At Long Last...

...I am back on the blog. I'm woefully behind in blog reading as you may or may not have noticed. Unfortunately I was unable to access the internet while on my trip. Actually, I was unwilling to pay the $14.95 a day the hotel/convention center was charging for that privilege. Can you say "HIGHYWAY ROBBERY" and "SICK AND WRONG"?

Yes, I AM bitter.

Anyway, I arrived home on Sunday evening, but have been wading through piles of mail and school papers (unfortunately did not get to through this pile in time to see that my son's school pictures left a little to be desired and that the picture retakes had already taken place...lovely), dealing with a mysterious rash on my eldest (possibly caused by one too many "happy meals"???), major car repairs, suitcase unpacking, laundry, and the various and sundry other items that tend to pile up and greet you with warm welcome when you are away for any period of time.

By the way, my husband did survive (as did the children). The house was in GREAT order when I returned home and although there may have been some excessive McDonald's eating, all in all Rich faired well. So, dear husband this is your official and virtual pat on the back. You are THE Man! MANY thanks and MUCH love to you my sweet.

I have so much that I could share, but I thought that I would just share some basic highlights from the convention. In no particular order...

1) You can view my all time favorite moment of the actual convention here. Seriously, this was the most fun I've had in a long time. 400+ grown women throwing balls at (I mean to) each other. I was hit in the head at least a couple of times and our table was filled with coffee splatter from leftover Starbucks cups being pummeled at high velocity. Good times.

2) It wasn't all fun and games. We did get serious. We had several great speakers including Becky Bailey, Daniel Levitin, Maria Bailey, and Ysaye Barnwell. We also were treated to a concert by this group.

3) In order to save money, I did not sign up for many of the evening "extras". So I was left with some free time to spend here. My favorite purchases came from here. Oh dear, I just realized that I probably spent all the money that I saved not going to the convention extras at the mall. Oops.

4) Like any self-respecting convention there was of course a place to buy Kindermusik products. I enjoyed this immensely because I came away with some SERIOUS deals. By the way, (slightly off the subject) has anyone ever noticed that there is a room named Utopia A and B in every convention center known to man? Why is that?

5) I watched two whole movies all by myself in the comfort of my hotel room. Ahhh!

6) I perused through this store to my heart's content and bought my very own grown up size blankie (soft as a baby's bottom) for only $12.99. It is my new favorite thing.

7) And last, but not least, the fact that all the walking I did surely worked off any extra calories that I consumed here, here and here.

So, there you have it. A glimpse into my little adventure. I promise to catch up on all of your blogs soon! You guys were busy while I was gone ;-)