First Year Reflections and a Giveaway!

Lately, I have been thinking a lot about the past year.

Starting school and supervised practice in dietetics:

Tearing up the slopes:

Swimming the warm seas:

Judging some BBQ:

Sousviding and Egging it up:

Traveling to China:

Cooking my dad’s favorite childhood meal out in beautiful Colorado:

Starting supervised practice again:

Watching the fur fly:

And, of course, eating:

I began The Happiness in Health one year ago for two reasons. First, I love reading food and healthy living blogs, and I wanted to be a part of this community. Second, THIH was a way to keep in touch with family and friends that I don’t see often (hi, Aunt Joyce!).

Both are important reasons. Yet, another reason drove this blog through its first year and to the moment where I can say, “Dear THIH, Happy Birthday!” The third reason? I love to write. I don’t write beautifully or poignantly or humorously or ironically … but, nonetheless, I love to tell a story. As someone who feels more comfortable with the written word rather than the spoken, I have relished every opportunity to share my thoughts (and my eccentric sense of humor) with you.

So, here’s to reason #3, and to you, dear reader:

Thank you for listening reading.

***

It wouldn’t be a blog anniversary without a giveaway! I don’t have a lot of giveaways (in fact, I’ve only had one), but I wanted to give a little something back to all of you. For THIH’s first anniversary post, I have TWO giveaways (one for being one year old, and one … to grow on. Or, something like that).

First, Barney Butter has graciously offered to give TWO jars of almond butter to one lucky THIH reader! After receiving a jar as a gift nearly three years ago, I’ve been a huge fan of Barney Butter. A few years ago, on a trip to San Francisco, I dragged poor Peter to every grocery store in the city looking for this creamy goodness. I was thrilled to learn Barney Butter is now available on the East Coast (find your local Barney Butter supplier here). This almond butter is made in an almond only facility and is perfect for people with peanut allergies.

Barney Butter is also offering 10% off to all THIH readers with any online order: click here to see all their delicious products and enter code THIH10 for 10% off your entire order until 1/24!

Now, for the contest! First of all, please note that this contest is only open to U.S. residents (sorry to my international folks!). Enter to win two free jars of Barney Butter by doing any or all of the following:

(1) Leave a comment, any comment. Easy, right?
(2) Tweet it up: ” Win TWO FREE JARS of Barney Butter at The Happiness in Health! http://bit.ly/gyXZMO @JessieHealth ” If you don’t have a Twitter account, just tell someone in person, on the phone, over email, whatever. That counts, too 😉
(3) Become a fan of The Happiness in Health on Facebook.

Leave a comment for each entry! The contest will run for one week, and I will announce the winner on Monday, January 24th.

(4) Finally, for an EXTRA entry, enter my caption contest! Longtime readers may remember the caption contest days of yore – let’s have another, shall we?

Sample:
Jessie: Maybe if I go like *this*, the waiter will bring me an extra chocolate cake!
Peter: … get me outta here.

For the SECOND giveaway: whoever comes up with the best caption to this picture will get a special personalized gift from me! No, no, I’m not giving away the identity of the prize yet … you’ll just have to enter and see 😀 Leave a comment with your caption for an entry in the Barney Butter contest AND the Special-Awesome-Jessie-Gift contest.  Lastly, ANYONE can enter the caption contest, no matter where you live.

Thanks to all of you for making THIH what it is! Have a wonderful week, everyone 🙂

61 Comments

  1. Wait, is that noodles and peas dish dao xiao mian (刀削麵)/did you make the noodles?? Looks awesome.
    Lovely photos!

  2. Wait, I didn’t read the contest thing carefully. Jessie, you don’t have to include me in the drawing for the almond butter; I’m allergic. Thanks, though!

  3. congrats to you and the blog! i would love to win some barney butter – it’s one of those nut butters i’ve heard about for years but have never tried

  4. Congrats Jessie!! Hope we’ll be reading lots more of your quirky, irrepressible, sometimes (blessedly) irreverent and always entertaining posts!!!

  5. Congrats! This is so exciting. What a busy and fun filled year! Here’s to many more!!! I just opened a jar of Barney Butter yesterday–crunchy and enjoyed it on a chocolate rice cake.

  6. Happy Birthday THIH!!! 🙂 I sooo love the look of this dan tat and I want to try one soooo badly now!!!

    *Raises glass of firewhiskey (hey we’re still Harry Potter fans, aren’t we?)* To many more beautiful, quirky, informative and funny THIH posts!!

    Jessie I think thanks are due for keeping us informed and entertained and for finding this beautiful way of keeping up with your family and us your international friends! 🙂 And I like the way you write, I don’t even know what you’re talking about not being good at writing there…

    I really wish I could try almond butter, though I’m sure if I ever find any I will ship it to my mum first, she adores almonds!

