Back Home From NYC & BlogHer10: My Recap

I am back home after a 4 day 3 night trip to NYC for BlogHer10. I am still trying to process the weekend – it went so fast and saying I was overwhelmed is kind of an understatement.  It was so busy and went by so quickly and it was a mixture of amazing with a small pinch of disappointment.

I was nervous going into BlogHer because I was leaving my kids- first time ever leaving Baby E & first time in 18 months leaving the older 2 {last time i left them over night I was in the hospital delivering Baby E}.  I am so lucky to have an amazing family who took turns watching the kids mostly at my house to keep them in their routine & keep them entertained and happy. 

My trip started early on Thursday and a 13 hour bus ride into NYC. Crossing the border was interesting. I have been to the US many times but not since needing a passport. The custom’s guy asked the typical questions. When he asked why I was going to the US i answered that I was on my way to a conference. I remember reading all about HerBadMother’s experience a few weeks ago when she answered that she was a “Mommy Blogger” & all that happened after that. So I answered that I was going to a social media conference and he was not sure what to make of that and asked if I had any documentation – thankfully I did and he was satisfied.

Once we got into NYC we (i went with my husband and our best friend to keep him company) walked through Time Square & Broadway to get to our hotel. We stayed at Le Parker Meridien & it was wonderful! Loved the rooms, staff & i even had a safe to eat dinner there one night.  Our view was amazing:

Then began the conference! I had done all of the reading of what last years conferences were like and honestly, still didn’t prepare more for how HUGE this conference was. There were approx 2400 bloggers there from every different topic you could think of & it was hard to recognize anyone without intensely staring at their name tags (awkward).

Now as you all know I have Celiac Disease. I have talked about cross contamination before and a few weeks before heading to the conference and then again a few days before the conference I had contacted BlogHer to ask if the food they provide would be safe to eat and if they would have safe options for people with Celiac Disease. This is where the sprinkle of disappointment came in. I was assured a few times that there would be safe food for my diet…. I walked into the breakfast hall and there it was … buffet. If I did not have celiac disease I would have been in heaven (I wish i took a picture) because the food looked and smelled delicious. However a buffet is like a breeding ground for cross contamination and is not safe – for any person with Celiac Disease.

I was so excited to be able to connect with some friends I have met online through blogging and put a meet them in real life & the opportunity to meet new friends. At first I thought it would be easy to pick these people out of the crowd – but so not the case. I was happy that I had some phone numbers on hand.  I got to meet a lot of the people I had hoped to but sadly not all – and not really close. When people say there isn’t enough time, they were not kidding.  

I was also looking forward to the sessions and for most of the ones I went to – they were incredible. I loved the Autism panel, Radical Mom Bloggers panel was amazing, and I was touched by the Grief, Tragedy and Loss panel {helped me with my conflicting thoughts on sharing my miscarriage experiences}.  If you missed the Closing Keynote you really missed something amazing – it was so profound and so incredible – i wish no one had missed it!

The swag: I know a lot of people have opinions on the swag. I had read before hand to be prepared for it and there was a LOT! I quickly roamed though the Expo Hall and I was slightly disappointed with the lack of range of companies. There was not really one there that related to what I am about. There were the food companies that were not allergy friendly and there were the baby bottles & baby food & commercial toys so this part didnt really interest me.  

I did have an amazing round table lunch with some amazing fellow Breastfeeding Advocates. It was so great to be able to discuss the WHO Code {which I am planning a post on} and other breastfeeding topics. Each one of those women were inspirational and it was so nice to be a part of.

I want to say a HUGE thank you to my sponsor Kinnikinnick Foods. Without their support I would not have been able to attend and with the whole food situation it made me love this company even more! Not only are they committed to providing safe food for people with food allergies or special medical concerns, I was so happy to have some of their TASTY food with me so I was able to eat.  This experience made me even more aware of the health reason people are eating gluten free {I met quite a lot of people who are trying the GF diet and finding they feel so much better} and that there is still so much more information that needs to be made aware to the food service industry on what is SAFE food for people with Celiac Disease. Kinnikinnick Foods is very committed to spreading awareness and providing safe foods – they went to Disney World & Disney Land to help train the kitchen staff on CD preparations and setup a food allergy friendly kitchen!

Thank you so much to everyone I met and got to see! I had an incredible time at BlogHer – so glad I got to experience that! I am sorry for those I didn’t get the chance to meet – I wish there was more time!

Next up – Blissdom Canada!!

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