Mel's Box of Chocolates

It's been awhile since I've been tagged in a meme.  Julie tagged me for " Eleven Things " a bit ago and as you can probably tell I've been slacking on this here blog so I'm just getting to it. Better late than never seems to be my motto lately. Without further ado. Here are the rules: -Post the rules -Post a pic of yourself & 11 random facts -Answer the previous Blogger’s questions for you -Create 11 new questions & tag new bloggers to answer them -Go to their blog/twitter/facebook & tell them they’ve been tagged My Eleven Random Things When a coworker told me that Davy Jones had passed away, my first thought was the pirate from Pirates of the Carribbean had died.  I had no clue who Davy Jones was. I hate spin class yet for three weeks straight I've found myself getting my butt on the bike for class. Pinterest doesn't hold my interest. I'm a self-proclaimed multi-tasking magician. When I'm busy, I'...

To participate in  Jo-Lynne's Blog Recap Carnival  you have to take "time to look back over the year and share the first line of the first post each month." I dug into the bottom of my box of chocolates and hunted down the first post of each month in 2010. You can click on each month to find the whole post along with the others I wrote that month.   So this is is what I found... January  Our Christmas break got off to a zip-a-dee-doo-dah start when we got to see Disney on Ice Let's Celebrate Show in Philly. I shared a montage of pix that I took during our night out.  We love attending live shows and we were lucky enough to go to a few last year. February So excuse me while I build a snow family and a snow fort! This was the first post of many documenting our adventures in surviving the snowpocalypse that hit Delaware last winter.  We got hit with one storm and then another and I loved every minute of it!!! March So this weekend I'm att...

Try to ignore the bug splattered windshield as I took these with my phone as we were driving to North Carolina!   SUBSCRIBE to never miss a piece of chocolate Be Sweet, Follow Mel on Twitter

SUBSCRIBE to never miss a piece of chocolate Be Sweet, Follow Mel on Twitter

Mama Kat is a favorite of mine and every week she hosts Writer's Workshop where she gives you some prompts, you choose one to write about, and then link up to share.  She has some terrific prompts and I frequently say how I'm going to participate this week, but then I never quite get there.  I even have some in my drafts that never made it to the blog {I'm not giving up on them though hopefully they will be making a published appearance soon}. This week though I'm doing it. I chose my prompt , wrote the draft, and I'm hitting publish. The prompt I chose: 10 Things That Put a Smile on My Face When I'm Not Happy {yes, I chose the list one...anybody can publish a list, right?}  My kids hugs!  Both of them show affection often and will surprise me with hugs, kisses, and cuddles. A motorcycle ride with my husband.  There is something so freeing riding on the back of a bike with your hair blowing in the wind. Sharing conversations over a delicious dinn...

SUBSCRIBE to never miss a piece of chocolate Be Sweet, Follow Mel on Twitter

SUBSCRIBE to never miss a piece of chocolate Be Sweet, Follow Mel on Twitter

In honor of the chaos that has been my life lately, I'm going with random lessons again this week. First of all, I just have to say it, "I'm not a fan of yogurt."  I have tried many brands and many flavors and I just don't like it. This makes top of my list because I had one for lunch today and just couldn't get it down.  Do you have a yogurt you especially like that may change my mind? After six seasons, I just have to put this out there, I learned that I am still LOST!  {Enough said} I am looking for recaps though so let me know if you wrote or have read any that may shed some light for me. My next lesson is a bit of a confession too. I've learned that my addiction to my phone is interfering with my multi-tasking abilities as I devote way too much time to being plugged in.  The first week I had a blast setting it up and personalizing it, the second week I searched droid apps and installed them, and the third week I've just used it for everythin...

I was racking my brain this week trying to figure out what I learned lately when I realized that while there may not be something BIG, there were lots of small things that I have learned or at least realized this week. So here it is. What I Learned This Week.   I learned... It's much easier to get up and get dressed in the morning when you have a new outfit to wear.  {I got two new dresses from Target while in NC and have loved wearing them this week}. I learned... The later it gets in the school year, the later I will get to school in the morning!  {No worries though, I'm always in before the bell rings}. I learned... Coffee always tastes better when other people make it and it tastes especially awesome when those other people are the Dunkin Donuts workers. I learned... sometimes it's much easier to beg forgiveness than ask permission! I learned... that while 3rd graders were clueless when I switched the word "a$$" with silly goose in Charlie a...

