in and participated.  This hasn't been an easy pregnancy, but you all have been so supportive and kind and it's been so helpful!

AbbeyH

I lurked a lot on Nov 14, and joined in on occasion-  but I joined to talk babies and pregnancy stuff without driving my friends and family crazy-- I'm also a pretty private person, so being "anonymous" helped me open up.

lynkat

I joined TB when I was pregnant with DS in 2013 and mostly lurked on June 2014. I was too busy at the time to really learn all the rules and etiquette but I eventually jumped in postpartum. I only had one other close friend at the time who was having babies so I learned a lot. I knew that this time I wanted to be more plugged into the community and I am glad that I did  

knottiee689565f63838b35

I was on the bump (knew of it through the knot) when I first found out I was pregnant but wasn't even thinking of being on a BMB, I just wanted the daily articles/updates. *TW* 2 weeks after finding out we were expecting, I miscarried (6 weeks) and we had only told my brother because him and DH worked together. I didn't participate in any of the after loss or tttc boards because it seemed like something that would just remind me of the loss. We got pregnant again sooner than expected and I decided that I needed people to talk to if it were to happen again because it was so hard going through it with just DH and my brother. *End TW* after seeing what the BMB had to offer I was glad to be able to post about things even if I didn't actually know the people. 

tova24

I joined because I legitimately am the only one in my friend group having a baby. I wanted a place where I could ask questions like "why do I pee so much?, is it normal to spend 10 minutes on the toilet and not even poop?, what's a TDap shot and do I need it?" And not feel like a complete idiot. You ladies have seriously helped me through this challenging and empowering time of my life and I am so grateful! 

bumpybump

@tova24 if only 10 mins is the longest I've sat on the toilet trying to poop this pregnancy 

donehue

I was on the knot extensively for my wedding in 2011 and got pregnant with DD1 right after so just naturally transitioned over to TB. I only lurked for the May 12 group, but then was active in Jan15 and LOVED it so knew I wanted to be a part of one again. It is hard for me to post a ton with my job and two kids who want me 200% when I am home, but i'm really excited about the potential for lots of late night posts when we are all up with newborns!

HappyToBeHere

I had never participated in an online forum of any sort prior to the November 2014 BMB. I participated some in N14, but wouldn't have called myself a "regular", so I didn't stay in touch with anyone on there after DD was born. That was also the time TB went through a bunch of changes that I didn't really understand/have time to figure out, so all of the ladies seemed to scatter and go elsewhere. I pretty well stopped participating after that.

I'm so pleased I decided to come back this time around. All of you ladies are amazing, and having the different perspectives on pregnancy/parenting is invaluable. 

emmeline714

My SIL recommended I join because she actually found it helpful when she was pregnant with my nephews. I joined last year when I was pregnant with DD1 Aug '16 as a first time mom it helped me figure out why certain things were happening and how unique our bodies are to carry a baby this long. So I decided to do it for this pregnancy as well I participated in my last one but once baby was here it was difficult for me to get back on to stay in touch with them. They created a FB page but did not add me and they went MIA on the board so I left it at that. You all have a good input on many things that I find helpful and glad I am sticking to this one .

clrgrdfrk

I originally joined TK In 2009/2010 and switched over here in 2012. I was mostly a lurker during my pregnancy but found the baby info a little more helpful than the pregnancy info, so I was more active after dd was born oct-12. Our group has since moved to fb and there are still 120 of us, five years later. 

morgy_bee

Just celebrated my 8 yr anniversary with TB I guess lol. I joined TK for my wedding planning and loved the support and resources there. It just made sense to join a BMB when pregnant with my 1st. I was in the Jan 12 with DS and Sept 15 with DD. I was never super active because the organization of the boards was really chaotic and I felt it was hard to follow and connect. I love the change! I was on the TTGP board when I first noticed the way the boards were organized and I felt like I could contribute and get to know the other members better. I love the support, education, connection, and drama llamas that come with being a part of a community. 

gwtw733

I only have one friend who is also a mom - and I am a hyper-researcher, because I want to know ALL THE THINGS!

**TW for loss mentioned** Last year I had downloaded a bunch of baby apps in excitement when I got pregnant, but then I miscarried at 9 weeks, so when I got my 2nd BFP in December, I didn't really want to be a part of any online communities. The idea of getting involved and having to leave was just too much for me - but once I got into the 2nd trimester and found out that (OMG) we were having twins, I wanted all the help and advice I could get! I have really enjoyed commiserating and laughing with you ladies. And honestly, there's nothing better than reading this board when I am up in the middle of the night pumping! 

kleigh30

I joined the bump for the weekly updates when I was pregnant with DS1 back in 2012 but wasn't aware of the community. When I got KU with DS2 I joined the bump again (couldn't remember previous log ins) and discovered the community and bmb. I did not participate much at all on March 16 board but I did lurk a lot. I had planned to participate more this pregnancy but for a few months the bump would not let me log in to post- I could lurk all I wanted but I could not love tit or post. Also im bad at small talk and am just a better lurker than contributer, just like IRL haha

taylormarie923

I was really active with the Oct 13 group and still am with the remaining members in our FB group.  Like others have said, some have become really close friends in real life and I can't imagine not having them in my life. I definitely don't have the amount of free time this pregnancy to keep up with everything and stay as active as I was then, but I still enjoy connecting with you all and look forward to seeing our kids grow together. 

Lauradi1010

I was part of the D'14 board when pregnant with DS and thought it was a great support system.

Mango517

During wedding planning back in 07/08 I was really active on my local TK board. Met a great bunch of people on there and we are all still are close today. Transitioned over to TN for a little while but I just kinda gave up on it since everything was so kid focused and I wasn't really at that point.

A lot of my knot friends joined their month boards when they were pregnant and I really liked the idea of talking to people going through the same thing as me. This board has been so helpful especially since I'm pretty much the last of my friends to have a baby and while that means lots of advice, it also means that they don't have fresh memories of this phase.