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| Meeting Amy from As The Bunny Hops and Mallery from Horrible Housewife for the first time! |
The first day at SoFabCon 2013 held many exciting moments for me. From touchdown in Arkansas to a cocktail party I’ll get in to later, and everything in between. THIS was the in between and for me it was magical.
You see, SoFabCon was an emotional event for me. This wasn’t just a conference. This is where I met my best friends in real life. I had an incredibly trying year last year. We were displaced in The Woods and my family was falling apart. I had issues with my oldest daughter, my step (on me) daughter, and my marriage. Through my sparkles, I was a nervous wreck on the verge of a breakdown. Not everyone knew. But these two did!
Through my trials and troubles, the 3 of us bridged a 3 decade age difference and 100′s of miles in proximity and we bonded. We had late night chats. They dropped work for me. They talked to me instead of family on more than one occasion. They encouraged me. Amy with her inappropriate humor at all of the worst times (this is actually a good thing) made me snort on a regular basis. And Mallery with her grounded thoughts (seriously, who at the age of 25 could possibly be that rational and grounded?) made me take a look at myself from within and stick it out and do the right things.
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| Photos compliments of Organize with Sandy. Thank you oh-so-much for capturing these moments for us! |
And so, the moment when we all met. When we hugged for the first time. When our bond became “real”. Yes, that moment was the highlight of the conference for me.
I wonder if they know how ready I was to give up this past year? I wonder if they know how truly depressed I was at times? I wonder if they know how much they meant to me during my hard times and how much they still do? I wonder if they know that they quite possibly saved my marriage, my family, and yes, my life? I think they do. But those are unspoken words. Sometimes things are better left unsaid. It’s just best to hug it out.
I love my beavers and I hope they know they mean the world to me, and I hope they know that this was one of the highlights of my life! I hope that others read this and understand that maybe we spent a lot of time together this past weekend because I owe these women a world of gratitude.
I hope they know. And now you know the truth behind the smiles. This was a good day! It was an awesome moment in time that I will cherish forever. I await the day that I can see them again.
Disclosure: This is not a sponsored post. I’m writing this series to share my SoFabCon experience with all of you and putting it in to writing so that I don’t forget one single moment. I’ll be back with a not so sappy post soon. Stay tuned!
Disclosure: This is not a sponsored post. I’m writing this series to share my SoFabCon experience with all of you and putting it in to writing so that I don’t forget one single moment. I’ll be back with a not so sappy post soon. Stay tuned!
This brought a tear to my eye. I’m sorry that you have had a rough year, but I’m glad that you had great friends by your side. I have a few like that, who I met through our little online world. I hope to meet them one day too, because they’ve saved me on countless times. Hugs to you and cheers to a hopefully better year for you! We may not know each other “well”, but I’m a pretty good listener if you ever need an ear!
I was checking my phone after a visit when I saw that you had posted. I had to drive home after reading the first line because I didn’t want to read it in a parking lot. So I sat in my garage, reading this and crying like a baby.
I won’t say I met you at SoFabCon because I met you two years ago. SoFabCon was just where I got to finally hug you and spend time with you and realize that you are in real life the exact same friend I met two years ago while we stalked a campaign for Glidden.
If we didn’t have BlogHer in two months I’m not sure what I’d do! Real life time together is no longer optional.
I thank my lucky stars for that Glidden campaign on a daily basis. It literally brought me life long connections that I cherish. Let the countdown to August begin.
My heart! I think it is fantastic that you’ve built these relationships.
Hugs!
Thanks and you aren’t getting out of the conference next year! Watch me drag you if I have to!
Thanks Jasmine. And thanks again for organizing such a great event. You were/are amazing!
Love these pics!! I am so happy we all got to meet!! It was the highlight for me too!! AND I do not want to wait another year to do it all over again!!
This is so sweet and real, I love it. Making real friends wherever you meet them is a true blessing!
What a blessing all 3 of you are to each other!
We will NOT wait another year. I can’t take it that long. We’ll have to figure something out. BlogHer?
Agreed! Thanks.
It was great meeting you Ellen. And for the record, I think the mohawk works for you.
Isn’t it great to have friends that you can just RELY on? So happy that you have that through all you’ve deal with in the last year.
I so understand …one of the highlights for me was when you came over and kissed my cheek. I so understand!!!!
So glad you guys FINALLY got to hang out in person! You guys are so fun!!!!
Great post Christy! So glad I was able to connect with you . . .you are a pretty awesome chick!
love this. Wish I could have made it.
Next year? Yes, next year you WILL be there!
I think you’re pretty awesome too. So happy to finally make the real life connection.
It was great finally meeting you IRL too Kristin.
Awwww….that’s so sweet Rebecca. I’ve been wanting to meet you for a long time so it was great that it finally happened.
I love this and seeing you all fall into a natural rhythm together was such a beautiful thing!
Wasn’t it awesome? Can’t wait for next year. Wearing my SoFab T as I write this!
Christy, I read this and just teared up at work. What a sweet post! I am so blessed to know you all and get to work with you on a routine basis!
We feel the same way about you Lauren. I miss working with you directly. It’s been too long. So good to finally meet you in real life.
Hahaha…my SFC t shirt comes down past my knees. We need to get one of those 80′s ties to keep them up right?
I loved watching you and Melissa do the same. It’s a beautiful thing when real life connections are just as wonderful as we imagined they would be. Are y’all going to BlogHer?
I just loved reading this. I am so happy you have such a great support system and it must have been incredible to finally get to give them real life hugs! Thanks for sharing.
It was truly amazing. Thanks!