 Grandpa had his hands, or should we say wheelbarrow, full of grandkids.  The cousins had a blast!   SUBSCRIBE to never miss a piece of chocolate Be Sweet, Follow Mel on Twitter

SUBSCRIBE to never miss a piece of chocolate Be Sweet, Follow Mel on Twitter

After running for a year {NEVER thought I'd ever be saying that} I've learned many things that I like about it and a few that I don't.  After running my longest distance this past weekend I thought this would be a perfect time to share.  About running. I've learned, that I really like... the sound of my feet hitting the pavement the sound of my shoes running on soft gravel that a mile doesn't seem nearly as far now feeling my pony tail swinging behind me watching my shadow run beside me feeling stronger with every run watching my pace time get better and better being part of a running community running 5K's but I've also learned, that I could live without all the sweating {I hate sweat} the last mile taking f.o.r.e.v.e.r. running in humidity running next to or behind runners who look so graceful, while I'm more of a plodder myself not having something carry water and my cell with me {I must remedy this soon...any suggestions?} oh a...

SUBSCRIBE to never miss a piece of chocolate   Be Sweet, Follow Mel on Twitter

Each year we plan our vacation during the week of spring break.  It works the best because Dyl and I are out of school and it is right before hubby's busy time at work {he works in the boating industry at the beach so summer vacations are out of the question}.   My favorite vacation was when we flew out to California, around the San Diego area where I was born, and just explored.  We visited Disneyland, Legoland, and the famous zoo, but also took time to just enjoy the California sunshine driving up and down the coast stopping wherever our hearts desired.  Of course, I must say that was also by far the most expensive vacation we have went on too and like everybody else we have cut way back the past couple of years. But that brings me to What I Learned This Week ... you can have an awesome vacation without spending an arm and a leg. Last week was our annual vacation and we headed down to Florida with everybody else apparently as 95 south was quite the pla...

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This weeks challenge is all about the FEET. Now I'm not a big foot fan unless we are talking pedicures or shoes, but as I was uploading my pictures from our car ride yesterday I knew I had the perfect picture for this challenge. While I was taking my turn driving, hubby took the opportunity to hang out in the backseat with Zoe.  He took off his shoes and propped up his feet to enjoy a book on his nook.  Zoe took the opportunity to get comfy too and as she propped up her feet and began reading her book, she took a deep breath and declared, "This is the life." I captured the moment and couldn't agree with Zoe's statement more. This is the life and I'm so blessed that it's mine. You Capture is being hosted by Keli this week as Beth is busy adoring her brand new baby. Go check out all the other feet on display! Next Weeks Theme: Comfort SUBSCRIBE to never miss a piece of chocolate Be Sweet, Follow Mel on Twitter

While I was busy packing for FitBloggin and running 5K's while I was there, I missed posting my You Capture photo.  To be completely honest I forgot to take the picture last week too. But when we were at the park on Sunday I snapped this shot... and then when I uploaded it and decided that it captured "reaching" perfectly so I just had to share.   SUBSCRIBE to never miss a piece of chocolate Be Sweet, Follow Mel on Twitter

This April marks the one year anniversary from when I ran my first 5K. Unbelievable.  If you would have told me just a year ago that I would run a few 5K's in the coming year I would have laughed at you, hard! It's been a long, cold winter and I confess that not much running took place after October.  Instead it was re placed with feet up in front of the fireplace and roasting smores.  Yeah, not such a great switch, at least for my waist hip-thigh-butt-line. Last week though, here in Delaware, we welcomed spring with open arms. We were blessed with some absolutely gorgeous weather and it beckoned me to run with it.  So off I went. Last Monday I ran 3 miles up to my local beach. It felt fantastic! Then this past Saturday I ran a 5K at Fitbloggin. Once again - felt fantastic. This week I Learned that I missed running. I missed the sound of my sneakers hitting the pavement.   I missed the feeling of freedom as I run.   I missed the exhilarati...

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I did it. I attended my first ever blogging conference. Saturday, I attended Bloggy Boot Camp hosted by SITS in Baltimore, MD.   From what I gathered from the conference veterans, bloggy boot camp is different from other conferences because of its intimate size.  There was probably 100 people or less.  My absolute favorite part of the conference was that you never had to worry about where to sit and you were forced (in a good way) to meet as many people as possible.  When you picked up your name tag it had a string of numbers underneath your name that told you where to sit during each session and even lunch.  Awesome. I'm still working on gathering my thoughts, notes, pictures, and trying to put together a recap post, but I did learn a few tips that I thought would be perfect to share for "What I LearnedThis Week."   What I Learned From Bloggy BootCamp Top Ten Tips Make sure you have an "About Me" page easily accessible on your blog ....