On Saturday night Lara Dipaola and I had the privilege of launching Momz Share and playing host to 45 amazing DC Metro area bloggers!

In case you are not familiar with Momz Share:  The concept  is to simply provide a real life opportunities for moms who have a passion for blogging to connect, build relationships, learn, share information and form strong personal networks.  The events are held quarterly and hosted by a different, fabulous D.C. Metro Region blogger.  It is one part girl’s night out and one part networking.

Okay, official speak over. If you wanna read more, click here. It is now time to gush!

I don’t even know where to begin except to say that we had the most fabulous, interesting and diverse group of women.  I was humbled and in awe of every single one of them BEFORE they even got there. And to have them all assembled under one roof was truly an honor.  I am putting a linky on the bottom of this post because I think that while we were the hosts, THEY will tell the real story!

If you would like to see some photos from the event (Because, as we all know, a picture is worth a thousand words and I don’t have enough space on this blog for that.) —->We have a Flickr group here. More pictures will be added by the attending bloggers in the future so check back! (Why am I wearing a tiara, you ask? Lara provided it and well, the Tarara wine was so yummy that I felt a little “uninhibited.” Enough said.)

And permit me, if you will, to acknowledge the wonderful companies who came on board and donated services to help our vision come to fruition.  This would still be in concept stage if they hadn’t offered their services!

107 Designs –Michael Guill designed the Momz Share logo and buttons! He is an amazing talent and wonderful friend.  Give him some love on Twitter  @107Designs or check out his totally cool website here.

Sisarina – Lara and I met with Melanie Spring in Bethesda one day and she totally got the concept. Not only that, she jumped on board!  Her company Sisarina designed the Momz Share banner and soon to be collateral material, not to mention…. OUR NEW WEBSITE! (Under construction. More to come!) Wow, right? Tweet her up @sisarina  or check out her business online!

Tarara Winery – I can’t even tell you how overwhelmed we were with their generosity!  They jumped in with both feet and poured wine for our guests all night and even sent each lady home with their own vino.  Thank you to Jordan and Kerri for supporting Momz Share!  Give them some love @tararawinery and on the web.

And there is no way that I can forget Laura of Better in Bulk and Amanda of Then Again Photography for coming in and saving the day with their photography genius. Ladies, you are wonderful! (But I kinda already knew that!)

Special thanks also go out to the Maryland Ensemble Theatre and Delaplaine Visual Arts Education Center for loaning us gorgeous linens for the soiree!

EXTRAVAGANTLY AWESOME DRAWING PRIZES WERE PROVIDED BY: e.l.f. Cosmetics, Soge Shirts, Jasmere.com, Thien Kim – Passion Parties, La Papillion Spa, Port Discovery, Lisa Helfert Photography, 107 Designs (Additional information on there contributions can be found here.)

TAKE HOME GIFTS FOR THE LADIES WERE DONATED BY: Tarara Winery , La Papillion Spa, Seed Body Care, e.l.f. Cosmetics, Jasmere, MET – The Fun Company (Additional information on there contributions can be found here.)

The next Momz Share event will be held on May 22nd and will be hosted by Jessica of A Parent in Silver Spring! We will require another round of registrations which will begin this Friday on this website.  Look for details on the event and the topic from @mammamania, @dipaolamomma and @jessicaAPISS via Twitter soon!  And BTW – the next event better not end in a trip to the ER. But that is another blog post entirely, isn’t it?

There is an emerging trend in my household and I am not sure how to feel about it.  Part of me is amused. Part of me is sad. Part of me is frightened to death.

My sons have discovered GIRLS.

A couple of weeks ago I mused about how iCarly had stolen Young Jedi’s heart. At that moment it was funny because he had never had an interest before. In fact, he had repeatedly told me how gross they were.  She wasn’t really a threat.

But the mommy gloves are now off.  Selena Gomez is now in the picture and he is OBSESSED.  Compounded with that is the fact that Tiny Ninja (who is 10) has claimed his long time friend (who shall not be named) is his true love and he is going to marry her.

Both boys are discussing kissing.

And I caught them checking out a naked department store mannequin and giggling obsessively. I’m fairly certain they copped a feel when I wasn’t looking. Oh. My. Lord.

The 10 year old has B.O., the nine year old is kissing pictures of Selena Gomez when he thinks we aren’t looking and both are using the word “hot” to describe females.

WHERE AM I?!!

