What I Learned At BlogHer

I learned some valuable things this year at BlogHer 2009 -

1. I NEED a cell phone. It's true, I don't own a cell phone. I haven't owned one for over 4 years. Apparently that is a very rare thing these days. The car service people I talked to using the payphone at the airport, were in shock....so were the lovely reps at the T-Mobile booth, when I spun the prize wheel, hoping and praying to win a phone. I didn't win one by the way. But I did receive a container of mints...in the shape of a cell phone.

1.5 If I had had a cell phone, I would not have found it necessary to walk for miles and miles around the Sheraton, in horrible shoes, trying to locate Janice and Susan. And just so you know, those ladies can be HARD to find!

2. My favorite booth at the expo was the Hanes booth because it had cupcakes..tons and tons of little, delightful cupcakes. They were a smart bunch, those Hanes folks...and attracted many.....or maybe just many visits from me.


3. The only swag you need to bring home for your kids is Mr. Potato Head. All of the other stuff will hardly get a second glance.

4. Speaking of Mr. Potato Head, his wife, Mrs. Potato Head, is an extraordinary dancer and loves to jam out to Baby Got Back.



5. PR people are the beautiful people, seriously. They are also super friendly and easy to talk to.

6. Some of the sessions at BlogHer are for people who are quite a bit more liberal than I am. I was a bit uncomfortable in the few that I did attend....to be honest.

7. When you are sorting through pounds and pounds of swag with your roommates and cameraman at 3:00 A.M. and are so tired that all of you are acting drunk (very loud, hyper, funny) the knock on your door won't be a hotel employee or security. It will instead be a group of drunk folks hoping that they found a happening party.

*side note: we gave tons and tons of the swag away to charity and were so happy to have the opportunity to do that.*

8. The conference and parties are almost more exhausting than caring for 3 kiddos.I still haven't caught up on sleep.

9. It's fun getting to the parties a tad earlier than everyone else...due to setting up for interviews. There was something relaxing about getting to chill in the party area...before all of the screaming, blasting music and hundreds of people.

10. I do get teary-eyed listening to a former American Idol contestant perform...because deep down I want so much to be making albums and putting on shows. But then the tears stop as I reflect on what I do have in my life....my gorgeous, amazing children and wonderful husband. Mine is a far more blessed life. :)



11. When you have been away from your kids for a number of days, when you finally get to see them again...they look tons bigger. I swear my kids grew like crazy while I was away.

12. Janice and Susan rock! They are incredible, seriously. When those two are at a conference, they work so hard. They've got the X factor in the social media world. I am so blessed to work with them.

13. Rachel at Grasping For Objectivity, has got to be one of the sweetest people I have ever met....and has convinced me that I need to visit Alabama.


14. Gwen Bell is such an amazing, incredible person. We have a fabulous interview with her....that you must watch as soon as it's live.
Photo from Flickr (http://www.flickr.com/photos/eyeficard/3755804825/)

15. I am already looking forward to BlogHer 2010 in NEW YORK CITY!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Walk Like An Egyptian

He's walking, so I HAD to make a little video!

Just promise me that you will ignore my messy house. It's easy to do, if you just focus on his cute little legs, instead of all of the toys strewn about. Deal????

Make photo slide shows at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Getting To Know Me, Before BlogHer

Yep, I stole this idea from the BlogHer site, a couple other ladies did it, so in case you'd like to know a bit more about me, before bumping into me at BlogHer, here goes:

* Hi, Howdy, I'm Erica. Mommy of three little ones. I'm very sweet, sometimes pretty shy, and I can be loads of fun. I look MUCH younger than I really am, just so you know...in fact I am turning 30 this year. CRAZY!

* I work for 5 Minutes for Mom.

* In fact, I will probably spend most of my time at the side of Janice and Susan at their beck and call...I am their trusty assistant. :) We like to pretend I'm their little sister...once you see the three of us together, you'll understand.

* The girls will be doing tons of video interviews, so be sure to look for us if you'd like us to interview you and feature you on 5 Minutes for Mom.

* You will also find me singing my heart out during the karaoke party. At least that is the plan. :)

* I have a tendency to be pretty quiet around people I don't know, especially in large groups. But once I feel comfortable, you won't be able to get me to shut up.

