We want YOU to go to BlogHer '06!
Just over a year ago while BlogHer '05 was being planned by the amazing trio of Lisa Stone, Jory Des Jardins, and Elisa Camahort, there were three strangers watching the planning and trying to make a decision to go. Each of us in different places in our blogging lives and our personal lives. Then an amazing thing happened. BlogHer announced it would be a conference where the attendees would be able to create their own sessions. Imagine that! The next thing I knew there was a Room of Your Own (ROYO, because that is much more fun to say!) about Mommyblogging. Mommyblogging? Who the hell would go to that? Oh sure, we may talk about our kids, but we are not mommybloggers. Didn't you see that article slamming us in the NYT? Did you not hear that our blogs were referred to as "an online shrine to parental self-absorption"? No thanks.
But the three of us, strangers at the time, thought it would be the perfect time and place to discuss that very issue. And so many more. Jenny, Meghan and I were unsure if anyone would show and if they did, would they be open or hostile about it? We pushed on and took that ROYO (still fun to say). And let me tell you, the people who came made it one of the breakout sessions of BlogHer '05. It was lively and engaging and thought provoking. (In fact, the topic and discussions about mommyblogging was such a hit because of the passion of the people who took part in the session and opened up about how they feel about mommyblogging, this year they are having a session on "Mommyblogging as a radical act" as one of the first sessions on day two! Check out this amazing panel who will be helping lead the discussion on Mommyblogging this year.)
Anyway, the conversations didn't stop after BlogHer. The term mommyblogger continued to be debated. The issue of our children's privacy continued to be debated. In short, the discussion continued. And thus a site was born and now you find yourself here at Mommybloggers where we continue to introduce you to new mommybloggers each week and let the discussion go on.
I shouldn't speak for Jenny and Meghan, but I will. BlogHer '05 had a huge impact on us. It changed us. Not only did it bring us together, it brought this site together and brought many women out of the woodwork as mommybloggers who, although many still shudder at the term, are proud to be mommybloggers. BlogHer made a difference to us.
I cannot imagine what would happen if I had not gone last year. Here is a quote I made shortly after returning from the conference last year:
As I write this, I struggle to find the right words. Words that let them know (and let you know) how much I appreciate them. I sit here with tears streaming down my face as I think of how I arrived a broken and rather shattered woman and left with a soul that had been healed. I needed to be there. I needed to meet every woman I met. They each gave me something I can hold onto forever. I found sisterhood, friendship and warmth in so many of them.
It wasn't just the panel. It wasn't just the sessions. It was the people I met that changed me. Jenny, Meghan and I have all talked about this. We know that there are women out there who read about BlogHer and want to be a part of it. Women who would go if they could, but they just cannot not swing the conference fee. I know there are more than a few women who were only able to go to BlogHer '05 because of the kindness of virtual strangers. People who saw how badly someone wanted to experience this but they just could not do it on their own, so they stepped up and donated to help out. That is part of the spirit of BlogHer. Getting women there who really want to be there.
We know that with the conference becoming a 2-day event and many more activities being added, it could place a blogger in a financial hardship to try to go. Which is why we here at Mommybloggers.com are going to sponsor a blogger to go to BlogHer '06. We are raising money to purchase a full 2-day pass for the conference. (As much as we would love to throw in airfare and hotels, we are new and we are limited and can just swing the conference. Unless of course you people go nuts with your donations and we are overloaded with money.)
If you will notice to the left we have a link to t-shirts we are selling. (That is only one design. We will rotate through them, but if you go to the shop, you can see them all.) All of the proceeds are going to the Mommbloggers Send a Blogger to BlogHer fund. In addition, both Jenny and I have BlogAds on our personal sites. All proceeds from those ads from now until BlogHer will be going to this fund as well. We are passionate about BlogHer and we do not want to see someone who wants to be there be forced to stay at home because they cannot afford the conference.
So, why don't you go on over to our shirt shop and pick yourself one to proudly flaunt. All the while knowing that you are helping another blogger (or maybe even yourself) be a part of the amazing BlogHer '06!