Blogger Bash Recap!

A few months ago, I mentioned that I was planning on going to my first blogging conference - Blogger Bash NYC. Between the trip to NYC, the fun events, and free swag, I was pumped to go. Little did I know how much I would actually get out of this two day event.

Blogger Bash is the brainchild of six brilliant women who know what it takes to network and use social media to the max. With the recognition that parent bloggers are some of the most influential forces in media, the Blogger Bash team built a two day conferencing opportunity for bloggers from around the country to gather, learn, and network with some of the biggest brands around. A combination of lectures, round tables, and expo settings provided a huge opportunity, to even small time bloggers like me, to make once in a life time connections with companies I would otherwise have no access to like Lego, LeapFrog, Disney, Crayola, Fisher Price, and more.

Credit: Janice Croze for Blogger Bash

Credit: Janice Croze for Blogger Bash

Wow. Right?

Let me tell you, after two days I had a fist full of business cards, about 15 miles put on my shoes, and a powerful need to take a nap. After I recovered from my networking hangover, I took a little time to go through all of the material I'd gathered up and realized that not only did I have a list of brand reps I was super excited to contact, but I had connected with a ton of other women; about blogging, about parenting, about working....so many things. Some we just chatted about our kids and whether our husbands were surviving being at home with them, others gave me a pep talk that it's "not all about numbers." Either way, it was the first time I was around that many women, that many Moms, and didn't feel like it was a competition. There was smiling, there was sharing, there was kindness.

Now that I'm getting all misty, onto the rest of the event!

One of the larger events during the conference was called Sweet Suite. What a blast! Sweets, treats, and toys galore. I absolutely loved seeing all of the fun, new products and toys brought by the various brands and representatives! There was SO much to see! The people representing each brand were a ton of fun to talk to and I was so impressed at their ability to talk to nine billion eager bloggers and not lose their minds!

Credit: Janice Croze for Blogger Bash

But seriously, how often do you get to play without the kids around (and without getting funny looks from strangers....) There was video games, board games, coloring, stuffed animals....the works.

Credit: Janice Croze for Blogger Bash

Credit: Janice Croze for Blogger Bash

In addition to Sweet Suite, there were several other events including BabyPalooza, a brand "speed dating" session, meeting Anne Geddes (!!!), lots and lots of delicious treats, a Back to School Party hosted by KizVuz, and more. I can't even begin to describe it all. Not to mention more tweeting, instagramming, and facebooking than I've ever done in my life!

Check out the BabyPalooza interview with Anne Geddes below!

Credit: Justin Lee of Josh Strauss Studios

I can't say thank you enough to the women who worked, what had to have been hundreds of hours, to make this happen. For me, this was so much more than the business cards and free stuff. For the first time, I was immersed in the blogging community in a real way; not staring at avatars on a screen. I cannot wait to continue my contacts with everyone I met and truly see what I am capable of achieving.

Want to see more post recaps and pictures from Blogger Bash and Sweet Suite, BabyPalooza, and KizVuz? Check out the link up at A Grande Life!