Preparing For BlogHer

Next week at this time I will be in San Diego. For BlogHer. The blogging conference of all conferences.

I admit that I am excited.  I admit that I am over the moon happy because as a non newby, I have a clue what to expect. I even admit that I am happy to have some private events that little old me was invited to.

But honestly? The thing I am possibly even more excited about?  I get to take a trip to a place I have never been before. And when I am there, I get to live it up and not have camp schedules or laundry or phone calls that need to be made. In truth, I am viewing BlogHer as much as a recharge Me vacation as a blogging conference. Yes, I hope to learn and meet all sorts of amazing people. But also, I am excited run a 5k and go to bootcamp and attend parties with people that I adore virtually and in real life.

Yes I have a packing list.  I have my adorable Kushy Foot Flats to Go, my Speck A-line iPad bag, my Tiny Prints business cards.  I have my chargers labeled with adorable Mabel Labels and I have outfits that I plucked right out of my closet.  I have books to read on my kindle for the flight and I have pink shoe laces from Fit Approach to wear in my shoes.  Eventually I will even pack.  I may even get nervous from the energy and excitement.

Most of all though, I have very clear and realistic expectations. I did not have them last year when I went to BlogHer in New York and as a result I did not make the most of my trip. This year, I am going guns blazing. I have people I want to meet, to hug, and to giggle with. I even have their cell phone numbers already programmed into my phone to make sure I can reach them.  There will a morning where I get up early to swim laps, and there will be evenings spent drinking the Thistle wine (from my cousin’s amazing vineyard) that will be waiting for me at the hotel, ready to be shared and enjoyed.

I expect to squeel when coming face to face with bloggy friends that I cannot wait to meet in real life. I expect to talk a lot about the new Just.Be.Enough site that is going to be ready to launch if not already launched. I expect to meet new people and to listen attentively as they tell me their story. I expect to learn about brands that I have no interest in working with just like I expect to learn about brands that I would be head over heels thrilled to represent.

Me at a BlogHer Party last year.

Maybe it is because this is my second year. Or maybe it is because I have been blogging for that much longer.  But this year, is all about enjoying the moment. I am not worrying about which parties I am going to and which I’m not. I am not worrying about not knowing anyone at lunch.  I am not worrying about being twenty pounds heavier than I was last year or about wearing the same dresses that I wore to the Type A Parent conference earlier this year. In the end, no one will really care what I look like or what I am wearing. Well ok, there might be some ladies that never left high school and are only there to comment and judge. But I don’t really want to be their friends whoever they might be, so it works out.

Because if I have learned NOTHING else in these almost two years of blogging it is that meaningful and real connections make this community what it is. And those relationships, those bonds over words that were shared or tweets that made me giggle, those are the ones that are important.  And while my stats are better then they were a year ago, and maybe I am on the radar of a a few brands, I am still me. And in the end, being true to me, myself and I …that is what matters. And this year, I am making m BlogHer expectations about ME.

 xo

Elena

Disclaimer:  My Kushy Foot Flats To Go were sent to me for the purpose of a review. The Mabels Labels were provided to me as a perk of early bird registration for the Type A Parent conference and Fit Approach sent me the pink shoe laces so that I could #sweatpink.  All other products were chosen and bought by me. All opinions are my own.

Tagged as: BlogHer11