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It has been a hectic week but I survived the packing, baking, cleaning, posting, list making and getting prepared for the next 3 days. Now the time has come for me to load my bags and make the ride to the Great Wolf Lodge in Concord, NC for Reviewer's Retreat 2012 thanks to the Double Duty Divas.

I thought when I had my seizure a few months ago that my hopes of attending my first conference this summer were crumbling before me. I knew I would do just about anything to keep my ticket for the Retreat. Thankfully it all worked out and I'm making a 5 hour ride tomorrow with a lovely lady, Amee from Madame Deals.

I am a member of multiple Facebook groups. There are probably some I could drop but I just haven't but it's because of some of the FB groups that I got a discounted ticket to RR, got a ride with Amee and got a hotel room for the trip for a little over $50. Can't beat that for 3 days/2 nights at a Great Wolf Lodge! How did I manage the cheap room? I am rooming with 5 other wonderful bloggers I met online and we split the room cost 6 ways. Would you be able to spend 3 days in a room with strangers? How about 6 women and 1 bathroom? Who are these 5 other gals that are so gracious enough to let me crash with them?

My VA blogging bud Lindsay from Laughing Lindsay will be one of my roomies. I met Lindsay in 2010 when I went to the WeBlog focus group in TN. Before that I didn't know many local bloggers. Lindsay and I have a lot in common. We love blogging, of course, and we both love cupcakes. I will be glad to hang out with Lindsay again. Lindsay is the only roommate that I have actually met outside of my computer screen before this weekend. I love meeting new people especially when those ladies are bloggers that understand why I do what I do.

I have my Reviewer's Retreat ticket thanks to Eleanor from Bellesouth Blogs. We met in one of my FB groups. She is such a sweetheart. I love seeing her photos of her furbaby Sebastian.

Another roomie is Misty from CEO of Me. She is one of the bloggers that is also a member of multiple FB groups that I am in. She helped me get my ticket with Eleanor, helped me get my room for the price we got and she can rock your socks when it comes to blog design work.

The other 2 roomates are Jerri Ann from Mom~E~centric & Four Reasons Media and April, another frugal living blogger, from Krazy Clippers. I have learned a lot from Jerri Ann in the couple months we have been chatting via FB as we all got to know one another. She probably doesn't realize it but in just a short time she has shown me that no matter what you can do what you love if you give it your all. I can thank April for helping me with some help getting some coupon goodies set up on the blog in the past week. I'm happy to have met another krazy clipper that enjoys frugal living as much as I do.

I have learned a lot from this group of ladies in just a couple months. I feel as if we have all known one another for ages the way we carry on in our daily chats.

I now know what it feels like when I saw all the other blog posts from bloggers who attend conferences and have that bond with one another. I am sure meeting in person and spending time together will be a blast for sure.

I asked a question to my readers wanting to know what we could do here at Mama Bee Does to make visiting a better experience for them. The answer has been pretty much the same from everyone. Y'all want more reviews, giveaways and recipes. I believe that attending Reviewer's Retreat can help me learn more of the review blogger world and hopefully open more doors for me to bring y'all what you asked for. There will be "courses" to help the undergrads and the seasoned grads learn even more on what it takes to be a good review blogger.

I need to get some rest so I can be fresh and prepared to soak up the knowledge and fun of the next 3 days. I will try and update while I am there but with so much going on it may be after I get home and settled in that I get to share what I take away from my first blogging conference. I mean there will be Meagan from Sunshine and Sippy Cups, Amy from Mom Spark, Jennifer from Mom Bloggers Club, Ted from Collective Bias and many more speakers. I also get to take a ride in a Kia Sorento since Kia is a RR sponsor and are allowing bloggers to ride or drive with them while at the conference. There are many more brand sponsors that I look forward to chatting with during the Sponsor Speedway. Then I have to make time to hit the waterpark and the in lodge Dunkin Donuts and all the other restaurants and fun that Great Wolf Lodge has to offer. The past few months have been kind of crazy for me so I am looking forward to a little time away for some blogger/ girl time fun. All right, off to bed with me. "I'm too excited to sleep."

Have you attended a conference before? Have you ever stayed at a Great Wolf Lodge?