What happened to those sweet little babies that asked me to marry them and told me I was the prettiest woman in the world?  Where are the little toddlers that curled up in my lap and ran their fingers through my hair?

I’ll tell you where they are – watching Selena Gomez and Miranda Cosgrove shake their thing across the television screen.

So what do I do?  Hang on for dear life or deal with it and let them find their pre-teen groove?

Currently excited about: Momz Share & Seed!

IT IS A FLASHBACK FRIDAY, GANG! I’m gonna be honest, I am so busy prepping for Momz Share tomorrow night that I won’t be able to do a full post.  Hang in there with me, promise it will be back to normal on Sunday…errr… Monday!

THINGS I STILL DO FOR MY KIDS BUT AM ASHAMED TO ADMIT (Originally posted in June of 2009)

When it comes to my kids, I have a secret. Well, actually, I have a couple.

I am ashamed to admit it, but there are a couple things that I do for my kids that are totally UNCALLED FOR.

There is no need for me to do them.  I totally realize that my kids are growing up and that I need to promote their independence.

No need to preach, I GET IT.

But still, I find myself performing some of the same tasks day in and out that I KNOW that they should be able to do by now. For example:

START THEIR APPLES-  This is stupid. But, okay, here it is. When my kids want to eat an apple they still ask me to start it for them. What I mean is, well… they want me to take the first bite for them. They  claim it is too hard.  Yes, I know they are lying through their little Chicklet-sized teeth. I  know what they really need is to “man up” and conquer the apple on their own. I know that it is clearly a toddler right of passage and that my boys are technically the “big kids on the bus.”  Shut up.

SLEEP WITH THEM – I don’t do it all the time, alright? Okay, who am I kidding? There are many a night that you will find me curled up under my (um, I mean THEIR) blue dinosaur covers waiting for sleep to engulf me while my poor husband spends the evening watching Rocky movies shivers all lonely-like and forgotten in the parent’s room.

PUT THEIR SHOES ON- Oh holy moley, people.  Don’t get all shocked on me here. Sometimes it is just easier AND FLIPPIN’ FASTER than waiting for the little monsters to accomplish it on their own. I just want to get out the door, okay? Is that too much to ask? I just want to get out the door and to work on time, or to the grocery store this year, or to the pool before night falls. Am I asking too much?

DRY & DRESS THEM – Now, in my defense, this is purely a survival technique. If I don’t dry them off and dress them immediately after they shower then we will have nothing less than screaming, wet, naked banshees streaking through the neighborhood house for the rest of the night. Boys love to be naked. And they love to scream. And to run. It is the stuff of nightmares.  I have to put the kibosh on it before all hell breaks loose. Really, it is for your protection. Not mine.

So there you have it.

Now you know.

DON’T FORGET: I’m hosting a Blogher2010 cash sponsorship giveaway from SEED!  Find out more here!

Do you hear that?  It is a quiet calm settled through the households around the great state of Maryland.

Why?

The Maryland School Assessments are being conducted throughout the state this week.  For teachers, I suppose it is five days of stressful exam situations. But for us parents, it is nirvana.

Well, at least a slice of it.

For me, the working mother, it is a rare slice of serenity in a sea of turbulence.  MSA testing, at least in my school, means no homework. Can you feel my relief?  Not only that but  this week I have found MY VERY OWN OFFSPRING lecture ME about how they need to get to bed early and eat a healthy breakfast. Imagine that!  The school must be really drilling that info in them because it is working miracles in this household, let me tell you.

So for one week, my children come home and the entire family is relaxed and carefree.  There are no homework battles. No papers. No deadlines. It is like a mini-vacation.

I am savoring it.

She is 47 and I hate her for it. That is all.

On Saturday I attended my first blogging “conference” in Baltimore. (Ironic, isn’t it? Same day as my blogaversary.) “Bloggy Boot Camp” was put on by the Secret is in the Sauce or more affectionately known in the blog world as SITS.

I’m gonna be honest with you, I had no idea what to expect.

The conference had a nice blend of topics and some truly engaging speakers.  And I learned a lot. But in the end, I didn’t really care much about all that.

You know what I liked most of all?  Hanging with MY PEOPLE.  You see, in my real EVERY DAY life, I am the odd ball.  Having a blog isn’t as common as say, owning a car. Or a blender. My friends appreciate my blog, don’t get me wrong.  They just don’t have a PASSION for blogging like I do.  They don’t exactly “get it.”

I’m the odd ball.

But at Boot Camp, the bloggy passion was literally oozing out of these ladies very pores and it was simply AWESOME.

