Some of you may have participated in BHAH09. You might remember that this shindig was dreamed up by Jenn and Nic last year, when they realized they weren’t the only ones disappointed they were unable to go to the official BlogHer conference. So they whipped up an at-home party for all of us, complete with video chats, link exchanges and give-aways. And they did a stellar job, especially given the short time frame they had to pull it all off!

In fact, it was so much fun, that we decided we need to do it again this year!
Now, Jenn won’t be able to join us, because she saved her pennies and snatched her ticket to BlogHer’10 up right away. But we’ll forgive her this time, especially since she did such an awesome job re-designing the site, and is graciously providing technical support for BHAH10!

This year, I (@thepsychobabble) and @masmom are co-hosting the event. You can check out our bios, and learn a little more about us over in the About section.

We already have some awesome prizes lined up.  But we’re always looking for more sponsors! If you’re interested in purchasing some ad space, or providing a prize (or both!), contact us, on twitter at @blogherathome, or email us (info AT blogherathome DOT com) for more details.

We  also have big plans for the chat sessions and posts this year. You know how if you go to a conference, you’ll have panels on certain subjects? We’d like to do that here, too, for you guys via posts, vlogs and chats. But we need some ideas. So start thinking about what it is you want to talk about, and who you want to hear from, this year at BHAH10, because we’ll be asking for those suggestions soon!

We really enjoyed the video chat last year, but found that too many people on camera really slowed things down. Especially for those with less-than-high-speed access! So this year, the plan is to ask for volunteers, and have you do a little on-camera audition. If you’re interested in being on camera this August, and participating in the chat sessions, let us know!

We’re really looking forward to this event, and seeing our old friends, and meeting new ones. So get ready, mark your calendar, and grab a button to put on your site, to let others know where you’ll be this August 6^th and 7^th!

And don’t forget to subscribe, or check in often, as we’ll be posting things and updates from now until the big weekend!

Until next time,
Jen ThePsychobabble

A special thank you to the Room 704 ladies for organizing (and packaging, and shipping) the swag bags.  We love you guys.

I know you guys have been chomping at the bit to get the ‘official’ winners list, so without further ado, here it is:

• Apron Frenzy – One-of-a-kind floral half-apron  -  Kristen
• Common Cents – $20 Amazon Gift Card  - redhead.kate
• Fertility Stories – 10 sets of 5 pairs of pearl earrings – TheMaggers, Ladybugsgrama, Layla, thepsychobabble, Sarah, Jaime, HeartMyChloe, Christi, uthostage, Ali
• Temptation Designs – Custom Blog Header – Sara
• Little Alouette – Handmade Wooden Teething Toy – Averygoodyear and AmyElk
• Johnson Originals – Glass Pendant Necklace - Leslie
  
• Sara’s Drink Pendant Necklace – TheMaggers
• Ali’s $50 Starbuck’s Gift Card – Messponential
• Deb Rox – 5 Ways to {Blank} Your Blog book AND authentic BlogHer Swag – PickleSugarPlum
• Danny Evans signed, pre-release copy of his book RAGE Against the Meshugenah – steenface
• Dine Without Whine Lifetime Membership – Shannon
• Southern Monkey Designs – Custom Fabric Blocks – Masmom
• Friends of Maddie Dell Netbook – Yvonne

A huge thank you (and lots of love) to everyone who took part.

Alright my beautiful (and handsome) BlogHer@Home peeps.

Here’s how this is gonna work.

As you heard from Nic, we’re kicking off this party TONIGHT! Woot! Woot!  (uh…tonight being Thursday, July 23, 2009…just in case you’re reading this on any other day than that)
We’ll be hosting a live chat on Tiny Chat. You can find us starting at 9pm EST at: http://www.tinychat.com/bhah09

Our official hashtag on twitter for this party will be #BHAH09  (that stands for BlogHer At Home, in case you were wondering, and not my version of an evil laugh, which you will probably get to hear tonight).

