Last year, when I went to Blissdom, I had no idea what to expect.

The connections I made with other bloggers blew me out of the water.

This year, I wasn’t a “newbie”, and I wasn’t quite as nervous, but I couldn’t imagine Blissdom getting any better than last year.

Boy, was I pleasantly surprised!!!

Blissdom was beyond my greatest expectations!

One of the main reasons for such an amazing trip was my roommates.

I got to room with my sis, which I always love.

But I also got to room with one of the most precious souls in blogland, Richella, from Imparting Grace.  Here are the three roomies eating dinner with Liberty (In the pink and black flowered shirt) from 16 Balls in the Air. She was so interesting to talk to, and I am so glad I got to meet her.  We might ride together to Relevant 11 this year!

(Cyndi, Me, Liberty, Richella)

(I snagged this picture from someone else, and don’t remember who…oops.)

I will never be able to say enough good things about Richella.  If you have never visited her blog, Imparting Grace, you need too.  It is full of encouragement, love, and Godly wisdom.  We had some major bonding time in our room.  First of all, the first time we ever met in real life (Wednesday morning at the hotel), I had just gotten out of the shower and my hair was wrapped up in a towel on the top of my head, and she still loved me.  She saw me without make-up and crying like a baby one night as we shared our hearts, fears, and dreams until 3 something in the morning, and she still loved me.  I love that kind of friend, don’t you?  Priceless.  Love you, Richella!!!

At the Wednesday Wisdom Workshops, I finally got to meet Marian (aka: Miss Mustard Seed), and Melissa (320 Sycamore).  Those girls are amazing and so genuine.  I got to have dinner with them that same night, and it was a highlight of my trip!  I also got to see my girl, Kate, again.  Love her.  (I also got to meet Melissa’s younger sister who is a doll, but didn’t get a picture with her. She has a great new blog starting up soon, and I will let you know as soon as she gets it up and running.)

Me, Marian, Melissa, Richella, Kate

That night, I got to hang with my fabulous sponsor who I absolutely adore, Dee, from Red Letter Words. Guys…she is the REAL DEAL.  I’m serious.  This was the second time I have met her in real life, and I was once again blown away by her sweet spirit and obvious love for God.  I feel so blessed to know her.

I also got to meet the fabulous (and louder than me) Allison, from House of Hepworths.  This girl has got crazy energy, and I love that about her.  :)

Dee, Allison, Me

(I stole this picture from Allison. Thanks, girl!)

One of the best things about Blissdom this year, was they organized all the bloggers by “tribes”.  I was in the “home tribe”.  We met after one of the sessions to talk about blogging.  It was great to just sit together on the floor at the Opryland Hotel and bounce ideas off of one another.  I don’t have everyone’s names to share, but Melissa, from The Inspired Room, who was our fearless tribe leader along with Nester, has a list of home bloggers in her blog post HERE.  I encourage you to visit her and check each of these fabulous ladies out.

Melissa and Nester led the group and shared their expertise with us.  They are genuinely warm and encouraging.  Thank you, Melissa and Nester!!

One evening, 20-something home bloggers ate dinner at the mexican restaurant at the Opryland hotel.  As you can tell by the pictures below, there were lots of smiles and laughter!

I was so excited this year to hug the neck of a very special blogger to me…Beckie, from Infarrantly Creative.

We were both at Blissdom last year, but didn’t get a chance to get to know each other.

Over the past year, I have watched her blog grow and have been inspired by her amazing work ethic and genuine spirit.  Even though she is younger than me, Beckie is my “blog mentor”.  I have so much to learn from her, and I appreciate all of her words of wisdom and encouragement.  She is truly a treasure to me!  Thank you, Beckie!

Beckie and Me

It would be the understatement of the year to say I was excited to meet Edie, from Life in Grace. If you have followed her blog for any amount of time, you know how precious she is.  Edie and I are not close friends, we have never spoken to each other before Blissdom this year, and I don’t know if she has ever been to my blog.  But for me, she is one of those people you just have to meet and have to get a picture with.  :)

So I did get to meet her, and we actually got to talk for a little bit.  And I was not the least bit surprised that our conversation flowed so easily.  She just puts you at ease.  I love her even more.

I had a picture taken with her, but it didn’t turn out well.  But I was estatic to see a picture of me and Edie on her blog!!!  You can see her Blissdom collage HERE.

I did, however, have a cute picture of Rhoda, Layla, and Edie…Aren’t they beautiful?

(Rhoda, Layla, Edie)

Rhoda, Layla, and Kate

What can I say about these three girls, but they are absolutely amazing!  I heart them big time!!!

Layla and Me

Layla has become a dear soul to me this past year.  I love you, Layla!!!

(I got this picture from someone’s blog who may have gotten it from someone else’s blog, etc.  Let me know if this is yours!)

Me being a goof with Dee from Red Letter Words.

Dee’s beautiful artwork is starting to be sold in Christian bookstores around the states, so be on the lookout for it!  Go, Dee!

Myra, Chris, Richella, Sarah, Me, and Rhoda

(Picture from Chris)

I got to leave the hotel one afternoon to go thrifting with some of my home girls, so

I will talk more about these lovely ladies in a later post!

Would you look at these ladies!  I seriously love them!  The ooey-gooey kind of love!!

The best part of Blissdom, hands down every year, is connecting with other bloggers that have the same passion as I do.  They GET me.

We basically stand around (or sit on couches in the case of the Blissdom Rebels) and laugh, cry, take pictures, laugh some more, hug, take more pictures, eat, laugh, talk about each others’ cameras, hug some more, laugh a lot more, and most importantly, connect.

Here’s a little video that captures a glimpse of these crazy home bloggers.  We were all taking pictures together in the cafe at the hotel and enjoying each others company!

Enjoy!

Stay tuned for a post about my day out thrifting with some of my favorite Home Girls!

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