Life with Charli

The Real Neat Blogger Award

Hello everyone! I’ve been nominated! This time it’s for the Real Neat blog award, and this is my first time being nominated for this particular blog award! I’m beyond happy! A huge thank-you to Elissa Renee for this award! Elissa is so awesome! She’s fun to interact with and is so supportive of other bloggers! She’s always sharing blog posts by other bloggers on social media, especially through twitter! She also promotes other bloggers on her blog by writing posts about some of her blogging buddies. I love you Elissa! Thankyou again for this! Definitely go and check out this awesome bloggers blog Welcome to my thoughts!

[Rules:

– Display the award logo.

– Thank the blogger who nominated you and post a link to their blog.

– Answer the questions from the blogger who nominated you.

– Nominate seven to ten bloggers.

Ask them seven questions]

Questions from Elissa

1.) What makes your blog different or stand out from other blogs?

My blog is an inspirational blog, and my focus is on inspiring and motivating others through sharing my experiences. There are many other blogs that are similar, however, our experiences are all different. Everyone has a different story to share. I think my personal and unique experiences that I share make my blog different.

2.) which platform do you prefer using to share your blog posts and why?

Which social media site do I prefer sharing my posts on? I’m not sure I have a favorite, because I’m still figuring out which platform works best for me. My blog is connected to my Twitter, Facebook, and bloglovin accounts, and I just recently created a Tumblr account and connected it to my blog as well. This makes sharing my blog posts on those accounts easy. I also have a Pinterest and Instagram account. I have a lot social media accounts for my blog, I know! I get a bit of traffic through all of these accounts, but I think the account that drives the most traffic to my blog might be twitter.

3.) Besides blogging, what other hobbies do you have?

I like reading and spending time with my family. We love watching movies together. I also like to sing a little. Plus, besides writing for my blog, I also like to write poetry, and I’m trying to delve into a little story writing too.

4.) Any hobbies you’d like to try?

I would love to learn how to play the guitar. I know how to play the piano a little, but it’s been a little while since I’ve practiced, so I would also like to make time to go back to piano playing.

5.) If you could have lunch with any celebrity who would it be and why?

Oh man! This is a tricky one, because there are a number of celebrities I would love to have this opportunity with! For this question though, I will pick Chris Martin from the band Cold Play! I just love him!

6.) what or who motivates you to blog?

The love and support I receive from the blogging community gives me motivation. I feel so encouraged whenever I receive positive feedback like this blog award, a nice comment on a post, or like on the post. It makes me want to keep pushing myself to keep my blog running, and I’m beyond grateful for the support. Words cannot fully say I appreciative I am.

7.) what are 5 things you are most proud of that happened to you in 2019?

I’m proud that I started blogging. I was thinking about creating a blog for a long time before I finally did, so I’m happy I started one.
I’m proud of the award nominations I’ve received, considering I started blogging just this year. I’m so grateful for all the support and positive feedback.
I’m proud of my collaborations with fellow bloggers Nadine from Home of Understanding and Faiza from the iExpress blog. Both of these bloggers also have amazing blogs that you should visit! Nadine blogs about social issues that are important to her, but her main focus is mental health. We wrote an amazing mental health piece together. The first part is on my blog, and you can read it here. Click here to read the second part, which can be found on Nadine’s blog. Faiza’s blog is versatile. She covers a range of topics from tips about parenting to tips about beauty and fashion, along with discussions about social issues. I wrote a guest post for her blog, which can be found under the social issues category, about embracing my natural hair. You can read that post here.
I’m proud of my collaboration with a book publishing company called Odyssey Books. When the company reached out to me it was a shock and such a huge honor! I am so grateful for the opportunity, especially since I just started blogging this year! You can read my post and learn more about Odyssey books here.
I was nervous about telling my family about my blog, because I didn’t know what their opinions might be. When I told them about my blog they were so supportive. I am proud of myself for opening up about my blog to them and having faith in them.

My Nominees

My Favorite part of doing these awards posts is visiting different blogs and sharing the love, as well as getting to know the bloggers behind them! Here are my nominees for this award! Give these beautiful bloggers some love!

