CSN Giveaway...$85 Gift Certificate!

Today I woke up with a wicked sore throat (the worst kind that burns when you swallow) and achy bones.  Attempts to get out of bed were short-lived.  I've been around long enough to know you have to sleep these bad boys off, so rather than spend the day working I laid in bed zooming in and out of sleep dreaming about modern duvet covers while Prince Caspian played softly in the background. Waking up is hard to do...

image via pretty eyed, pirate smile

At the end of it all I've come to the delusion conclusion that I'd like to be Lucy Pevensie - escape through a wardrobe to a magical land where you roll in the grass, hug, ride on the back of, have the best talks with and get saved by the best Lion ever.  I love cats.

Thankfully the people at CSN live in the land of reality with the rest of us.  They have offered to brighten our January days with a RAD giveaway of an $85 Gift Certificate.  Girls CSN is the best - I got an amazing Bodum Teapot and Le Creuset Kettle (yes I'm a pre-term granny and proud of it) just before Christmas and they were delivered in record time.  And if you want that modern duvet cover they have those, too!  So here's the scoop and let's get this thing started:

THE DETAILS
*This giveaway is open to all U.S., Canadian readers (Overseas readers I'm sorry - they don't deliver to you, but I will have another giveaway to include you in soon).  The entry period will run through 11:59pm PST Tuesday, January 18, 2011 and the winner (selected via random drawing) will be announced on Wednesday, January 19, 2011.

HOW TO ENTER
*For one entry just make sure you're a follower of this free bird via Google Reader, and let me know in your comment on this post that you've done so.

*For an additional entry  you can blog or tweet about the giveaway and leave a separate comment.

Good luck everyone!! Any thoughts on what you might get if you win?

Hey Shorty It's My Birthday: Giveaway!!

I'm probably out sipping a margarita and laughing the night away right now in preparation for the arrival of my BFF today at 5:30pm.  Yee hooooo!!  Okay actually that's what I would have been doing if I hadn't been swamped with work until yesterday causing Cleaning Frenzy 2010 to rear its ugly head over the past 24 hours.  The Chef and I just returned from having a sayonara toast to this past year of my life, and we are looking forward to a fun and relaxing birthday weekend.  Yessssssss!

 image via happy things

It wouldn't be right to have a birthday and not share the presents *just like a kid's party where they give out gift bags* so when the kind people at CSN offered up a giveaway to you I graciously accepted.  Instead of giving away a Dutch Oven or something I opted to put a $40 Gift Certificate up for grabs - it is valid at any of their online stores where you can stock up on shoes, furniture, or housewares.  Personally I enter these CSN giveaways like MAD.  I've already won one and am hoping to keep it up....I have my eye on a $700+ Fondue set that calls to me in the night.  I'm thinking it must make some out of this world fondueness for $700!! 

And now the specifics:

THE DETAILS
*This giveaway is open to all U.S. and Canadian readers - however there may be international shipping charges in the case of Canadian addresses (CSN only ships to the US and Canada - I'm sorry overseas readers!!  There will be something including you in the future).  The entry period will run through 11:59pm PST Wednesday, September 1, 2010 and the winners will be announced on Thursday, September 2, 2010.  The winner will be selected via random drawing.

HOW TO ENTER
*For one entry you must be a follower of this free bird via Google Reader, AND leave an additional comment on this post stating that you have done so.  Be sure you either leave an email address or have a link to your email on your blog so that I can contact you if you win.

*For an additional entry  blog or tweet about this giveaway and leave a separate comment with the link back stating you have done so.

And with that...I'm off!  I probably won't have a post for Friday, but will be back on Monday.  In the meantime you can follow me on Twitter for some of the latest!  Have a great weekend everyone - and Good Luck with the giveaway!!

Ebelskiver Winners!

Two winners were selected by random number generator:

#113 - Style Attic @ Life at Five Feet

and

#137 - Lori @ Wildflowers

Congrats Ladies!! Style Attic and Lori - I have sent an email to each of you.  Please respond at your earliest convenience including your mailing address in your email so that I can get these Ebelskiver Pan packages out to you ASAP.

Thanks so much to everyone for entering this giveaway!! It was so much fun and I wish I could send one of these sets to each of you.  There was so much buzz over the Ebelskiver Pans that I might have to do another of these in the future.

