Disney Social Media Moms Celebration :-) #DisneySMMoms #DisneyOnTheRoad

 Welcome to Washington D.C.!!

     OH. MY GOSH. I cannot believe that I just attended the Disney Social Media Moms "On the Road" event!! I think I'm still in a little bit of disbelief!! As soon as I received the invitation, I knew I really really wanted to attend this event but WOW, we could choose from four different cities and Washington DC was the closest to me. Oh my!!!
     Oh well, off to Washington I go. The ultimate roadtrip! The only "problem" in my adventure was my little 10 year old was just about to get started with All-Stars during the same week so I knew that this would be a super quick trip for me.
     I left Thursday evening, drove for 11+ hours, got to my room in Maryland, slept for about an hour and made it to the conference by 7:30 am the next morning. Woah. Talk about crazy. The conference lasted until 1:00 so I grabbed a quick bite to eat and hit the road, making it home around 3:30 am!!! It took me longer to get home than it did to get there. I had to make a few more coffee stops on the way back. Fyi...not enough Starbucks between DC and Alabama. Ok. Now I'm a little bit tired....
     However, I made it to the All-Star game bright and early Saturday morning...totally worth it. :))

 Come on Everybody!! Best Road Trip Ever!

Back to the conference...

The Itinerary:
Breakfast
Hostess: 
-Maria Bailey, Host of Mom Talk Radio
Keynote Speaker:
-Jennifer Labit, founder of Cotton Babies & creator of bumGenius, Flip, and Econobum
Mompreneur Panelists: 
-Christina Daves, founder and creator of CastMedic Designs and MediFashions
-Anastasia Dellaccio, co-owner of Dolci Gelati
-Frederique Campagne Irwinis, founder and CEO of Her Corner
-Amy Creel, founder of Smart Mom Jewelry

     I really wasn't sure what to expect from this particular conference knowing that it was a "Disney" conference but most of the content was going to be non-Disney related. If you know anything about me at all, you must know that I'm a complete Disney addict. I admit that openly! Ha! I could talk "Disney" all day...and sometimes do. :) And anyways, who can resist Mickey Rice Krispy Bars and Monsters from MU???

 The table is set for a fabulous conference!!

     We were given some insight as to what is happening at Disney Parks this summer and I gotta say, I'm REALLY excited to be going back in October for the runDisney Tower10Miler Race and being able to experience some of these new happenings!! Be sure to follow along at Disney Parks Blog and #DisneySMMoms on Twitter!

Disneyland:
Mickey and the Magical Map
Fantasy Faire
Cars Land and Buena Vista Street
Limited Time Magic

Walt Disney World:
New Fantasyland
Test Track Presented by Chevrolet
Splitsville Luxury Lanes
Limited Time Magic
Star Wars Weekend
Disney Dining

Disney Cruise Line:
Re-imagineering transformation of the Disney Magic

 It's a #MonstrousSummer!

    I quickly realized that even though every bit of information was not necessarily "Disney", I would be able to apply lots of these lessons to my real life. I can still hear so much of the advice that was given that day in my head as I face daily decisions.

    There were SO many inspirational stories, ideas, motivations. The one sentence that stood out to me the most was..."What is it that YOU want?"

     I have thought so long and hard about this question and I don't really know why this question is the one that has me the most perplexed. It should seem so easy. It should be so easy to answer but it's not. It's very hard. I know I want what every Mom wants...healthy children, healthy marriage, healthy spiritual life. I get that. Beyond that....work, dreams, goals. Now I think I'm getting close to my answer.

     One of the answers that just keeps coming to me over and over and over is another great piece of advice from the conference, "Stick with what you know". This hit me like a ton of Disney bricks!! I got it now. I GET IT!!!!

     Okay. Enough of the sappy motivational time, time to bring out my silly side!! I could not have been placed at a better table than I was...I met four other great girls. Four very different girls with four very different backgrounds but we meshed soooooo great together!! I would LOVE to be able to meet up with them again. We'll have to work on that!

 Love these girls!

Please show these girls some blog love if you can...they are fabulous!
Dee
Tania
Claudia
Theresa

     One of the definite highlights of the conference for me was getting to meet some of Disney's Social Media Team. They were so welcoming and so much fun to chat with!! I did get a picture of myself and Maria Bailey but somehow lost it on my phone...bummer!

 Loved meeting Gary!

 Chatted with Leanne for a few minutes! Super Sweet!

 Not too many people "get" my wacky sense of humor...I may have found a fella who does. ;)

     Even though it was a whirlwind of a day or two (really can't remember because I'm just that delirious now), I had the time of my life! I learned so much, met some really great friends and got a quick unexpected dose of Disney on a day when I wasn't at the parks or running a race! I loved every minute and was grateful for the opportunity!!! I hope to see the Disney Social Media Crew on the Road again some day.  Until then, I'm headed home with my Mickey Rice Krispy...Best Road Trip Ever!!

 On The Road...Disney Style!

@BamagirlRUNS has hit the road! :-)