Once upon a time, back in February of 2013, there was a lady in New Jersey (that would be me, for those who don’t follow my every move) who was probably going through a bit of the winter doldrums and seemingly needed a project. She emailed five of her friends from all over the country about starting a fitness blog…

and thus, Scoot a Doot was born!

Through our first year of blogging, we learned a lot. We ran (wrote about that), we got injuries (and we wrote about those), we cooked and ate (naturally blogging all the way with recipes); we shared personal stories and stories that touched our hearts.

Our second year has brought a few “changing of the guards” as we’ve welcomed Kyle and Jenn into the fold, as well as changed our server to allow us more control over the site and analytics. While our blog sometimes seems like a defiant toddler, we like to focus on the warm cuddly moments!

Giveaways will be coming throughout the month of February, so keep your eyes peeled for those. But in the meanwhile… It’s always interesting to look at the site stats and see what posts really pull readers in! Since switching servers it’s hard to get a true sense of numbers but here are a couple of reader faves.

Vic’s assessment of The Color Run vs. Color Vibe is a heavy hitter! Click to check out the winner.

Nut butter, mmmmm! Bec’s Buff Butter review ranks high in interest for our readers. Not hard to see why.

Mer (that’s me) started the year off with a 21 no junk food challenge. It kicked the year off right!

Of course, we also have our own personal favorites. What to hear them? Sure you do!

You’ll see a couple of repeats as we didn’t chat with each other on our picks, which was on purpose. Picking them from the heart was the goal!

Asking me to pick my favorite post is like asking me to pick my favorite child. Who came up with this idea?

Oh. Me. Right.

The posts that really resonate with me are ones where we do things together. I’m all for the Chick Chats which are the group posts where we all weigh in on a topic. But my very favorites were the Day in the Life series where we shared our daily routines.

Why?

Simply put, I’m nosy.

If Jess is freaking out about World Cup Soccer, even if I don’t watch or know anything about soccer, I want to know!

Bec’s doing laundry? Well, I probably already know about it because that makes up a great deal of our emails to each other. But I want to know what she’s eating for lunch. And dinner. Because that’s also what we talk about a lot (and ice cream).

If Vic is hitting the Wegman’s (color me jealous) and going for a run after work, I like to keep track so we can discuss later.

I start many days texting with Brooke because she and I are on the same coast and keep the same hours. I felt like I was right there along side of her during this post (and I wish I were because that would be rad).

Cam’s (thug) life always makes me smile – this girl is hardcore, with her parenting and with her two-a-day workouts!

You see, these are some of my favorite people in the world so basically anything that I get to read about and get a glimpse in their daily lives, I am all for! I vote that Kyle and Jenn do their Day in the Life posts soon.

My pick is The Lies They Tell Us by Jenn.

I identify with every line of this post. I struggle with my body image, weight, appearance, ALL of it, on a daily basis and I know a lot of it has to do with what the media tells women they need to look like. I see it for what a crock it is and I still feed into it. I loved the positive spin Jenn put on her post at the end – that we need to embrace ourselves just as we are, because that’s 100% enough.

The Lies They Tell Us – I absolutely loved this post. I’ve written more than a few posts where I talk about body image and perception, but I fear those come off as ‘fat girl whining’ sometimes. This post reminds people that body image and mainstream media’s depiction of what ‘fit women look like, is something that a lot of us struggle with, regardless of our weight. Awesome job, Jenn!

On the Boardwalk, Out in the Sun – This post is my happy place. This brings me right back to the AC Half weekend last year, which was epic in so many ways. Actually getting to meet Anne, Brooke, and Vic, getting to cuddle with Meri and Cam and Heather, a little quality time with Mer’s boys and PUPPY. Hanging out with Jess, figuratively if not literally, in a Starbucks. It was awesome. These girls are my people, and the reason I am part of Scoot.

Philadelphia Marathon’s biggest fan – I love this post for a lot of reasons, and not because it has to do with me. Not only does it capture one of the best days of my life – EVER – it demonstrates what kind of amazing people we have here at Scoot.

Meridith is a world champion cheerleader, teammate and friend. This post – all about her cheering me (and a bajillion other runners) at the 2013 Philly Marathon – is just one example of the contagiously enthusiastic and supportive human being that she is.

I will always remember that race because it was my first marathon, but I never would have done it (or had nearly as much fun) if Mer hadn’t been there to take care of me.

(She still does take care of me. And the rest of us. And we take care of her. And each other. Because teammates.)

Every post on Scoot a Doot is fabulous (I *might* be biased), but two in particular have really stuck with me.

Mer’s You Know Who Rocks? I Do, That’s Who and Cam’s Oh, Just Another Blog Post About Mental Illness helped me move past some stuff I was dealing with in my head and helped me forgive myself for the past. They helped me remember that everyone has struggles, no matter how much they appear to “have it together”. Everyone has insecurities. Sometimes, we feel like a failure. Sometimes, we need help. We are all human, and like Buddha says, all suffering.

In each of their posts, Mer and Cam reminded me that each of us possesses the inner strength to overcome adversity and achieve any goal we want. We only have to dig deep, and face our obstacles head on with honesty, grace, and humor.

Oh, Just Another Blog Post About Mental Illness – This post by Cam stuck with me in part because our Cam was so raw and honest about mental illness and it’s ripple effect. It wasn’t just another reaction post, but was one that stop and made me think. Yes, it stemmed from a tragedy. Yes, tragedy touches us all in one way or another. But it reminds me how important acceptance, understanding and inclusion are.

Goodbye Sweet Girl – It’s not a happy one, but our 13-year-old cat’s death was one of the defining moments of our year. This took a month for me put into words and I look back on it often. It’s hard to let go.

My very favorite post this year was the one where we announced the addition of our two lovely new chicks. But that’s not one of the posts I’m picking. Yes, I’m a cheater.

One of my favorites this year was Bec’s Demotivation post. It’s so good to know I’m not the only one who over-analyzes the literary aspects of things like memes and motivational posters. Also, I love cranky Bec. She makes me giggle.

My other, more recent favorite, was Jenn’s The Lies They Tell Us because she discusses something I’ve always had an issue with. And yes, Jenn, it’s the seamstress in you, because I feel the same way about clothing sizes. Since high school, I’ve been altering my clothes. I had a true hour glass figure pre-babies (now it’s more like a beaker). Finding jeans that fit my hips and didn’t gap at the waist was like finding the Holy Grail. Quite similar to finding a magazine that didn’t exploit all my teenage insecurities. Now, I just don’t read the damn things. Instead, I read blog about how they suck!

Thanks so much for another great year; we’ve had so much fun connecting with you all! Giveaways are coming all through the month of February, so be on the lookout.

Tell us about some of your favorite blog posts around the internet. We are always looking for new and fun things to read!