EVO '12 Highlights
Oh, you guys...The blogging gods really hated me this week because I have re-written this post three times. My blogging software does not have an auto-save feature and the first time I wrote this post, the software/Internet/server/whatever hung up on me before I could save and when I logged back in, three-quarters of my text was gone. *sob* The second time, I accidentally navigated away from my CMS {again before saving} and once again, my material was gone. *meltdown* I'm hoping that the third time is a charm. Please say it is.
So, let's try this again...
Hi everyone!
It is so nice to be back here in my little space on the Internet talking to you again! I am excited to tell you all about my second EVO conference. I have been back from Utah for a little over a week and I am just now sitting down to work on my blog. And feeling very much like a slacker. But things could not be more the opposite. Two days after I returned home, my 17 year-old cousin arrived from Italy to stay with me and Peter for a month to practice his English while he interns at Peter's office. No matter how organized I was before leaving for EVO, there was still a lot to do when I came home and life has been go-go-go for the past several days. I have never been so grateful for coffee and ibuprofen in my life. It is all good though. My cousin could not be any sweeter and more polite and we are all having a blast together. As much as I have missed blogging these past few days, I had to prioritize taking care of my family and household for a few days. Now that I am finally back into a routine, let me tell you about my trip!
EVO is held in the picturesque mountain town of Park City. For those of you who are not familiar with this conference, the full name of the conference is "The Evolution of Women in Social Media". It was founded by Jyl Johnson Pattee of Mom It Forward and Rachael Herrscher of Today's Mama.
This year, I volunteered at the conference with the Mom It Forward team. Having been a "newbie" last year, I know what it feels like to be at a conference for the first time, so I was eager to help newcomers to EVO. It was a great way to meet new friends. I couldn't have been happier with my volunteer assignments: social media! I was responsible for live-tweeting and Instagramming from the sessions, workshops and events I attended. If you follow me on Twitter, you may have seen your feed blow up with dozens of tweets from me. Every session and hands-on workshop I attended was fun, informative and well-organized. Everyone behind the scenes at EVO really knows how to bring in talented professionals and we all benefitted by their generosity and willingness to share their time and talents with us.
Here are the highlights from my second EVO experience:
Wednesday evening, I attended a private dinner hosted by my friend Sandy and her husband Paul at Slopes restaurant, where we met Mary Shanahan, the new Senior Director for Brand Marketing at Harry & David. We had a delicious dinner and fantastic conversation about the relationships between brands and bloggers. Mary was delightful to speak with and Sandy and Paul are the consummate hosts.
L-R: Me, Sandy, Mary, Maria, HelenJane, Kelley, Heidi, Alison
On the first day of the conference, I finally bit the bullet and sat in on a three-hour SEO session presented by Dennis Goedegebuure of The Next Corner. I was apprehensive about attending a more tech-y type of session and the thought of listening to something I was so clueless about for three hours almost had me breaking out in hives. I have been avoiding learning about SEO because I just do not understand the language and concepts. But as soon as Dennis started his presentation, all my apprehension dissolved. He explained the concepts of SEO in plain English {with the most adorable Dutch accent}, defined the tech-y terminology and made the class interactive for those of us who brought laptops so that we could actually apply the concepts to our own blogs while he walked us through the steps. He was patient and answered everyone's questions. If you are ever at a conference and Dennis is presenting, I highly encourage you to attend. You will not be disappointed.
Friday afternoon, I volunteered as the session lead for a photography workshop presented by Tracey Clark, the founder of Shutter Sisters. She is a self-taught photographer and has recently published a book called Elevate the Everyday. She was engaging, funny and encouraging. After her presentation, we enjoyed our lunch break outdoors at Red Pine Lodge and then Tracey encouraged us to walk around the property and take photographs while she walked around and answered our questions.
Friday evening, I braved a slightly terrifying ride in the Orange Bubble to attend a dinner sponsored by The California Avocado Commission at Lookout Cabin. Although a wind and rain storm knocked out power to most of Park City and the surrounding area {causing us to get stuck on the way up!}, the dinner went off without a hitch thanks to backup generators and a well-organized team of restaurant staff . Our evening started with a friendly Top Chef-style competition to make the best guacamole, judged by Top Chef Masters Mary Sue Milliken and Susan Feniger of The Two Hot Tamales. Afterwards, we enjoyed a delicious dinner while Mary Sue and Susan entertained us with a cooking demonstration. The evening ended with a presentation by Jaden Hair and her husband Scott of Steamy Kitchen about turning your blog into a business. The California Avocado Commission sent us all home with a generous gift bag filled with a Haas avocado (YUM!), an avocado slicer, recipes and a few other fun goodies.
