Do you guys remember in the olden days of Twitter (like a few months ago or something) before trending topics were on the sidebar, and you wanted to see what people were talking about in real time, you had to go all the way to the bottom of the page and search a keyword? Or something like that?

A year ago this week, I sat down to watch the season premiere of one of my favorite shows, The Biggest Loser. I, of course, had my laptop in front of me and decided to live search on Twitter "biggest loser". Of course, there were the snarky remarks like, "I'm eating a bowl of ice cream while watching The Biggest Loser. Should I feel guilty?" but then, I just happened to glance at my screen when I saw one that said something like this:

"Watching The Biggest Loser for the first time. Wow! These people are inspirational!"

I was intrigued enough to click on the profile known as @shrinkingjeans and follow whomever it was watching the show for the first time. She immediately followed me back and we "tweeted" a few times back and forth about the show.

I admit, I didn't watch much of the first episode because I was pouring through the mounds on posts at that Twitter page's website: The Sisterhood of the Shrinking Jeans. I was in awe of the amount of work it must take to run a site like this. Plus, these girls were all going through the same thing I was going through.

See, at that time, I had lost just a bit over 50 lbs, and was really dying to get my story out because I had my ducks in a row. I had nailed weight loss and would love to help others figure it out. But here's a little secret about me that you may not know....ready for it? Lean in close. I can be shy and reserved. Yep. It's true. Depending on the situation and until you really get to know me, I may seem like a completely different April than you know and love (haha!) on this blog.

So, the next day, at work, I bet I clicked on the Sisterhood a dozen times. I bet I went to the contact page half as many times, and I know I wrote my email over and over. I just didn't know what to say...or I was afraid it would sound dumb. And all I really wanted to do was to tell these girls (and guy) what a wonderful site they had. Okay, April, I thought. You're being dumb, just send the stupid message. *click* I sent it.

Within minutes I had replies from Christy, Lissa, and Crooked Eyebrow. I was in awe. Christy and I chatted for most of the rest of the day. By the end of the week, Christy had talked me into restarting this blog and joining them in their new challenge.

And if you've been following along for any length of time, you know what happened next!

Now, I'm lucky enough to call these girls (and guy) and many of you my friends. The bonds created by blogging continue to amaze me every single day. And since it was a year ago this week, that Christy made me, I mean showed me the beautiful thing that blogging can be, I'm considering right NOW my blog-a-versary (or however it's spelled).

Tonight, I'LL behind the wheel @shrinkingjeans on Twitter during the season premiere of The Biggest Loser, and I wonder...how many new friends will we make?