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 tell myself:
Appreciate all of the time you spend with your best friends, don’t take life too seriously and do what makes you happy regardless of what anyone thinks. :)
Advice to younger Chelsea: making others happy won’t make you happy – worry about yourself first, and everything else will fall into place.
Happy 4 years!!
I would tell my younger self that life turns out great, so don’t try to worry and plan every bit of it. :)
I’d tell myself: when mom says he’s good for nothing, she knows what she’s talking about. Don’t waste your time on those “bad boys”!
I would tell my younger self not to sweat the small stuff (and I tell myself this daily too!)
I would tell her to live her truth! Hiding from the truth, living with secrets will only cause bigger problems.
Dear Courtney,
Your attitude equals your potential. Stay postive, keep away from negative people.
Understand your purpose and goals by doing what you’re passionate about. If it takes trying something new that you’ve never done before, do it. When you live through it, you’ll see it wasn’t that bad and the next time you do it, it will be easier. When you try something scary and survive, you begin to gain confidence and change the beliefs you have inside. Your potential is limitless. What will you do to work on developing a better attitude? Make a plan, and do it!
Love,
Your older, slightly wiser self :-)
My advice to my younger self would be to relax a bit, let loose, it will all work out. (Though, I should remind my current self of that sometimes as well!)
I would tell my younger self to have more confidence. I spent so much time worrying that people were judging me or making fun of me (and I still do to this day – well into my 30’s…). It’s difficult to change the mental patterns we develop when we are younger.
I repinned your peppermint patty bars on my Pinterest page!
I would tell my younger self: “Kendra, all women, including you, are amazing creatures filled with beauty and worth. Please realize that you are loved beyond your ability to understand. Realize that when other people are critical of you, they are viewing you through the lense of their own insecurity, and they have yet to realize their own worth.”
I would tell my younger self, “Don’t worry about what your body looks like, worry about being healthy. And don’t stress so much, you’ll figure it out with some patience and time.” Now if only my younger self would have deigned to believe me…
Joan, it’ll all get better… oh, so much better… just hang on as it’s so worth it
I would have to tell my younger self not to worry so much, and that anxiety never leads to anything truly productive.
My advice: Kim, don’t try and be something you’re not. You are strong, brave, driven and passionate. Embrace these qualities and live life to the fullest. Don’t get hung up on what others think- chase your dreams!
I would definitely tell my younger self to avoid eating two double cheeseburgers and a large fry from McDonald’s almost every single day. That really did a number on my weight and health, and it took a really long time to undo it! I never eat fast food anymore because of it, though, so maybe that was the right time to do it!
Also, I tweeted about the giveaway! (@ChippyFonToast)
https://twitter.com/ChippyFonToast/status/265501194233970688
Not that my 16 year old self would listen…she was pretty hard headed and knew EVERY thing already (c;
however, I would tell her not to fear failure…making mistakes means that you are learning, growing, but most of all living…
FYI I tweeted as well!!
No matter how young you feel, don’t tan so much!! (especially with baby oil, tanning oils and hours and hours in the sun) You don’t have to be sheet white, but you will wish you hadn’t when those wrinkles start coming out!
I would tell my 16 year old self boys are NOT worth it and embrace your tom-boy self :)