MommyCon Philly Part 2

Now for the rest of the story:

We managed to sneak in a nap after the day's events, thanks to the exhaustion of our three young charges.  Then we headed out to dinner with some baby wearing friends from home.  The convention center was right next to Chinatown, so we had some fabulous Dim Sum.  Little girl was a unimpressed but sat fairly nicely through the meal.  Baby boy fell asleep nearly the moment I laid him on the bed while I made a cup of tea and slept for 12 hours straight. Little girl was happy to go to bed on her little cot, while I luxuriously stretched on my own bed!

Day 2!

We snagged breakfast at the hotel and headed over so my friend could head to her sleep consultation seminar and I caught the tail end of 8 Things the Slow Movement Can Teach You with Slow Mama.   (I would have heard the whole thing except that I had left my badge in our hotel room and had to go back for it).  What I heard was amazing.  The biggest thing that struck me was her encouragement to be yourself. She admitted that it sounded trite, but pointed out that even when we find a group we belong to, we are still tempted to change to fit in perfectly.  It gave me something to think about.  

After that, it was time for the Babywearing World Record.  Everyone crowded into the main ballroom.  It was amazing to see so many caregivers (moms, dads, grandparents, older siblings, and others) wearing their babies in every kind of carrier.  Some humor, some photos, and the exciting announcement of a Beco toddler carrier.  

There were so many great events that I had a hard time choosing: Play Based Learning, Babywearing Ballet, #ISupportYou with Jamie Lynn Grumet of I Am Not the Babysitter, and Attachment Theory with Dr. Henrik Norholt.  The only downside was having to chase the toddler instead of paying attention to all the great information coming my way.  There were also dozens of amazing vendors.  

At the end of it, MommyCon is incredibly uplifting, inspiring, and exhausting.  Just being around so many other families that are looking for the best way to raise their children is awesome.  Kids run amok and everyone looks out for them, women nurse their babies without fear of judgement, and lots of happy children are wrapped up with their beloved caregivers.  I loved seeing a 12 year old girl wearing her little baby sibling, happily kissing the top of the baby's head.  

Oh, and as for the swag bag?  It was absolutely incredible.  I got more and more excited with each item that I pulled out.  I could hardly believe the generosity of the sponsors.  

I more than got my money's worth out of the event, and I've been sharing about the amazing experience with everyone who will listen. 

MommyCon Philly

Last year, a friend and I took our eleven month olds to MommyCon Philly and had a great time.  We were hoping that the next event would be even better.  Spoiler alert: our expectations were far exceeded.

We opted for the VIP Package because we were interested in seeing The Honest Toddler's mom speak at the Saturday VIP event.  The VIP tickets included Saturday and Sunday events, two nights in a hotel, and a swag bag including a Beco Soleil baby carrier.  Was it worth it?

Absolutely.

We left our house at 5:00am and drove through the foggy morning up towards Philadelphia.  This time, instead of eleven month olds, we had two two year-olds and one three month old.  Surprisingly, none of them slept for more than 20 minutes on the four and a half hour drive.  It took a bit of driving around the block to figure out how to pull up to our hotel, but we finally figured it out.

In case you've never traveled with small children, packing light can be a bit tough.  We filled up two luggage carts.  We'd brought food, lots of changes of clothes for potty trained toddlers, cloth diapers for the baby, baby carriers, a pack and play, and a cot.  Finally, we got everything unloaded to the room, and rushed to registration at the Convention Center, right across the street from the hotel.

We got checked in, and the registration ladies were nice enough to give my little girl a lanyard as well.  We settled down in the back of the room to hear Honest Toddler's Mom (Bunmi Laditan) as she did giveaways via a game of "Who Has It Worst?" Prizes went to those who had gone the longest without showering, the most years without sleep, had the longest pregnancy, and the longest labors.  In between each prize, she had the audience in stitches with her keeping it real humor about motherhood.  She was even funnier in person than she is when writing in toddler persona.

The Leaky Boob was one of the biggest improvements over the previous year.  Jessica Martin-Weber is an inspiring speaker, but last year it felt a little bit like she was speaking to the choir about breast-feeding.  This year, she spoke about the measures we need to advocate for to support breastfeeding. She spoke about maternity leave, desexualizing breastfeeding, and education of health professionals.  I left feeling empowered to pursue those measures.

The day wrapped up with Baby Guy NYC doing a Q&A.  My favorite question was about what gift to splurge on for a new mom.  He recommended a good baby carrier or carseat, or a postpartum doula.

More tomorrow!