On The Road Disney Social Media Moms

A couple of weeks ago, I was given an amazing opportunity.  I didn’t believe it when I first got the email, I had to close it and walk away. Did I really just get invited? Little ole me?

It was true; I was invited to attend Disney Social Media Moms Celebration “On The Road”, my heart stopped for a second. For me this was an “I made it moment”; I’m legit.

Then all the questions; Who was going? How was I going to get there? Do the trains even run that early? (it started at 7:30 AM). Then I decided I didn’t care, I was going.

At a very early 4AM, I hit the road with fellow blogger Sarah at Sweet Lil' You. We hit ZERO traffic and were actually the first two to arrive at the Doubletree in Manhattan.

We mingled outside in anticipation of the doors opening.

This makes it "real"

We made it!

Once inside, we were served a terrific breakfast (I was expecting a table with bagels and pastries) and everyone had a Mickey shaped rice crispy treat.

Delicious breakfast

I was very happy to see this

One with the show, I could hardly sit still. There were several speakers. Maria Bailey, of BSM Media was the host. She emphasized the importance of women and marketing. Gary Buchanan (Disney's PR and blog guru) told us some exciting happenings in the Disney parks. There was even media training by Michelle Stepney, the dos and don’ts of dealing with the media and "Getting ready for your close up." 

Maria welcoming everyone

Gary telling the exciting things about the "Monstrous Summer"

The speaker that had the most influence on me was Jennifer Labit, the founder of CottonBabies. She started her company out of necessity and on $100. I can relate to her story on several different levels. Her drive and determination truly inspired me. If I could have one percent of her success, I'd be happy.

There was also a panel of momprenuers, Lauren Levy, Susanne Bodofsky and Robin Spritzer, Bonnie Marcus and Sandra Frawley.  I was very interested in hearing how they got their start. I learned quite a bit from them as well.

Inspirational panel of momprenuers

I have had a couple of ideas for a while now and wasn’t sure what to do with them, how to get them off the ground. After hearing the honest advice and stories from these wonderful women, I am now in the process of getting my plan together, making a prototype and producing my product.

I am very grateful to have had this opportunity and who knows, maybe in a few years I’ll be up there.