Recap: #GLOParty Cocktail Party

I had been looking forward to the pre-Bloggy Boot Camp cocktail party hosted by Girls' Lunch Out {GLO} for what seemed like FOR-EVAH!!!! On Friday, it was showtime!

I arrived early at the Marathon Grill to help check-in attendees. There were close to 100 women in attendance, but Pam and I kept pace with the mass onslaught of arriving women. It has been such a rewarding experience to see how women have embraced GLO.

Yeah, you were there or you were square! Lots of wining and dining! The place was hoppin'!

UPS, the title sponsor, was on hand to fill attendees in on their offerings, including UPS My Choice, a service that allows you to schedule your deliveries around YOUR schedule. Love that!!!!

Although I was busy at the check-in desk for much of the night, I was able to sneak away for a picture.

photo credit: Girls' Lunch Out

With GLO co-founders Tina (second from left) and Erica (far right), and fellow blogger, Rebecca.

With Rebecca.

And I may or may not have indulged in one or two of these scrumptious cupcakes throughout the night!

It was yet another successful Girls' Lunch Out event! I am so honored to be part of the GLO team. I value the professional relationship as well as the friendship that I've developed with Erica and Tina, and I look forward to sharing many future events with the lovely ladies of GLO.

Were you at the party? If so, what did you love most about your experience?

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Girls' Lunch Out Comes to Red Bank, NJ!!

Imagine this: a room full of women who barely know each other. Most are meeting for the very first time. And guess what? It's as loud as can be, and you'd think these women had known each other forever!

That was the scene at the very first Girls' Lunch Out {GLO}, New Jersey event which was held on Saturday at Gaetano's Restaurant. I was honored to co-host this event with Chrissy MacCarrick from Life as a CEO. Chrissy and I joined forces with the GLO co-founders, Tina and Erica, to bring GLO to central New Jersey.

Chrissy and I greeted attendees as they arrived. I loved meeting so many women from the Garden State!

One Hope Wine was our generous wine sponsor. Please check them out. Not only were they generous to GLO, they are generous all around, donating 50% of profits to various charities.

We were very lucky to have some fabulous sponsors including Kings Food Markets, Meridian Health's Meridian Momtourage, Danielle Sepulveres, and Lucille Roberts.


Each {GLO} luncheon has a purpose such as learn, network, etc. Since so many women in the New Jersey market are just beginning to meet one another, the purpose of this event was to network. And network we did! We played a fun networking BINGO game that really got the attendees out of their seats and mingling.

There was lots of fun swag!

There's one thing I stress about when I attend these events: What To Wear! I just never know exactly how to dress. I don't want to be too casual and yet, I don't want to overdress either. ThirtySomethingFashion gave us tips for dressing for social media success and turning our day outfits into night outfits.

Girls' Lunch Out events are a great way to connect with women in your area. I was thrilled with the turnout at our Red Bank event, and I know many attendees went home having made many new friends. And that is what GLO is all about!

I feel so fortunate to have forged such a wonderful professional relationship with Chrissy, Tina, and Erica as well as a friendship. These passionate women are an inspiration to me.

Be on the lookout! Girls' Lunch Out is expanding!! Who knows? You just may be lucky enough to attend an event in your city soon!

Girls' Lunch Out currently serves the Philadelphia, New Jersey, and Chicago markets. For more information about GLO or to inquire about starting a chapter in your city, visit www.girlslunchout.com.

*All photos are the property of Pieces of a Mom unless otherwise noted.*

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When Bloggers Go Out To Dinner...

We generally go without our other halves. And here's why: it's tough to tolerate the tweeting, Facebooking, YouTubing, Instagraming, etc. that goes on at the table. I am NOT kidding you. And if you are a blogger, you know exactly what I am talking about.

We've been talking about getting together since we connected at Bloggy Bootcamp Philly in September 2010. Finally, last night, the stars aligned and it happened. I met up with Tina, Corine, Heather, and Stephanie for a much needed chance to catch up. 

About 2 minutes after being seated at our table, this was the scene. We were tweeting away!

Women are the ultimate multi-taskers. We were tweeting, chatting, drinking wine, and eating, and doing it all perfectly, without missing a single beat.

We met at Casona in Collingswood. Four out of five us had attended a Girls' Lunch Out event there back in October. The lunch that was served was delicious, and we were hoping our dinner would live up to our expectations. We were not disappointed. I ordered the vegetarian paella. It was perfection. I especially loved the green olives. Yum!

The wine and conversation flowed easily. I was great to catch up. Blogging friends are real friends.

Soon it was time for dessert. These wonderful desserts were placed in front us of, but we had other plans. Check out Stephanie's blog post to see what we did before we ate dessert. It's hilarious!!

We ordered the dessert special, crepes with chocolate and strawberries, and the chocolate flour less cake from the regular dessert menu. Oh. My. God. Heavenly.

A great night with great friends and plans to meet again!

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My Newest Venture with Girls' Lunch Out

We've all heard about the power of networking. Maybe you even have a networking success story. I know I do. Some powerful connections are made through networking. Even speaking with someone for as little as 2 minutes can leave a lasting impression.

Girls' Lunch Out {GLO} was formed to give women a place to connect, lunch and learn...with a purpose. GLO events offer women who are small business owners, social media entrepreneurs, and/or bloggers a chance to escape daily life for a few hours to connect with like-minded women in a casual and fun atmosphere.

As an attendee of several GLO events, I know, firsthand, how beneficial these events have been for expanding my networking potential. For example, after attending a GLO event in early October, I was inspired to spread the news about GLO to other social-media minded women. However, at the time GLO was based in the metro Philadelphia area only. Another attendee, Christina MacCarrick, owner of the online magazine, Jersey Shore Families, felt the same way I did. We were thinking the same thing at the same time. Weird, huh?

Chrissy and I made a plan to get together to brainstorm some ideas we had. In a few short weeks, we had our mission and a proposal for the founders of Girls' Lunch Out: to bring GLO to New Jersey!

Fast forward a few months, and today we announced that our first New Jersey event will take place on March 24th!!! As the co-chairpersons for the Girls' Lunch Out, Central/North Jersey chapter, Chrissy and I will be bringing GLO events to cities and towns all over central and north Jersey.

I am so excited to be part of the Girls' Lunch Out team and look forward to connecting women in New Jersey.

Hop over to read the Save the Date post on the GLO site for a few more details. Mark you calendars for a fabulous event where you'll meet, mingle, and munch.

And don't forget to check out the entire GLO team and to see if we are in a city near you.

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