Tuesday, January 12, 2010

love! and (my first) giveaway

Wow! I've gotten so much Twitter love since I joined a couple months ago (and met some great people, too!) that I decided to give something back when I reached 100 followers. You might say that 100 is nothing compared to @RuthReichl's 24,263 followers or @SweetTartelette's 3,015 followers or the NYC @Waffletruck's 4,779 followers - but it's a start! And it's been really fun getting new readers who leave wonderful, insightful comments on my blog. Keep 'em coming! Every time I get a comment it's like opening a present on Christmas morning :)

So, on to the giveaway. I've had a couple weeks since I first tweeted the 100-follower challenge to come up with the prize. I looked at what other food bloggers give away: cookbooks, favorite kitchen utensils, baking pans they swear by, cooking classes taught by the blogger, and bottles of rare but delicious honey. But what seemed to be missing from many giveaways was the object we're all here for: food! So instead of giving away my new favorite baking book, or hosting a cooking class in my bite-sized apartment, or sending you a bottle of Cholula (better than honey - it's great on everything!), I'm giving away something sweet that I've mentioned in several previous posts.

Yup. One lucky winner will receive a gift box of 4 assorted Levain Bakery cookies from the UWS bake shop. Don't worry friends, these aren't just 4 everyday cookies. They're 6-ounces each and the New York Times has called them "possibly the largest, most divine chocolate chip cookies in Manhattan." I literally can't walk by the quaint little bake shop without indulging and I have no idea how my friend Emily lives on the block and isn't 400 lbs. I guess it's that little thing called self-control that has no place in my head when it comes to cookies. Num.

In addition to the cookies, the winner will receive some more of my favorite sweet things:
A 12-oz bag of beans from Joe the Art of Coffee
A couple samples of Bond No. 9 fragrances
Ghirardelli's "Twilight Delight" 72% cacao dark chocolate (because even if it doesn't say it's associated with the movie, it is - and it's almost as delicious as Edward Cullen)

All you have to do is comment to this post and tell me what your favorite-can't-live-without thing is right now. That's it! I want to hear about your favorite kickboxing class or your favorite Essie nail polish color or your favorite skinny jeans that make your butt look just right for date night. Just leave a comment by next Wednesday January 20, 2010.

Good Luck!

37 comments:

chelsea rebecca said...

OH MY GOODNESS!
YAY for first giveaway!!
okay so my favorite thing right now is diet coke. haha. it's helping me eat less sweets!
and also i got to say my carmex chapstick thats helping my insanely chapped lips!

Anonymous said...

my morning swim! ~anne h.

Jessie Reardon said...

Congrats on so many followers! I love reading your posts :) My favorite thing right now is.... caramel apple lollipops- I'm obsessed with them!

Michele P. said...

my favorite thing right now is nachos... I am dreaming of eating nachos with ground or shredded beef, lotsa cheese and veggies EVERY night! lol. Oh, and my ROC Retinol Correction Deep Wrinkle daily moisturizer in my quest to stay well preserved into my nursing home years. Happy first giveaway! (signed up to follow you on twitter I'm @micaela6955 and I sent out a tweet just now to my followers :)

Anonymous said...

My daily G-chat with the baking therapist
--FLX

Becky said...

My stand mixer. I think that means I cook and bake too much. :)

Ms. Riley said...

I just found a new OPI nail color called "meet and mingle" and it is the perfect rosy, red with just a hint of shimmer. It makes me feel happy when I look at my fingers and sometimes, especially lately, I just need something little to make me smile.

Claire said...

yay!!!!! this is so exciting :)

my favorite thing right now is headbands....they are the best when I wake up after my alarm has gone off in a rush out the door to work! I'm also growing my hair out and don't like the length right now so it helps give some variety to always wearing my hair up.

PS i love how you are giving away a twilight chocolate bar, so amazing

ikkinlala said...

My favourite thing right now is my neigbour's cow, which I've just started milking once a week.

Nicole Underwood Gonzalez said...

Congrats on making it too 100!!
My fave thing right now is French Roast Coffee. I love it!! I make it @ home every morning, but when I get to work all they have is Folgers (bleh) so I try to drink as much as I can before I leave for work! Yes, I'm THAT crazy! I can't wait until Saturdays where I can sit around and enjoy a leisurely cup of cafe!

Cynthia said...

My Skype fannish friends - we stay up all night and chat about Supernatural and it helps me get rid of the stress of the day.

Anna said...

100 followers that's wonderful! and hooray for giveaways! lately i can't get enough twilight. i may or may not be reading them for the second time (in a month) in my defense i joined the party a little late! xox

ROYAL WILDE said...

congrats! this is so fun. i have two favorite things this morning, both of which will hopefully get me through a long day: one, the spurt of pure sunshine we're getting in the city today, and two, the venti skim chai in my hand!

Unknown said...

okay...i'm strategically entering now. i SO hope i win. :) love this giveaway

soo...my favorite thing right now in this moment is either laughing cow cheese - only 50 calories per wedge of deliciousness! or my bed - because my legs hurt so badly that i literally cannot get up.

but i might be able to get up for some laughing cow cheese on toast.
mmm

i hope i win i hope i win i hope i win.

Unknown said...

