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Highlights from Blissdom 2012

I always get home from blogging conferences full of new ideas and raring to go. This one was no different. I re-connected with old friends, met a few dear friends for the first time, and attended some stellar sessions that have populated my to-do list for at least the next two weeks.

Oh, and I met Joe Jonas and saw Rascal Flats in concert. Not too shabby, eh?

photo credit: Malise Terrell

I stood in line for this picture only so I could prove to my 9-year-old daughter that her mommy’s still cool. Naturally her first reaction was to disparage the fact that I wasn’t meeting Selena Gomez or Miley Cyrus. Oh well, you win some, you lose some.

I WISH I’d stood in line to get my picture taken with Rascal Flats, but I was tired by then and the line was looooong. They were excellent in concert, though; I only wish they’d played longer.

I attended three sessions at Blissdom this year: 5 Ways to Grow Your Facebook Page with my good friend Melanie Nelson; Do Less As A Life Strategy with another dear friend, Christine Koh; and Legal Confidence with Sarah Hawkins, someone I’ve been wanting to meet ever since she consulted with me last summer about some of my own legal questions.

Each session was valuable and gave me some great takeaways, and I always love to see my good friends getting the opportunity to share their expertise. I may write up a separate post on each with some of the key points if I get around to it.

As usual, the best part of the conference (for me) was connecting with people.

Jo-Lynne and Christine

(Why didn’t someone tell me to put on some lipstick!??)

I enjoyed the parties, but the highlights of my trip were the small, intimate meals I shared with some of my favorite bloggers. I like to get away from the chaos and find a quiet corner to really talk. Sometimes it’s just a couple of us, and other times we have a way of multiplying, but either way, it’s great to get away from the hubub of the conference and connect with bloggers that I rarely see face-to-face.

One night I had a quiet dinner with R at Findley’s Irish Pub (best burgers in the state of Tennessee!) and another night I had dinner with Nicole. Both of them are long-time blogging buddies who I met for the first time this year.

Melanie and Lisa and I slipped away one day for lunch, and Heather and I snuck in a chat over coffee early one morning. Twice I gathered a larger group together for lunch. On Thursday I got to hang out with Donielle and Steph and Cassie, and on Friday I sat between Tricia and Jessie.

The parties were fun too, don’t get me wrong. Blissdom knows how to party, that is always something you can count on. And you can still connect at the parties. I loved chatting with Fadra and Bernice and Amanda and Amy. And Caitlin and Jill. I could go on and on.

Jill and I always have a blast at these events. One afternoon it was 70 degrees in Nashville, and she and I sat outside and soaked up the sun while we caught up.

Kristi and I never got much of a chance to talk so we’ll have to catch up when I’m in Maine this summer. We did manage to grab a picture though.

I met more new people than I can count, and I’m so sorry to those I’ve missed. It’s a dangerous thing to start linking to people because you inevitably miss someone and end up feeling like a dolt.

I wish I’d done more. I totally bagged out on the last night and stayed in my room while the Girls Night In party raged on. It sounded like so much fun (I partied vicariously through Twitter), and by the end i was regretting my decision to be a hermit, but I wasn’t feeling well and I had just had enough.

I think that’s a really important part of conference going — knowing when enough is enough. I always say, I owe it to my kids and my husband to come home healthy and well rested. It doesn’t always work out, but I do my best to pace myself.

Sunday morning I got to spend a little bit more time with Jill and Nicole before heading to the airport. It was the perfect way to end to the weekend!

Nicole, Jill and Jo-Lynne

I put a ton of pictures up on my Facebook page, if you wanna see more. And if you have any posts or photos from Blissdom, let me know where I can find them! I love reading all the post-Blissdom wrap-up posts.

Mega thanks to Therapon Skin Health for my room while I was at Blissdom.

 

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10 Responses

  1. Glad you had a great time, love seeing so many familiar faces. Would love a post on Facebook! I have yet to create a Facebook page just for my blog. I keep waffling on it!

  2. So glad to finally meet you in person!!!! I definitely enjoyed each and every meal we shared and the time to talk, sometimes about non-blogging things! Such a treat.

  3. Even though we only got to say a few quick hellos (I think my husband saw you more than I did!) it was still great to see you again! I learned a lot this year and most of it came from conversations with people! I’m so glad you had a good time & I can’t wait to see you this summer!

  4. I’m so in love with Therapon <3
    It was so good hugging you again this year! It's the people, the connections that are probably my favorite part. I didn't get to make Sara's session so I can't wait for Blissdom at Home to see it! SAra is amazing.

    I have a Capturing Bliss linky if you'd like to add this to it 🙂 xo

  5. I love your photos. And my favorite parts were always the little moments you sneak in between, too. I almost missed the girls night in- I arrived and then promptly turned and went all the way back to my room to lie down. I was exhausted. I woke up later and found out I didn’t miss much anyway! When it ended and my friends wanted to still party I went back to my room again. I am NO good on no sleep. I wish the conferences had more down time! So good seeing you again, but it’s never enough!

    Steph

  6. Love seeing all the pics! What a fun, fast, FILLED conference. Hope you’re feeling better! I’d love to get there next year, and hit a Bloggy Boot Camp, too!

  7. Your photos are a real treat. Especially considering how much I would have loved to sit down with you and Nicole – two of my favorite gals! You look gorgeous, by the way.

  8. The intimate conversations and meals are always my favorite at conferences too. I learn so much more when I’m able to sit down one-on-one…without loud music and small talk. 🙂

    Also – good call on choosing sleep over one last party. I’m sure that little bit of extra rest ended up being a wonderful gift for your family.

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