Sarah – Mommin’ in the Real World

Emily – New York Family Adventures

Monsieur Cliffe – The Soul Journal

Katie – Watt the Blog

Michelle – What Sets your Heart Free

Jackie – Face Depression

Erin – Erin Baby Steps

Adi – Adi’s Wings

Vivian Chemtai – Vivian Chemtai

Ashmita Moidu – Sanguine Mademois Elle

Brianna – Simply Brianna

hiMe – A Regugee’s Journey – Vietnam to Australia

My Questions for my Nominees

Are you an early bird or a night owl?
It’s in the middle of the night and you’re having trouble falling back to sleep. What would you do?
Are you an introvert, extrovert, or somewhere in between?
Do you have any foods you like that most other people think taste bad or weird?
What is your favorite activity outside of blogging?
What activities help you to relax whenever you feel stressed?
Do you have a favorite movie?

There is Beauty in Diversity

Oh, if all the world could see

the beauty in diversity.

Regardless of what your background might be,

you are all brothers and sisters to me.

If only everyone could understand.

If we all were the same,

the world would be bland

If we could all embrace what makes us unique

Then maybe,

Just maybe,

The world wouldn’t seem so bleak.

Warnings from a Stranger

How do you feel about random strangers starting conversations with you while you’re outdoors? I suppose it depends on where you live. If you’re from a small town, you’re probably used to knowing everyone in your neighborhood, and you probably welcome new neighbors with open arms. If you live in a large city, even some of your neighbors might be strangers to you, and you may not feel comfortable talking to random strangers on the street. It might also depend on your personality and how comfortable you are with meeting new people. I’ve mentioned before that I’m generally nervous around people I don’t know. I like being polite, however, so I’m always willing to give acknowledgement and a polite smile whenever I catch a stranger’s eye. I suppose this must be a welcoming sign since strangers start conversations with me often. There is one particular interaction with a stranger that really stood out to me, one that I will never forget.

I was in college during the time, and had class on that particular day. During my lunch break, I decided to go to Burger King to get something to eat (not the healthiest choice! I know). I often ate lunch with some of my classmates during my time in college, but was expecting to eat lunch alone that day. That was until an older woman walked in, ordered her meal, and asked to join me. The restaurant was full at the time, and there was an empty seat in front of me, so I wasn’t surprised. I also didn’t mind, and I told the lady so. When she sat down, she immediately started opening up to me.

“I’m just visiting”, she said.

The lady lived in another state (I live in the U.S.) and she was just visiting to attend a funeral. Her daughter’s funeral. Her daughter had been suffering from from kidney failure, and was on dialysis for a long time.

“Make sure you always drink enough water”, the lady told me.

Towards the end, we sat in comfortable silence for a few minutes. Then the lady wished me a good day and left. By the time the lady left, I had long since finished my meal, but I stayed in the restaurant until the lady was ready to leave. She seemed to need someone to vent to, and I was more than happy to lend a listening ear. By the time the lady left, she seemed to have gotten her feelings off of her chest. Little did she know, though, that she helped me as well.

I have a serious love for all things fruit flavored. Whenever my sweet tooth starts throwing a fit, drinking some juice and smoothies, and eating yogurts and popsicles are my favorites ways to soothe it! My family often reminded to make sure I’m drinking enough water. They often shared concern about the health of my kidneys. My father always told me he didn’t want me to end up on dialysis. It’s a very unpleasant experience he’d say. Ironically, I met a woman who who gave me the same warning, and whose daughter suffered the very same fate my family was trying to protect me from.

Since that day, I’ve started trying to take those warnings seriously. My efforts aren’t perfect. Changing my habits is definitely difficult, but right now I am very proud of the changes I’ve managed to make. I’ve cut back on sugar a lot. My family still gives me reminders to drink enough water now and again, but they notice my efforts. Life has a funny way of giving you advice, answers, or inspiration. You never know where-or who-they will come from.