* I love to people watch too, so sometimes I am off in my own world, just observing and taking it all in. Just hit me upside the head if you want to talk to me and I seem to be out of it. :)

* I will break out of my shell at the parties, I will...music and fun...I can't wait.

* At BowlHer, I will try to get pretty close to where Brooke White is performing, because I LOVE her, and I will try to convince Janice and Susan to interview her, so I can have a chance to let her know that I love her and that I loved the butterfly dress she wore on idol.

* I am horrible with names, so horrible...I'm sorry. :(

* I still have no idea what all I am going to wear....I have like no clothes, seriously...just tees and jeans with holes in the knees. I work from home and sometimes I stay in my pjs all day.

* I can't wait to meet all of you...and to put faces to all the lovely blogging ladies who I have gotten to know online.

* Oh, Oh.... I will be the one with the power strip. Yep, I plan on having mine with me at all times. So, if you have a low battery, look for me in the sessions, okay? I will happily let you plug in.

* I get to use my brand new Toshiba laptop at BlogHer! Oh, and while YOU are there, be sure to look around for three lovely ladies who will be wearing Toshiba buttons and carrying around Toshiba laptops and/or minis, because if you find one of them, you could LEAVE BlogHer with a new Toshiba laptop. SERIOUSLY!

* More about the Toshiba BlogHer hunt here.

* Oh, and again...I AM SOOOOOOOO EXCITED FOR BLOGHER!!!!

On my way to where the air is sweet......

As a young child, I loved Sesame Street!! It was definitely one of my FAVORITE shows. I had Sesame Street decor in my room and I even owned two Sesame Street albums - one was in Spanish. Like I said, I LOVED Sesame Street.

As a mom, it delights me when my children enjoy things that I also enjoyed growing up. Sadly, not one of my three kids has the same excitement as I did for Sesame Street.

They don't ever ask to watch it, and if I do put it on, they usually just ignore it.

I'm not quite sure why it saddens me so much that my kiddos aren't dancing around and singing along to the ever popular Sesame Street theme song or counting along with some of my favorite childhood puppets. Oh well.

What about you? Is there something that you remember loving so much as a child that you just can't seem to get your little one enthused about?

Magic Toilet Seat In Chicago

So last week, I promised you a video of the magical toilet seats in the Chicago airport. My video didn't come out well, but a quick search on youtube, and there were TONS to choose from. I am glad to know that I am not the only person to videotape a toilet seat.

Here is a link to someone else's video of the toilet seat magic - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6cU_CRF0GpI

Want Inspiration?

I was completely blown away by the Kmart Designers that I met at the Sears Home Design Summit. What a group of truly creative and passionate individuals.

Here is a little glimpse into their trend trips, where they gather different inspiration from different parts of the world. In this video, they are in Paris working on their spring 2010 Home Product line. I got a sneak peek at this line, and let me tell you, it's STUNNING!

Fun In The Windy City

Well, I am in Chicago for The Sears Design Summit. Tonight we had a cocktail reception (a kind of meet and greet, if you will). It was a blast. I finally got to meet some GREAT mommy bloggers. It is always so nice when you can put a face to the name. I also got to sit next to and even play with little Ivy. I was thrilled to finally get to meet Ivy! She is such a doll....so very entertaining.

My friend, Andrea, who ordered me to go and do something after the cocktail reception as opposed to just sitting in my hotel room by myself, will be proud to know that I caught a showing of The Proposal, with Gabrielle, Christine and Lori. The movie was GREAT! If you've been thinking about seeing it, GO and SEE IT! There were some incredibly funny scenes. The whole movie is just lighthearted and fun. I really enjoyed it.

Tomorrow is jam packed and should be a lot of fun. I can't wait to share with you some fun things going on in the Sears/Kmart world...so, stay tuned.

Also, have any of you been to the O'Hare airport recently? What is up with the toilets and their rotating seat protectors? If you have no idea what I am talking about, stay tuned...because I will be capturing it all on video before boarding my plane for home.

Our 4th of July Barbecue

How quickly holiday weekends come and go. Did you all have a wonderful 4th? I hope that you get a chance to take part in the Hebrew National July 4th Virtual Backyard Barbecue over at 5 Minutes for Mom.

We had such fun during our 4th of July barbecue. The sun was shining, the kids were smiling and the food was divine!

Here's a fun little slideshow from my 4th of July barbecue sponsored by Hebrew National. ENJOY!