The Annual Purim Giveaway and Comment Lovefest
Perhaps you noticed Purim creeping up on the calendar. Perhaps you thought I had forgotten. But no, like an elephant, I always remember. At least, that is the case when it comes to candy.
It is once again time for my annual mishloach manot giveaway. (I believe this is the fourth time doing this.) The idea behind mishloach manot is to send out treats so no one is without dessert after the Purim feast. It’s a recognition that not everyone has money for extras, but everyone could use some sweetness in their life. (And on that end, not everyone has my mad baking skillz so this is to save a person from Pepperidge Farm.)
It is my favourite thing I do all year, and we have a great theme planned (past ones include “Yes, We Can(dies)!” in honour of Obama’s inauguration, the Winter Olympics, and Dr. Suess), but you’ll need to win the basket to see it. I have been sitting on this theme for almost a year now. It’s that good.
I can tell you that in the baskets thus far (and whoever wins can tailor this to their tastes/allergies):
- Chocolate and sea salt peanut butter cups
- Chocolate and sea salt nutella cups
- Hamantaschen
- My infamous chocolate chip cookies
- Homemade lollipops
- Brown sugar toffee
- Chocolate bar
- Non-edible items which cannot be named because they will give away the theme
And whatever else I dream up between now and mailing the packages. I’m not going to be modest — people tell me that my baking and candies are fantastic and while they may be lying, they have inflated my culinary ego. This basket is going to rock. And 100% of the items so far are recipes of my own creation.
The baskets are for our friends and family, but we also make one every year for the lovely people of the Internets, and it’s yours to win. Here’s what you need to do to enter the giveaway (and you can enter as many times as you like):
- Leave a comment below (yes, a box full of candy for the low low price of one comment!) telling me where you left a comment already today–and feel free to leave, write a comment somewhere, and come back. Please put the name of that blog and a link to the post in the comment. And say something nice about that person’s post. And no, commenting on this post doesn’t count for where you’ve left a comment (though my blog still counts as long as you’ve commented on a different post). The posts that you’re commenting on need to have been written in March 2011 (only entries with a link to a post written in that time frame count).
- You can enter as many times as you like. Which means the more you comment around the blogosphere, the more chances you have to win (last year’s winner did an insane amount of commenting). Only comments that talk about a post you read elsewhere in the blogosphere have a chance at winning (in other words, if you write below, “that looks delicious!” I’ll be appreciative, but you won’t be eligible to win. You need to list a place where you commented today, give the url for the post, and say something about the post).
- Each comment counts as one entry, so if you’ve commented in three places, you’re allowed to leave that in three entries here. Leaving it in separate comments is actually sort of an important fact because too many links in a comment will make it caught by the spam filter. I will release comments caught by the spam filter, but it will take me a moment.
- The giveaway ends at 8 a.m. EST on Monday the 14th, therefore, you can return all weekend and list new, great blog posts you found. If you’re still confused, think of this as creating a Friday Blog Roundup-type list in the comment section, one comment at a time.
I will also love you forever if you read down the list and click over to read the other posts listed in the comment section. And don’t just hit the first ones at the top of the comment list. Make sure you hit some of the people in the middle or bottom of the list and leave them a comment telling them that you agree with the original commenter — their writing does rock.
If someone writes something nice about a post you wrote this week, bask in the love. Oh, and here’s a good impetus to go write something amazing on your own blog so people can come and comment on it over here and win the basket.
My usual blog rules apply: any spam is deleted — the point is to honour another person, not drum up business for a Viagra website — as well as anything rude.
I’ll use the random number generator and announce it on Monday after I’ve contacted the person. So let the commenting/mishloach manot winning begin. Oh, and no, I’m not sharing these recipes yet. You’ll have to win them to eat them.
257 comments
Jen (http://herewegoajen.com/?p=1450 ) has insanely awesome news. There was no way I couldn’t comment on it
and I am going to use that picture of the peanut butter cup to inspire me to ramp up my commenting
OK, after reading Meghan’s comment above, I had to go look. And after reading, I had to leave a comment too. : ) (Also, having seens photos of past years’ baskets, I had to enter at least once…!) http://herewegoajen.com/?p=1450
I also just cam from Jen’s blog http://herewegoajen.com/?p=1450 and she really does have awesome news.
Mali at A Separate Life has a great post about comments & what makes a good one that I know you’d love, Mel. : )
http://aseparatelife.wordpress.com/2011/03/10/what-to-say/
I left a comment at Jen’s, because she has exciting news! http://herewegoajen.com/?p=1450
Hehe. This is fun. Apparently I had good timing. 😉
(You know I leave a lot of comments right? I’ll probably give up at some point today, but for now, hang on.)
I left a comment for Trish: http://livelovegive.typepad.com/living_loving_giving/2011/03/perspective.html
And at Anonymouse: http://anonymouseandcheese.wordpress.com/2011/03/09/decade-of-decision/
Also on Alex’s blog. She had a roller coaster of a day, but has wonderful news to share.
http://manyadventuresofalex.blogspot.com/2011/03/what-day.html
Yummy!