Saturday was the last full day of the conference and was filled with activity. I started the day by attending a very informative session entitled "Branding for Bloggers" presented by Mary Fallon and Dori Graff of Itizen. The gave excellent pointers on building your brand, differentiating your blog and communicating your brand through different marketing channels. I took a ton of notes in this session since this is an area of blogging I am very interested in.
Later that afternoon, I attended my second photography workshop presented by Diane Cu and Todd Porter of White on Rice Couple, Cristi Dame of Weeds to Wishes, Casey Mullins of Moosh in Indy, and Jenn Tilley of How To: Simplify. Each photographer talked to us about their particular photographic style and gave us their pointers on how to best capture our photographs whether we use a point-and-shoot, dSLR or iPhone. We then boarded a shuttle to downtown Park City where we split up into smaller groups led by each photographer and practiced taking photos, asking questions and learning from our group's photographer. I wished I could have split myself in five so I could have walked with each photographer! I decided to walk in Diane Cu's group and practice my iPhonography skills. I will be dedicating a separate post to the two photography workshops I took at EVO because I have a lot of notes and pointers I want to share with you. In the meantime, here is a picture we took together using our iPhones:
In EVO tradition, the conference ended with a big party at Park City Mountain Resort, where we all enjoyed a more relaxed pace while eating delicious food and enjoying outdoor adventure activities like the zip line and alpine slide. I was still twitchy from having gotten stuck on the Orange Bubble Friday evening, so I stayed on solid ground. The party was a great way to visit more at length with friends and get some pictures together. I love everything about the EVO conference, but the thing I love the most is seeing my friends and meeting new ones. Sadly, I was not able to get a picture with everyone, but I did manage a few:
I loved seeing Maria again!
This is Maria and her husband Josh's baby, Caleb. I call him my pint-size boyfriend. He's a charmer! I almost brought him back home to Texas with me!
I met Annalise last year, and got a chance to visit with her more this year. She is just delightful.
I finally got to meet Krista and I felt like I have known her all my life.
I also got to meet Rachel, a fellow Texas blogger!
Some of Utah's finest bloggers and lovely ladies all around!
L-R: Annalise, Maria, Heidi, Kelley, Krista
Other friends I saw again or met for the first time were:
Dara of Cookin' Canuck
Carrian of Sweet Basil
Lindsey of Cafe Johnsonia
Kristen of Dine and Dish
Amy of Mom Advice
Elise of The Family Lab for Inquiry and Play
Shawn of I Wash, You Dry
Kami of No Biggie
Stephanie of Lick My Spoon
Rachel of And Then She Snapped
Kelli and Kristi of Lolly Jane
Emily of Is This Really My Life?
Deborah of Taste and Tell
Wendy of Wendolonia
For the past two years, the EVO conference has been the highlight of my summer. You cannot help but come home from such a fun conference set in a beautiful setting feeling inspired and enthusiastic. I am planning on making EVO the highlight of many summers to come. If you would like to read about my first EVO experience, you can find the posts here and here.
I will be back next week with two other EVO-related posts: one about the photography workshops I attended, and another about the two very special keynote presentations that were given about two philanthropic initiatives that have since become causes dear to my heart.
And...this Friday, be sure to check back here for a fun post. I will be announcing it on my Twitter and Facebook feeds as well.
Until then, Buon appetito and Love!
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Favorite conference ever. Love your pictures. Um, you & Maria could totally be sisters!!
It really sounds like such a great conference and the setting is just magnificent (even if you have to travel in those orange bubbles...)
Im happy you had a wonderful time! I'm very proud of you! Happy you are back home. I missed ya and love you!
Flavia, what a great post! Looks like a great time. I love Park City.
I loved reading your recap and I loved meeting you. I wish we would have been able to spend more time together!
Sounds like it was a wonderful weekend, Flavia! Well, except for the whole Orange Bubble experience. Ha Ha! I look forward to reading your post about the photography workshops.
EVO sounds like so much fun! I was a little envious reading your tweets and seeing all your photos - I hope I get to meet you one day! :) Looking forward to your post on the photography workshops!
Sweet Flavia! I LOVED meeting you!!! I'm so happy that your internet is working again and that you were able to finally post your recipe xo
ADORE YOU xo
As always, I wish we could have spent more time together! It is always a pleasure getting to see you :)
Loved reading this. I enjoy everything about EVO and look forward to returning next year. I'd like to do more photography and food, though the technical education is my favorite.
It was so great to spend time with you at Evo! I really wish we could be neighbors...we are sisters after all:) And Caleb adores you! Hugs from the three peas! xo