    As for that caption contest…
    Jessie: Thanks for the delicious dinner honey, but after all this fried chicken I might as well start working out to burn the fat like, right now!
    Peter: That’s what I get for being the husband of the THIH blogger…

    😉

  7. Happy Birthday THIH!!! Sounds like you had a wonderful year. 🙂 Here’s to a great Year 2!!

    And thanks for the chance to win Barney Butter — I’ve never tried it but would love to!

  8. What a beautiful year you have. You just glow in all of your photographs. I can tell what a special person you are through your words and your sweet self. I know I’m blessed to have found you this year, and I look forward to reading your blog in the year to come!

  9. Awww Jessie, what a sweet (and poignant!!) post, I’m so happy I found your lovely blog 🙂 It’s always a pleasure to read, and often makes laugh 🙂 And your pictures are stunning!

    Congratulations on an amazing year! And here’s to this one 🙂

  10. hey Jessie!

    Happy one year blogiversary to The Happiness in Health and you my friend!!! i’m so glad i found your blog because i can honestly say that you are one of the most sincere bloggers out there. i enjoy the many online conversations we’ve had and would someday love to meet you in person. i’m not here just to enter your second contest, but thank you for the opportunity in advance. it may sound like i’m sucking up to win your second contest, but you know i wouldn’t do that. i don’t care if others think i am either because i think your readers/lurkers should delurk and find out for themselves what kind of a friendship they’re missing out on. plus, i don’t care what others think of me. so there, i’ve said it, now send me my prize…lol jk 😉 but really, thank you for your honest friendship, Jessie. i’ve enjoyed reading the many adventures you’ve brought us on this year and being introduced to your beautiful family. you’ve got a bright future ahead of you. i wish you all my best in your journey ahead. thank you for The Happiness in Health. by the way, the white coat suits you very well, looking good in it! oh and the dan tat candle gave me a good laugh, so Jessie, so cute :-D. until next time, my friend. Oh, haha, silly me. Almost forgot to enter your contest with my caption lol.

    Jessie: That was ONE awesome chocolate cake I just had. I think this deserves a happy dance.

    Peter: I knew I shouldn’t have let you order the chocolate cake.

  11. I “like” you. At least I clicked on it, not sure if that really worked. My computer is moody right now.

  12. Your pic on the great wall is awesome!
    I just found your blog and like it alot already 😀

  13. Jessie: “watch me subtly sneak into this picture”
    Peter:”did I just hear ‘click’?”

    This game is fun! So many hilarious captions already!

  14. You have a beautiful life Jessie Brown. 😉
    That is an odd photo – you are all gung-ho and Peter is mesmerized in a deep day dream.
    Happy Birthday TO YOU!
    🙂
    valerie

  15. Jessie: Smile, Peter!

    Pete: I’d rather be playing Heroscape.

    Jessie, I’ve really enjoyed your blog this year. It’s fabulous to keep up with your adventures and to learn from you. I think that you are a humorous writer!

  16. Dear Jessie,

    Happy Birthday to THIH! Turning one is a great accomplishment. Many more years to you!

    Love the photo. Since I’m related, don’t include me in the contest, but I can’t resist the captioning. Here goes…

    Peter: (yawn) Say What!!!
    Jessie: I said, now that we’ve finished that Fried Chicken, Noodles and Peas and the Skillet Scones, let’s go for a long run!

    Give yourself credit girl, your writing is fantastic. It’s colorful, funny, informative and interesting, and the photos are beyond compare! I couldn’t ask for more!

    Love you Jessie,

    Aunt Joyce

  17. Awww, so exciting, what a great year, Jessie! I’m so happy I found you and your fantastic blog and I look forward to what the next year brings. LOVE that picture of you climbing the Great Wall! Don’t enter me in the giveaway (I just stocked up on AB…I bought a case from Amazon!), but I wanted to say I just became a fan on FB! 🙂

  18. HAHAHA. I love your sense of humor! Yes you can invite me over and then you can entertain me. Deal? hehe. That’s such a cool pic of you skiing and Maddy is such a cutie!

    Ok, I give it a shot for the caption.

    Peter: I think that waiter is hitting on me.
    Jessie: Aiya! not me!? (@%$#$ in Chinese)

    Hahaha

  19. Congratulations on a year of blogging! I have enjoyed reading your blog and getting a chance to meet you! That is one thing I enjoy so much about blogging…meeting so many great people!

  20. Barney butter, barneyy butter. I have been hearing so much abouth this brand and have never tried it. Would love to though. Great blog by the way.

  21. Caption Contest:

    Jessie: Lets do something fun, I will race to the door.

    Peter: Oh dear god please help me.

  22. J,

    Reading your blog has been a blast. You do great work. Here’s to many many more happy years of blogging.

