Leave vacation. Catch a flight. Miss my connection. Grab the next flight. Change in the airport bathroom. Ride in a stinky NY cab. Arrive at Brasserie 8 1/2. Phew- I thought I would never make it! My luggage was in tact but I wasn’t sure my mood was - - that is, until I joined the NY Moms blog launch party- already in progress – and realized this group of women could pick anyone off the floor!

2 weeks ago, Graco sponsored the 4th and latest blog launch, the New York City Moms blog (sister site to Silicon Valley, Chicago and DC Metro). The upscale cocktail hour was held at the Brassierie 8 1/2 in mid-town.

I was greeted by Erin who had so wonderfully set all the Nautilus information up in my absence and it was a whirlwind from there…

There was Beth from SVMoms with the cutest short haircut ever! (I say that because we looked like we went to the same hairdresser), Jill, also from SVMoms, who I had never met in person was there and Stacy who we met out in Palo Alto just a few months back. Jen Lemen stopped by to give me hugs and photography tips and the Today Show’s Janet Shamlian (mom of 5!) interviewed me for a piece on corporations reaching out to mommy bloggers! (haven’t seen the footage yet, if it’s good, you can be sure I will share it )

After the mini-reunion and tv-time, I thought I should meet some of the new women who make up the NY City Moms blog. I talked to Andi first who recently published a book “Mama Knows Breast” (that would have been helpful for me a few years ago) and Beth who had written her own book (published that day!) called “Peeing in Peace” (which will be a good read if I can get some peace and quiet to check it out). We then chatted with Alexandra and Carolyn who both had slung tiny babies and were clearly happy to be out and about (and looking fantastic, I might add) and then awarded Kelcey a Calphalon One set for winning our “Day in the Life” photo contest with a telling photo of her daughter going potty on the streets of NYC! (not something the moms of suburban PA would understand!)

This is only a handful of the women we met- all of which seemed to be enjoying themselves and each other. Here are a few posts and pictures from the event:

- The post at NYC Moms Blog (scroll down past Katie Couric!) http://svmomblog.typepad.com/nyc_moms/2008/04/katie-couric-kn.html
- Beth’s Excellent NY Adventure - http://techmamas.typepad.com/main/2008/04/techmamas-excel.html
- Kelcey’s famed photo- http://www.mamabirddiaries.com/?p=696

As we sat down to create this blog for Graco, we started with the basics. What is a blog? Why do they exist? Who writes them and why do people read them? (yes- the BASICS). We got the textbook answers (and it turns out, there are many, many different answers for all of the above.) but then we stumbled upon this blog , and frankly just by reading it, we learned more about the blogosphere than anyone could have told us. Jennifer Satterwhite wrote a great post at BlogHer that shows how this is a perfect example of how blogs create community through conversation and legitimately bring people together.

As we were planning our Graco Get-Together with the DC Metro Moms group, and looking forward to meeting so many great mom bloggers face-to-face, we were excited to see that the ever-inspiring WhyMommy was planning on attending. She was kind enough to wrap up her chemo just in time to attend the party. (although I’m not 100% sure she was motivated to do that just to come to our event) Perhaps what motivated her was the opportunity to meet some of her “friends” and “Team Members” who are big supporters of WhyMommy and of course, dedicated readers of her blog.

Well last week, we saw this incredible video that her friends put together for her which just illustrated why the online community is so powerful and so important, especially with moms. Take a look:

The time and effort that went into this tribute from all the moms (under Midwestern Mommy’s guidance) is one powerful signifier, but even more so, is this list of posts, all titled ‘Tomorrow’, that some amazing moms, bloggers and friends wrote in support of WhyMommy the day before her surgery:

