Blogapalooza 2013

*Disclaimer: Photos grabbed from The Home-based Diva (Thanks, Mimi!)

Last Saturday was so out of my ordinary and I loved it. Don't we just need a break from routines every so often? Instead of the usual pancakes-laundry-lunch-siesta weekend, the morning was spent administering the Ateneo Law School Admission Test in Ateneo Rockwell along with a friend from college who gave me the said opportunity (Thanks, Faith!). I'm talking about waking up 6:00 on a weekend morning. I know, heroic, right? It was a pretty tight day as after finishing my duty there (around a little past 12nn), I left and headed home to catch the hubby who had to go to work in the afternoon. We commuted to Taguig together (he works in McKinley like mentioned here) and parted ways in Market Market as I went to my next appointment -- SM Aura.

Now now. This was when things got so interesting. It was my first blogging event to attend not to mention that that was the first time I set foot on the newest mall in town. Plus! I got to finally meet my online friends (from Girltalk - blogging threads) whom I have been in speaking writing terms with since last year methinks.

L-R: That's Sally (The Budget Fashion Seeker), yours truly, Christine (Jocris World), and Nathalie (Mental Snapshots). Behind the camera is Mimi (The Home-based Diva).

If you haven't read from the other blogs yet, the venue (SMX Convention) was brimming with people -- sponsors, bloggers, and speakers, alike. It was a bit challenging to visit one booth after another. As seen below, Plato Wraps and Gavino's were some of the sponsors.

This is the booth of BYS --  an Australian cosmetics brand I'm not very familiar of. I got a bottle of nail polish from them which I'm so excited to try.

After making sure that we have left our names and contact information in all the booths, we went out of the convention and headed to the nearest coffee shop for a couple more hours of chit-chat. I must say that more than getting freebies from the generous sponsors of Blogapalooza, chatting with these ladies got the favorite-part-of-the-day award. Seriously. It was sooo good finally meeting them in person and knowing them in a whole different level. Like I posted on FB that night, it was rather liberating. It's like travelling to a place you haven't been to before. Not sure if they felt the same but with everything fast and slow that's been going on with my life right now, talking and just laughing with someone outside the normal bubble could just be the breath of fresh air I didn't know I needed. I was just blessed with their stories.

Overall, it was an exhausting day. But I wouldn't have it any other way. Again, I bring back all the glory to God. For bringing me to places I didn't know I wanted to be, for giving me tasks I didn't know I wanted to do, and for never stopping in surrounding me with encouraging people.

How about you? How was your weekend? Were you in Blogapalooza too? Anything out of ordinary that you've done lately? I'd love to hear from you so hit the box below. :)