Blissdom in Pictures and Snippets

Posted on March 1, 2012 by vanderbiltwife

I partied and laughed and roomed and cuddled and ate with my beautiful #sisterchicks. (Although we MADLY missed our Atlanta contingent.)

I cuddled with this adorable guy (idreamofclean‘s 10-week-old) A LOT! As in “Gimme your baby and go have fun!” Isn’t he crazy cute?

I brainstormed. I talked about writing.

I roomed with Mary again, and also with Dawn Camp and QuatroMama.

I got to hear phenomenal speakers: Simple Mom, Michael Hyatt, Jon Acuff, Jeff Goins.

I was looking for a mini-vacation, and got that and more. I feel like my writing had been invigorated, my mind is renewed, I want to be a better parent and wife, and I am going to work on that life plan Michael Hyatt talked about.

Thanks, Blissdom!

Pictures were taken by: Dawn Camp, Domestic Chicky, Giving Up on Perfect, Heather Durdil, and Nancy Doud. Click on the individual pictures for sources.

Stuff Jessie Likes

Posted on February 24, 2012 by vanderbiltwife

It was so awesome to get to hear Jon Acuff speak at Blissdom this morning. He is truly hilarious, and his talk about deep-vee-syndrome had everyone cracked up and Tweeting one-liners.

But the more serious and impassioned part of his talk was about his job-hopping because he thought the next job would be more fulfilling, they would appreciate him, or he would find what he loved. And of course, he knew what he loved – blogging, writing, traveling, being funny.

It’s difficult to throw yourself wholeheartedly into what you love. There’s always something else. Minutiae, family, details, work. Somewhere back there, though, we have a dream. Acuff called it the “but” phenomenon; everyone says, “I’m a ________, but I want to be a __________.”

Which is why it strikes me as so amazing that I can say I am exactly what I want to be. I’ve always wanted to be a writer and a mother. And how crazy blessed am I that those two things are what I do? I certainly don’t have everything figured out, and I always long for more. (Who doesn’t? Our hearts aren’t made for this world.) But on earth, I believe God has gifted me with the talent to write. I just need to figure out how to glorify Him using that talent.

And this blog, writing for magazines, working on a ministry newsletter – those things seem like the right place to start. Through the pain and confusion of the last three years, God has blessed me beyond belief in the area of my writing, opening doors without me trying to shove them open – and then figuring out that the sign said “pull.” Giving our future, our home, our kids to Him has enabled me to lift up my hands and say, “Hey, Lord, just do what You want with me. Cause You’re going to anyway, so it’s way better if I just give in.”

What is your “but”? What is it you really want to do? And what’s stopping you?

Third Time’s a Charm

Posted on February 20, 2012 by vanderbiltwife

There have been five Blissdom conferences, and this will be the third one I’ll be attending. (Four, if you count visiting last year’s with my eensy-weensy baby boy, but I didn’t actually go for more than a few hours!) This year’s 800 attendee hoopla with Rascal Flatts and Joe Jonas is a far cry from Blissom ’09, where I spent most of my time nursing a baby Libbie in the hallway and actually meeting a lot of bloggers who could qualify as famous nowadays.

I’m not really much of a conference girl, honestly. I doubt you’ll ever see me at BlogHer unless someone approaches me desperate to pay my way. I’m more about writing and less about building my blog; I have a freelance career and that is where I make money, not here.

But Blissdom has always been about relationship, and I couldn’t pass up a chance to see Mary, Jill, Tricia, Christine, Jen, Laura, and many others when the conference is a mere two-hour drive for me. I’m mostly considering it a well-earned vacation from mommyhood where I can sleep in a hotel room without being woken up four times a night, take a shower in peace, and feed myself without having to get up to take care of little people every 30 seconds.

I’m not saying I don’t love and appreciate being a stay-at-home mom, but we all need a vacation very once in a while, don’t we? Whatever our job is?

I can’t think of a much better place to relax and learn than the gorgeous Opryland Hotel with 799 of my closest friends.

Here's a picture so you can find me.

If you’re going to Blissdom, I really want to meet you! Please leave me a comment so I can be sure to find you this weekend.

Bliss, Like a Dream

Posted on February 12, 2010 by vanderbiltwife

Disclaimer: Amazon affiliate links included in this post. Although I paid my entire way to Blissdom (including the $58 parking), the conference did have wonderful sponsors and we received a lot of free gifts from them.

