A Weekend Of Relaxation, Fun and Learning- The HP Print and Pamper Retreat and Conference

Recently I joined other moms invited from around the country for the first ever HP Print and Pamper Retreat sponsored by HP and MyPrintly. This interactive, one-of-a kind social media conference retreat is the perfect opportunity to connect with other social media moms, some long time friends, and others I’m thrilled to finally be meeting in person for the first time, as well as HP professionals and the MyPrintly craft experts in a fun, creative and relaxing environment.

HP has been a part of our family ever since the 70’s when my husband worked at the Santa Rosa location. We were lucky enough to watch it grown from a small technology company, with a handful of employees to the move “up the hill” to the incredible state-of the art facility where he worked for many years.

Our pampering begins as soon as we check into our host resort for the weekend, the beautiful Rancho Bernardo Inn located in the northern hills just outside of San Diego.

My blogging buddy Rene Viartas of Magical DIStractions could not wait to be pampered at the San Diego Spa and pampered we were with signature massages that melted every care away. 

After our relaxing afternoon we were off for more pampering thanks to the artists of the Diesel Salon.  Attendees could choose from makeup, hair or a manicure.

With new make-up freshly applies it was off to meet up with Julie Bigboy of Saving Up For Disney and the one and Wendy Wright of Plugged In Family and Maureen Fitzgerald the Wisconsin Mommy for 3 days of laughter, fun and relaxation all while learning first hand about all the latest technology and products from HP.

The carnival themed evening was full of great food and fun as we learned about some new HP technology on the horizon and were able to play with some of the newest HP printers, paper products and photo apps plus meet with engineers and reps from HP who talked us about what we liked about each of the new products and took in any thoughts we had for possible improvements or suggestions for other uses.

If you’ve ever been to an event, such as the Disney Social Media Moms Celebration or the Disney On the Road series, then you already know that the team at BSM Media is always full of surprises and this was no exception.   When we came back to our rooms at the end of the evening waiting for each of us was a wonderful picture frame with some of our most cherished family photos thanks al made for us with the PicCollage app. It was a great reminder of how HP goes out of their way to make it easy for busy families to bring their memories off their phones and social media platforms and turn them into something you can display and enjoy all thanks to such easy to use tools as the HP line of photo paper, printers and Instant Ink. I haven’t stopped using apps like PicCollage and HP Snapshots ever since my return home and the more I use them, the more things I can think of to create.

Friday started bright and early with a tour of the HP facilities for an in depth look and personal discussions with their staff. Although at this point we are sworn to secrecy on many of the incredible up and coming products over the next few years, I can share that many of the technology coming from HP over the next few years, especially in regards to printing, will totally change the way you think about printing in the future.  One of the best parts of being at HP for the day was seeing first hand that it is a company that truly listens to what the consumer has to say and wants to learn what we really want in a product and then they go that one step further to create and develop products and services that reflect that.

The evening was filled with more fun as we had a chance to craft with the MyPrintly Moms and HP Products. Thanks to the patience of the remarkable and creative ladies, and the help of my blogging buddies, even I was able to walk away with my very own set of Jack Skellington Mickey Ears, an adorable mini holiday bunting banner, perfect for display on the front door or wall as well as a personalized fall themed light-up jar which I adorned with a picture my son who is performer at Walt Disney World had just sent me moments before which I was able to print and use right from the app on my phone.

This was a great way to learn just how creative even I could be thanks to a little imagination and by using HP Products and an HP Printer.

Saturday started out with breakfast and a series of inspirational speakers.  Arlene Pellicane shared some smart, practical advice on raising children in a media saturated culture in which she shared many of her tips from the book she co-authored book with Gary Chapman “Growing Up Social“.

Next up, our hostess for the weekend and the person who brought us all together, Maria Bailey who opened herself up to all of us as she shared lessons she’s learned in business and life to help us navigate both our blogs/businesses and motherhood, which sometimes are not mutually exclusive of each other. I’ve been lucky enough over the last few years to be at many of the events put on by Maria and her team at BSM Media but to hear her as a speaker truly an insight into her life that few ever get to see. Next up was Lori Lorenz is the Director of New Business Solutions for HP who shared different ways that each one of us could easily grow our won leadership skills to help us advance both in our business as well as in life. Last to take the stage was a panel of blogging experts, each with a story to tell, and practical tips that could be easily implemented right then and there by each one of us.

All of this just on it’s own would be a weekend to remember but Maria Bailey and her team from BSM Media didn’t stop there.

Boxed lunches in hand, we were all whisked away to the Happiest Place on Earth, The Disneyland® Resort where we were treated to a once in a lifetime day with friends laughing and enjoying Disneyland in all of its #HalloweenTIme splendor topped off with reserved seats for the newest nighttime spectacular,

the Paint Your Night Parade and the Disneyland Forever Fireworks all part of the #Disneyland60 Celebration.

The chance to spend this magical weekend with so many incredible bloggers from all over the country and be with old friends and new friends too came to an end much to soon for where else could you come together for a weekend of pampering, relaxation and fun, while at the same be a part of a conference where you came away with so many new ideas and tools to that will continue to inspire you and help you grow over the months to come.

Thank you Maria Bailey, BSM Media, HP, MyPrintly, the Rancho Bernardo Inn, and Disneyland for a weekend I’ll not soon forget. I can’t wait for next year’s HP Print and Pamper Retreat and Conference.