My Complicated Relationship with Social Media

My first social media account was a MySpace account. I hesitated creating one at first, because of all the horror stories I had heard about social media. Curiosity eventually got the best of me though, and I finally made my first social media account. I immediately started searching for the accounts of everyone I knew, family current friends, old friends, old teachers, you name it. If the person had a MySpace page, I found it. It didn’t take long for me to become addicted, and soon interacting with people I knew only wasn’t enough for me. In fact, there was very little interaction between me and my friends on MySpace, especially since I didn’t need social media to interact with a good amount of them. I eventually decided to broaden my horizons. I start accepting friend requests from people I didn’t know, and I enjoyed the extra attention I started getting once I did. I felt excitement build up every time I saw a new notification.

MySpace started to take up a lot of my time. Every time I went out I had to make sure to take at least one good photo to post on MySpace. When I switched to Facebook there wasn’t much change, except for my privacy settings. I decided to only interact with people I knew. Getting a flood of notifications was important to me, so I started putting up posts on Facebook that would probably help me get some attention, and started to feel a little bitter whenever I wasn’t receiving any. I was always wondering why people wouldn’t respond to my comments or messages, and why my pics or status updates weren’t getting enough likes. Some self reflection forced me to eventually realize that I was building an unhealthy relationship with social media. I felt like I was turning into a different person, and I didn’t like who I was becoming. To fix my problem, I made the decision to temporarily disable my Facebook account, and I was happy I did. I felt instant relief, and was able to focus on all the things in my life that mattered most.

Social media has obvious pros. However, from time being wasted through scrolling to cyber bullying to the pressure to build a large following and gain a lot of likes, the obvious cons of social media are hard to ignore. There has been an effort to deal with some of those cons by some social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram. Facebook and Instagram added new features that help users manage their screen time on the platforms. Instagram also started hiding likes in some countries. Users are able to see the amount of likes their own content has received, but not the amount likes on the content of other users. This has been distressing to some Instagram influencers, but I believe the feature might be a step in the right direction.

After some time off of social media, I created numerous accounts this year to help promote my blog. My interactions on these accounts remind me of my days on MySpace and why I enjoyed the experience. However, I realize now the importance of protecting my time and mental health. I love spending time on social media, but I don’t want to miss out on what’s going on around me IRL.

Blogger Recognition Award: Learning from my Experiences

The Blogger Recognition Award

I’ve been nominated three more times for the Blogger Recognition Award! The three bloggers who nominated me are Jess Ling from Jerserry, Catherine Mellen from Shatter the Silence/A Life Given to Me, and Elissa Renee from Welcome to my Thoughts! Thankyou so much for the nomination ladies! All three of these beautiful bloggers are brave women! Jess is adventurous and loves exploring! She uses her blog to share her experiences! “Life is too short, so enjoy while you can” seems be her blog’s theme! Catherine has a very rough childhood, and was pressured into remaining silent about it. Catherine decided to use her blog to share her story and remain silent no more. Through her blog, she lends some of her courage to her readers, welcoming them to use their voices as well. Elissa is not afraid to embrace who she is and speak her mind! Honesty is definitely her charm! Checkout these wonderful blogs, and get to know the beautiful ladies behind them!

About the Blogger Recognition Award:

The Blogger Recognition Award is an online award given by bloggers to other bloggers. It is a way to recognize the work of other bloggers, and award them for the work they put into putting out blog posts. It is definitely hard work, so I’m very honored to be receiving this award!

Rules:

Thank the nominator, and publish a post on your blog about receiving the Blogger Recognition Award. Make sure to provide a link to the nominator’s blog in your post.
Give a brief story of how your blog started.
Give two pieces of advice to new bloggers.
Nominate 10-15 other bloggers for this award, and inform them of their nomination.

Learning from my Experiences

I love to learn! That’s part of the reason I love reading, which I’ve mentioned before is one of my favorite hobbies! I’ve actually always enjoyed school for that very reason. I never enjoyed the stress and anxiety that comes along with tests and projects, but I’ve always enjoyed learning something new! Formal education isn’t the only way we learn of course. We also learn through our life experiences, and we never stop learning through this form of education.

Recently, my family got an opportunity to spend a little time together, and we decided to have an art night. More specifically, we decided to paint. I’m not very good at art, so I decided to sit this activity out. My family kept trying to encourage me to join in, especially my mother. She told me that it didn’t really matter that I wasn’t good at art. Just have some fun. Eventually, I finally gave in and decided to paint too, and there were already at set of art supplies waiting for me.