Why like a dream? Because I was a walking zombie for much of the weekend. I don’t survive well on very little sleep, but being with my roommates Hillary and Mary there was simply too much to talk about to sleep. (Like when I pounced on Mary’s bed and demanded we talk about Gilmore Girls Season 6 at 1 a.m.)

Me and Mary (Giving Up on Perfect), picture by Christine

My weekend started out in good Jessie fashion: I drove from Chattanooga in the dark and pouring rain; refused to spend money to valet park and thus drug my giant suitcase into the enormous Opryland Hotel; and then could not for the life of me find where anyone else was in the building. (Dear Opryland: Your maps are not good enough.)

I ended up in the Delta area by the riverboat dock with my gargantuan suitcase and near tears. Happily, Mary and Hillary came and found me and took me to our room. I didn’t get to see anyone else that night (Thursday) but it didn’t matter. I was with my Blissdom girls!

If I continue in this minute-by-minute fashion, this post is going to be 100 years long. So let’s just hit some highlights:

1. Meeting Mary for the first time in person. We’ve become great friends through blogging and it was incredible to get to see each other face-to-face and yak our heads off.

2. Getting to hold and snuggle Tessa (Tricia‘s daughter) for long periods of time. I love infant smell. She is adorable and I can’t wait to see pictures of her in all of Libbie’s hand-me-downs!

3. The opening session by Kevin Carroll. He was simply amazing, inspiring, and adorable. Thanks for coming and sharing with a big bunch of gals, Kevin! [You can buy his Red Rubber Ball book here--I'll definitely at least be finding it in the library!]

4. Savvy Blogging on Friday night. I think I’m going to have to do a separate post on Savvy Blogging and its takeaways, but suffice to say I got to sit at a table and talk with Crystal from MoneySavingMom, one of the founders of The Blog Frog, and several other amazing bloggers for an hour or two. I got a veritable wealth of information–and a great stash of swag from Cracker Barrel, Born Free, RedPlum, Savings.com, and lots of other places! Thanks, sponsors! [Here's a picture of me at Savvy Blogging. I look slightly overwhelmed.]

So you know, the Savvy Blogging site and the Twitter hashtag #savvyblogging are still active and wonderful for asking questions about your blogging.

5. Dinner at Baja Burrito Saturday night. On, oh, Tuesday night, my roomies and I decided to throw together an impromptu Saturday night dinner at my very favorite place in Nashville. Although it was a little harried getting there, we had a great group of ladies, excellent food, and I so enjoyed talking to Cailie, Kim and Kris, Ashleigh, and Krista.

6. Eating at Pancake Pantry with Mary, Hillary, and Jo-Lynne. We were supposed to eat with Amanda and her sisterchicks, but someone’s roommates were a little slow getting ready (cough, cough, and I totally wasn’t still asleep at 8).

7. Stories. I love hearing people’s stories. Even though I was so tired of talking to people I thought I might die on Friday night (introvert much?), I loved talking to each and every one of them!

8. All of this:

Amy from The Finer Things in Life and OhAmanda

Me and Kate from Cooking During Stolen Moments

Hillary (The Other Mama) makes me laugh

Me and Laura from Hollywood Housewife, photo by Mary

I am sure I have 8,000 more things to say but … I am tired, I have the BlissSnot from shaking 400 ladies’ hands, and I need to watch The Office. Just keeping it real.

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DISQUS

Posted on February 7, 2010 by vanderbiltwife

As you might be able to see, I’ve decided to go back to regular Blogger comments. The feedback I’ve received is that DISQUS is hard to sign into, although it’s great on the back end for responding to comments.

Unfortunately I think that means I’ve lost all the comments AND the ability to receive comments on my last 4 posts! Oh no! I’m so sorry. I appreciate your comments on the post about my grandmother so much.

What would be REALLY helpful though is going to your Blogger profile and changing it so your e-mail is shown and I can e-mail you back in response to your comments. No one who sees your comment will see your e-mail. Create one just for blog comments, if you want!

All you have to do is go to Blogger.com, click on “edit my profile,” and then check the box for “show my e-mail address.” PLEASE? Cause when you ask me questions I can’t respond to, I feel so awful! But if I don’t have your e-mail address and you don’t come back to look at my response in the comments here, there’s no way for me to find you!

I have lots of great feedback from Blissdom to share with you and I can’t wait to do that this week!

