I don’t know about you, but I am pretty damn excited for MommyCon Chicago to hit us here. I am especially excited this year because it will be my first year being able to attend a day with no child in tow. I am excited to experience it with my son as well as just with a friend. I feel like I will be able to experience MommyCon on two different levels this year.

MommyCon Chicago Sessions I am dying to see!

Every year I am excited for different speakers because I am prepping for different aspects of parenting each year. This year with my son being a toddler the topics have again changed. You can find the detailed list of sessions on MommyCon’s website.

Friday’s Sessions

To start Friday off I am excited for the 2:00 session “How Onbuhimos Inspired Naked Panda Designs.” I am excited to learn about Onbuhimos because while I don’t use babycarriers any longer I still help many of my friends find one that works well for them. I like to know as much as possible about a variety of different carriers. I have never gotten my hands on this style carrier and that makes me all the more interested to learn about it.

At 3:00 I am excited for the “Building Healthy Brains Are a Matter of Heart, presented by KinderCare” session. This session covers how important the developing brain is during a child’s first 3 years of life and while my son will be 3 by the time MommyCon hits I still want to learn. He is delayed and I would like to help him out as much as possible. I am hoping that this session will help me to understand his brain a little more.

At 4:00 I wish I could be joining Xza in the VIP session, but I did not score a VIP ticket this year so instead I will be attending the “Delivery, Decisions, & Doulas: How to Prepare the Team for Birth Without Freaking Out” session. Going to this session will be beneficial for me because I would love to learn how to be more of an advocate for myself when I have my next child. Things can be overwhelming and because I have scheduled c-sections I often feel like I have no control over the situation. I am hoping to learn how to regain that control the next time around. (Third times the charm, right?)

Saturday’s Sessions

My Saturday plans are a lot more lax than Friday’s plans. I do not have a session I am looking to attend every hour of MommyCon (which is good because I will have my toddler on Saturday and he will need time to get some energy out of his system).

My first session of the day will be at 11:15 where I am looking to attend the “City Babywearing: Expectations vs Reality. Smoothing the Way for Easy Days, presented by Cybex” session. Again I am looking to learn more about baby wearing even though I don’t currently baby wear. This session I am interested in because as someone with a physical disability I struggle with muscle strains and finding ways to do things comfortably. I am hoping to be able to baby wear even more often when the next little joins our family.

My 1:00 block is a tough one because I would like to attend the “Babywearing 101: From SSC’s to Wrapping, presented by Ergobaby” session, but I know that I need to attend the “Got a Picky Eater? (Babies 12 months – 8 Years), presented by ezpz” session for my son. While I do not classify him as a picky eater I do know that he has a rough time with new foods due to his Sensory Processing Disorder. He needs help learning to try and accept new foods and that is what I am hoping to learn in this session.

The next session I will be sitting in on will be for the 3:00 session where I have two different sessions of interest, but will ultimately sit in on the “Managing the Motherload” session because I am hoping that it will give me a little bit more insight on managing my time with a special needs son and with my blog. I want to learn and become better at what I do.

Sunday’s Sessions

Sunday has a lot of amazing sessions, but I will not be attending on Sunday. I wish I could, but I am the scatter-brained mom that planned her son’s birthday party for MommyCon weekend. Haha. I have to get back from the city and get the house ready for his birthday party by 4pm. We will see if the house looks as spectacular as I am hoping it does. (I doubt it will.)

MommyCon isn’t just about the sessions!

This is true. Sessions are amazing and you learn butt loads of new things, but the Exhibitor’s Hall is also a huge hit! Everyone loves a little shopping, especially when you can talk with the people who have a passion about their products. Of course many of the booths also have special deals and/or exclusive MommyCon prints or items.

My Must-Hit Exhibitors List

• Crane
• Green Lil Bums
• Peepeepants
• Replay
• Safari Ltd

There are many other amazing brands/stores that will be attending, but these are my must-have stops this year. I personally want to get my son a special new toy for his birthday at MommyCon this year. I am also looking to stock up on some Mommy Cloth, possibly more toddler dishes, and a new humidifier.

Get Your Tickets for MommyCon Chicago!

If you haven’t scored your tickets to MommyCon Chicago yet then I recommend you grab them now! Tickets must be purchased ahead of time and cannot be purchased at the door. This means you need to think ahead and be prepared for some fun! If you are looking to attend on Friday you will need to purchase either the Premium Toddler ticket or the Premium Baby Toddler ticket. If you aren’t attending on Friday then you can grab a General Admission ticket. The General Admission ticket does not come with a gift bag, but MommyCon isn’t just about a gift bag. It is about the sessions, the community, and the fun that you will have.

Purchase your tickets on Eventbrite and use the code: MTAP19 to save 10% at checkout. Last year I wrote some tips for traveling to MommyCon with kids in tow. Check it out if this is your first time going to MommyCon Chicago.