I actually had a lot of fun painting. I didn’t take away any new painting techniques from the experience. My painting came out as awful as I thought it would (my mom still decided to hang that monstrosity on the wall despite my objections)! What I did take away from that experience is a reminder that sometimes it’s not the activity we’re doing with loved ones that matters, it’s the time we’re spending with them to do the activity that does.

Every day brings new challenges, new experiences, and new opportunities to learn new lessons. I started my blog to share experiences like the one above. Even after formal education is over, you continue to learn through life lessons, and sometimes these lessons are the most valuable ones. Those are the lessons you keep with you throughout your life. To these who have been following my journey so far, thankyou! I appreciate you so much, and as I continue to learn and share my experiences, I hope you will continue to learn with me. Let’s keep growing together.

My two pieces of advice:

Just enjoy the ride! Blog because you enjoy it! Enjoy sharing with your readers! Enjoy the connections and the friendships you make!
It’s ok if your blogging journey isn’t perfect in the beginning. Give yourself time to get organized and learn what you need to know to improve your blog!

My nominees

Holley – Chasing Destino

Zenibia – My Entangled Words

Mary Anne – Nanny Mary Anne

FAWZY MASAOUD – Psychotherapist, Counselor, and Comedy Writer

Thomas Odhiambo Kitinya – Movie Warden

Keyshaun Jamel Collins – Fisher of Men

Stephanie – A Red Hair Girl

Emma – Dyspraxic Domesticated Mummy

Kay J – Unveiling The Mind

LaFreida Smith – MMM of Family Entertainment

Devinder Mann – Fabulous Fifty Five

Syed Sazzadul Bari – BlogCD

Sunshine Blogger Award: Take 4

Welcome to my next Sunshine Blogger Award post! The two lovely bloggers I am dedicating this post to Elisa Renee from Welcome to my Thoughts and KayJ from Unveiling the Mind! Thankyou so much for the nomination and your support ladies! Elissa loves using her blog to share her thoughts and support others! Elissa doesn’t just write on her blog though! She also shares her beautiful artwork! Her blog fun to visit she check it out if haven’t already! KayJ is a mental health blogger. Through her blog she uses her expertise in the field of psychology, as well her own experiences with mental health issues, to give tips on how others can manage their mental health. Her blog has wonderful information, so definitely check it out too!

About the Sunshine Blogger Award

The Sunshine Blogger Award is an award given by bloggers to their peers to honor fellow bloggers who inspire and spread positivity through their blogs.

Rules for the Sunshine Blogger Award

Thank the person who nominated you and provide a link back to their blogging site.
List the Sunshine Blogger Award rules and display the logo on your site
Answer the Sunshine Blogger Award questions.
Nominate 11 other bloggers and ask them 11 new questions.
Notify the nominees about their nominations

Questions from Elissa Renee:

1.) if someone is new to blogging, what advice would you give them?

Patience is a good virtue! Building a successful blog takes time! I’m still taking my own advice though, because I’m still new to blogging myself!

2.) have you ever felt like giving up writing and/or deleting your blog?

Nope! Never, but perhaps that’s because I’m still a bit new!

3.) who inspires you to continue blogging?

Oh wow! There are so many! I’ve met so many wonderful blogging buddies who have been so encouraging! Their support is what has been motivating me to keep going! The blogger who nominated me for this award, Elissa Renee, is one of them!

4.) what is your favourite way to receive traffic?

I’m grateful for however I recieve traffic! Although I think the platform that drives the most traffic to my blog would probably be twitter. I’m still learning how to use my stats to improve my blog traffic!

5.) who are your go to accounts to help you boost your traffic/likes?

When I publish a new blogpost I don’t generally ask anyone for help with boosting traffic, but I do hope that some person pls will see my new post and help out! There are those who do, and I really appreciate their love and support!

6.) do you prefer cereal with or without milk?

I generally eat my cereal with milk!

7.) which cereal do you enjoy eating?

I love cornflakes!

8.) what do you usually wear when you’re blogging? (example im in shorts and a hoodie)

Lol. I can spend hours blogging, so I need to be in something nice and comfortable!

9.) where do you blog for most of your blog posts? (example i use the computer for my posts)

My phone!

