Five Things: I Loved About BPW PA State Convention

When I moved to my area a few years ago I didn't know many people and had a difficult time with the transition. Not only did we move, but I changed jobs and went from working in an office to working at home. It was a bit of a change to say the least; from interacting with co-workers and customers all day to sitting alone in my home office with no one to talk to while my step-daughters were at school and the hubby was at work, ladies working from home isn't always what it's cracked up to be! 

Yes, I am very blessed and fortunate that I can work from home, but I felt lonely and lost in this new home. Thankfully about six months later I met Katie of Vintage Vinyl Journals  and now Busy Bee Kate. She told me about an open house with a local women's group that she was a part of and I figured why not give it a chance. I joined in 2012, and though it's only been two years I feel like this amazing group of women have become part of my family. 

So, as the group's (Business and Professional Women aka BPW) youngest member, they asked me to consider the Young Careerist competition. On the local level you choose one of three topics and write a four minute speech and have a speak off against another Young Careerist from your BPW District. 

Well it turned out that no other woman from our district had signed up for the program, which meant that I was automatically going to the BPW PA State Convention! Sorry, this was supposed to be a short intro into my Five Things link up of what I loved about the convention, shall we get started?! 

1. Five Things link up is posted every Thursday at Midnight EST. Share any five things that are on your mind right now. Whether it's something you are obsessing with on Pinterest, a new and exciting event going on in your life, or even sharing five of your favorite books; it's totally up to you. 

2. Please put the Five Things button on the post you're sharing for the link up; sharing is caring, the more players involved the more fun we'll have.

3. Please follow both your hosts Diana from The World Around Her and Tairalyn from Little Miss Mama via Facebook {here and here} and/or Twitter {here and here}. As it’s not mandatory it is greatly appreciated.

4. If you tweet about your post or Instagram it, feel free to tag me or Tairalyn and use the hashtag, #FiveThingsParty

5. Check out the other bloggers who have linked up, show them some love and comment on at least one other bloggers link-up post.

Shall we get the party started...

1. That's me giving a little thank you speech after receiving my award on the night of the BPW PA State Convention banquet dinner. When I joined my local BPW I worried that I wasn't professionally looking enough and wasn't very confident about myself. However, the support of my group has changed all of that, they had faith in me that I could represent their club as the Young Careerist and I was truly honored to stand up and speak as a member of our local. 

2. These are just a few of the ladies from my local that came to support me, it was actually one of the largest they've had attend the state convention in sometime! Not only have I made friends on the local level, but also on the state level. There were so many amazing women at convention that just came right up to me to say hello or congratulations, you really can't put a price on this experience. Before I joined BPW I felt lost, but now as a member of their sisterhood I know that I'll never feel that way again. I've never felt more liked in my entire life! 

3. The BPW PA State Convention isn't just about us on a local or state level, it's about all of us on a country level supporting women's rights and equality, as well as many other things. Did you know that Kathleen Kane is the first woman Attorney General of Pennsylvania? Ladies, it's 2014 why are we still having these firsts? Why is it taking so long? Did you know that women only make 77 cents for every dollar that a man makes? It's also really astounding in this day and age that Kathleen Kane our Attorney General of PA is still receiving comments like, "You’re a little girl running for this big job,” seriously guys?! To hear more about what Kane said during her inspiring speech stop by The Times Tribune article here.

4. It wasn't all business though, we had time to play and explore the town of Scranton as well. I was very fortunate to be with a group of ladies who wanted to explore and not just sit in a local pub and hang out! If you ever get the chance to visit Scranton I highly recommend visiting Nay Aug park to see the tree house and the beautiful gorge! 

5. Scranton has so much history; they were once a booming Steamtown, and the hotel we stayed in was a popular train station at one time! Who knew that during my BPW PA State Convention I would visit a train museum and get to ride a steam train?! (The one pictured is stationed in the museum and not the one we rode!) I encourage you to explore the towns of any convention you attend, whether it's for blogging, fashion, moms, women, etc. There is so much more to enjoy during conventions than just attending the events that occur inside the hotel! 

Sorry for my lengthy post, I just really really enjoyed my first ever convention and look forward to next year's! 

Now it's your turn to link up with us and share five things that are on your mind this week...