Hellobee Boards

Yes! I don't have any close relationships on here but I love being a part of it none the less. And of course love how kind and willing @naturallycathy was with R's 1st birthday! Also, IG makes me smile daily from the HB babes and gorgeous mamas!

Count me in on the sister wives compound, that's right, I'm inviting myself @mamamoose!

@Ajsmommy: I bumped your thread again. I don't know what time of day you posted that thread but I've noticed that if the boards are really busy like postathons, threads can move down and off the page very quickly. Also, I'm on the west coast and I've noticed that the time of day you post things matters, too. I notice I get the most responses when the east coast users are up and awake. I have been unable to conceive for a long time now so I don't have any advice for your thread, but I'm hoping others do.

Yes, HB is great. While there are a few people who don't get the IF struggle, I think generally this community is very supportive. I relate to people with IF more and I do love seeing new faces in the IF threads (though, sometimes I don't have time to read through the fast moving IF threads and I feel bad for not responding to everyone). There are, also, others who have not had IF that are so supportive, as well. There are some bees that I would love to meet in person if we were close. Definitely found some good friends on here.

@Mrs. Taco: Come one come all!! But you have to bring Tacos. I will make margaritas to go with them. Obvi.

I think Hellobee is like most friendships. You get out of it what you put in!

The difference between friendships and cliques is openness to new people... I think most people are open to new friends! We could do more on that front though, so will be thinking more about that.

@Adira: Yeah, I was just thinking about it. Even this thread feels like there's a main group of people who are replying to each other and then a few outliers who aren't really getting replies. That's fine by me, as I agree with @mrbee that everyone seems welcome to new friendships, BUT it can definitely be intimidating to relative newcomers when everyone is SO close. I know that's the main reason I don't post as much here as on other sites.

@Adira: @ILoveLettie: Yeah. It's interesting because I feel like the main cliques all had babies within the past year-18mths so the main posts/conversations center around what those people are going through...so last year it was all about pregnancy and this year it is about toddlers/first birthdays and so on. Personally I also fit into this timeline, so it has been quite useful for me...but I can imagine for others that have newborns there isn't that much talk/advice here at the moment. Or maybe I just don't see it

@ILoveLettie @adira: I was thinking the exact same thing...

Yes, for the most part!

@MamaMoose: I think I'm done for now!

@ILoveLettie: I think this happens in real life, too. I've been to meetup groups where I try to meet and find new friends. I'll meet like 10-20 people but for one reason or another I'll walk away with no one that I bonded with. Maybe it's because of cliquiness, maybe the setting, maybe just the vibe we get from people, maybe it's the expectations we put in our head. (For me, it's the latter.) Sometimes the first experience or comment might be unheard, but sometimes you need to comment or try again. Oh, my suggestion would be to use the @reply feature if you want to get someone's HB attention and get a conversation going. I say HB attention because some of us post, just to post. We want to answer the question that was asked and that's it. It's not until someone @replies us that we will come back to that thread and discuss more.

@illumina: Funny, I thought this year has been all about TTC #2! (Sorry didn't read through the whole thread so I might be missing something) But I do love that there are so many bees who have BTDT and are happy to give their 2 cents, so if I don't see a discussion I just ask. Hence my many question threads!

@ILoveLettie: Oh no, I don't think that about your comment at all. I was just trying to give some clarity to all the comments in general. I just don't want you to feel like you're not being heard.

I think in general, people here ask questions about the moment their in. I know for me, when I make/read a post, it's about what's going on in my life right now. I'm, guiltily, not thinking about any other baby stages. When a post about parenting a 3 month old comes up, often times I've blocked out any memory of my 3 month old days because they were TERRIBLE. haha. My bad.

@MamaMoose: Ahahaha, I'm starting to feel the same way!

I love HB for all the advice and support! And I met @lovehoneybee through HB!

@lovehoneybee:.. You guys are always welcome! We had so much fun & last night D was still talking about E eating peaches & pears and playing with him.

@Bookish: I am *pretty* sure I'm one and done and last night I had a dream about being preggo and I woke up sad. WTF HB!

@MrsKoala: I'm about to stuff my face with fried chicken, so go get a taco shame free

@PermaStudent: Oh yeah, hey there pen pal!

@avivoca: Hi October 2013 mama! I am glad I met you on HB

For the most part, I think HBers are pretty supportive. I agree with PPs that newbies and infrequent posters can feel overlooked or not part of the cool crowd because there are some pretty tight friendships on here.

I also think there are some topics that are off limits and if you are on the wrong side of a topic for one of your early posts, it can definitely leave a sour taste in your mouth.