An estimated 200 mamas will head to the Hilton Bellevue on Saturday, April 29, to discuss all things motherhood in the sixth annual MamaCon. This moms-only event will feature keynote speaker Sharelle Klaus, CEO of Dry Soda Co. and single mother of four, as well as Rebecca Gallagher of Frugalista Blog.
For those who’ve attended previous MamaCons, expect some changes this year. There’ll be roundtable sessions on topics including child development, family finances and relationship support. Also new: the event’s CEO, Leanne Kabat.
In an effort to “walk her talk,” Kabat embarked on a project she’s calling “No Mama Should Mama Alone” in early March. The goal: Help 50 mamas in 50 days with tasks ranging from helping a mother rework her resume (Day 2) to buying a preschooler the perfect toy (Day 6) to planting a garden (Day 25). Kabat says she’s received requests from mamas around Washington state as well as in California and Canada thanks to her regular Facebook video updates (view the first one).
The 50th day of “No Mama Should Mama Alone” falls on April 29, a.k.a. MamaCon. Kabat hopes the effort will energize an “E.P.I.C. evening” (that’s “Enrichment, Pampering, Inspiration and Connections”). “The ultimate gift at MamaCon is the gift of time to connect and reconnect with other amazing women so everyone goes home with a friend they can call,” reads the press release. “No mama has to mama alone.”
That message resonates with Kabat, a mother of three who experienced what she refers to as a “brain crash” in 2006. Doctors gave her five years to live. The hardest part, says Kabat? “Raising a family while being sick without girlfriends to share, cry, laugh, scream, connect and draw strength from.”
Kabat recently celebrated the 10-year mark of her diagnosis. She sees her “brain condition as a blessing” that reminds her “to live a whole, complete and eventful life.” This, she says, inspires her work with all mamas, before, during and after MamaCon.
If you go…Where: Hilton Bellevue (300 112th Avenue SE, Bellevue) |