10.) do your hands ever twitch when you’re using the keyboard or mouse too much?

Interesting! No, that has never happened to me!

11.) when you’re thinking about questions to ask, do you randomly find stuff that you havent noticed before? (example i found a new freckle on my hand, it’s so cute and small, im going to name him freck.)

😂 That sometimes happens when I’m answering questions!

Questions from Unveiling the Mind

What is your favorite childhood memory?

Hard! I have many! Let’s see though…if I had to pick one, I would say when I was part of a bridal party. The wedding was so beautiful, and I really enjoyed getting dolled up!

If you could learn a new skill tomorrow, what would it be?

Oh wow! This questions on does not have a easy answer either! If I had to choose though, I would say to speak a second language fluently! Right now I’m trying to learn Spanish!

What country would you love to visit and why?

Costa Rica! I can practice my Spanish there while exploring beautiful sceneries and beaches!

What is your favorite movie and why?

How to Train your Dragon! It was such a touching movie with a great dose of humor in it!

Who is the most inspiring person in your life?

My Dad!🥰

If you had to eat a certain type of food at least once a day for the rest of your life, what would it be?

Hard! Oh wow! It would have to be planned based foods! Food that would keep me healthy!

What was your first job?

Being a college student! It’s a job for sure! Lol.

Who is your favorite character from a book or book series?

Remus Lupin from my the Harry Potter series!

What goal would you like to work harder at to achieve?

Eventually monetizing my blog!

How do you cope when you feel stressed?

Anxiety is a actually a huge problem for me. What usually do is just drop whatever is causing the stress, even if it just for a minute. If I have time, I would turn to an activity that would help me relax. If I can take a break for a literal minute or so, I would close my eyes meditate a little while slowly breathing in and out.

What is one piece of advice you would give to aspiring bloggers?

Patience is a virtue. There is a lot that goes in to blogging. Give yourself time to learn.

Nominees

Here are 11 wonderful bloggers who I am passing the torch to! Give them some love guys!

Grace – Life Transformation Coach

Marisol – The Productive Moms

Kemzy – KemzyKemzy

Laura – Do Five Things a Day

Chris – Growing Dots

Ashlee Nicole – Ashlee Nicole Explained

Bold Brunette – https://medium.com/@bold.brunette

Sisira – Officially Sparkle

Heidi – Rise Love Live

Claire and Phil White – The Wondering Whites

Latisha – Renew Inspiration

My Questions

Which of your blog posts is your favorite?
What is your favorite color?
What is your favorite food?
Do you have a secret talent?
Which season (spring, winter, summer, fall) is your favorite?
What song would be your theme or anthem?
Who is your favorite celebrity?
Do you have a favorite book?
Do you have a favorite movie?
Do you have a tv show you’re binging on right now?
Is the one thing you love most about blogging?

Sunshine Blogger Award: Take 3

I’ve been nominated for the Sunshine Blogger Award four more times! I’m so honored! This award is given to blogs that are inspiring and spread positivity, which were the goals I set for my blog when I created it! It gives me joy to write posts that help to uplift others. I am grateful for those who have been joining me on my journey, and I’m so happy that blog seems to be accomplishing the goals I set too it! This post is dedicated to two of the bloggers whom nominated me for the Sunshine Blogger Award. Another post will be published for the other two bloggers who also nominated me! This way I can keep this post at a decent length! The two bloggers I am dedicating this post to are My World My Rules from The World of an Autistic, Dyslexic, with Depression and Spinal Problems, and Melissa Temple from Disabled Disney! Thankyou so much for the nomination ladies! What these two amazing bloggers have in common is that they are both disability advocates. My World My Rules shares what it’s like to be person with a disability in the U.K. , where she lives. She focuses on encouraging other people with disabilities to never feel ashamed. “Never feel ashamed of your disabilities, and never think less of yourself because of them”, is her motto. Melissa’s blog combines her love for travel and all things Disney with sharing her experiences as a person with a disability. Melissa has a number of complications, and often has to travel around in a wheelchair, but that hasn’t stopped her from doing what she loves! Melissa shares tips on traveling with a disability and most importantly shows readers that living with a disability doesn’t mean you can’t live a fulfilling life!

