Year Eight. (& a Giveaway!) {CLOSED}
{Thank you all so much for entering the giveaway! The winner is commenter Beth Cook who said “I think the most memorable moment was my father moving into an assisted living home with hospice services. You just think your parents will be around for a long time to enjoy their retirement years and their grandchildren. It’s hard on my mom going back and forth despite him not really knowing when she’s been there or the last time she came. It’s hard emotionally and financially. This is NOT what they wanted to spend their retirement money on. My guilt is living three hours away. Close enough to visit, but far enough away to have to balance family life/plans.” Congrats Beth!}
This week marks my eighth year of blogging.
Which is totally insane. EIGHT YEARS?!
That’s almost ten years. Ten years is a decade. I still feel like I’m 17 so how on earth this has happened… I have no idea.
I wish that I had the words to tell you just how much I appreciate you being here and visiting the site. I know what it is like to read the same blog for eight years. You are only reading one voice. It gets repetitive and sometimes boring and it is a lot of the same thing, because it’s written by one person. I’ve come and gone and come back and re-fell in love with many of my favorite bloggers over the years. I can’t really offer you anything other than myself (okay and maybe a plethora of trashed up recipes) who might occasionally change or stay the same or repeat herself or still think that she’s 17 years old inside.
So it means the WORLD to me that you have stuck around, read these rambles, been so kind and wonderful and shared your own thoughts in our little community here. Means seriously everything to me. I actually think of you all as friends, my invisible but real BFFs.
I hope you can see that I (still!) do this because I 100% OMGloveitsomuch and even though it became my job a really long time ago, I do it as authentically as I can and because I love it and so I can share things with you in this wacky internet world.
To celebrate these eight years and frankly, to celebrate YOU who has given me the chance to do this for so long, I’m giving away a $1000 amazon gift card to one lucky reader. This giveaway is not sponsored and given by me to show my appreciation for you. Giveaway is open to everyone and anyone!
To ENTER:
- Leave a comment on this post telling me a memorable moment you’ve had so far in 2017.
- For an extra entry, I would love if you’d preorder a copy of The Pretty Dish and leave a second comment saying you did so. You can preorder the book on amazon, barnes and noble, indiebound or books a million! I cannot thank you guys enough for giving me the chance to write another book. If you’ve already preordered, THANK YOU SO MUCH and be sure to leave a comment telling me you did so. If you decide to preorder, this is just the first of many exciting things we’re giving away!
And who knows, maybe if the internet is around, I’ll be here in another eight years! xoxoxo
2,292 Comments on “Year Eight. (& a Giveaway!) {CLOSED}”
Pre-ordered! Can’t wait.
Congrats on 8 years of blog-dom! Very exciting.
Hmmm..my most memorable event was moving into our brand new home and wonderful neighborhood in Vermont.
One memorable thing this year happened just a few weeks ago, so it’s fresh in my mind. My husband and I work very opposite schedules and we don’t get very much time together as a family with our 17 month old. However, we cleared a day, and went to our local amusement park. It was an amazing day, and our little one loved it!
The most memorable moment of this year was definitely buying our first house :)
Most memorable moment had to be my sister’s wedding, great time!
Congrats on the blog-aversary! Yours is still one of my favorites to keep up with. I love that your personality shines through in all your posts :) I traveled to South Africa with my husband this summer, and it was amazing! So much good food and beautiful scenery!
Congrats on 8 years! Running the 2017 Boston marathon was pretty awesome!
my most memorable moment was purchasing my first home with my partner!
congrats on 8 years! excited to have been able to follow you throughout your journey. :)
My most memorable moment in 2017 was standing on top of Diamond Head to watch the sunrise with my husband. It was beautiful, serene, and empowering to know that I made it to the top and I was there with one of my favorite people in the world.
My most memorable moment in 2017 so far was announcing our pregnancy to our parents! They were so excited, as are we. :)
Love your blog and what a generous giveaway prize! My most memorable moment was getting the news that my sister is pregnant! She is the first to have kids in our family and this is her first child. The due date is early March and it can’t come soon enough!
We are expecting our first baby this March, and are over the moon excited! I (and my husband, and friends, and family, and really any dinner guest) have been a fan of your blog and recipes for years. Looking forward to follow up my Seriously Delish ventures with what The Pretty Dish has to offer :) Congrats on year 8!
My most memorable moment has definitely been finding out that I’m pregnant!
Congrats on your 8 years! You continue to keep me entertained day after day, year after year! The most memorable moment of 2017 was celebrating my 1st wedding anniversary with my husband in the same hotel we were married at.
My most memorable moment of 2017 so far has been a family zip lining trip to celebrate my youngest sister’s graduation.
I loved getting to read through all of these comments and see a little glimpse into the lives of other How Sweet It Is readers!
I fell in love with LuLaRoe and started selling it. It has challenged me and broken me out of my shell. I love it and have so much fun.
Can I just say I love you and this is the only blog I read on a regular basis!!! You are awesome. I have been reading this blog from the days of sprinkles and bacon on everything and what can we add buffalo sauce to
My most memorable moment this year was a series of moments – spending the month of August in Sweden with family. Oh, and biking around Versailles/going to Giverny.
Is a top 3 okay?
First of all – I feel like I’ve been following you for my whole adult life? Congrats on the new book – voting on the cover was a lot of fun! My most memorable moment so far this year was by far being offered my first “big girl” job! I did 8 years of post-high-school schooling, so it’s been rough watching my peers move onto their careers while still slugging through school. But, I made it, and I’m now employed!
Congrats on your cookbook and Year Eight!! My most memorable moment of this year is getting a new puppy, a corgi named Delilah!
