Happy Blog-iversary to meeee...and a Giveaway!!

Hip, Hip, Hooray!! It's my first Blog-iversary today!! Today marks the one-year anniversary of my entry into this vast expanse known as...THE BLOGOSPHERE. *eerie, space-age sounding music ensues*. To celebrate, I shall do two things:

1) Share some fairly useless thoughts on blogging.

2) Announce my first (and possibly ONLY ) giveaway!! Nah, I'm just kiddin'. I'll gladly host another giveaway when I reach 50 followers. At the rate I'm going, this giveaway will occur in about 13.75 years. Give or take. Anyway...

I refuse to rain on my own parade. Wait; what?

Okay, I'm starting to annoy myself. Let's get to it!!

Fairly Useless Thoughts On Blogging

By Mary J. Johnson.

And a partridge in a pear tree. Boy, am I giddy tonight.

1) You've got to blog more than once a month. I figured this out rather quickly. As much as I love to spin a yarn of epic proportions, I was so spent from spinning said yarns that I felt I could rest on my bloggy laurels and leave my poor blog to languish for a few weeks in between posts. Nope. Nope. Nope. Nope. You've got to tend the fires, my friends. So now, I try REALLY REALLY hard to blog at least once a week. I'm not always able to accomplish this goal, but I am definitely working towards this.

2) Be yourself. Always, always, unapologetically be yourself. A blog should be your happy place!! A place to create, express yourself, and just have a rip-roaring good time.

3) Don't be afraid to try new things. I know this is one of the main themes of my blog in general, but this also applies to learning about the finer points of blogging, i.e., web-design type STUFF, etc. It's always a good thing to keep learning. ALWAYS.

The End.

Do I get an "A"? I'm a Dean's List student with a slight Type A personality; I NEED to get an "A"!!

And now...

The moment you've all been waiting for...THE GIVEAWAY!!! *triumphant trumpet music ensues*

Here it is:

http://www.amazon.com/Homemade-Life-Stories-Recipes-Kitchen/dp/B004EYUDIM/ref=tmm_pap_title_0?ie=UTF8&qid=1298347675&sr=1-1

The giveaway is none other than the book, "A Homemade Life: Stories and Recipes From My Kitchen Table" by Molly Wizenberg. If you've read even just a little bit of my blog, you know that Ms. Molly has been a tremendous influence and inspiration in my culinary adventures. Not only can this lovely gal cook, but she can write. Oh, can she write. In fact, Molly Wizenberg is one of my biggest inspirations in starting this here blog. From her captivating tales of living in Paris as a young college student, heart-warming recollections of baking late into the night with her parents, to the beginnings of her own blog, this book is a feast for the mind and heart from beginning to end. Every chapter ends with a recipe, so it's a cookbook, as well!! TWO FOR ONE! I am so generous. Bottom line: I love this book. I cook from it frequently, and I still cry every time I read it. So here's the deal, kids:

If you want to be entered into the giveaway, answer this question below in the comments section:

"Where are you and your family planning on going for a summer vacation this year?"

And that's all! A winner will be randomly chosen and announced Wednesday night.

Thank you for being a part of my first year of blogging. I've had myself a lovely time, and I SO look forward to this coming year. :) Upward and onward with The Epic Adventures of Skarymop & Co.!!