My First Ever Blog Conference - BlogHer 2013

This past week I visited Chicago for my first ever blog conference. I wrote about my first few days in Chicago earlier this week. I had a wonderful time meeting lots of new bloggers and also connecting with some lovely ladies that I only knew through Twitter and the online world.

I roomed with Amanda from The Pretty Pinhead and Aimee from AimeeBroussard.com and had an amazing time with them.  One of the best times was our final night at dinner where we spent the entire time laughing and enjoying delicious steak. I hope to meet these lovely ladies again in the not-too-distant future.

One of the first people I met at BlogHer was Kimmy from A Mom's Point of View it was nice have somebody to walk around the Expo with. We even met Optimus Prime!

Optimus Prime and I are BFFs now

Friday morning began with breakfast then the keynote speaker - Ree Drummond, The Pioneer Woman.  She was an amazing speaker and she made me excited to see where this little blog of mine could go. I even got to meet her afterwards!

Friday continued with classes and more networking. I can't believe how many wonderful companies I talked to and I'm excited for possible opportunities to partner.  That evening, Amanda and I headed off to the Hard Rock Cafe for a party hosted by Hasbro. Even without being a parent I had fun seeing the new toys (and life size Play-Doh jar)!  As you can see below, we had fun with Elmo.

Saturday morning I started in the Expo hall and skipped the morning keynote. I wish I could have heard Sheryl Sandberg speak but I did make some great contacts during that time so my time was well spent.

Over the weekend, I tried my best to break out of my comfort zone and ask people if I could join them at their table. I wish I had a couple more days to meet more people, or even just to unwind.

Some things I will know for next time:

• Pack a second suitcase. I was greatly surprised by how much stuff I came home with. It didn't help that I won a giant bag of stuff from Walgreens. I gave some of the children products away but even after that I had a ton to bring home. I still have a FedEx package that is on its way.
• Enter all the giveaways - you never know what you will win! I actually won a Shark floor cleaner with my very first Instagram photo.
• Before you walk away from a booth look at the business card and if it is a PR company make sure you write what company they are there representing. I had a few booths that I had to go back to because I couldn't remember which card they belonged to.
• Take more photos! This is an amazing opportunity to meet lots of people and photos are the best way to remember them.

I definitely didn't listen to my last piece of advice and hardly took any photos. I look forward to attending again and hope to add some of the other conferences to my schedule as well.



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