This weekend, Willa and I went to Blissdom ‘09, a blogging conference. Try not to think about that too hard, okay?
She and I took in the people, the schwag, the special screening of the next Disney extravaganza (I don’t want to talk about it), and all the information spewed forth by dozens of people much more internet savvy than me. We stole snatches of conversation with bloggers who I “knew” but had never met. And we got lots of good cuddling in since I pretty much held her non-stop for two days.
I’ve been trying to process all that I heard and saw into something coherent, and the best I can do is a list of random thoughts.
1. I learned some about social media marketing and affiliate ads. I learned just enough to know that I am not interested in pursuing those things. Making money off my blog would be nice, but I don’t think I’m willing to invest any time or energy into it. It’s not why I blog.
2. I learned that when I don’t have my Handsome Sidekick next to me, I revert back to the shy girl I was in high school. Seriously.
3. I learned that I know more about blogging and social media than others. There’s more I’d like to learn. But not much more.
4. I learned that Apple should have sponsored this event. Over half the computers were Macs and I wasn’t the only one in the room sporting a sassy iPhone. We may be mommies, but we know and love our technology. Seeing all those geeky women and their tricked out laptops in one place really was a thrill. Snagging nifty schwag wasn’t nearly as important as snagging the closest power strip.
5. I learned from Stephanie at Adventures in Babywearing how to get Willa into her sling properly. Meeting her and getting my question answered was pretty much one of the top five reasons I went. Mission accomplished.
6. I learned that Annie is a rock star with babies and she’s even more fun in person than on her blog. But mostly, she’s REAL. I pretty much stayed in her back pocket for the weekend, and I’m okay with that.
7. I learned that static on a radio station is the perfect white noise to help a baby sleep, but it will drive a person crazy if the country radio station suddenly picks up at 3 AM.
8. I learned I need to watermark my pictures. Which means I’m going to have to learn Flickr. And I was holding out on that one.
9. I learned that rolling baby cribs work in a pinch when you need to haul stuff. And that it takes a lot of stuff for Willa and me to survive.
Don’t judge me.
10. I learned that for proper Search Engine Optimization I shouldn’t use clever titles for posts but should use accurate keywords instead. You can judge for yourself how much I took that to heart.
11. Biggest Lesson Learned: Seeing all the different types of bloggers out there helped me figure out just what kind of blogger I am. I write because I like it. Because I want to remember. I write about relationships with the people I love. And I love developing relationships with those of you who are kind enough to care.
So, thanks for caring. Thanks for relating. And thanks for reading.
2.8.2009
Thank you for coming and being part of the love.
What did I take away from it all? Love!
And Annie, yes, she rawks!
See ya next year?
{fingers crossed}
Love, Alli
2.8.2009
It is SO GOOD to read this! Through Twitter, I’ve been keeping up and kinda thinking, “I guess I’m a great big nobody because I’m not working as hard as everyone else to make my blog The Best.” I whined to my husband about it and he reminded me why I blog in the first place. To keep him occupied at work on slow days. Plus, that stuff you mentioned.
2.8.2009
I saw you & Willa across the room, but my fussy John kept me from meeting everyone I wanted to!
And as to those post titles, on my personal blog I don’t practice what I preach all the time, either. (but I do know that the articles keyworded in titles do so much better in the search rankings than those I didn’t.)
so much to absorb, so much more to put into practice–I left feeling inspired but also a little overwhelmed!
2.8.2009
I think it would’ve been SO COOL if we HAD worn Leia hairbuns.
But regardless, I’m really glad I got to meet you and Willa. And I relate to being separated from my handsome sidekick. All sorts of shy high school memories came flooding back for me too.
2.8.2009
I’m pretty sure I just tagged along with you the whole time. Actually, maybe we both just followed Willa around?
Seriously. I LOVED you being here. I miss y’all mucho.
Much love.
2.8.2009
Ah, the blogger conference. As tempting as it may seem, I hate conferences. Glad you enjoyed most of yours.
Why do you need to watermark your photos? I need to do this too, don’t I. Uh oh….
2.9.2009
Girl, you know I’m a reader for however long you blog.
I’m impressed that you met Annie! She’s one of my favorites!
Love your blog. Love the way you write. Hope you’ll keep doing it.
2.9.2009
I am so glad that you blog. I love the way you write and I love the things you write about.
So, what kind of schwag did you get?
2.9.2009
I appreciate and relate to #11–that you write because you like it….and because you want to remember.
Oh, and I’m with you on #9 too. We moved 8 states away when my daughter was 4 months. I commandeered the rolling crib at our temporary hotel to get the craziest mix of essentials to and fro. One morning I used it to wheel my laundry downstairs, and someone stopped me to ask for some fresh towels.
2.9.2009
Great to meet you and your little cutie on our way to dinner.
Definitely worth a redo next year!
2.9.2009
Thanks so much for coming! It was so wonderful seeing everyone connect and share over the weekend. I can’t wait to do it next year and hope you’ll come back. Thanks again!
2.9.2009
Great to meet you. I learned something from your list… what’s watermarking pictures and how do you do it. When you find out share!
2.9.2009
I was so glad to help you out AND totally agree withyou on the titles. I’m blogging for my readers and myself and I like the fun titles!!!!
Steph
2.9.2009
Hey! So this is who you are
I think the times I was around you, my brain was completely fried. I love what you shared about why you blog — and I think that’s one of the things I pulled from the weekend too. My blog is for my family and friends — not for making money.
Look forward to following your writing more
It was nice to meet you!
2.9.2009
What’s wrong with Nanoo Nanoo? I liked Mork. He had a baby. Dude’s that are Mom’s, well, there is just some kind of specialness there.
Glad you had fun, and fully expect you to remember to make me go next year. Cause you know I will forget everything between now and then.
2.9.2009
Awesome post! It was delightful meeting you!!
2.9.2009
I loved meeting you!
2.9.2009
you’ll have to do a 101 about the watermarking!
Glad you had a blast! Maybe I should consider it more next year
2.9.2009
I’m so glad you wrote this–you articulated why a LOT of women blog, and good for you knowing it and staying true to what you love. I really enjoyed meeting you this weekend and only wish we could’ve hung out longer!
2.9.2009
Girl, your post, title and photo are making me laugh!
It was so good for me as well to meet people with different blogging goals! I actually don’t really like to write {shhh!} but I LOVE what I write about!
2.9.2009
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2.10.2009
Cute blog! Loving scrolling through all these polkadots :). And, thanks for the summary! So fun to read different people’s recaps!
2.10.2009
So glad you had a good time at the bloggy convention and that it reinforced a lot of the reasons why you blog. It’s good to know that although you already know a good deal about this medium - you still managed to learn a few new things.
Keep up the good work oh writer of the witty blog.
2.11.2009
I really love you, and you’re freaking hilarious to me. Oh, this title gets me.
2.28.2009
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4.30.2009
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