My favorite thing yesterday, today and tomorrow will always be Harry's Chocolate shop. Where everyone knows your name. For all the boilermakers out there--

Anonymous said...

Those cookies sound amazing! I think it's time I win something. :-)

My favorite thing right now is the sun that I see outside my window!! I think I need to get out and enjoy it.

Anonymous said...

This Blog - for the best recipes and sincerest thoughts.

Unknown said...

Yay and yum! My favorite thing right now is leaving my building in the morning and actually hearing BIRDS in the trees! Honest-to-goodness-Spring-is-coming-eventually birds. I love their chirpy optimism!

Tara said...

I could not live without my Moleskine red weekly planner - http://www.moleskineus.com/moleskine-weekly-planner-pocket-red-hardcover.html. I buy one every year. It holds my stamps, my schedule, birthdays to remember, addresses to favorite restaurants, friend's addresses, lists of questions to ask friends the next time I see them, homemade maps of Brooklyn, a list of passwords to various websites, a list of songs for my imaginary dance party I will one day have, a list of karaoke songs for when you're at the bar, a list of New Year's Resolutions, a list of books I've read. It's my everything.

Jill F. said...

Look at you! You're first giveaway! Congrats!
What can I not live without...hmmm...ANYTHING CHOCOLATE and my Zumba class (so I can continue to indulge in anything chocolate.)

LC said...

Ooohh this is a toughie! My favorite things right now all sort of come together as one.
First, we have Band-Aid Friction Block, that happy little hard-to-find stick that enables you to wear any pair of shoes you own without pinching or blisters- try it, it's life-changing!
While I'm at my desk in whatever shoes I please, I read blogs (ahem, Baking Therapy being a forerunner in the morning) while I sip English Afternoon Tea from Harrods in London and feel secretly naughty for drinking "Afternoon" tea before noon.
Finally, after reading my serious baking and design blogs by talented friends and strangers, I end with Regretsy, and snort whatever English Afternoon Tea is left in my mug as I laugh my head off at the strangeness that is the internet. :)

rac said...

mine is TIGI Catwalk Root Boost hair volume spray for a great lift at the roots of my long hair! :-)

Congrats on your followers!!

carly said...

My Google Reader. Because in the middle of the day while I'm trapped at work and craving something delicious or yearning to cook, there is always a Baking Therapy post or a delicious post from another food blog to curb the cravings (a little) and give me great ideas for my next cooking adventure.

p.s. Apple cake was my Fall Favorite!

nadine said...

Want to know something funny? Because off all my blogs linked together on googlereader I totally didn't remember this was YOU. So I read it the other day and thought, oh that's really nice, and she's a good writer!!! haha. thing i can't live without now is googlereader, thank YOU very much.

meghan said...

I can't live without twilight viewing parties!

-alice!

Unknown said...

These are a few of my favorite things:
- My Friends (those who love vampires and those that don't)
- Hershey's Special Dark Hot Cocoa
- Baking chocolate-based treats to warm up my chilly NYC apt
XOXO

laura nav said...

let's see... right now i can't live without my my roof! i keep getting paranoid that it's leaking, but it seems to be just fine. (knock on wood.) :D

Julie Hays said...

congrats on your first official giveaway, B! what fun, and 100 followers? that blog header must be pullin' in some mad readers :) congrats!

Brianna Kauffman said...

So thrilled for you!!

My favorite thing right now is grabbing hot chocolate from The Financier Patisserie and taking it, along w/ the New Yorker, over to the little park by the east river near my apartment. It has incredible views of the bridges, the water, and is the perfect afternoon escape.

Heather said...

Fun! I had both Levain and Joe's coffee (well, actually hot chocolate) today, so I guess we have some similar favorite things!

Right now, I can't live without my new down coat that I've worn everyday for a week, my "re-discovered" la prairie lunarine lipstick (liberated from a beauty sale many moons ago), and my Clean Food cookbook by Terry Walters.

Anonymous said...

Always and forever - chocolate will be what I can't live without. But if I must choose just one, I am going with Dozen's Salted Caramel Cupcake - it's marvelous!

Ben Carlson said...

My Camera. It allows me to efficiently record, share memories, and express my unique view on the world I inhabit.

Katie Galeotti said...

Beth - love this giveaway and I love your blog.

Right now, it feels like I can't live without the following:

1. My friends-can't believe how much they have been here for me and how much they have helped me grow.

2. My mom-just because she's awesome

3. The Drama of Love: I can't escape it. Drama seems to consume me. Even though I claim to try and be free of it...there it is!

Unknown said...

hello! my 2 favorite-can't-live-without things right now are my santa red elf slippers and caramel mcvitie's.

Anne Keane said...

can't live without my slippers. trying to save money on heat, and look fabulous in the zebra print :)

Caroline said...

My favorite things right now are fresh (as in warm) chicken eggs that the girls are still laying even in deepest winter. THey have the most gorgeous deep orange yolks. Oh, plus my new eco nonstick pan- it's a marvel! Oh, also my sister and brother inlaw's homemade kalua...Yeah, I have a lot of food related favorite things right now...Congratulations on reaching 100! Hope we get to see you again in the Finger Lakes region soon!

Shooting Stars Mag said...

Right now, I can't live without the music from the musical Spring Awakening. I NEED the soundtrack.

-Lauren
lauren51990 AT aol DOT com

 
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