Kicking Off BlogHer at the Plaza

Gleeful.

Yes. Gleeful is the perfect adjective to describe my state of mind when I closed our front door yesterday, postponing the chaos of moving til next week, and replacing it with the chaos of BlogHer. A quick flight and drive later, the kids were safely ensconced at their grandparents' house and I was on my way to New York City.

My mission this year is simple: to enjoy myself. I will steer clear of any swag and party angst, making sure to spend time with all my blogging friends gathered in New York, one conversation at a time, fully focused and engaged in the moment.

With those goals in mind, the fun couldn't have begun more auspiciously Wednesday with tea at the Palm Court at the Plaza Hotel. The PLAZA! The mere mention of the Plaza name fills me with nostalgia and memories of walking into its glorious lobby, in my underappreciated 24 year old body, holding my new fiance's hand, a gleaming diamond feeling deliciously foreign on my left hand. I followed all the news of the Plaza's closing and reconstruction into condo apartments two years ago, and was very eager to get a peek at the redesign of the venerable hotel.

MJ Tam organized the event for Chicagonista and NYMetropolista and it was sponsored by Dyson. Those magical-looking bladeless Dyson air multiplier fans stood between the towers of petit fours, scones, and crab sandwiches. I felt like little Eloise, spoiled at the Plaza, enjoying delicious food and reconnecting with Beth Feldman, Ellen Seidman, Carol Cain, Heidi Richter (whose gorgeous food pic I borrowed), Barbara Jones and Alli Worthington. I even indulged in some foodie talk about experimenting with jellies with Becca Levey and Jennifer Perillo.

After two hours of sticking my pinkie finger out, nibbling on canapes topped with dollops of caviar, and saying "dah-ling," I emerged back into the sun and heat of Fifth Avenue, ready to take BlogHer by storm.