I confess that I even found myself a little nervous around ladies that I admired.  And I was all yammering on like that middle school girl who just REALLY, REALLY, REALLY wants you to like her.  Which was amusing and slightly pathetic at the same time.  Thank goodness I have ADD and quickly moved on to the next shiny object or I might not have emerged from under the proverbial blanket ever again.

So if you are a blogger and have not had a chance to attend a conference or a seminar or something of that nature, I say to you “GET THEE TO ONE, AND QUICK!”

You will love it.

And because I am feeling all generous and stuff, I put together some tidbits I gleaned from the sessions:

Good overall advice: Be clear on who you are and what you do. You don’t HAVE to categorize yourself as a “mom blogger.” Once you decide what it is that you do… DO IT WELL!  Develop a tagline. USE IT.  And whatever you do: BE SWITZERLAND!  Stay neutral and out of the drama.

On social media: Everything you do in social media has to be thoughtful.  Who you follow and who you interact with makes up your online reputation.  Even your comments can be traced back to you.  Don’t forget that even Twitter is searchable by Google.  Above all else, be professional!  You are your own brand.  Consider every part of your online presence and act accordingly.

If you would like to see a Whrrl story on Bloggy Boot Camp, click here. For more pictures, you can check out Scary Mommy’s photo stream on the event here OR for tons of posts on the event, head over to In The Trenches of Mommyhood for a link up of the posts on this event.

DON’T FORGET: I’m hosting a Blogher2010 cash sponsorship giveaway from SEED!  Find out more here!

DO YOU WANT TO WIN A SPONSORSHIP TO BLOGHER 2010?

Well, then it is time to speak up and start talking about SEED!

SEED Power (a line of all natural body care) is providing some lucky ladies with the chance to attend BlogHer 21010 in NYC with their fabulous SEEDS OF INSPIRATION contest.  Not only will the winner receive a $250 CASH sponsorship, but they will also be VIP guests at an exclusive, swanky NYC PAR-TAY the Friday night of the convention.  (And let me tell you – from what I hear it will be FAB-U-LOUS!)

HERE IS HOW ENTER THE SEEDS OF INSPIRATION BLOGHER 2010 SPONSORSHIP CONTEST:

Visit the Seed Website and read about the products and the founder’s story.

Write a blog post about how the products, philosophy or owner’s story INSPIRE YOU to nurture your own entrepreneurial spirit, live a more organic lifestyle OR make a more positive environmental impact! The post must include a link to the SEED website within it and a mention and link back to this contest to be considered. Then come back to Hip As I Wanna Be and link up!

A COUPLE OF OTHER RULES, BABY:

All contestants must ALSO complete the following steps for their entry to be considered:

• Visit the SEED website and join their community via email
• Follow @SeedPower on Twitter
• Tweet the following “I’m inspired by @SEEDpower & the SEEDs of Inspiration #blogher10 #sponsorship contest http://bit.ly/b2oQDM #pickmeseed”
• Become a fan of SEED on FaceBook

{And don’t forget to leave a comment letting the contest host (ME!) know you completed these steps}

Submit your entry via Mr. Linky below and then you are done!

BUT THERE IS ONE MORE THING, LADIES... The fact that you can enter to win once a week until the contest closes. Just create a new post, link up again and tweet!  The coolness, never ends does it?  And if you want extra chances to win in a different way, you can enter each week over at Chicken Nuggets of Wisdom (Whrrl contest) and Makeover Momma (Vlog contest) as well.

Each entry must be unique and not simply the submission of the previous week’s entry.

Winners who have followed the submission rules will then have their entries judged by SEED on the following criteria: creativity, originality, interpretation of the theme.

SEED Power Body Care will choose the winner of the contest as well as several other winners who will get invitations to the swank-tastic invite only party being hosted on Saturday August 5th, 2010 by SEED.  BTW – Hip As I Wanna Be, though partially sponsored to BlogHer 2010 by SEED, will have no part in the selection process and is simply hosting this contest.

Contest ends March 31, 2010 at 11:00 p.m. PST. Winners will be announced on the SEED website on or about April 9, 2010.  (But it might be a good idea to follow “me” on Twitter and fan Hip As I Wanna Be on Facebook to make sure you are up to date on the contest 411.)

AND…. because they are a truly fabulous company, Seed is also offering the readers of Hip As I Wanna Be a discount on their products.  To order some fabulous products using your special discount code, click here.