BlogHer14 Day One: Parties, Expo & Swag {+ Giveaway!}

Every time I come home from a blog conference, I’m determined to write a recap post.  All the cool kids do it.  And everyone reads them.  But when I sit down to actually write it, I just can’t seem to find the words.  Or, in the alternative, I find too many words and about halfway through delete it because it’s so long that no one is ever going to read the whole thing.  No one wants to scroll that much.

Now that’s not to say that I’ve never written a recap post, because it’s happened once or twice (or maybe even three times).  But for the most part, I find the process daunting and I find myself putting it off.  I didn’t write a BlogHer recap post last year because I couldn’t figure out how to put 3 days worth of knowledge, networking, and…everything else that happens at a conference…into one post.    Only to be bombarded by the question, “What exactly goes on at a blog conference?” in the days and weeks after the conference, and wishing I had written one.

So this year, I decided to make it easier (on myself!) by writing 3 shorter posts.  “Shorter” is a relative term, of course.  I can’t promise that the posts will be consecutive, but I will get them all written and each will be accompanied by a great giveaway.  Most of all, I’ll answer the question, “What exactly goes on at a blog conference?”.  So let’s get started, shall we?

This year, BlogHer was held in San Jose, California.  Initially I was hesitant to go out there because of the cost, but when a last minute opportunity came through, we were on our way.  And when I say we, I mean my husband and I.  Fun fact: This is actually the second BlogHer that he’s attended.  We left on a Wednesday – even though the conference started on Thursday – which ended up being the best decision we made.  By the time the conference rolled around on Thursday I was over the 5 1/2 hour cross-country flight and pretty well rested.  I also didn’t have to worry about flight delays, which are rampant this time of year…apparently.  After staying the night with Erajh’s cousin and a quick stop at the Apple main campus, we were on our way to the Fairmont which was one of the host hotels.

It should be said that the first day of BlogHer is my absolute favorite.  It’s full of excitement and enthusiasm – you can feel it in the air.  Everything’s gearing up.  Everyone’s starting to arrive.  It’s all brand new.  You see and hug friends you only see once a year, or that you normally only communicate with on Facebook.  But most of all, the first day of BlogHer is full of parties.  Some official, some not so official, but all with some great swag.  What’s not to love?

My first stop on Thursday was the SproutTV AstroBlast! Smoothie Social,which I had all of 7 minutes to prepare for after checking in and exchanging hugs with my friend Evelyn from Mommy Mafia MIAMI at hotel check in.  Lucky for me, it was a pretty casual party set in a park right across from the hotel.  They even brought the Astroblast Zero Gravity Station Bungee Bounce for us to try out (p.s. – my friend Lara from Run Stroller Run was the first to try it out and was even doing flips towards the end…turns out all that running pays off!).  About a quarter of the way through the party I casually struck up a conversation with someone who had approached our table, only to find out that it was Nina from the Goodnight Show on SproutTV.  At that point, I had a mommy fit over meeting such a superstar.  In other words, I totally embarrassed myself.  I actually made her take this picture twice and pretty much refused to call her Michele, which happens to be her real name. And no, she has nothing to do with the birthday wish selection for the morning show…

Before leaving, we got a sneak peek at their new show ASTROBLAST! which debuted earlier this month.  Featuring a smoothie hut in the space, ASTROBLAST! takes preschoolers and their parents on healthy and hilarious adventures through space.  The animation was incredible.  As were the smoothies.  I kinda want one right now, but I digress…  Before leaving we were handed gift bags which contained our very own Chica (from the morning show) stuffed animal, along with some other Sprout goodies.  I was downright giddy about the Chica stuffed animal.  My kids were less giddy when I presented it to them on Skype the next day.  I may just keep it for myself.  Nothing wrong with a grown woman having her own Chica stuffed animal, right?

After an hour it was time to switch gears and head off to The Baby Ladies Baby Shower, hosted by The Baby Ladies and their partners Baby’s First Test and the Save Babies Through Screening Foundation.  The Baby Shower focused on raise awareness about the importance of life-saving screenings at birth.  I attended the Baby Shower last year, but felt a bit socially awkward because I didn’t know anyone.  This year, they had a game where you had to talk to reps, tweet, instagram, etc. to win prizes.  I thought it was a great change and I found myself talking with lots of bloggers in the process.  Not to mention, the list of sponsors was a mom’s dream – Contours Strollers, Dr. Brown’s, Kiddie U.S.A. and so many more.  I actually won a light-weight baby carrier at the shower before being handed an overflowing swag bag full of baby goods.  My favorite swag of the day came from this party – a brand new allergy lunchbox from AllerMates!  A lifesaver for a peanut allergy mom and it’s pink and purple so Greenleigh loves it!  

Then it was off to the NamastEppa Sangria Party hosted by Eppa Sangria, Soybu, Whole Foods, and One2OneNetwork.  Sundown Sangria party?  Count me in!I didn’t stay at this party very long – mainly because I misread an email saying that it started – but it was a lot of fun.  It was here that I meet up with friends from BlogHer13 in Chicago – Jessica and Anna – and finally got to hang out with Erica from Mamas Mission, who suffered from one of those not so awesome flight delays.  This was no doubt the biggest party of the night, with great food, delicious drinks, and, of course, there were photo opps.  We even left with a bottle of sangria, a Soybu yoga top, and a photography book, which I’m pretty excited to dive into.

Evelyn, Lara, Erica & Me (Stolen from Evelyn’s Instagram)

After a quick heart attack at the BlogHer registration desk – where the lady checking me in “couldn’t find” me – the final stop of the evening was the Expo Hall opening.This year’s expo hall seemed a bit smaller than last year, but it was obvious from the beginning that the brands that were there really wanted to work with bloggers.  I spun the wheel at the Chuck-E-Cheese’s booth and won a Game Stop Gift Card, met with the BrightStarts team (who I’ve worked with in the past but never actually met), and sampled lots of Baskin Robbins ice cream.  Since it was the conference kick off, there was free champagne, which led to silly pictures.  I insisted on the wings for this picture at the Angel Soft booth.  Who knows why?  Oh, right, champagne.

Now let’s talk swag…I received so much during the first day of BlogHer.  And although I love all the gifts that I received, I just can’t keep them all, so I’m going to pass two of them on to one of you!  For this giveaway, one lucky reader is going to received Preggers Maternity Leggings (Cocoa – size medium) valued at $36.95 and Nordic Naturals Prenatal DHA valued at $28.95 that I received in my gift bag from The Baby Ladies Baby Shower!  That’s a Maternity Prize Pack valued at over $65!  Want to win?  Enter using the rafflecopter form below and it could be yours!

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