Picture of the lovely Jo-Lynne at Blissdom from Dawn at My Home Sweet Home

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A Letter from Libbie

Posted on February 4, 2010 by vanderbiltwife

Dear Mom,

You didn’t just think I’d let you leave without pulling some tricks out of my onesie sleeve, did you? No way!

Tactic 1: Try to cut four teeth at once. Whine incessantly. Gnaw at everything within sight. Then start running a fever so you feel sorry for being annoyed with me.

Tactic 2: Sleep for 13 1/2 hours and coo happily to get you to come get me. Play contentedly and give you lots of hugs so you will be sure to love me too much to leave.

Tactic 3: Pull out EACH AND EVERY ONE of my toys so you will spend all your time frantically trying to pick them back up before Grandma gets here. I’m positive you will collapse in an exhausted heap on the couch and forget to leave.

Wait, Grandma is coming?? That means I’ll be held all the time, get to eat all the sugar I want, and never have to go to bed! Bye Mom!! Take your time! Have fun with the blogging ladies!

Love,
Libbie

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Blissdom Fashion, Part II

Posted on February 1, 2010 by vanderbiltwife

My number one Blissdom concern? Not being able to find the people I want to meet!

I know, it seems silly. I am there to learn and yada yada. We all know that really, it’s a great chance to meet all those people I read every day!

I still can’t believe how many people I didn’t get to meet last year. I was in such a fog of fever and breastfeeding and newness that I simply didn’t connect like I should have. I did get to meet a lot of wonderful women, but knowing now that Jen and Sarah and Mary were all there and I didn’t even say hi to them just eats me up inside!

So, here you go:

This is what I’ll be wearing on Friday and to Savvy Blogging. Surely you won’t be able to miss me if you want to meet me! (Only I might actually do my hair and wear make-up. Maybe.)

I’ll be wearing this sweater and jeans on Saturday:

(They’re not dirty…just my camera flash. Argh.)

And this on Sunday to Amanda’s Pancake Pantry meet-up and to drive home:

P.S. If you are planning on coming to the Pantry–it is ALWAYS absolutely freezing cold. Wear something warm. And the coffee is not very good, so hit up Fido or Provence nearby if you want a good cup.

I’m not faking it here–I am no fashion diva. I’m totally a jeans girl. And yes, this is my same beloved $5 red cardigan. And my bleach-stained jeans.

So will I be able to find you if I want to meet you?

Maybe I should just wear this hat from my Twitter picture and gravatar. Jen from Beauty and Bedlam was worried she wouldn’t be able to find people if they didn’t look like their Twitter pics!

Um, yeah. Think not. I look like a bank robber.

Linked up to Mom’s Travel Tales Blissdom Wardrobe Linky
For Part I of Blissdom Fashion, Go Here.
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The Requisite Blissdom Fashion Post

Posted on January 24, 2010 by vanderbiltwife

On my last post Leisa commented that she wished everyone were not so concerned with what they’re wearing to Blissdom–or other conferences/events.

I guess it’s something I continually struggle with. I want not to care what I wear, because after all, what does it really matter? But then I also don’t want to feel like a fat slob. I want to take care of myself for my husband and for my own self-confidence. I want to look put-together so my husband is proud that I am his wife.

So then I want nice clothes. I want to be on What Not to Wear so I can have Clinton and Stacy dress me from expensive boutiques and have garments that won’t fall apart after I wear them three times.

And then I feel guilty for wanting. And I think how it shouldn’t matter.

When I wonder about these things, I try to go back to the Bible. Miss Proverbs 31, an excellent model for women, clothed her household “in scarlet” and herself “in fine linen and purple.” I would take that to mean they were dressed well. It is obvious, however, than her clothing was not her main concern: she worked hard making linen, selling it, planting a vineyard, making food for her family, and taking care of the poor and needy.

Last year I was slightly obsessive about what to wear to this conference. You know what happened? Once I was there, I really didn’t care what I–or anyone else–was wearing. I bought a dress to wear to the cocktail party and was so feverish and tired of lugging around Libbie that I didn’t go and thus didn’t wear it (don’t worry, I’ve gotten good use out of it since then!).

I think we notice the “oh my goodness what will I wear” about these conferences so much because of the 500 women attending who are all on Twitter asking about it. I would say they’re probably no more worried about what to wear to this than they are about what to wear to any occasion where they will meet new people and want to feel confident. And with social media it’s super easy to reach out to other women who are worrying about the same issue and collaborate.

