24 Nov, 2008
my personal history with chocolate advent calendars
Posted by andrea tomkins in: Misc. life
a.k.a. how I came to be engaged.
The Candy Store is hosting a special contest about sweet memories of the holidays. Winning entries will receive a gift card and have their story posted their website. (I should point out that The Candy Store is a patron of the Fishbowl, but I’m mentioning this only because it’s such a sweet little contest – no pun intended – and I thought you’d like to hear about it, not because I’m obligated to post about it in any way.)
When I learned about the contest it occurred to me that I don’t think I’ve ever shared the story of how Mark proposed to me. It’s related to candy. (Really!)
I always had a chocolate advent calendar when I was growing up and I never quite outgrew the idea. Mark and I had one (this is pre-kid days) and it was always a race to see who would get that day’s chocolate. It was December 16th. I guess we were coming home after work. We stepped in the door at the same moment. The chocolate! I made a dash for it, in fact, I may have even pushed him out of the way to get it. I remember it so clearly… running to the kitchen, finding the number, pushing my finger into the perforation and pulling at the little paper door and …
… the chocolate was gone.
In its place was a shining circle of gold and a sparkling solitaire. I turned to see Mark. His eyes were just as bright, and he was smiling. The next part is a bit of a blur. I do know this … I said yes.
We went to Mekong to celebrate. I remember thinking how blindingly beautiful that diamond was. I loved it, I did, I do.

