Weekend Getaway

After two years of blogging, I went to my first blogging conference last weekend.  Even though Miss Mox has been doing this for far longer, it was her first too.  And it was great.  Educational, fun, relaxing... We didn't want to leave.

It was at Cedar Point, which I assume everyone has heard of- but it's a big amusement park, if you haven't.  When I was a kid we lived pretty close, so we went fairly often.  All kinds of rides, shows, little things to do.  Expensive, of course, because once you're on the midway and your kid wants something to eat, those french fries will cost you.  Sometimes we packed lunch (there was an area out front to leave your cooler at a picnic table.)  I'd been a few times as an adult when my employer would buy out the park for an employee day.  That was great, because it reduced the crowds.  Still some expense for food and parking, but not too bad.

This time, we got in free.  When I think about it, going for the conference was almost free, because for our registration we got not only a day and a half of seminars, and a goodie bag, but 3 days of free park tickets and parking, a hotel discount, gift cards for restaurants, and other freebies.  So, yeah, it was worth it in several ways.  Paying full price would not be worth it, because I don't ride the rides anymore.  I used to love rollercoasters; I'd get off and get right back in line.  Nowadays, getting thrown around like that makes my neck and back hurt for days.  But this way, for essentially the price of a hotel room, we got to enjoy the milder side of Cedar Point.  The museum (of course,) some entertainment (they were having Halloween events,) peoplewatching (wow,) and just hanging out with my sweetie.

The hotel we stayed in has been there for more than a hundred years.  It's due for an updating, which it is getting.  The only real negative was the wifi.  You would think it would be great at a blogging conference.  It wasn't.  The free version was so slow it was unusable, and the faster (one hopes) version was $10/day.  Nope.  No thanks.

Oh, the conference?  You mean, the reason we went?  It was great.  It was geared toward "mommy bloggers" which neither of us are, but there were lessons for anyone who wants to blog.  Photography, ads, legal issues, travel, etc.  All with good speakers, in a nice setting.  It wasn't huge- someone said a couple of hundred attendees- so I wasn't overwhelmed.  A nice intro to blogging conferences; I'm sure there will be more.

It was a great weekend.  Of course, what really made it was going with my roadtrip companion, my partner in crime, the love of my life.  The fun, the frustrations, the socializing- all of it was made better by Miss Mox.

Pictured with the man who stole her heart for the weekend

Disclaimer: Yes, I got free stuff for going.  No, it didn't influence what I said.  No, I'm not going to start reviewing stuff for money.  I do it for free other places.  I say what I think.