July 2008

This is the LAST BLOGHER POST! (everyone who was unable to attend cheers) (even those who were able to attend are cheering because DUDE, enough already) I’m just going to clear up some odds and ends.  And then we can be on our way.  (Well, this is a damn, dirty lie because my YNTR post tomorrow will heavily feature post-BlogHer posts, but at least they won’t be MY post-BlogHer posts!)

Okay, I want to talk a little about my session.  This is the first time I’ve done a panel-type session and you know what?  Kinda fun.  Seriously!  I actually kind of enjoyed being a part of it.  It didn’t feel so much like speaking as it did leading a group discussion.  I kind of got into that.  The only bad part was losing half our audience before it was all said and done.  We started out with a pretty packed room which was VERY COOL.  I was excited!  And before the time was up, we’d lost a good half of those people.  I guess we weren’t exciting after all.  Which, you know, is okay.  Elisa herself had encouraged people to not be afraid to leave and find sessions that DO speak to them.  But on the other hand, this is a session led by INTROVERTS.  And I replayed all those people standing up and walking out in my head a good 50 times that weekend.  Was it something I said?  Do I offend?

All I want to say about drama is this: You cannot go to an event like BlogHer with sky-high expectations.  If you read nothing but “a-list” bloggers and you have dreams of going there and becoming their BFFs, well, you’re probably going to walk away disappointed.  Yes, even if they have responded to your comments or whathaveyou.  Because they’re going to be busy (as we all are at BlogHer) and they’re also shy like a lot of us are and I don’t know about you, but giant free-for-alls like this wear me the heck out.  And I’m NOT under a spotlight.  Doesn’t excuse out and out rude behavior but I didn’t hear of TOO many stories like that this year, thankfully.  It’s best to go in with the expectation that you want to meet up with people who you read who also read you and connect with you and with the hopes of meeting new people.  Because BlogHer is FABULOUS for meeting new people.

Also: Some people will look for drama even where there isn’t really any.  That’s just the nature of the beast sometimes.  People like to rubber-neck.  So sometimes we are the community’s own worst enemy.  We need to knock that off, seriously.  It’s not doing anyone any favors.

All in all, I had a great time.  Next year I want to do some things different (don’t I say this every year??):

• I want to go SANS KIDS.  No children.  Nadda.  NONE.
• I want to room together with a bunch of buddies so we can stay up late braiding hair.  Or drinking at parties.  Or, heck, both.  Think of the money savings too!
• I want to stay an extra day or two (or three).  I want to be there the day before for any pre-parties and I want to be there the day AFTER, to decompress and sight-see.  I’m talking four nights in the hotel.  I don’t want to feel rushed.  I want to soak it all in, damnit.
• I want to make GINORMOUS efforts to meet people that I decide beforehand I want to meet.  Mrs. Flinger and Jennifer?  THAT MEANS YOU.  Among others.
• I want to take so many pictures that it literally makes my flickr account WEEP.
• I want to go to several parties.  I want to have alcohol at some of these parties (if not all).  I most especially want to go to a CheeseburgHer party as I have now missed it TWO YEARS IN A ROW.  And those cheeseburgers look yummy.

I think that covers it.  Now, let us never speak of it again.  Until next year, of course.

***

In other news: OMG, my husband has started a blog.  A daddy blog, of sorts.  I think.  Though he has yet to mention our actual CHILDREN, but whatever.  (Who am I to talk?  How often do I talk about the kids, really?)  Anyhow, I think he got a look at all the fun we had at BlogHer this year (and all the guys who were there getting all the attention) and decided he wanted a piece of that pie.  Whatever his reasoning, stop by and say, “Whatup, yo?”

I hope you all enjoyed the virtual landslide of photos I had from BlogHer this year (*cough*).  I’m really rather upset with myself that I didn’t take more.  But it was SO hard to do anything when I had Evie with me besides just deal with Evie.  See, looking back, it would have totally rocked to have had a personal handler with me the entire weekend.  Someone to help me deal with Evie, to bounce her when she was fussy and work their voodoo on her, make her calm down.  I could have handed Evie off to said personal handler and maybe even taken my laptop out.  Shoot, forget the laptop, I could have actually gone to sessions!  But if I had had this mythical other pair of hands, I could have also taken out my camera and taken pictures.

Oh, hindsight.  Why are you always so clear?

Anyhow, the point of this post is to highlight everyone that I got a totally awesome business card from.  I have a respectable pile (as you can see), but I wanted MORE.  Next year, I SWEAR.