About the Sunshine Blogger Award

The Sunshine Blogger Award is an award given by bloggers to their peers to honor fellow bloggers who inspire and spread positivity through their blogs.

Rules for the Sunshine Blogger Award

Thank the person who nominated you and provide a link back to their blogging site.
List the Sunshine Blogger Award rules and display the logo on your site
Answer the Sunshine Blogger Award questions.
Nominate 11 other bloggers and ask them 11 new questions.
Notify the nominees about their nominations

Questions from MYWORLDMYRULES979445958:

What got you into blogging in the first place?

I started a blog just this year, but I’ve was thinking about starting one for a long time! I’m glad I finally got one up and running! I started to spread a little positivity and inspiration, and the feedback I’ve been getting makes me feel like I’m accomplishing the goals it set for it.

What is your favourite Book?

The Bible and the Harry Potter Series!

What is you Favourite Song?

Oh this is hard! I have many songs I love! One of them is Hey Brother by Avicii.

What helps keep you calm?

Curling up with a nice book, or doing an activity that distracts me.

Where would your dream place to live be?

I love where I live right now (the U.S.), but if I had to choose another country it would be Canada!

What is your favourite flavor of icecream?

Chocolate! I love all things chocolate!

If you had a superpower what would it be?

I would probably pick the ability to shape-shift like Mystique from X Men! It would be awesome to change my hair color without dying it!

If you could do anything what would it be?

I would be a full time blogger!

Who would you most like to meet living or dead and why?

There are many people I would like to meet! One would Michelle Obama!

If you won £1000000 what would you spend it on?

Wow! A lot of money! I’m not exactly sure, but I wouldn’t spend all of it at once, I know that much!

If you could be on any TV show what would it be?

Stranger Things! That’s not exactly a T.V. show though is it? 😂

Questions from Disabled Disney:

If you could have 1 Superpower what would it be and why?

Shapeshifting! I would like to be like Mystique from the X Men! It would be pretty awesome to change my hair color without having to dye it!

2. How do you spend a lazy Sunday morning?

I often spend it reading while lounging around while reading, with my family, or binging a show.

3. If you had to choose between a visual disability, mobility disability or intellectual disability which would you choose and why?

I actually have a disability already, but it’s not one those options. I have a learning disability.

4. What is your favorite genre of movie and books and why?

My favorite movie genre would probably be comedy. I’m always in the mood for a good laugh! My favorite book genre would probably be realistic fiction. Those have always been the types of books have always been the most interesting me.

5. Who is your favorite Disney Princess and why?

This is pretty hard! I love Belle, because I relate to her love for reading and learning! I also love Moana! Her movie is probably my favorite Disney Princess movie! It was so fun to watch! I’ve watched multiple times! More importantly though, I like that her story focused on her finding herself and her purpose, which I can relate to.

6. Are you a planner or procrastinator?

I’m definitely a planner!

7. What goal do you want to accomplish before the end of 2019?

I would like to have done more collaborations and posted more guest posts on my blog by the end of the year.

8. What is your favorite vacation destination and why?

I don’t really do much traveling.

9. How much do you hate SEO?

😂 On a scale from 1 to 10? Zero!

10. Coffee or tea and how do you take it?

Tea! Sometimes I have my tea with milk and two spoons of sugar.

11. If you could only have 1 food the rest of your life what is it and why?

Wow! Hard! I’m not sure! It would have to be something that would still give most of nutrients I need though! I would pick something that would do that for me!

My Nominees

Below are my wonderful nominees! Please show them some love!

1. Beaton – Becoming The Muse

2. Melissa – Gratitude Grace Glamour

3. Rey and Lyn – Happy Food Trippers

3. Catherine – Written by C.A.

4. Flo Michelle – The Golden Pineapple

5. Brandi Robbins – Glow Through It

6. Eunice Tossy – A Bible Girl

7. Michelle Wareen – The Rabbit Lair

8. Noloyiso – The Chronicles of a Nubian Queen

10. Wamboe – House of Wamboe

11. Jo – A Rose Tinted World

My Questions

Which of your blog posts is your favorite?
What is your favorite color?
What is your favorite food?
Do you have a secret talent?
Which season (spring, winter, summer, fall) is your favorite?
What song would be your theme or anthem?
Who is your favorite celebrity?
Do you have a favorite book?
Do you have a favorite movie?
Do you have a tv show you’re binging on right now?
Is the one thing you love most about blogging?