Canape, Mamma Loves, DC Metro Moms, Stimeyland, Lawyer Mama, Queen of Spain, Slouching Mom, Motherhood Uncensored, I Can’t Complain Anymore Than Usual, Two Is Now Three, Two Lines on a Stick, It’s Not About That Anyway, Around the Island, A Decent Bookmark, A Mother’s Musings, The Dairy Wife, Dirty Laundry, All Things Angela, Anderson Family, Kim at BabyCenter, Baby Makes Family, Bubba’s Sis, Bubblewench, Coming to a Nursery Near You, Crazy Bananas, Do You Not Know What Causes That?, Pretty Babies, I Can Fly, Just Not Up, The Further Adventures of SpaceMom, GoodyBlog, Harmony in Motion, Hotfessional, Jen Lemen, Useless Ramblings, Tumble Dry, House of H, Fertile Mertile, What Works for Us, Mountain Momma, Coffee, Shoes, and Ramblings, Dirty Laundry, My Five Little Monkies, My Life As It Is, My Collective Life, Crib Chronicles, Karaoke Diva, Live from the Wang of America, Mom 2 2 Teens, A Bead a Day, Blonde Mom Blog, The Estrogen Files, The Farm House Kids, The Dana Files, The Fourth k h, Growing a Pair, Her Bad Mother, Hormone Colored Days, Just Another Mommy Blog, Just Enjoy Him, Lead Baby, Playgroups Are No Place for Children, Petroville, Phoenix Says, Pundit Mom, Daily Verses, Little Buggas, Sarah and the Goon Squad, So D.C., Chicken and Cheese, Zone Family, Life with Our Little Ladies, Andria and Co., “That” Psycho Family, Sassafrass, Ladybug & Lizards, Parentopia, Plans2Match, Marie Millard, Miss Zoot, Mrs. Fussypants, The Magpie Files, Make Mine a Quad, Nervous Girl, Mommy Needs a Cocktail, Mom, Ma’am, Me, Mommy and the Marine, Monkey Business, Monkeys and Marbles, The Mummy Chronicles, Never Too Late, Okay, Fine, D’it, Ontario Emperor, It’s My Life, Laugh if you Must, Mommy Dance, Slacker-moms-r-us, The Blogs of Life, Midwestern Mommy, Mommy to the Snugglebunnies, PediaScribe, The Pile I’m Standing In, The Ramblings of a Woman, Reality Testing, The Road to Home, TechMamas, Ten Minutes to Naptime, Tiny Mantras, Hearts Wide Open, Baby Cubed, The Butrfly Garden, Reflecting, Sunrays and Saturdays, Amy and Chris, Useless Ramblings, Veritable Life, Mayberry Mom, The Musing Mommy, Wheels on the Bus, Working Mama 24/7, Mommy Needs Coffee writing at BlogHer … BabyMinding, Life with Hannah and Lilly, Mommy … etc., Kat and Rob, My Collective Life

Thank you to all of these bloggers for showing us why community is so important and the significant impact individuals can have when they care about each other.

And Thank you to WhyMommy for sharing so much of yourself. The expression “you get what you give” is clearly the case here.

And I mean that. I was told to expect a good time from the DC Metro Mom Bloggers and it wouldn’t be like this group to let anyone down! So a good time was certainly had by all. That’s always easy when you’re surrounded by good food and wine (yes- the wine makes it easy), a cool product to check out and talk about (they said it too!), and great conversations. That’s really the best part for all of us- the great conversation… I got to hear about Vicky’s rambunctious daughter who acts more like a two-year old boy than a dainty little girl, and Kristen whose son windexed his brother’s highchair mid-meal and Devra (a self-proclaimed Pack ‘n Playmate) who’s written an amazing book called Mommy Guilt as well as many other great stories.

Since the Silicon Valley and Chicago Mom’s Get-Togethers, Graco has launched this blog so I was able to rub shoulders with fellow (yes- fellow!) bloggers! Many of them were kind enough to give me the thumbs up while some I think are waiting to read it before they go that far.

We’ve seen a number of great posts pop up from the great bloggers since the meet up, here are some of the best:

• What a Night! - WhyMommy (and crossposted - with some great comments)
• D.C. Moms Gone Wild - LawyerMama (also cross posted)
• Wine, Women and One Incredible Baby Soothing Machine - Mommy Chronicles
• Graco Newborn Soothing Center - Julie
• DC Metro Moms Caucus - PunditMom
• I Love Y’all - Stimey
• Friday’s Fun Find - Graco Sweetpeace -Vicky
• Party in the DC - Momma K

The whole evening was just abuzz with a high energy that resembled nothing of a post-holiday wrap up party. Thank you ladies for ushering in the New Year with such umph.

When Graco decided that we wanted to meet some of the real people (funny, smart, interesting, people) behind some of the best reading material for parents on the web, my hand shot up like an excited school girl. I said, “so you want to get together with these women, throw parties, chat about being moms, eat great food in some very cool cities (and talk about Graco, of course) and someone needs to take on that job?” Hmmm… let me think it over… pick me, pick me, pick me!