• We’ve got a beautifully designed card from Christine at watchmenowatchme.com.  I didn’t know her before BlogHer, but after a lunchtime interlude where we got to watch her bitch out her bank on the phone, I feel as if we’re bonded somehow.  She truly was a cool gal and I’m totally stalking her now.
• Then there is Dawn from kaiseralex.com.  Like Christine, I didn’t know her before BlogHer but I know her now and I think she’s pretty spectacular (and not just cuz of the bewbs on her card).
• I have an adorable little card for Carly of andsosheblogs.com.  I knew her beforehand, even met her at last year’s conference but I was so glad to spend some extra time with her this year.  She is truly a wonderful, beautiful gal.
• I also got to meet Mary Ostyn from Owl Haven.  She is one of the people who says she recognizes me (or rather, my blog) and I get all bashful-like.  Shucks.
• I got to briefly meet Minnie from screamything.com and thankyoufornotbeingperky.com.  She was absolutely beautiful.  What is with all the beautiful women at BlogHer?
• I also ran into Fausta at BlogHer and got her card which went into my pocket and got totally wrinkled up but I flattened it as best I could because I like order that way.
• Who can forget the incomparable Loralee of Loralee’s Looney Tunes?  Everyone is talking about her, post-BlogHer.  I’d say she was a hit.  And you know what?  She was even MORE wonderful in person than she is online.  Which is quite a feat, mind you.  LOVE HER.
• I met Christine (aka YoungMommy) from From Dates to Diapers and almost didn’t realize it was her at first.  And she?  IS BEAUTIFUL.  Why I’m surprised at this point, I don’t know.  But also a total sweetheart.
• I have the most adorable card from Sizzle and can I just say she is STUNNING in person?  And I can tell she’s the sort of gal that everyone must love to be around.  She’s got a gorgeous smile and she seemed to be everywhere at this conference.
• Of course, I have an adorable pink card from Rhi in Pink.  She was absolutely awesome to me at the conference and even gave me a pair of pink sneakers (I wear them all the time now).  I’m proud to share Mini Owen with her.
• I even managed to score a card from Megan from Velveteen Mind (who is just such a sweet and lovely woman in person, even moreso than on her blog).  She had a lot of balls in the air this conference and she seemed to handle them with the utmost grace.  I want to be her when I grow up.
• Another absoutely gorgeous woman, Stephanie from metropolitanmama.net.  If I’m remembering correctly, she sat at my table at one point and I had to make a point not to stare because she was seriously GORGEOUS.
• I got the cutest little card from Nicole from Apron Strings Aflutter.  I didn’t know her or her blog before, but I’m definitely checking it out now.  And that is the power of a sweet woman and a cute card at BlogHer.
• I met, thanks to Carly and Rhi, Sallie Boorman of APCO Worldwide at our table (I think it was breakfast?).  She was so sweet and so pretty (are you sensing a theme here?) and so not one of the Evil PR People you always hear about.  She truly was a fabulous person.
• Speaking of PR and Sponsors, I also talked to Shannon at the Sprout booth and she was so sweet.  Sometimes these conversations can feel so manufactured, but I got the feeling this gal and her co-workers were nothing but genuine.  SO SWEET.  AND SO PRETTY.  (and I totally want Sprout now)
• On Day 1, at breakfast, I met Julia from idealist.org, where she’s a community outreach coordinator and blog manager.  She was very apologetic about her corporate card and made sure to jot down her NYC blog on there as well.  I’ll definitely be checkign her out, she was a super nice gal.
• I got an adorable bookmark from a lovely gal known as “Sugar” (how sweet is that!  pun is TOTALLY intended, btw) for her blog Living… In Theory.  She was seriously a darling gal and (do I even have to say it?) totally gorgeous.
• I scored a card from the fabulous Michelle Mitchell of Scribbit.  She is seriously stunning in person, with her blonde hair and tallness and just simply oozing grace and professionalism.  Another gal I wouldn’t mind becoming when I grow up.  I need to take notes from her, seriously.
• I briefly met Annette Tonti who works for a company called mofuse and I’m seriously going to look into it because now that I’m getting an iPhone (details to follow), I’m extra interested in having a mobile version of my blog.
• I got to meet Missy!  Seriously, I was so glad when she hopped down from her makeover chair MID-MAKEOVER to come over and say Hi to me.  That was so awesome.  And her accent?  ADORABLE.  And she?  GORGEOUS.  I think I pretty much adore her.
• Surely by now you’ve all been hearing about Brian at papatv.com.  He was pretty awesome (and hot) and his card made me laugh.  I wish I could have hung with him more like Carly and Rhi got to.  But seriously, there were a LOT of guys there this year and I thought that was awesome.
• Kelli, aka Cagey, handed out the most adorable business cards, which were actually bookmarks, styled after her blog.  This was in order to hand them out with the “Sleep is for the Weak” book in which she is featured (*coughbuyitcough*).  I love Cagey.  I love her and I love her adorable little daughter and intensely wish I lived closer to her so I could go over to her house for playdates.