Turner Syndrome and My Mental Health: A Second Helping

In a previous post, I mentioned that I have a condition called Turner Syndrome. For those unfamiliar with the condition, it is a genetic disorder when a girl is born with one of her X chromosomes partially or fully missing (boys generally have an x and y chromosome, while girls generally have two X chromosomes).

The biggest issues with Turner Syndrome is that many girls with the condition are generally infertile, and can’t go through puberty on their own. They usually need hormone replacements. Turner Syndrome can lead to a host of other complications as well. Those complications can include problems with the heart, kidneys, bones, and thyroid gland. Complications vary from girl to girl. Each girl’s experience with the condition varies, and their symptoms can range from mild to severe.

Girls with Turner syndrome can be diagnosed at any stage in life (before birth, at birth, during infancy, during their teenage, or during their adult years). Generally, the more severe the symptoms, the earlier a girl with Turner syndrome will be diagnosed. Most fetuses with the condition actually have symptoms that are so severe they never make it to term. Turner syndrome is a rare disorder that occurs in around 1 in 2,000 to 2,500 live female births. Around 99 of pregnancies where the fetus has Turner syndrome end in miscarriage.

I suppose that makes me a bit of a miracle baby, or so I like to think at times. I struggled with low self esteem growing up. I always saw nothing but my flaws, and the bullying and I went through during my time in school didn’t help. There was also the fact that I had disabilities and was very dependent on my family. I felt like a burden to them. No matter how hard I tried, I could never fully shake off those feelings, and I hated that. There would be times when someone would say or do something that would make me happy, or I would be doing an activity that would make me happy, but by the time I look around I’m back to feeling low. There would also be times when there was a reason I was down, and other times when I just couldn’t explain why I was feeling depressed. When I was a teen, I kept thinking that one day I will let those feelings go when I finally became an adult. I am now a fully grown adult, and still struggle a bit with these issues. I have learned that what I was going through was not just a phase, or something that I was easily going to get through.

Thankfully, I have a very supportive family. My family has been incredibly patient with me, and extremely supportive. To me, they have been like my therapists. They listen to my concerns, and even encourage me to open up. They never make me feel ashamed of my concerns or feelings when I do share them, and they never make me feel ashamed of my struggles. They also never make me feel like a burden. They are always making sure that I know I’m loved, and that I have a purpose and place in my family and in the world. Considering that I was blessed to be a part of the small one percent of fetuses so h Turner Syndrome to make it to term, I can’t help but to feel they are right.

My mental health journey is still ongoing. I’m still finding myself, still growing. I’m still struggling with my self esteem. I don’t know why I was part of that small 1 percent, but I do know that I am willing to continue fighting through this crazy journey called “life” to find out. After all, if there is one thing I know, it’s this: we are all here for a reason.

Note: My inspiration for this post was fellow blogger and disability advocate Amanda Gene, who is also very lucky to be alive today. Give her blog visit and read her story here.

Falling for Autumn

Fall is around the corner! It’s the season of colorful leaves and pumpkin spice flavored lattes and sweets, and the beginning of of a new school year for children and college students (in fact, today is the first day back to school for some children!)! If I had to pick a favorite season I would have to say winter. There’s a special type of “warmth” surrounding that time of year. However, there is also something special about the fall season too, especially for my family.

In a previous post, I mentioned that my favorite holiday might be Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving is a holiday that is celebrated in the U.S., Canada, some Caribbean islands, and Liberia, albeit on different dates. In the U.S., Thanksgiving is celebrated on the fourth Thursday of November. There is a debate and controversy over the true origins of the American version of thanksgiving, but one thing is for certain: thanksgiving celebrations, otherwise known as harvest festivals, have been around since ancient times, and many different countries and faiths have their own versions of the celebration (Germany’s Erntedankfest and Japan’s Labor Thanksgiving Day for example).

