The Blogging Conference of All Blogging Conferences

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I’ve been so blessed to do an incredible amount of traveling this year – some for pleasure, some for business. My last trip I took had me in Los Angeles at LA Live for BlogHer16. BlogHer16 is a blogging conference that happens every year – normally, not in the same spot every time. If you’re a blogger, it’s the blogging event to go to.

I was told to be overwhelmed. People told me to take it easy – don’t try to do everything. I knew I wasn’t going to get to see all the incredible speakers I wanted to (Kim Kardashian, Sheryl Crow, and many others were there giving key notes)…but I feel I accomplished what I had gone there for. I got a lot of really cool swag, met with a lot of brands and even formed some business relationships, and networked with some incredible bloggers. One of the coolest parts? Winning a ton of stuff! Seriously!

• a laptop
• printer
• $50 gift card to an office supply store
• 2 backpacks full of school supplies + other cool things (like a Roku and Chromecast)
• $500 custom toy package for the kids

Additionally, I had the opportunity to give a 30 second pitch of my idea/vision to start a non-profit organization that allows families to serve together in humanitarian missions overseas. I was chosen to be a part of the Top 20. The winner gets a $500 GoDaddy service package and a trip to NYC to dine w/ investors. I would absolutely love your support – voting ends August 31st and I’m currently in 2nd place! Would you consider voting for me and sharing this with your friends?

Stuffing My Face

Not only did I have incredible experiences, but I got to eat some pretty amazing foods.

When I wasn’t stuffing my face, I was busy mingling with celebrities…

I also met Matthew McGorry and he literally changed my world about entitlement, feminism and the #BlackLivesMatter movement.  

It Wasn’t All Fun and Games…

While the conference was amazing…there is one thing that really disappointed me. I had ZERO reception pretty much….everywhere. US Cellular prides itself on working in the middle-of-nowhere (literally, in Iowa we’re all corn!), and I have zero issues. However, if you put me in a city with skyscrapers… Zip. Zilch. NADA.

I think that maybe Best Buy knew this. As soon as I entered the expo hall….there they were in all of their glory:

Annnnd they had chairs! Do you realize how stressful it is carrying around all that stuff I won + everything else I carried with me anyway? These chairs were definitely a welcome relief. Here, I learned that about 50% of people overpay on their cell phone bill. I got to take a look at their mobile service plans and figured out that if I switched from US Cellular, I’d save $25 per month. That’s $300 savings after a year – can you imagine how many lives I could change if I had an extra $300 every year? You can stop in to any Best Buy store and make the comparison yourself. 

I also got to test drive the new Samsung Galaxy Note7. It is so sleek and fast! Here’s what you need to know:

• internal storage that starts at 64GB and also included expandable memory that can handle up to 256GB via microSD card
• water AND dust resistant
• no cables for charging – just set the phone down {seriously! WIRELESS CHARGING. IT’S FREAKING MAGIC}
• 5MP front camera
• dual pixel 12MP OIS

Worth Repeating…

I want to touch on the wireless charging thing again. That is my BIGGEST complaint about my phone now – I seriously have to purchase a new charger every other month. It is beyond ridiculous that they can come out with such amazing phones but have really low quality chargers. It seems as though Samsung has figured this all out – just do away with chargers completely! I seriously am considering switching over…that alone would save me a tremendous amount of money.

What kind of phone do you have? Have you ever attended a blogging conference?

{The reviewer has been compensated in the form of a Best Buy Gift Card and/or received the product/service at a reduced price or for free}