And then there was my most favorite “card” of all:

This was from Brit at Running Stitch and she MADE THEM HERSELF.  Seriously, she had a whole stack to pass out.  And I thought that was the coolest thing EVER.  She even had the url to her Etsy shop on the back and I thought that was just damned genius.  She is mad talented and has made me so many wonderful things I can hardly keep track.  I love her.  She is a salve on my soul.  And she makes me laugh like no one’s business because she’s funny as hell.  It would NOT have been BlogHer if I hadn’t gotten a chance to hang with her for the short time that I was able.

Then there were all the people that I talked to that I didn’t get cards from (and, one can safely assume, I didn’t give cards to either.  Like an IDIOT.).  But I want to mention them because I did meet them and they do deserve a link.  I’ll just have to see if I can remember them all!

There was the lovely Kerry from Crunchy Carpets who I happened to see walking down the hall while Loralee and I were chatting and I hollered out to her (as if I have confidence or something!).  This was on Saturday, shortly before I had to leave so I am SO glad I got a chance to talk with her.  And her accent?  DARLING.  Scottish AND Canadian.  Too cute.

There was also the amazing Kristen from better now.  I’m sure I never would have had the guts to speak to her had I not been with Loralee at the time.  This woman is drop-dead gorgeous and so sweet and tall and lovely and smart and… well, even her beautiful blog doesn’t do her justice.  And her blog is beautiful.  So go read it.

Let’s not forget Michelle (aka sparksfley) from Sparks and Butterflies.  She watched my baby for me during my panel and didn’t even miss a STEP with it.  She also started the whole “disclaimer” thing pre-BlogHer to prepare people for the real thing and can I just say?  I think she exaggerated.  She is a lovely person, beautiful and sweet and I’m sure I didn’t get to spend as much time with her as I would have liked.

I also (almost literally) ran into Y just before we left on Saturday.  I got a chance to hug her and tell her that she made me cry during the community keynote the day before and can I just say?  Y is simply lovely in person.  I know she’s lovely on her blog (which I enjoy like no one’s business), but in person?  SO MUCH MORE.  She is a true, genuine heart.  Take it to the bank, people.  It’s true.  I adore her.

I spoke with Monty and Mamacita on Friday morning and never got their cards!  Shame on me!  Well, I’m here to tell you that besides being completely lovely women, they are funny and sweet to boot.  I am so glad I got a chance to interact with them while I was there, because now I sorta love both of them.

I also (so briefly) saw Califmom and she was awesome.  I mean, I sorta knew she’d be awesome from all her Twitters pre-conference, but in person?  Awesomer.  It’s totally a word, look it up.  I didn’t get to talk to her long, but trust me.  She was awesome.  I’m sure someone else can back me up on this.

I did meet Backpacking Dad on Friday morning.  He was talking with Loralee and I managed to get to say hi, but neglected to give him my card.  This guy was a total rockstar of the conference.  I think I can count on one finger the number of times I saw him NOT surrounded by adoring women.

I got to say hi to Redneck Mommy too!  OMG.  She’s so pretty.  And so nice too!  I was pretty much entirely intimidated because she is so… well, COOL.  But she really came off as entirely approachable and sweet.

It was very brief and totally in passing, but I also got to say hi to Crystal from Boobs, Injuries and Dr. Pepper.  Another gal who was completely beautiful and so sweet and friendly.  I wished I could have gone to her session, so I could have heard more from her.  I really admire her quite a bit.

Whew.  I think that’s it.  If I missed ANYONE, please let me know.  See, even with all these people I got to see and say “hi” to, there are so many that I didn’t and that is what haunts me.  I am starting to wonder if it is even POSSIBLE to see everyone you want to see at BlogHer.  I’m starting to have my doubts.

But at any rate, this is my list of Awesome People I Saw at BlogHer.  Now go visit their sites!  Because they are Awesome!