All of that to say, I did buy a few new items. Because I needed them anyway and I want to feel comfortable and confident. I am SUCH an internal person and big crowds of people I don’t know scare me half to death. I need every ounce of confidence I can muster! And yes, I do think looking nice helps that.

So while I don’t think we should be stressing out any more than normal about our attire, I do understand where it’s coming from. Jo-Lynne has some great, practical advice on conference fashion if you’re looking for those specifics.

While we’re talking Blissdom, can I tell you HOW excited I am to meet these amazing bloggers for the first time? If you’re looking for a good read, check them out!

Jen from Balancing Beauty and Bedlam
Mary from Giving Up on Perfect
Laura from Hollywood Housewife
Sarah from Real Life
Jill from The Diaper Diaries
Amy from The Finer Things in Life
Crystal from Money Saving Mom
Liz from Hoosier Homemade
Kristina from Tennessee Locavore
Kate from A Simple Walk / Cooking During Stolen Moments
Mandi at It’s Come to This

If you’re going and I haven’t met you yet, leave me a comment and let me know!

(Added to Your Life, Your Blog for 1/24)

Have a Blissdom post you’ve writen? Link it up to this Blog Hop!

Goals for 2010

Posted on January 4, 2010 by vanderbiltwife

I’m going to this wild little thing called Savvy Blogging in a few weeks during the Blissdom Conference.

They are hosting a link-up Monday for posts about blogging goals for 2010, since the meet-up is supposed to be a roundtable discussion about blogging as a business.

Here’s what they wrote about it:

For many of us, blogging started as a hobby and over time turned into a part-time or even full time business. The problem is that many of us still blog as if it were a hobby. Everyone knows that Apple or Google would not be the successful companies they are today without setting goals each year.

I had something written here that was fairly negative and I decided to remove it. I don’t want to scoff at my potential as a blogger. I certainly never though I would have many readers, that I would make one dime, or that I would have the wonderful friendships that have been made as a result of blogging.

Colossians 3:23 says, “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men” (NIV). I fully believe this blog is part of “whatever”! It is something I work at, after all. And so my main goal will always be that it is pleasing to Him. For me, that means I live life for Him and serve my family. If I can blog about it and perhaps help contribute to my family, like the Proverbs 31 woman, that is awesome.

Some other, more concrete goals I have?

Create a mission statement for Vanderbilt Wife and keep my posts within that thesis.

I would love to switch to WordPress sometime this year. Mostly I dislike the Blogger commenting system, and I am not a fan of their new interface. I’ve been hesitant to do this because of time, cost, and a learning curve, but I think I am at the point where it could happen sooner rather than later.

Interact more with my readers and comment more on their blogs. That kind of has to do with the above and is the reason I dislike Blogger commenting. E-mail is not required so there are many, MANY times I’ve composed an e-mail back to someone who commented to find that I don’t have an e-mail address for them. I LOVE the commenting system that Amy has, where she can respond to the comment on the blog and it automatically sends the commenter an e-mail as well.

Not make the blog my life. I am starting out this year with a big transition to being a work-at-home/stay-at-home mom, and I need to be there for my daughter first and foremost. That is so much more important to me than being a household name or making money.

Spend time actually reading sites like Problogger and Copyblogger so I can learn some good stuff.

Edit and reread my posts more thoroughly before I hit “publish.”

Index my recipes.

Be willing to change if need be.

Honestly, I want this site to fulfill my goal of writing better as well as be helpful and fun for my readers. What can I do to make it better? You probably know better than I do!

Blissdom Babies

Posted on March 26, 2009 by vanderbiltwife

I love this picture from Blissdom taken by Secret Agent Mama (and used with her permission). It’s me, Jordana, and Amanda and our little ones. I feel like I spent half of Blissdom sitting on this couch.

I want to thank y’all who have come to visit my little Internet space here since Blissdom! I love to write and it makes me feel blessed that people are interested in reading my musings here. Know I try to visit everyone’s blog who comments on mine! And I appreciate your comment so, so much.

I have an auto-post set for tomorrow, but other than that I’m not sure if I’ll post until Tuesday. I am leaving today to go visit my family with Libbie. Have a wonderful weekend! Don’t forget to enter the contest! Get one entry by commenting on my post and another entry by commenting on Deborah’s!