My Blog-i-versery Giveaway- Closed

Updated Jan 14 5:00PM CST... The contest is officially closed. Some sweepstakes site got ahold of my link and I am being inundated with entries. This is not a sweepstakes. No more entries are being accepted. Sorry to change the rules, but I did not intend for this to be a coast-to-coast contest. I will draw a name from the entries I have recieved so far and will announce the winner Jan. 17 as planned.

Okay... here's the big giveaway announcement! I'm giving away some of my favorite things.

Here's what's included:

• A green bag (that's red) from target. It zips up and fits in your purse, so you can always carry one with you.


• A pink "Cool" makeup bag. (It came with my Ralph Lauren "Ralph" perfume 3 years ago. It's never been used. I love it, but it needs to go to a good home.


• Pink and navy blue argyle note cards. Love these too, and so will you.


• Purple pen and purple fine point Sharpie. Sharpies are so cool.


• A beading kit with silver tigertail, clasps, and finishing, plus two full tubes of glass seed beads in hot pink and green/navy/iridescent. I went through a phase where I thought I would make jewelry. I'm not good at it. Maybe someone else will have better luck!


• (not pictured) "Pride and Prejudice" by Jane Austen (updated... couldn't find a hardcover, so it's a lovely soft-cover version.


• A bookmark crocheted by moi.

Here's the deal...
Leave a comment = 1 entry.
Write about it on your blog and link back here = 1 additional entry.
Follow my blog = 1 additional entry.
(If you already follow my blog, you will automatically get an entry for that.)

Home With a Sick Boy

Alex threw up at school today, so I had to go pick him up, giving me a random day off in the middle of the week. So in between slinging saltines, 7-Up and Chicken Noodle soup, I figured I'd peruse the blogs I rarely get to catch up on. (Less you think I'm neglecting the patient, he's resting comfortably watching some Disney movies, snacking on Saltines. No fever and no more throwing up, so far.)

I came across this AMAZING giveaway and feel like I have to blog about it.
It's the Cold Feet Giveaway at Simple Finds. They are giving away a great pair of Keen boots. I finally broke down after two blizzards last year and a total of 110 inches of snow last winter, I figured this would be a great chance to get a really good pair of boots. Go check it out!

And the Winner is...

Hannah Banana from All is Well In My World!

Congratulations! I'll be contacting you either through your blog or through GoodReads to get your info.

I'll also post some Christmas updates tomorrow as well.

Last Call

So the ornament giveaway wasn't the runaway hit I hoped it would be. I only got three entries. So I'm giving it another couple of days. The winner will be selected Christmas eve. C'mon, it's cute! Leave a comment, I'll draw a name Christmas Eve, and announce the winner the day after Christmas.

The Joy of Giving

While hanging up my ornaments this year, I came across one that I think needs to find a new home. So I'm going to host my first giveaway. If you would like to win this ornament, leave a comment on my blog.

There's nothing wrong with the ornament. I think it's very cute. It's made of Fimo-type clay. It is dated and has my name on the back, but whoever wins it will always know where it came from. I just picked an ornament I wasn't hugely emotionally attached to and this is the one.

If you post this contest on your blog, and link back to mine, you'll get one extra entry (just be sure to let me know that you've put up a link on your blog.

The contest closes at 10PM (Central Time) Friday, December 19. It probably won't get there by Christmas, but it's the thought that counts, right?? Good luck!

Pay It Forward Giveaway

So I just discovered a great new blog. Meaghan left a comment on my site, I checked hers out, and now I'm hooked. She's having a giveaway... go check it out! She's giving away a pound of gourmet coffee from her new online coffee shop. YUM! The girl is a cervical cancer survivor with an amazing story. I can't wait to get caught up on her blog.

Happy Birthday to Me!

