Written by Melinda
Thursday, February 25th, 2010
When Tim & I arrived at the hotel on Friday, we had several boxes from vendors waiting for us. My favorite thing in the entire world is to receive packages, as it feels like Christmas! I told Tammy (T2Nashville) that if she wanted to see Christmas time in the middle of February, to come on over! Packages continued to arrive until that late afternoon. This meant that there would be lots of stuff to take to the Meet & Greet room.
As we stood at the check in desk, I turned to find some familiar faces over by the elevator. It was Lynnda, Danielle and Toni from BTV. It was so strange hearing the same voices that I am only used to on the internet, but seeing them in person right before my very eyes! Of course, being from the south, we hug all of our folks. So I gave ‘em some love (Suthern’ style) and chatted for awhile. Sigh. Those ladies are just remarkable. Remarkable. The way you imagine them by spending time reading their posts and watching the episodes… that is the way they really are! Down to earth, friendly, and not afraid to reach out to people. Here’s a pic of the entire group from BTV who got together Friday night.
Saturday morning – Tim & I started really early by eating breakfast (and for the life of me, I cannot remember where or what it was!). We made it back to the room in time for Tammy to arrive. All three of us headed on down to the Meet & Greet area so that we could assess the situation before bringing packages. Then, Tim got the cart from the front desk, loaded it and brought it all to us. What in the world would I do without him?
We all unpacked boxes, and I scurried around trying to figure out the best method to stack the supplies. We lined it neatly down the table as quickly as possible and Tim started clicking away on the camera trigger. We originally had nine vendors to commit but two were not able to ship the products so we’ll be more timely in our asking next time! One vendor’s goods didn’t have a correct address and it was sent back. I was quite busy all week trying to make sure everything got there, and make it to the right location. You could say I was a little stressed! But, I am so grateful and thankful to the wonderful vendors who provided freebies. They are:
Blender Bottle, Building Block Vitamins, Celebrate Vitamins, Kay’s Naturals, Labrada Nutrition, and Slimpressions. A special shout out goes to the folks at Asher’s Sugar Free Chocolates who wanted to take part but due to a snow storm, were unable to ship the products out to us in time for the meeting. Also, Gosh That’s Good donated some terrific samples which somehow made it to the wrong address. This made me sad because, THEY ARE FABULOUS! Slimpressions donated a Skinny Mini shapewear garment, along with providing a promo code (which is still active if you want to order) so attendees could receive a discount.
Many thought that I worked for one of the companies that were represented. I had to introduce myself and they asked if I was a patient, or worked for a vendor. NO! I’m a patient… I just wanted to share some of my favorite products with others who might not know about them. I hope to work on some signage for the next M&G.
While handing out goodies, I met some great folks. I can’t even begin to remember all their names, but it was so encouraging to see people who were eager and excited about their weight loss journeys. My journey this year has been a little boring, “same ole, same ole”, and I needed to receive a breath of fresh air. I needed rejuvenation, and watching these wonderful people so excited and inspiring just gave me a second wind of fervor. I want to take a moment to say, “Thank you” to all who shared their stories and time.
I stayed at the table til probably noon, and then cut out because of a headache. It was also TIME FOR MELINDA TO EAT! I normally am very regimented in my eating, and every two to three hours, its either meal time or snack time. Somewhere in between breakfast and lunch, Dave over at Gastric Bypass Barbie’s table made me the most heavenly shake. I have heard of making shakes with sugar free jello pudding, but must readily admit that I have not done it. He made pistachio, and it was to die for! I slurped it down so fast! If it weren’t for Dave, I probably would have had a low blood sugar episode. Thanks, Dave!
Speaking of Gastric Bypass Barbie, I have known Cari for several years now. We met on the Bariatric Eating board. And, the past year she has been a part of BTV and RF boards as well. I’ve spoken to her on the phone, spent lots of time communicating via email, and it was finally so nice to put my arms around her and give her the Suthern “howdy doo”. Her husband, Juan, is such a nice man. He and Tim hit it off immediately and spent quite a bit of time chatting it up. Cari is a go-getter, alright! She worked hard at her table, put lots of planning and thought into it, and her banners were absolutely amazing (gotta love those hot pink shoes)! But, then again… would you have expected anything less from Barbie? NOT me!! She sure lives up to her name.
Our RF (Recovering Fatty forum) was represented. Here is a picture of Cari (Gastric Bypass Barbie), Tammy (T2Nashville, and myself).
That’s all I can think of right now. I’ve written a book. But, just one more shout out to all the folks I met from the BTV boards. Linda Eaves, Rob, Ian and his family, Patti, Lynnda & her husband, Amy & her friend, Danielle, Toni & Mickey, Cari, of course Tammy! I can’t forget her. I know I’m missing someone but ya’ll are just the kindest folks. Thanks for being part of my support system. You should check out their blogs, too!