It comes in bits and pieces.  There’s no way that anyone can come home from BlogHer and in one post, sum up the entire experience and then just drop the subject.  Not going to happen.  So, again, to those of you out there who missed the conference, I apologize.  But I’m not done yet.

What I need to do is post up links to the great business cards I got.  However, the greatest business card I got is MIA and I want to hunt it down and take a picture before I do that post.  So I’ve been putting it off.  (Of course, you must realize that it is only MIA becuase I refuse to unpack, like, ANYTHING.)

What I’m going to do today is post the paltry pictures I have from the conference, including one stolen picture (Forgive me, Cagey!).  I swear, if I do make it back next year, I VOW to take more pictures.  Then again, as I don’t plan to attend with a baby clinging to me, it’ll probably be easier to manage.  GAH.

Here we have the fabulous Rhi and Carly.  I had breakfast with them on Day 1 and they watched Evie for me while I went and retrieved myself a bagel.

I totally stole this picture that Cagey took and fuxed with it in Photoshop.  But anyhow, this is me during my Introversion session, and WHAT IS HAPPENING WITH MY HAIR, OMG.

In case you doubted it, Loralee does indeed love herself some diet Coke.  Dawn from Kaiser Alex likes diet Coke too, but not on the same level, obviously.

Christine yells at defenseless bank employees and looks hawt doing it.

See?  Loralee totally is picturing Christine naked right now.  (That’s who she’s looking at, btw)

Cagey’s little girl Anjali was absolutely ADORABLE and I even got to hold her a couple of times.  I could just eat her.  She was very tolerant of all the pictures being taken of her.

I love this woman.  Even when she’s unprepared to have her photo taken.  Maybe especially when she’s unprepared to have her photo taken.

This picture disturbs me on so many levels.  Not just that it makes Cagey look drunk, but that it makes me look like a HEIFER. Still, I love these girls and we didn’t get NEAR enough time together.

Evie starts to nut up when posing with the Michelin Man. Typical. Kile was psyched to enter the drawing for 4 free tires.  WTF?

I have to include this last one taken Saturday afternoon after we had returned to my parents’ house.  Liam is rocking swim trunks and goggles I picked up in the Swag Suite and obviously having the TIME OF HIS LIFE. I think he probably enjoyed BlogHer more than anyone else.

Before I get into what will most certainly be a long-winded and winding post, I want to say ahead of time that the people this year at BlogHer were fabulous.  And that it really looks like a lot of people had a really awesome time.  I had my own little set of issues this year but even so, there was a lot to love this year (even though the title of this post might suggest the contrary).

The Good

• The Westin is a tip-top sort of hotel.  The room… it was FABLOUS.  I wish I had taken pictures.  It was beautiful.  White sheets, white bedspread, 10 foot ceilings, recessed paneling, floor length windows, sparkling chandeliers, glass doorknobs, plasma tv… it was plush, plush, PLUSH.  Easily the nicest hotel I think I’ve ever stayed in.  I loved that room.  And the Heavenly Bed?  Was not an exaggeration.  It was HEAVENLY.  I think I died in that bed.
• The childcare.  KiddieCorps really did a great job with the kids.  Liam had a BLAST over there and I don’t think he missed us one tiny bit while he was in there.  They had games, movies, snacks… and a pretty much endless supply of chocolate milk.  They even took Liam down to meet GROVER (which his no-count mother couldn’t even manage to do).  When we realized we’d left Liam’s diapers in the valet-parked van, they generously and awesomely told us it was no problem and covered Liam’s diaper-shortage.
• All the fabulous women that I got a chance to meet or reconnect with.  I’m not going to link them here because I do hope to do a links post at some point in time.  But seriously.  I got some big time warm fuzzies from some of you all and I puffy pink heart every single one of you.  If anything, I’m severely depressed that I didn’t get more time to spend with you, slobbering all over your (fabulous) shoes.
• The swag.  There was some GREAT swag this year!  I mean, no, I didn’t get any laptop or Wii Fit or cameras or anything like that BUT… I got some great stuff regardless.  My kids loved the stuff that I brought home for them (Harry is a particular fan of the Magic 8 Ball and the bracelet/zip drive from PBS Kids).  I haven’t even had a real good chance to go through it all and see what all is there, but I love the tote bag and the Zazzle suite (where we could drop off what we didn’t want, pick up what others don’t want, etc) was a GREAT idea.  Since I didn’t need to worry about packing restrictions this year, I stopped by there and grabbed some extra goodies.  I even managed to get a go at the “Swag Suite” before we left and got all sorts of nifty stuff up there too.  And even then, I know I only got a small portion of the swag available this year.  It was amazing.  God bless the swag!
• The Community Keynote.  So I may not have been able to go to a lot of sessions or do a lot of fun things at BlogHer this year (I missed the CheeseburgHer Party too!), but I did make most of the Community Keynote and it was AWESOME.  It was the single-most inspiring moment of the conference for me.  Listening to all those awesome women read their awesome blog posts aloud in front of that jam-packed room really brought it home to me WHY I do what I do with this blog.  What it’s all about, and how my little blog posts can change my life (if not anyone elses).  I laughed, I cried…  it was all kinds of awesome and I hope they do this every year from here on out.