We figured, since the BlogHer conference is a social party event, this should be too.  And since we’re stuck at home, we’re going to do some virtual tripping (not the acid kind).  I’ll be live tweeting as I visit YOUR blogs and leave my wonderful Princess comments (you know you want ‘em), and I invite all of you to join me on my little journey.  But in order to make our BlogHer@Home Blog Trip work… I kinda need to know who the heck you are!  So leave your blog link in the nifty little Mr. Linky below. K? Thx.

You can follow us on tweetgrid here (which will automatically  add the hashtag if you twitter through them)  http://is.gd/1Ik81

We’ve also set up a Flickr group call BHAH09, for you to put all your awesome party photos.  Head shots, drink shots, bewb shots…they’re all good.  You can find the Flickr group here: http://www.flickr.com/groups/1207827@N22/

{Note from Nic: I have already posted a couple of pics of which include me consuming alcoholic beverages…  just to start things off right.  No, I wasn’t home…  well, only for one of them.  But feel free to add to the flikr insanity in any way, shape, or form you’d like.  If it’s a current pic, great…  If it’s a pic of you gettin’ crazy in the 80’s, great…}

Here is the ‘official’ schedule of events (this is a pdf file.  You’ll need the free Adobe Acrobat Reader to open it)

BHAH09Scheduleofevents

If you have questions, throw them at us tonight during the chat, or tweet us.

And don’t forget to leave a link to your blog (and maybe write a nice little BlogHer@Home welcome post for us) in the Mr.Linky below!  Get Blogher@Home Blog Trippin, folks!!!

Let’s get this party started!!

{Note from Nic: I have seen some tweets re: nerves and “holy shit these people are going to see me.”  No worries!  You will only be seeing Jenn and I (and Sara, right?) tonight.  Your hosts for the weekend are the only ones who will be live video streaming in…  we’ll be receiving your comments as you type them in.  So if you have bed-head tomorrow morning, drool on your face, and toothpaste on a zit, but still wanna check in with us, don’t worry.  We won’t see you…  and even if we did, WE WOULDN’T CARE!!!!  that’s the beauty (pun intended) behind Blogher@Home.}

{Note from Jenn:  Yeah, I know we said we were going to launch tomorrow. We couldn’t wait to start giving stuff away (and the tweets and emails asking when we were going to launch and could we do it soon were getting to be a bit much).  So Nic and I moved things up to tonight}

here’s how we’re launching yo….  we’re going all tinychat style on your asses…  so tonight at the designated time mentioned above (9 PM EST for those of you who missed it already) log in to http://www.tinychat.com/bhah09 and you will find your’s truly as well as jenn rockin out our pjs and starting our giveaways.

we will be giving away 5 items tonight folks…  danny’s book RAGE Against the Meshugenah will be the first item to go, followed by our first of TWO sets of pearl earrings to giveaway, a luscious $50 giftcard to starbucks courtesy of ali, and ending with saucy sara’s drinky-poo pendant.  go BIG or go home folks!  (oh wait, we are at home…)

GET YOUR COMMENTS IN NOW!!!  (if you haven’t already done so.)  we will be closing comments as soon as we launch this evening’s kick off chat.

Another Jenn note: No you don’t need to be online tonight to win, but wouldn’t it be da bomb to be the first to find out you’ve won?  Like for reals?

in addition to launching this drunken home haze of our’s, jenn and i will be providing you with a full schedule of events for the coming weekend.  so pay attention and don’t get too drunk…  or…  get drunk and recheck the schedule tomorrow.

aside from being scared shitless, jenn and i are both so unbelievably stoked about launching Blogher@Home.  we are proud of our little baby here, and have gotten so much awesome support from so many people.

THANK YOU!

word on the street is that the peeps who are in chicago will be hearing where the locale is for BlogHer 2010 will be, and tickets will then go on sale.

CRIKEY! (did i spell that right? it looks weird to me.)

this means a couple of things for jenn and myself… it means that we’d lurve a little sponsorship to attend BlogHer 2010 (hint hint wink wink) and it also means that we will be looking for hosts for Blogher@Home 2010.  that way you don’t have to look at our stinken faces, nor hear our drunken voices two years in a row via tinychat.

so…  what have we learned here????