A special thank you to CSN for providing the actual pans themselves.  I can't wait to hear how the winners use them.

Ebelskiver Giveaway - x2!

On Christmas day I was ecstatic to find an Ebelskiver Pan under the tree just for me (thanks Chef!).  I had been eyeballing and commenting on it for months every time the Williams-Sonoma catalogue showed up .  That morning we put the pan to good use and haven't turned back since.  On the 4th of July, while everyone else in the nation was enjoying record high temperatures, the Chef and I were sitting by the register contemplating hot chocolate or apple cider.  Freezing!  We whipped up and gave a quick how-to for some dessert style Ebelskivers as shown in this post.

Here's a tasty little reminder of the red, white and blue breakfast we enjoyed:

Just a few days later the kind people at CSN contacted me to do a review or giveaway.  (I have to say they have been so pleasant to deal with and the expediting/shipping process was amazingly seamless).  When I scanned their product offerings and saw the Ebelskiver Pan I immediately thought of all of you!  The response to the post was so positive and so many people shared the excitement I first experienced when seeing the pan. So I opted for 2 of their Nordicware Ebelskiver pans and then jetted out to get a couple sets of the Turning Tools specifically for use with the pan - just to add in as a fun bonus for each lucky winner.

And now:

UP FOR GRABS:  Two Nordicware Ebelskiver Pans each with a set of Turning Tools specifically made for this pan.  What's pictured just above could be yours!

THE DETAILS
*This giveaway is open to all U.S., Canadian and Overseas readers.  The entry period will run through 11:59pm PST Monday, July 26, 2010 and the winners will be announced on Tuesday, July 27, 2010.  Each winner (one set for two separate winners) will be selected via random drawing.

HOW TO ENTER
*For one entry please visit CSN (if you haven't already - there's a ton of great finds on the site) and then leave a comment on this post that includes a valid email address or your blog url so I can contact you if you win.

*For an additional entry you must sign up to be a follower of this free bird via Google Reader, AND leave an additional comment on this post stating that you have done so.

*For a third entry blog or tweet about this giveaway and leave a separate comment with the link back stating you have done so.

Soon you could be eating the most excellent dessert for breakfast...or perhaps some jalapeno cheese ebelskivers topped with scallions and a dash of sour cream for lunch or dinner?  I leave you with Saturday's latest:

Enter away!  Best of luck everyone!!

Cold Weather Thoughts and Hints of Things to Come

I'm going to make a shameful admission.  It's 11:30am and I've barely gotten out of bed.  In fact, I turned on the computer and hopped back in to huddle under the covers to try to keep warm.  It's hard to believe that July is here in Southern California, but I'll make another admission - gloomy weather is good thinking weather.  It makes me slow down and think about all kinds of things.  Like:

-Gee I miss my mom I really need to call her back.
-I wonder what Rosamond is doing right now?
-Why are my cats galloping around the house?
-Wait!  Were those cats on my white bedding again?!?
-What is up with bedroom furniture sets?
-I need more space to hold my clothes and shoes this is out of control.
-Gross!  Is that a June Bug?!?
-Damn I wish my birthday wasn't coming up again. 
-Gotta Skype with the niece this weekend.
-My feet are cold.
-Is the Chef ever going to get out of the water to make me some more Ebelskivers?
-I hope I win the lotto so I can buy clothes for fall.  Maybe I should buy a ticket.

There is no rhyme or reason to these thoughts - they're just flowing smoothly all through the brain area in no particular order and completely overlapping one another.  These thoughts and many more.  The ones that continued to arise this morning were basically I am having dessert-like Ebelskivers for breakfast - after I have some warm breakfasty style ones. hehe

The kind people at CSN Stores have contacted me to do a review/giveaway.  Have you visited them?  They offer a ton of stuff from a bazillion brands - and the brands are primo.  Everything from amazing Herman Miller Chairs and Diane Von Furstenberg Luggage to, yes, entire bedroom furniture sets.  You can even find a scratching post for your cats so they don't tear up your James Perse bedding (prolly should have thought of that sooner...).

In any event, stay tuned for a little giveaway within the next week or so.  It will be related to something I've talked about on my blog in the past, something that was well-received, and something I hope doesn't sell out before I get it to give to you!!  Cross your fingers ladies...I hope you're hungry!

xoxo-Carrie
Have a great weekend!!