    All the Best

    Laz

  23. Deborah Curran says:

    I would love to win this for my son

  24. Deborah Curran says:

    I am a facebook fan

  25. Seems that your year has been very fulfilling! 😀 good for you.

  26. TOO FUNNY!! I love that last one;

    Jessie; “I’m so excited for my meal, I could just dance all night!”

    Peter: “oh gosh, I hope she’s not in one of her dancing moods again…we’re never coming back here….”

    hehe, fun!

    Ok, sO i LOVE LOVE LOVE your recap of the year. It’s been a great one for you, and I can already see you as a successful and inspirational RD.

    I really want this Barney Butter too, so I couldn’t be more excited! I did Like you on Facebook, and I tweeted. Thanks for the giveaway!

    1. Thanks for the sweet words, Gina 🙂 Also …

      Gina entry #2

      1. … and Gina entry #3 (just to keep me straight 😉 ).

  27. I stumbled across your blog via tweet and so glad I did. It looks like you have had an amamzing year!! Happy Bloggiversary! 😀

    Now for the Barney Butter…I have been reading about this for months and hope to find it here in my neck of the woods sooN!

  28. Happy Birthday to your blog Jessie! I love your recap – you have had a very busy and wonderful year. I must say that I am pretty jealous of your skiing ability – you look like a pro! I won’t bore you with my experience skiing but lets just say it’s rather pathetic. 🙂

  29. Congratulations on the blog anniversary! It must be so fulfilling to look back on all those posts and experiences! 🙂

  30. i love this post! what great pictures that chronicle a great year! happy blog anniversary! and what a fab giveaway. do you know i have never tried barney butter-sin!

  31. i love the pictures that chronicle your first year of blogging! what wonderful adventures. happy blog anniversary and thank you for the great giveaway! you know i have never tried barney butter!

  32. Jessie…there’s something about your life portrayed in those pics that exudes happiness. Well, at least enough great memories to get through some tough times once and a while. I could imagine how much joy your two rumbunctious pups bring to your lives. Too cute!

    Now, for those captions…I can maybe relate to how I would look like you telling my Hubby “Didn’t I tell you this eatery would be worth your hard earned buckaroos”! Then, with Peter’s expression…Hubby would probably be lowly muttering the words “Why is she always right”!?! LOL.

    Alright, this was fun…gotta go and since I’m Canadian and not eligible for your contest…I wanted to make sure that you’re all sent happy good luck wishes.
    Happy 1st year Jessie ;o)
    Flavourful wishes,
    Claudia

  33. I love your blog.. Congrats. Beautiful pictures!!

  34. Congratulations on your anniversary! I enjoy your blog, thanks for sharing the happiness! I like you on Facebook. I shared your blog with friends. I’d love to try the Barney Butter! 🙂

  35. I also tweeted 🙂

  36. I found you through the Friday Firsts on Christina’s blog. I enjoyed seeing your past year through photos! Congrats on your blog anniversary. (I celebrated my one year blogging this week too!)

    I look forward to visiting your blog again!

  37. Happy Blogiversary Jessie! I’ve loved getting to know you over this year and I always love reading what you have to say! You’re the best girl! And we really need to meet up one of these days!

    Jessie: He’d better take the picture quick because I really have to go to the bathroom!
    Peter: Is that a fly in my soup?

  38. Happy First Year of your blog! It’s great to read your posts. I don’t know what you’re talking about when you say your writing is nothing special. Your posts always inspire me and make me smile.

    That picture of you two is very cute 🙂 Hm, trying to think of a caption..how about:

    Jessie: That sure was a great meal!
    Peter: *already planning the return trip*

    :-}

  39. Happy blogoversary to you!!! It looks like you had a great year, and a fun year!! Thanks for sharing those memories with us.
    As for the caption, if Peter is like my wife.

    Peter-does she have to photograph everything we eat?

    Jessie-I know I can get that shot right, just a quick 20 or 30 more shots!

    Well if your like the two of us, thats what my captions would be!

    Have a great weekend
    Dennis

  40. Hi Jessie, I found your blog via the Stylish blogger list on Christina’s site. (I’m on there too). Wanted to stop by and say what a fantastic site you have, how much I love your photos, and that I’ve bookmarked you and will visit regularly. Have a great weekend.

  41. Well, my first entry will have to be about the fact that I looove that picture of u climbing the Great wall!!! It’s so artsy and so real. 🙂 Looks like there was some work involved in climbing that thing.
    And thankgoodness I made it in time for your giveaway!!!

  42. I am now a fan on facebook of THIH!!!

  43. Jessie: And THIS my friends, is me after a 12-course almond butter feast!!!!! Teeheehee

    Peter: Thank goodness this meal is on Jessie.

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