Our only child turned 5 this year so lots of firsts(Kindergarten, first visit from tooth fairy, etc) but one of my favorites was at the 5th birthday we threw for her. She came up to both me and my husband separately and thanked us for throwing her such a fun party and for being the best mom/dad ever. We each thought the other had prompted her but, nope, she did it all on her own. The sincerity and quietness of how she did it just stabs me in the heart(in the best way possible) whenever I think about it. And one of her favorite treats ever in the world are the no bake Peanut Butter Bites from this site. She thinks they are dessert and calls them cookie balls :)
Getting two new puppies!
Happy 8 years!! My most memorable moment so far of 2017 is eating dinner on the beach in Nerano, Italy. It was just one of those moments when you look around you and realize everything is perfect–surrounded by family and friends, eating good food, listening to the relaxing sound of the waves coming up to meet the shore. Ahhh!
My most memorable moment of this year was when my 93-year old grandfather told me I had given him a new lease on life (I moved across the state this year to be closer to home, and started cooking more dinners/just being around more often). I love making my gramps happy!
Wow, well done! 8 years is a good long time. I do love your writing and content and always look at your posts. I don’t know if this qualifies as my most memorable moment of 2017, but I had a doozy of a moment on the train to work this morning. One of the passengers was SNORING, like, giant cartoon snoring most of the way into town. When I stood up to get off at my stop, I saw him flopping around in his seat, almost falling on the floor. He would snort himself awake and then immediately start snoring and flopping off again. I was wiping actual tears from laughing so hard.
My memorable moment is my oldest daughter started kindergarten this year!! And I was able to change my work schedule so I can be home every day to get her off the bus!!
YOU are awesome every single day, and it is a treat to read your blog! Congratulations, and at current my most memorable moment of the year is when my sweet kind soft spoken mother in law revealed at a family dinner that she had ONCE SPENT THE NIGHT IN JAIL!!! We are all still shaking our heads!
Happy bloggaversary! My most memorable moment in 2017 so far was vacationing this summer at a country house with my family!
Crazy to think it’s been that long! I’ve been following since the beginning :)
My most memorable moment this year was buying my first house!
There are so many moments this year! My twins turned 1, my big boy start K4, we bought a new house and are gutting it, and my husband and I celebrated our 7th anniversary.
Yay! I preordered my cookbook! 🤗💥💙💚💛💜🎉🎊🤗
Most memorable moment this year?
Starting family planning…and then hitting the wall.
They said this would be the fun part?
My most memorable moment this year has been losing my mother in law and spending her last few weeks together.
I have your first cookbook and love it! I’ve been reading your site since pretty early on and love seeing the little peaks into how much things have changed for you over the years. I’d say my most memorable moment this year was my daughter’s first communion – my mother in law and I made her dress out of my wedding gown!
Thank you for 8 years of fun stories and great recipes! You’ve gotten me through many long work days! :)
My most memorable moment was simply having the family all gathered together for the 4th of July and watching the amazing fireworks! Simple but memorable!
Congrats Jessica!! I love How Sweet Eats!! I moved into a new house this year and just got new furniture today!! I feel like such an adult.
Hello! First of all, congratulations for this 8 years of How Sweet Eats, your blog is definitely my absolute favorite, I never miss a post or recipe. My most memorable moment of 2017 was on January 1st, my boyfriend and I went on holidays to visit his family in Oregon, and we lived an amazing snowfall to start the year :)
my most memorable moment this year (so far!) would be when I got to be the only one in the world to know the surprise gender of my sister’s baby due this fall! I opened the envelope and put the blue confetti in the pinata then had to keep the secret for hours!!!
What a generous giveaway for your readers! 2017 was when my second son was born- by far the most memorable moment thus far and probably for the rest of the year :)
Oh and already preordered your new book! Can’t wait!
and I just pre-ordered my copy! I’m excited for March :)
8 years! Quite an accomplishment! Congrats!
My most memorable moment was watching my 4.5 year old learn to ride a two-wheeler!
I live by your recipes, when I got married a few years ago
I gave your books to all my bridesmaids, and it’s defiantly a favorite! My favorite moment of 2017 was becoming a mommy for the first time in April (and your lactation cookie recipe is life 🙌)…I am counting down to have this book
In hand, preordered and ready for it! Seriously you are a culinary genius 😘
My daughter’s first birthday!
Like most readers, it has been so exciting to watch you grow and evolve into the mega blogger you are today. Congrats on being able to live your dream, have your marriage and family and kept this existing ‘second’ family entertained as well!
We didn’t lose our house this year and we feel incredibly blessed to have worked out a deal. Not at all easy but so worth the fight.
OMG Congrats on the 8 year anniversary! woohoo! So many memorable moments but one of the was that I had the opportunity to visit family that I havent seen in such a long time. Family is so super important and this just made me so happy!
The birth of my grandson.
My most memorable moment was giving birth to my daughter!
Jessica – I LOVE your blog. I always feel like my best friend is sharing a recipe with me when I read your posts. I’ve been following for years now, and honestly probably 90% of the recipes I make come from here.
So happy 8 years to you!! And hopefully many more!
Building and moving into our brand new home!
Happy Eight years!!! Cheers to many many more :)
Congratulations on 8 years!!! Wow!
My most memorable moment in 2017 is definitely gaining two nephews within 24 1/2 hours! Both of my sisters gave birth just last week! One on 9/6 and one on 9/7 :) I went from one nephew to 3 and the whole family is still trying to take it all in. It’s still pretty unreal!
My most memorable event for this year was taking our daughter for her first vacation. We went to Legoland and it awesome to see her face light up at so many things. She loved boat rides and at 2 years old was begging to on the big kid’s rollercoaster ride. We spent the night at Legoland hotel where she attended their dance party till was so tired she was sitting on ground still dancing.