This past weekend at Blissdom I fell in love.

{Blissdom is an annual conference for women in social media, and since mom bloggers make up the biggest portion of attendees it’s often called a mom bloggers conference}

I attend a lot of these types of functions and had pretty minimal expectations; after all, I’d been last year and didn’t experience any magical moments.

My plan was pretty low-key. Speak at my workshop about video blogging, meet up with a few friends, and support the Saturday morning walk being sponsored by Weight Watchers. I figured if I connected with a few new folks that’d just be a bonus.

Boy was I mistaken.

Lightning struck and I completely fell head-over-heels in love again.

With blogging. With storytelling. With video. And most of all, with these amazing women.

My experience at BlogHer ’09 had jaded me – I had become guarded and it was killing my desire to be part of the community. In a lot of circles it seems that distrust, competition and cynicism have crept in and replaced the spirit of openness that once dominated the space. I don’t want it to be that way, and neither do the others in this Blissdom tribe.

And then it happened – sitting amongst women I admired at 2am – the spark was set ablaze again.

The love was palpable.

Just thinking about it gives me goosebumps because it was that real.

The whole room seemed to pulse with positive energy. So I snatched some of it up and decided to take it home.

I heard the wise Liz Strauss say that companies and conferences are reflections of the people who run them. And while I don’t know Alli or Barbara well, I want to, because they created an atmosphere that enabled authentic interaction at the heart-to-heart level. Sure, there was swag and there were sessions… but it wasn’t about either of those things, which was a refreshing change.

It was about building relationships. And that’s just what we did.

Women from the Blissdom Conference

My friends (new + old) are brag-worthy, so here goes:

Alicia @todaysmom: We shared one of my most memorable conversations of the trip – somehow I ended up baring my soul about the adoption process to this smart + sassy lady, and felt so much love in return. She’s a big time New Yorker with the hot designer shoes to prove it, and I consider myself lucky to have bonded with her. By the way, check out her book Today’s Moms (yes, she’s an author on top of being a producer for the Today Show!).

Ally @AllyBSpeakin: Ally & I met at Blissdom ’09 where we were two of the only non-moms in the crowd (although as she pointed out, I was pregnant so I had a bit more street cred). She’s been heading up social efforts at Zwaggle but is also getting ready to launch a co-writing project with her mom.

Casey @mooshinindy: We laughed together over shared BlogHer horror stories. I’m pretty sure I won. She always had a camera in her hands and her photographs are some of the best from the whole shindig. Added bonus: lot’s of snarkiness.

Cecily @cecilyk: This amazing woman also has some crazy life stories to share… the fact that she’s a great writer makes it possible for the rest to sense + feel the world through her lens. I also think it’s great that she cleverly managed to give her client @EdenFantasys a presence at the event by giving away facials… one of which I won! It’s obvious to anyone who knows her that she is the real deal in every way – and I’m honored that I can call her my friend.

Christine @bostonmamas: She’s one smart cookie and getting to chat her up after reading her blog for so long felt incredibly natural. I could’ve spent hours more, and luckily I might just get the chance since we’ll both be at the Mom 2.0 Summit in a couple of weeks. Oh & she’s soon going to be changing the world with minimalist parenting tips any day now.

Dina @babycentermom: One of my new BFFs. She’s hilarious and smart. And dances her booty off when necessary. Oh, and she can sing all the words to “Ice Ice Baby” which always equals a great time. She works almost non-stop pounding out blogs and PR for the uber-popular parenting site BabyCenter as well as side projects like MightyNest.

Lizzie @LizzieBtv and Meredith @Hoo_Dee_Hoo: An impromptu video blogging session broke out in the hallway with these two ladies which was incredibly fun.

Jennifer @mombloggersclub: Sitting on the steps eating breakfast we talked about how to support each others projects. I got to know her last year through the work I did for Kmart, and I love just how easy it is to connect with her. She’s the savvy founder of the popular MomBloggersClub.

Rachel @sthrnfairytale: She’s got great energy and is so fabulous she won the coveted Tastemaker Challenge, toothpicked-together potato trophy and all.

Sara @sarasophia: We were set up by @babycentermom after she heard Sara talking about adoption. We became fast friends and I can’t wait to follow her journey as she explores what route to take!

Sarah @sarahviola: I was lucky to have met her at Cupcake ’10 but this time around we got to know each other more… and even sat together on the plane ride back to Chicago. She’s got an amazing talent for design and was the chief creator for all the lovely Blissdom signage including the logo and schedule. Plus, she radiated a beautiful glow the entire trip!

Steph @babysteph: Steph is just one of those rare combinations – she’s sweet + fun, and really cares about people. Sitting on the veranda people-watching with @sarahviola was a definite highlight… although watching her baby girl Ivy dance the last night took the cake.

My fellow panelists, Audrey @audreymcclellan, Jendi @jendisjournal, Danielle @extraordmommy, and Jo-Lynne @dcrmom: All of these ladies are incredibly talented and I had a great time getting to know them via Skype calls in the weeks leading up to our workshop (which went fabulously!).

A special congrats to Danielle who will be the face of P&G for the Winter Olympics!

I’m running out of steam but wanted to send out some linky love to a few more friends: Isabel, Hollee, Janice, Renee, Catherine, Jessica, Carla, Stephanie, Miranda, Kelby, Deb, Liza, Arianne and Leah.