The Bad

• The food.  Now, I hate to complain because most everything was just awesome, but the food this year pretty much sucked.  I know I’m not the only one who thought so.  There was more than one grumble about the lack of bacon in the morning (it was more of a continental breakfast than anything else) and the lunches were pre-packaged sandwhiches or salads.  The only problem with that being that they disappeared like freakin’ HOTCAKES.  Apparently.  The first day, Evie was a ticking time bomb after my session finished so I had to take her up to the room to nurse her and hopefully get her to lay down and nap for a while.  By the time I was finished woo-ing her to sleep and got downstairs, the last of the lunches had been passed out.  GAH.  Thankfully, some awesome women took pity on me and took me out for a hamburger.  Otherwise, I may have very well starved to death.  I heard good things about the snacks, but the meals left something to be desired.
• The “Lactation Lounge” was about a joke.  Seriously, it was a room with a round table and some chairs.  They had water bottles and glasses, at least, but the set up was not very inspiring for us lactate-rs.  The doors were also wide open all the time so if anyone was feeling particularly modest or had an easily distracted child, it wasn’t very private or quiet either.  Maybe next year they could have a sofa or glider or something?
• The Westin was a pretty confusing place.  Shoot, they handed us maps of the place and I could still barely find my way around.  It took me half of the first day to even find out where all the mommy blogging sessions were at because I kept thinking that they were on the third floor when in fact they were on the first floor.  Seriously, I’m good at directions and reading maps and looking at the map on our agenda often made it HARDER for me to find where I was going.
• Temperatures.  And this is inside the Westin, mind you.  One minute it would be freezing, the next it would be stuffy and stifling.  You never knew what you were going to get. (For the record, the lactation lounge was pretty much always FREEZING.)  There didn’t seem to be much rhyme or reason to it either.  Maybe someone else has some insight?
• PARKING.  OMG.  We wouldn’t have had to leave early if it hadn’t been for the parking situation.  Perhaps next year find out if there is a way to include overnight parking in the cost of the room?  Or warn us ahead of time that it isn’t included?  Because finding out the next day that it cost us $50 to have our van valet parked overnight even though we were hotel guests was pretty crappy.  And a huge part of the reason we ended up leaving early.  Even better, work out a deal ahead of time with the hotel where conference participants can either check out later or at least keep their vehicles there later.  That would have been UBER helpful.  I know this is S.F. and parking is at a premium, but STILL.
• I didn’t hand out nor recieve NEAR as many business cards as I would have liked.  DANGIT.  EVERY YEAR it’s the same old story.  Next year, I want a bag I have to drag home overflowing with other people’s business cards.  I’m so not even kidding.

The Ugly

• There wasn’t a lot that was ugly this year.  NO, I’M SERIOUS.  No one was a total ass, that I know of.  No one was mean or rude or awful to me (that I know of).
• In fact, the only thing ugly was me not meeting everyone I wanted to meet.  I’m still excited by all the people I actually DID meet (Redneck Mommy!  Backpacking Dad! Boobs, Injuries and Dr. Pepper!  Kristen from Better Now!) but so sad by the ones that I didn’t (far too many to mention here and if I do it’s only going to make me feel depressed again).

So that’s it.  I think.  I’m almost certain that I’m leaving all sorts of stuff out here.  It really was an amazing trip and my head is still swimming with it all.  I wish I could have stayed there several more days at least and just soaked it all in.  Elisa, Jory and Lisa all put on a FABULOUS event.  And I truly am grateful that I was able to be a part of it.

Coming up: My session and how people who leave in the middle can make an introvert think she must be a leper AND a big round up of all the cards I received from people including LINKS LINKS LINKS!  Good times will be had by ALL!