Well I guess I was loud enough (I’ve been told that) because I have had the opportunity to help host the Graco Get-Togethers . Graco is excited about the opportunity to meet with moms in the blogosphere. It is really a great way to understand what is important to them, what engages them, what makes them tick and to best of all, hear all about their experiences being a mom. (I don’t even feel awkward shoving pictures of my kids in all the moms faces - they do it too!)

Well our first Get-Together was with the lovely ladies of the Silicon Valley Moms Blog who were kind enough to let us bring them together for a chic, poolside party at the Four Seasons Hotel in Palo Alto, CA. The weather was beautiful, the hotel was cool (heck, there was even a celebrity sighting!), the food and drinks were wonderful and the conversation was like the cherry on top! While the moms enjoyed hand massages, Graco took the opportunity to introduce sweetpeace™ – the Newborn Soothing Center™ and hear feedback. There were some great comments, suggestions and even pleas for an adult sized version. (duly noted!) It was a lively group that clearly enjoyed getting together, some even meeting for the first time in person, and Graco was honored to sponsor the event. (and I certainly enjoyed the in-bathroom TVs that I got to watch while showering!)

A few weeks later, Danielle (foodmomiac) was kind enough to open her home to the contributors of the Chicago moms blog for an intimate, holiday affair that included manicures, a jewely display and not to be outdone, sweetpeace! Unfortunately the Graco team got snowed out of the windy city so we weren’t able to join in the festivities but we sent Dr. Jennifer Rosinia, (a Chicago local) who Graco consulted with on the development of the Newborn Soothing Center. She was able to share a little bit more of the science behind the soothing which is always interesting (more interesting than the marketing folks talking, anyway). The moms chatted away over great food and drinks apparently into the wee (well “wee” for exhausted moms) hours of the night and had a wonderful time.

We are looking forward to our third Get-Together with the DC Metro moms blog where we will begrudgingly usher out the holiday season with one last party. The event will be hosted at the Le Chat Noir Restaurant in Washington, DC and Graco will once again be showcasing sweetpeace to moms who I’m sure are ready for some post-holiday sweet peace themselves. I’ve been told to expect a good time with some good time women, so we are very much looking forward to it!

I am very excited in writing this post to introduce Graco to the blogosphere. Today is certainly a “first” for Graco but it is just one step in a long journey that Graco has been on for over 50 years. Graco certainly has great hopes, aspirations and goals for this blog, but much like entering into parenthood, you never quite know what to expect.

Graco has been watching the corporate blogosphere evolve with various brands talking with real voices in conversations with their customers. We are excited to be able to take a more active role in the online parenting community and we hope we can contribute at least as much as we learn. Of course, when we say “corporate” blog, you can appreciate that there will be limits to what we can say and who we respond to, but our intention is to create a voice that truly represents who we are – a company of individuals who are moms and dads, grandmoms and pop-pops, aunties and uncles, caregivers, soon-to-be parents and lovers of all things Baby.

We hope to engage all of you in conversations about the wondrous journey of parenthood, talk directly with consumers, share industry knowledge, be a resource for parents, but mostly, we hope to make it an open community with a two-way conversation. We are excited and anxious to hear from you. We truly believe this will help us to become a better brand in servicing the “real” needs of parents.

Now to introduce myself- I’m Lindsay Lebresco, your connection to Graco and your blog guide. I’ve been a blog reader since I became a mom almost 3 years ago and while I’ve kept a journal for both of my children since they were born, I’ve never had a public voice where these two worlds come together. For this I’m excited, but it may take me a bit to find that voice – one that is truly representative of me as well as this entire company (which honestly, can be a bit intimidating!).

My journey as a parent has been incredible- as most are, but I have the privilege to work in an environment that shares my passion and dedication to children. And now, I have the opportunity to tell you more about both journeys. I hope you will enjoy the conversation here and be sure to keep watch for contributions from other employees, experts and friends of Graco.

We consider your feedback an integral part of this conversation, so feel free to share your thoughts on how we could make this blog more useful, more informative and even more engaging for you. Please keep in mind that Graco works within a highly regulated industry, which means there are certain topics we will not be able to discuss here. For a full understanding of what we can and can’t discuss, be sure to reference our Rules of Engagement and terms of service.