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.
Hey! What about the young people, can’t they participate too? I am only 18 years old and I am a big a fan of your blog, I really love trying your receipes, up to now, all the ones I’ve tried have turned out pretty well because you make good meals easily and this is what I like the most about it!
Now, for the contest, since I am still pretty young, I’ll give myself an advice that I should remember for the years to come: You don’t have to pretend to be someone you aren’t because remaining yourself will make you attract the people that are like-minded to you: life is so enjoyable when you have someone to share thoughts (and everything else) with! :)
My younger self would step into my “courage zone” and do my passion inspite of negative criticism and backlash. Flowing in your passion, I believe, is where your health, wealth, and wisdom lies.
I would advise my younger self (and plan to advise my daughters as well) to LISTEN to your own inner voice! And don’t be too proud to ask the people who love you for help when you need it. Don’t care so much what other people think and do what is the right thing for YOU. And one more thing, something I remind all four of my kids of…take good care of your body. Treat it well when you are young and you will benefit more than you know when you are a little older.
Happy Blogiversary!! I love your recipes – your blog inspires me to eat healthy and take better care of myself :)
I would tell myself that shite happens and things don’t always work out as you planned so grow and learn from the challenges, and don’t let them hold you back.
I would tell my younger self to stop watching so much TV and do something more fun/productive with my time…life is short. Also, lay off the ramen and chips!
I would tell my younger self….don’t sweat the small stuff and do what makes you happy despite what others might think! And finally to enjoy every moment because time flies by way too fast!
I would tell my younger self to worry less about what other people think and to enjoy the person I am not the person I think I should be.
I would advise myself to enter a contest to win an awesome blender, even if I am the 4024th comment, because blenders that cost $40 don’t work! :) Seriously, though, I would tell myself to take a year off between high school and college so I have a better chance of knowing what I want to do — rather than just studying what I think will make people happy.
pick me pick me!
to my younger self.
feeling guilty is a waste of energy.
I re-pinned the rolo recipe!
Always stick up for the vulnerable no matter what it costs!
I would tell myself, to not worry so much about what others think and say, but to just enjoy life they way you like it.
Great giveaway, and congratulations on the four years of amazing blogging! Your recipes have never led me astray!
To my younger self: Take the time now to learn how to love yourself, respect yourself, and grow a healthy mind and body. Learn those habits now, and it will help you with confidence and all aspects of your life as you get older!
Oh wow! Great giveaway.
I would tell my younger self to slow down and enjoy life. There was no need to rush though life stages the way I tried to in college :)
Dear Young Self,
Listen to your inner voice it will never lead you in the wrong direction. Take time to get to know people before you allow them full access to your life because not everyone has the best intentions.
Cut yourself some slack! Everyone makes mistakes and what is important is to learn from them and grow as a person.
My advice to my 16 year old self: Chill!
I always have been super high-strung, but I’m very slowly making progress at being less so.
If I could go back and give advice to my younger self I would say: be true to who you are,spend more time reading and learning, put a percentage of each paycheck in savings, and most of all always help to keep others looking up.
Don’t worry so much about what others think and while an out of state college sounds like fun, you’ll be paying off student loans forever! :)