Happy Halloween!
Before I get to part 1 of the giveaway, I want to share a last-minute Halloween idea.
I present to you: Spooky Shakes…
They are more homely than scary, but let’s just go with it!
I spotted this on Martha and I thought it was a cute idea. To make: all you do is melt a tiny amount of chocolate (about 1-2 tbsp) and then paint chocolate ghost faces on the inside of the glass using the end of a popsicle stick. Easy.
Place the glasses in the freezer or fridge to set the chocolate. For the shake, I blended vegan vanilla ice cream (I love almond or coconut varieties), with a splash of almond milk and some ice, served with a cinnamon stick. You could even make a healthier shake by blending frozen bananas with almond milk. The chocolate faces stay intact thanks to the cold smoothies.
Now, for part 1 of the giveaway…
Today, I’m celebrating YOU – the kick-butt, Green Monster chuggin, recipe-lovin’ Oh She Glows community! On October 31, 2008, I started the blog on a complete whim, not thinking I would ever have the attention span to stick with it, but here I am 4 years later still smashing my head against the keyboard daily and chasing my dreams. I am so grateful for each and every one of you who read the blog each day and my hope is that you find as much inspiration here as I’ve found in all of you.
Now, to celebrate!
1) Blendtec Total Blender & Twister Jar
Blendtec has been gracious enough to donate one of their coveted Total Blender Classic Wildside machines (picture above) valued at $454.95 USD! Whoa baby. I’ve reviewed the Blendtec before on the blog and I can attest that it’s a great machine.
About the blender: “Total Blender Classic Series® is the all-in-one appliance that makes smoothies, fresh juice, ice cream, milkshakes, cappuccinos, margaritas, soups, sauces, bread dough, dressings, salsas, and more! It replaces up to 9 other appliances with one fast easy-to-use machine, at a fraction of the cost. This package includes the new precision tuned 4″ blade in the large nearly 3-quart total capacity BPA-free jar. The new large blade / large jar combination powers through tougher blending tasks and larger recipes with ease, and in less time.”
In addition to the blender, they are also giving away a Twister Jar (shown below) valued at $119.00 USD!
About the Twister Jar: “Blendtec’s newest innovation, the Twister Jar, is designed to blend your thickest recipes such as: Nut Butters, Hummus, Baby Food, Dips, Thick Shakes, Dressings and more! Best of all, it’s compatible with all Blendtec Home Blenders.”
Update: The giveaway winner is….
Thank you for sharing your touching (and often hilarious!) “lessons to my younger self” comments. If you are ever feeling down and need a pick me up, just read through the comments. It’s amazing to see how many of us have struggled with the same life lessons.
The lucky winner of the Blendtec machine is #3659 – Alicia Woulfe! Congrats! I will email you shortly to collect your mailing address. Thanks to everyone for participating!
How To Enter:
Giveway is now closed.
I would have told myself to go to college.
I would grab my hand while I strolled through the library the morning of the day of my first tattoo and I would say…..HEY!!!! Wait a minute! You know those books you have in your hand? Welll…. one is a Chinese English Dictionary and one is a Japanese English Dictionary..Maybe you should reconsider putting one symbol from each on your back (thus rendering your new tattoo complete jibberish). I would maybe tell myself that!
I would tell myself to not worry so much about what you think everyone else is thinking about you because you’re probably being much harder on yourself than anyone else will be. I still need this advice today.
I would tell my younger self to not be so shy! Get out there and try new things…life only gets better :)
I would advise myself to relax and not stress so much about things that I cannot control.
And I just pinned your baked apple recipe. They look so yummy!
I would tell myself to worry less about what other people think (it really doesn’t matter) and to learn to make decisions based on what I value rather than what my friends value.
I’d tell my younger self to not worry so much about what others think!
I would tell my young self to love myself unconditionally and believe in everything I am. I am strong, smart and beautiful and can get through any obstacle.
I would tell myself to worry less! Stop worrying about what others think of you, about trying to always say and do the “right things”, and just be yourself.
I would tell myself to answer the phone when someone I love calls. I have a sister who called and we would talk for hours and hours. Sometimes I didn’t have hours and hours to talk so I wouldn’t answer the phone. She died on September 6th. I would sell my soul to have those hours back to answer each and every phone call.
I tweeted about the giveaway :)
I would tell my younger self to listen to my instincts always! You can’t rewind those bad decisions – and while you have to take those not so great decisions & think “everything happens for a reason” and “this is a learning experience,” I would turn back the clock if I could on some things.
If I could go back in time….I would tell myself not to wear baggy white adidas sweatpants with a bright blue, fuzzy abercrombie sweater like I did in seventh grade. Fashion victim!
Thanks for the great question. I would tell my younger self to go easy on myself. At that time I thought I was chubby compared to the stick figured teenagers in my high school. Little did I know, I would be thrilled now to be back at my high school weight and don’t have the time for the two hour workouts that I used to do for lacrosse. I would also tell my younger self to start cooking, a passion and stress reliever that I didn’t find until after college.
I would tell myself to respect and value myself more in relationships. That was definitely a hard lesson to learn when I was a teenager! I might also have guided myself to choose a different degree.
I’d tell myself to slow down and enjoy the time in my life; and to eat healthy and start running, you’ll enjoy it.
I would tell my yonger self to wear SPF60 everyday and drink more water!!
Just re-tweeted your giveaway!
I would tell myself that the garbage I feed my body and the way I run it ragged will eventually catch up with me and it’s much harder to undo years of bad habits!