1) BlogHer@Home launches TONIGHT at 9 pm EST

2) go to http://www.tinychat.com/bhah09 to find jenn and nic.

3) buy booze

4) our first 5 giveaways will be TONIGHT, get comments in NOW

5) jenn and nic would like sponsors for BlogHer 2010 puhlease

6) buy booze

ok….  class dismissed!  see ya tonight!

Since morning drinking is such a fan favorite (of mine, at least) I submit to you a recipe provided by another blogging goddess.

• 3 count vodka
• 3 count Malibu rum
• 2 count triple sec
• 4 count pineapple juice
• 4 count cranberry juice

Pour over ice and enjoy!

Thanks Amanda!!!

eat me, jenn! (ps- i love you.)

since plenty of bloggers have been posting pics upon pics of clothes they’ll be wearing to party after party party in chicago…  i give you the following…

chillin in this while taking photos of bridesmaids getting hairsprayed

the over-used yet oh so necessary gladiator sandal

possible rehearsal dinner dress

with purple peep-toe heels (to show off my purple painted toes)

and at this point in time i would post pics of the real rehearsal dinner attire i will be wearing, but i cannot…  a delicious friend, who i am not yet ready to reveal, gifted me the attire that i will be sporting friday evening.  those pics will be posted upon my return with a full write-up of this designer’s awesomeness.  but i needed to tease with something hot and sexy, so i went with the purple dress that i wore to a wedding i went to a few months ago…  hehehe…

wedding day dress

wedding day shoes, bag and bracelet

and for an extra dose of bitchassness, i’ll throw in a pic of me and hub bub in full attire from another wedding… (and yes, i have a tendency to wear the same wedding attire to multiple weddings regardless of whether or not the same people are attending the wedding.)

BAM!

so to conclude my post of vanity, i leave you with the words of meredith brooks…  “i’m a bitch.  i’m a lover.  i’m a child.  i’m a mother.  i’m a sinner.  i’m a saint.” and no, “i do not feel ashamed.”

Which got me thinking:  It’s damn convenient that those of us attending BlogHer@Home don’t have to leave the kidlets.  I know, I know, some of you are probably all “Getting away from the kids is the best part!”  But especially for those of us with tiny bebes, BlogHer@Home is all the fun and none of the stress.  No pumping; no wondering if the baby is happy or missing us as much as we’d miss them; no hassling with childcare arrangements.

Yep, I’d say that’s another big fat check in the ‘pros’ column for why BlogHer@Home rocks!

Truth be told, the kids would be just fine while we were away, but for a lot of us, this really makes for the best of both worlds.  We get to enjoy the community and have some fun, get a little swag…and if we feel so inclined, we only need to go to the next room for a quick cuddle.

Oh, and in that “none of the stress” category:  No worrying about what we’re wearing.  Unless there’s some freaky “my pj’s are way hotter than your pj’s” contest ;-).  And no worrying about the awkward problem of not knowing anyone and standing alone in a corner at a party, wondering who looks friendly enough to approach (ok, maybe that would just be me!).  No expensive travel (hey, not everyone has the extra cash to spend or beacoup sponsors hooking up the money train!).

Yeppers, we at home, in our comfy clothes, online, with our supportive virtual pals, will be carefree and having a blast come BlogHer@Home.  Methinks there will be a mom or two at the real deal wishing she could dish with us from her living room, baby in tow, while she’s there.  I’ve already heard murmurings of it in Twitterland; now that the big shiny conference is here, there are some cold feet.  Ours?  Yeah, our feet are cozy in their slippers, relaxing while we’re not packing our crap.  Sounds like a pretty freaking good deal to me!  It’s going to be a blast… =)

Twitter: HappyMomAmy

I’ve tried those meal planning calendars where you write down what you’re having each day, but I still struggle with that.  I lack the inspiration.  Even flipping through my numerous recipe books often results in a hastily prepared casserole because I lack the ingredients for anything better.

