The Joy of Cyber-Friends

My (cyber) friend Amy just launched a new carnival, Finer Things Friday, last week. Have you checked it out yet? It's a wonderful celebration of all the finer, simple things in life that make us happier. If you're looking for some cheerful, positive posts, it's a good place to go!

This week, I want to share what has become one of the finer things in my life over the past six months... and that's my bloggy cyber-friends. When I first started this blogging thing, my hope was that just one or two preemie families might find me and take comfort in the words I had to offer. And, blessedly, that has happened. What I didn't foresee were the friendships I would make with women from all over this country who had their own messages to share. And so, here are just a few examples of the remarkable ladies I've gotten to "know" (please know that this is by no means an exhaustive list! If you're not on here, you're still my friend. :))

It started with Heather, of Freebies 4 Mom, who helped me figure out advertising and introduced me to the Twitter community. With a huge, established blog and following, I was so touched that she would take the time to help a fledgling blogger like myself!

Angie, of Baby Cheapskate, graciously let me write a guest post for her site which boasts a well-established and large readership. That was the first day I saw my traffic soar and gave me tons of hope.

Jessica, AKA FishMama, of Life as MOM (one of my favorite reads) has turned out to be my long-lost cross-country twin. The similarities we've uncovered are uncanny and she is a blast to have as an email-buddy!

Kate (A Simple Walk) and I both worked on a Bloggy Progressive Dinner team this past December. When a vicious tummy bug landed me in the ER, she took up so much slack to help make my part of it a success. She also sent me step-by-step directions to set up my feed when I turned out to be too technically challenged to do it on my own! Thanks, Kate!

Joy, who blogs at Five J's, took the time to design a gorgeous button for our upcoming progressive Valentine's celebration even though she's not hosting one of the days. You'll get a look at her skills very soon! I was so humbled by her willingness to help.

And, finally, the aforementioned Amy, of Amy's Finer Things, who was one of my first regular readers and commenters. I'll never forget when I saw my name on her Blogroll. I was so excited! It made my whole week, I think...

Cyber-friends not only make a blogger's life easier... that make it happier. And that is definitely a Finer Thing.