Thanksgiving is even more special to my family than Christmas. On Christmas Day we’re usually too wrapped up in our gifts to pay attention to each other! That was especially the case when my siblings and I were children! During the thanksgiving holiday, we spend a lot of our time with each other, and I’m not just talking about when we gather to eat thanksgiving dinner. From the food shopping to preparing the thanksgiving meal, everything is done together, and we always enjoy every minute.

When the meal is finally ready and we gather around the table, we all take turns saying what are grateful for. We aren’t usually overly affectionate with one another, especially with words or touch (although we always show our love for each other through our actions), but we get very sentimental when saying what we are grateful for. In that moment, we hold nothing back on saying how much we appreciate each other. We also spend time reminiscing on all the good times we’ve had together so far, and talking about our plans to create many more wonderful memories. By the end of the day, we are generally very exhausted, but happy.

In short, fall is the bonding season for us, and I always look forward to this time of year! That’s what makes fall special to me! Welcome to the Fall season everyone! I hope you all enjoy the season this year as much as I know I will!

Share Your Passions

Hi everyone! I’ve been tagged in a #shareyourpassions nomination! We all need moments to do activities that make us happy, and those activities are even more special when you use them to inspire others! That’s the focus of this tag! You share your passions, along with how you plan to use them to make accomplishments in your life and inspire others to do the same. What a beautiful tag! The person who tagged me for this post is fellow blogger Laura from Do Five Things a Day. Thank-you so much Laura! Read her Share Your Passions Post here! Sorry for taking so long to respond to your tag!

Rules of the Share Your Passions Nomination

Repost the #ShareYourPassion logo (above) on your acceptance post.
Tag the blogger’s site that nominated you.
Share a bit about your passion(s): what hobbies, outside of blogging, keep you busy in your free time? What would you like to accomplish with these things? How could you use your passion(s) to be a blessing to others and show them the love of God?
Nominate ten other bloggers and spread the joy!

My Passions

Writing

I really enjoy writing, and I’m not just talking about for my blog! I also like writing poetry and stories, which is one of the reasons I created a blog! During my time in middle school one of my language arts teachers asked the class to write a poem. After reading through all of the poems, the teacher told us how much he loved them all. He mentioned that there was one particular poem that stood out to him and he read it in front of the class, but he didn’t name the student who wrote it. I was shocked to hear the very poem I wrote and submitted being read back to me! It was such an encouraging experience, and it was the moment I realized I had a talent for writing! Fast forward to this year in 2019, and I decided to use my love of writing to encourage and inspire others through my blog!

2. Spending time with my Family

Spending time with my family is definitely one of my favorite pas-times! I’m an introvert, and I would probably go as far as saying I’m an extreme introvert! I need my “me time” time! However, there are just some activities that are more fun when they’re done with others! Whenever I’m doing activities with my family I’m reminded that life is too short, and time is something you can never get back. I’m also reminded that if you slow down enough to reflect on your experiences, there is almost always something to learn, even from the most seemingly mundane ones. I now use my blog to share some these experiences to inspire people to slow down and reflect too.

3. Reading

I think I’ve mentioned multiple times on my blog and on social media that I enjoy reading! It’s one of my go to “me” time activities! I love reading books, blog posts, news articles, etc. I just love reading! It’s such a relaxing activity to me! In fact, I used to fall asleep reading all the time when I was a child! As I grew older, putting aside time for reading started to become more and more of a challenge, especially during my time in college. All I had time for were my text books! However, I’m realizing more and more the importance of activities that help me to relax, reading being my one them!

And those are my passions! I want to thank Laura again for this beautiful nomination! Here are my nominees:

Nova – Nova’s Namaste 365 Online

Kristian Weigman – Life Lessons Around the Dinner Table

Sandra Riguzzi – Sunday Morning with Sandy

Mama Robbins – Mama Robbins Series: An Undistracted Life

Catherine Mellen – Shatter the Silence/A Life Given to Me

Roger Peterson – Mind and Love

Unveiling the mind – Kay J – https://unveilingthemind.com/

Ray – The Ray Journey

Nadine – https://homeofunderstanding.blog/

Sheqo – https://sheqoz.com/

Now it’s your turn! What are your passions, and how do you use them to help and inspire others? #shareyourpassions #beinspiration