Enter Dine Without Whine. Founder Christine Steendahl has created a meal planning service especially for parents with kids.  No fancy, impossible ingredients that you’ve never heard of, let alone know how to prepare.  You get good, wholesome meals, and your family isn’t forced to eat Kraft Dinner for the third night in a row because you’re too exhausted to come up with anything better (not that that has EVER happened at my house… nope…never)

Every week, Dine Without Whine, emails you, not only a menu and recipes, but a full shopping list.  Doesn’t get any easier.

If you’re like me, you’ve checked out other menu planning services. But when I get to their sample menus my inner monologue sounds a bit like “Wouldn’t eat it, wouldn’t eat it, DEFINTELY wouldn’t eat it, don’t know what the hell that is, ummm, yeah, I guess that one might be OK”

So when I checked out the sample menus for Dine Without Whine, I was pleasantly surprised.  There was not one meal on there I wouldn’t make.  Seriously.

Here’s the best part.  Christine is offering one lucky BlogHer@Home attendee a LIFETIME membership to Dine Without Whine.

Yeah.  Lifetime.  As in, FREE FOREVER.  As in, you’re going to be the Mom that all the other kids want as their mom because you make the best meals.

Here’s how it can be yours:

• Leave a comment (any comment will do!) = 1 entry
• Visit Dine Without Whine and tell us what your favorite meal, from their sample meals, is= 1 entry
• What are your family dinner time challenges?  Tell us about it = 1 entry
• Follow BlogHerAtHome and Dine Without Whine on Twitter and Tweet about this giveaway (leave us a comment with the link to the tweet)= 1 entry

in exactly 14 days, RAGE Against the Meshugenah, authored by my favorite “neutered jew,” (his words, not mine) , Danny Evans will be released.  some of you may already be familiar with his brilliance from his blog DadGoneMad.com and some of you may just be wading in the shallow depths of his hilarity.

i urge you to dive in.  both feet.  now.

here is what i can personally vouch for…

• danny = good people, really good people, salt of the earth.
• RAGE will rock your world, seriously the whole world that you currently exist in.
• no one on the face of this planet is capable of writing about battling depression, and making their readers piss in their pants with laughter like this man… brilliant, i tell you.  fucking brilliant.
• danny and RAGE saved my marriage.

he is giving away a signed copy of his book to Blogher@Home, his masterpiece pre-release!

it’s only fitting that this magnificent man, has offered ONE signed copy of RAGE to ONE lucky winner.  (i mean c’mon, this is pre-release.  let us not be greedy.  simply pre-order at amazon if you haven’t already.)

Here’s how you can get it:

• Leave a comment briefly discussing NOT your sob story regarding depression, but your strength in overcoming it, especially through laughter = 1 entry
• Follow BlogHerAtHome and Danny on Twitter and Tweet about this giveaway (leave us a comment with the link to the tweet)= 1 entry

my husband flies planes for the navy.  he has been deployed…  MULTIPLE TIMES (pun intended).  and that’s when my dear friend (whose name i shall not mention) introduced me to the vibrator.  YES!!!  THE VIBRATOR!!!  THE SILVER BULLET!!!!  and oh sweet jesus did it worked it’s wonderous magic for the 6 months (x 3) that he was gone.

so…  hub still flies planes, though is not currently deployed.  (WOO!  THANKS BARRACK!)  anyway, point being that BlogHer begins this coming weekend and there will be sex toys -a-plenty with you kinky, crazy, lovely, lovas out there.

and why shouldn’t those of us at home (or in my case, at a wedding) miss out on all the fun?!?!

thus, i direct you to maria’s post where she descriptively tells you how to have a party in your pants…  pre-cocktail, post-cocktail, even during cocktail….  as long as there’s a smile on your gorgeous face.  :)

enjoy maria’s post…  enter to win THE GREEN SHAFT (only for folks who are NOT going to BlogHer ’09 in Chicago) and shake your groove thang!!!

GET IT, GURL!!!!!!!!