Personally……

If you have been following my blog (and if you haven’t…where ya been?), you know that I was fortunate enough to attend BlogHer 2009 a few weeks ago. I left the conference with a lot to think about. I had high expectations from this Conference. Along with meeting new friends, I wanted to learn tips and techniques to make my blog better than before. What can I improve and how do I get there? While some of the sessions were less than stellar, I left with one thing on my mind:

Do I have a relationship with my readers? If I weren’t offering incredible giveaways, would you keep coming back?

It’s ok to say no. Really, it is. The purpose of my blog is to review products that would be beneficial to busy Moms and Dads, to educate readers with a real Mom’s opinion on popular (or not so popular) products. But, the thing that I would like to improve on during Year 2 of The Not-So-Blog is personal relationships with my readers. Purpose being that if you get to know the woman behind the words, maybe you will pop in on my little space in the blogosphere even if I am too darn tired to put up a new giveaway! LOL!

So, I thought I would start by sharing a few random facts about me:

1.  I am 5′ 3″.

2.  I am not all that happy with my weight.  I really need to start up “Think Thin Thursdays” again…who’s with me?

3.  I am a review blogger.  I am not ashamed of it and hate that I am made to feel guilty for what I set out to do in the first place.  Then again, I am in control of how I feel, so I will not apologize for it.

4.  I am ethical and not only so I can display a badge on my site, but because I WANT to and it is just who I am.

5.  I love my job.  I work outside the home full time.  Even if it was financially feasible for me to stay at home full time (which it is not), I would not quit.

6.  I am close to my family.  I love the fact that I can pick up the phone and call my family whenever I need them and they will be there in a heartbeat.  I hope I am as good of a Mom as my Mom is to me.

7.  My friends are precious to me.  I fear that my blogging life is getting in the way of my real life.  I am making an effort to let my friends know that they are important to me.

8.  I struggle to find balance in my life.  There must be a way to fit it all in!

9.  I have a hard time saying NO.  Working on it.

10.  Yes, I am from New Orleans.  Yes, Hurricane Katrina flooded my house.  No, I was not rescued off a rooftop (I had the good sense to leave).  And YES, I came back on my own free will.  New Orleans is home.

Ok, now that I spilled a few facts about me, introduce yourself!  Tell me something about you!  How did you find my blog?

BlogHer ’09: Wait, there’s classes, too?

With all the hullabalo about the fabulous BlogHer parties and networking opportunities, I barely even noticed that there are actual classes and seminars, too!

If you are looking for me, I will be firmly planting my butt in a chair at the Geek Lab (after all, I am most comfortable in a lab, LOL!) learning WordPress, HTML, Photoshop, and SEO so I don’t have to annoy the heck out of my bloggy friends anymore. If I am going to grow this blog, I need to learn to stand on my own two feet when it comes to all the technical behind the scenes stuff (oh yes, there is an actual woman behind the curtain here at The Not-So-Blog!). In my short year of blogging, I have learned more than I ever thought possible, so I cannot wait to dive in and learn more!

My BlogHair

In fact, I leave in under 48 hours! Holy Moly! I haven’t packed a THING, but at least my hair is cut and colored (the gray hair was not too becoming for this 35 year old)!

But don’t fret, I am leaving you in the capable hands of Jennifer, the Not-So-June.  Maybe she’ll post a recipe or even share a new giveaway with you while I’m gone! 

Come and find me at BlogHer ’09 to learn more about the wonderful sponsors that helped me get there! Check out the gorgeous Gina B Bella laptop bag from Kolobags and receive extra entries to the giveaway! Find me in my Bomb Mom T-shirt to receive a goody bag filled with some awesome swag!  And for the mommies with young ones, I’ll be holding a drawing for a stroller liner and handing out some great items from New Native!

I’ll be posting and tweeting as much as I can from BlogHer!  Make sure you check back to keep up with all the excitement!

BlogHer or Bust!

In just two short weeks, I will be headed to Chicago to attend BlogHer ’09!  I am a blogging conference virgin, so I have no idea what to expect.  Being the planner that I am, I printed out the agenda of classes, seminars and networking opportunities and started to make my itinerary (highlighted in color coded sections, of course!).  My spirit was high (or maybe it was the sharpie fumes), either way, I was thrilled to be able to attend the “blogger event of the year!” 

Then, I started to hear about fellow bloggers receiving invitations to private parties sponsored by incredible companies such as Nikon, Disney and Energizer.  I searched my inbox only to find that my invitation to any such party must have been lost somewhere in the world wide web. 

All of a sudden, I feel like the wallflower of blogging.  Where did this insecurity come from? So, I started searching for anything related to BlogHer parties so I could learn how to get my foot in the door (who doesn’t wonder what’s behind the curtain?), and I ran across an article entitled, “divine secrets of the BlogHer ‘08 sisterhood,” a post written by Stephanie Klein after she returned from last year’s BlogHer event.  This exerpt speaks volumes:

“It’s really like walking around a constant, 3-day, pledge class, wondering when you’ll finally be able to fully relax and be inducted into the sorority of women. It’s scary in a way that shouldn’t be. I hear way too many people mention “private parties” with apologies. “Oh, are you going to the Nintendo dinner?” she whispers. No. I wasn’t invited. “What about the private party at the suite upstairs by this sponsor? Oh, did you go to the sponsored private cocktail…” Since when did blogging become so elitist? It really is just another way, ironically enough, to feel rejected.

Until, that is, you aren’t. Until those moments where you connect immediately to someone you’ve read before. To someone who just gets it, with whom you share all the unspokens. And then it all changes. Your outlook, your enjoyment, and what you get out of it all. What I was reminded of most at my first BlogHer experience, at the most basic level, is what it’s like to go about making brand new friends, without relying on insincerity, or flattery, without bonding over mean girl moments. How fragile all of us can be, how nervous, how eager we are to be liked. And how ridiculously satisfying it is to connect with strangers who are now suddenly so much more.”

Whoa.  How true!  This article made me take a step back and re-focus on why I wanted to attend BlogHer in the first place.  I cannot wait to go learn from the best, reconnect with old friends, make brand new ones, and star-gaze at the bloggers I have come to admire.   While invitations to private parties sure would be nice, it is only icing on the cake.  If anyone is looking for me, I’ll be at my own private party at the pool.  Come join me!