Blogging Conference RSVP

For today’s Talk To Me Tuesday, we’re doing something a little different and  I hope you’ll think is uber fun.  Mama Kat and I are interviewing each other and talking about Blogging Conferences.

Mama Kat, Cynthia to me {{inside joke}}, and I finally got to meet in real life (IRL) at SITScation.  It was my first blogging conference and I had the opportunity to speak.  The conference was amazing!  I was completely taken by surprise how much I connected with these women and how that experience changed my outlook on blogging.

At the end of my interview with Mama’s Losin’ It, you’ll be able to leave a link to your blog (or facebook page) and what conferences you’ll be attending this year. Why?  Because I’m so excited to meet you! I want to make sure that I recognize your face (or at least blog header) as I hug you when we finally get to meet in real life. {{yep – I’m a hugger}}

Q. Would you introduce yourself to fellow Tip Junkie’s?

I’m Kathy, mother of three, home daycare owner, and aside from the lack of cooking she does, a pretty happy wife….I go by Mama Kat in blog world.

Q. What is the one thing you want everyone to know about your blog?

I’m a giant dork. I make fun of myself. I tease family and friends. I can make a joke out of anything, but my life has not been all roses and I will bust out a post that will have you in tears. I can promise you that.

Q.What do you think is the most rewarding qualities of blogging are?

There are three.

1. Making friends. People who have been more supportive and helpful than anything I could have imagined. They don’t even KNOW me!
2. Documenting history. My kids have a journal of their lives and my time with them that will be priceless when they are older.
3. Giving me purpose. This has been an amazing hobby for me. I have something that is mine that I can think about and work on and that motivates me to become a better writer. I honestly think having this piece of the world to myself makes me a better mom.

Q.What are your 3 favorite posts?

I have lots of favorites…but these are the three that stick out today:

Step. Drag. A post about a confusing moment in my childhood where I first realized my Dad was going to die.

Dear Ellen Letter #8 This is one of many letters I’ve written to Ellen Degeneres in an attempt to talk her into letting me on her show. Ahem. She’s not listening….but I’ll keep writing them. 🙂

GI Joes And Bugs In Jars is a poem I wrote after my little guy was born. We didn’t find out what we were having with him and I REALLY wanted a third girl…boys scared me. I thought they were crazy…and they are…but this poem shows how much he taught me.

Q. Who is your current blog crush? Be honest, I know you have one. {{wink}}

I define a blog crush as someone who I think I could personally be friends with. No matter what they write I love them SO much! Somehow these people manage to reach beyond the computer screen and I find myself checking in on their blog just to see how they’re doing….and really there are just too many to list. And yes…this is me dodging that loaded question. Nice try.

Q. Have you ever experienced Blenvy (blog envy)?  How did you deal with it?

There will always be a prettier blog with better traffic…to them I say awesome! I don’t NOT like someone because they’ve managed to be successful with their blog. They’re usually bigger and better for a good reason. It’s probably natural to be blenvious sometimes, but I don’t think any kind of envy is healthy and I try to focus my energy on the great things I have going on than spend my time wishing for more.

Q. I’ve noticed that you also video blog (vlog).  What equipment and software do you use?  what is your favorite vlog?

I use a Flip camera and/or the video camera mode on my point and shoot. I know I know…super fancy. The Flip is awesome though. I highly recommend. The vlog I did that got the most attention was kind of a spoof on women who were up in arms over a commercial that Motrin had released. The commercial suggested that wearing babies in slings the way we do these days, might cause some back pain and headaches and that Motrin could help. Sling wearing women everywhere came out of the wood works to defend their choice to wear their babies. My vlog shows me wearing my three year old and ranting to Motrin about how I feel about the suggestion that it might be uncomfortable to tote her around all day. The best part is a few people have viewed it on YouTube and have left the most ridiculous comments about how I need to be reported to CPS for not allowing my child to walk! Hahahaha. I love it.

Q. You have 3 kiddos and have an in-home day care.  How many kiddos do you tend and how do you juggle all the responsibilities?

My oldest started Kindergarten this year so I am home with the younger two and I have an assistant who helps me with the daycare. At the busiest part of the day (mornings before school) we have up to 12 kids. I love my job, but I have no idea how I’ve managed to survive the last six years. Sometimes the cleaning of the upstairs portion of our house gets neglected. And by “sometimes” I mean “always”. But the kids are fed and happy and my blog is updated regularly so at least the important things are taken care of.

Q. Right now there is a lot of buzz about blogging conferences.  Which ones have you attended and are you attending any this year?

Unfortunately I can’t go to every blog conference that comes up. I wish I could. It’s a great way to connect with people we meet online and to introduce others to you and your blog. For now I’m exclusively a SITS girl through and through. The Secret Is In The Sauce is a site that fosters friendship among bloggers by featuring daily blogs and encouraging participants to get to know each other.

Through blogging I have developed a friendship with Heather and Tiffany, the women who run SITS, and I can tell you they are the real deal.  They put together SITScation last October and it was fantastic. I loved the smaller group size and that the conference was a combination of SITStas sharing knowledge and SITStas just having a lot of girly fun together. I learned a lot AND made friends. It’s win win.

I will be flying to Baltimore to help facilitate the Bloggy Boot Camp that they are having oon March 6th and I can’t WAIT!

You can check out my interview answers to Mama Kat’s questions over on her blog or on my quick YouTube video.

Blissdom – Nashville, TN
Mom 2.0 Summit – Houston, TX
Bloggy Boot Camp – Baltimore, MD  {{limited space!  Get your tickets now}}
Bloggy Boot Camp – Phoenix, AZ
Bloggy Boot Camp – San Fransisco, CA
Evo – Park City, UT

For a more complete list of blogging conferences check out Mom It Forwards blog.

Link your blog or Facebook link to this post using Mister Linky below.  Please state your name and then blog conference (you are attending) in the following format.  This way we can easily add you to our “must meet list”.

Format Example:  Laurie – BloggyBootcamp Phoenix