Today is the 4th anniverary of my 29th birthday. I still find it hard to believe that I'm now well into my 30s. I got to scoot right on by the 30th birthday festivities, because I had just given birth to Alex. I don't usually like a huge fuss made over my birthday. Okay, that's a total lie. I love a big fuss! Presents, cake, food, drink, you name it! I love any reason to celebrate, so I actually do like my birthday. My three nephews just called and sang "Happy Birthday." The oldest sang it opera style, the middle one sang normal, and the youngest one attempted to burp the whole song. That made my day.

Alex, Craig and I went to the Milwaukee County Zoo this morning. We saw the Birds of Prey show which was very cool. We also road the train around the zoo. Two things we have never done before.

I logged into my email to find I won a giveaway on Tip Junkie. A beautiful bracelet from Beads by Amanda K! Amanda's stuff is gorgeous and reasonably priced. Go check her out! I know I'll be checking her stuff out again soon. That was a great birthday surprise.

Oh, and be sure to check out this week's final SITS giveaway. They're giving away an Ipod Nano. I think this would be a great thing to help me with my running! So head on over there, and tell them Sydney sent you!

More birthday posting (hopefully pictures!) tomorrow!

Embarassing high school moments

My 15 year high school reunion should have been this summer. But it's now August and while nothing formal is obviously going to happen, nothing informal seems to be happening either. It's fine. I helped plan the 10 year reunion and it was fun, but it was a lot of work. So waiting till 20 is fine with me.

I have plenty of embarassing moments to choose from (and some even better ones from junior high) here's one of my many emabarassing high school moments.

My freshman year of high school I tried out for cheerleading. You had to rank your squad/sport preferences on the tryout form. I listed football, basketball, and wrestling (yes, they had cheerleaders for that) in that order. I knew I wouldn't make basketball cheer squad, hoped for football, and figured if all else failed and I made the wrestling squad, at least I'd get a varsity letter out of it. Well, I made the wrestling cheer squad. (No, that's not the embarassing part. I'm getting there.)

There were six of us on the squad of various ages. It was a fun group and we came up with some great cheers. The guys on the team were really fun and the coaches seemed to like us. I was just thrilled that I made a squad.

Those of you who have been cheerleaders know that underneath those adorable pleated skirts (at the time, we still wore pleated skirts) you had to wear bloomers... solid colored underwear that covered your buns. While cheering, the bloomers had a tendency to ride up. When this would happen, we'd sneak under the bleacher, give the bloomers a quick, gravity-defying tug, and then pop back out. The crowd never paid attention to us anyway, so it didn't matter if 1/6 of the squad disappeared for a minute.

Two of my friends (who will remain anonymous to protect myself, as I have recently reconnected with some high school friends) came to watch one of the meets and see me cheer one Saturday morning. I was having bloomer issues, so I snuck under the bleachers, flipped up the back of my skirt, and gave them a quick tug. I walked back out... only to be followed by one of the most popular athletes in the school, who was cracking up. I was mortified, and finished the rest of the meet with a face that was redder than the opposing teams' singlets. I dug out a wedgie in front of one of the most popular guys in school. Thank goodness he probably had no clue who I was.

In case you're wondering what brought on this post, Jaci is having a contest... check it out.

Red Hot Giveaway

I don't know how the girls over at SITS keep coming up with these prizes, but one of these days I'm going to win one! They are giving away a red camera. Go to the site. Sign up. Tell them Sydney sent you.

The SITS Girls Do It Again!

This week's contest is for a $100 Target giftcard. I love my Target. I actually got a little teary eyed when I heard a rumor that the Target near my house was going to become a SuperTarget.

Then the city council decided to toy with my emotions: they didn't approve the expansion and the rumors have since gone away.


If you've never heard of SITS, go check them out, and if you register tell them Sydney sent you!
I really don't know how these super cool chicks get all their great prizes, but they are obviously doing something right. They are driving traffic to a lot of blogs through word of mouth--err... word of blog? word of web? Not sure what the right term is.

I WANT TO WIN!

i want to win something!

Yet another blogger contest. This one's for jewelry... check out her etsy shop. Very cool stuff! Wish I was talented with jewelry... I'll stick to blankets, bookmarks, and potholders for now.