Today I had the awesomest pleasure of leaving a comment on a cyber friend’s blog congratulating her on her super fantastic beta! It was such a long awaited beta, she has been through so much and through it all has been such an inspiration and support to me. I cannot express enough how thrilled I am for her. So without further ado – I commented on Cam’s Post over at Angels On My Mind: http://angelsonmymind.blogspot.com/2011/03/1st-beta.html
PS please stop by and say congrats to her!
And at might maggie: http://www.mightymaggie.com/2011/03/your-weekly-dose-of-house-angst.html
And on Maggie’s Parenting post: http://www.parenting.com/blogs/parenting-post/maggie-cheung/which-jack-was-almost-rude-and-i-almost-died
I’m not eligible since I won this contest last year (by leaving dozens of comments all over the blogosphere), but let me just say that Mel is an amazing baker and her mishloach manot is one of the reasons that I LOVE PURIM.
All those yummys look soooooo good. I left a comment on JJ’s blog, she lost her grandfather recently.
http://reproductivejeans.blogspot.com/
Not entering at this moment, but oh MAN, sea salt peanut butter cups? I am dead merely of the thought.
http://delinquenteggs.blogspot.com/2011/03/baby-d-has-head.html … Adele has awesome news! And she is scared, but I’m privileged to hold her hand.
http://delinquenteggs.blogspot.com/2011/03/baby-d-has-head.html InBetween is past her due date and feels like this is a cruel joke for an IF … go be with her!
oops … wrong link … http://survivingacademia.blogspot.com/2011/03/waiting-game.html InBetween is past her due date and feels like this is a cruel joke for an IF … go be with her!
http://whatsinlaurensuterus.blogspot.com/2011/03/old-pro.html … Lauren took pictures of her pharmacy today. I was bowled over.
http://2years2tryfor1.blogspot.com/2011/03/absolutely-nothing-to-do-with-ttc-if.html … I had to laugh at the list of 80s music. It was a walk down amnesia lane. 😉
Kate posted pictures of her projects … she is so talented! http://stillivingthedream.blogspot.com/2011/03/crafties-yup-again-but-with-pictures.html
http://theconceivablefuture.com/?p=548 Andie’s dh is away, so March is a wash, and she’s feeling frustrated. She could use support.
Love this post by Lamb on blogging and social media- though you Mel, certainly don’t need advice on that point! 🙂 http://warriorwriters.wordpress.com/2011/03/09/blogging-and-maintaining-our-sanity-part-one/
I love HereWeGoAJen, and had commented on her awesome news before I saw this : http://herewegoajen.com/?p=1450
1) I left a comment here:http://lotsalaundry.blogspot.com/2011/03/meeting-of-minds.html
She’s a great writer, and an astute parent, and she has some hard shit on her plate right now.
2) And I left a comment here: http://sarahandthegoonsquad.com/2011/03/07/the-20th-reunion/comment-page-1/#comment-39859
Actually I think I left comments on two of her posts…
3) And I left a comment here: http://coffeeyogurt.blogspot.com/2011/03/rocking-my-red-flats.html
Even though I am not wearing red shoes.
4) And I left a comment here:
http://www.mamabirddiaries.com/the-mamabird-diaries/from-super-diamond-to-the-beliebers/
Because, you know, Lady Gaga isn’t half bad.
5) And I left a comment here:
http://ifbyyes.wordpress.com/2011/03/08/babbys-first-cephalopod/#comment-2773
Because it cracked me up that she was feeding squid to her six month old as his first solid food. Or one of them.
6) Oh, and I left a comment on another post of yours:
https://www.stirrup-queens.com/2011/03/the-hcg-diet/
Does that count? 😉
http://the2weekwait.blogspot.com/2011/03/terminal-two-week-wait.htm … Jay has an awesome post on the 2WW and perspective …
I love Keiko’s post for International Women’s Day … she asks us all to think about why we rock. 🙂 http://hannahweptsarahlaughed.blogspot.com/2011/03/lets-celebrate-women-for-international.html
(I’m on a roll.)
7) I left a comment here:
http://writingasjoe.blogspot.com/2011/03/whats-red-and-not-there.html
Yum. Home processed tomatoes.
8) And here:
http://www.schmutzie.com/weblog/2011/3/8/lets-panic-about-babies-is-pretty-twisted-and-you-probably-w.html
Not that I need that book (I have one!), but because Schmutzie looks like she has a beard…
(The previous comment was #8 but the 8 turned into a weird emoticon!)
9) And here:
http://peaceableimperatrix.wordpress.com/2011/03/10/how-to-make-crepes-my-way/
Because, yum, crepes – with non-standard measuring to boot.
10) And finally here:
http://jugglinglife.typepad.com/juggling_life/2011/03/its-official-hes-danger-man.html
Because, birthday and all. Had to.
I think I’m done. Ten. Good round number. Can I have some chocolate now?
Also commented on Herewegoajen. Yay!
Jess is doing a challenge to list 25 good things for each day of Lent and she’ll wind up with 1000 good things in her life. Such a wonderful idea. 🙂 http://jwhite05.blogspot.com/2011/03/one-thousand-gifts.html
http://serenitynowinfertile.wordpress.com/2011/03/10/the-somewhat-freaky-perfect-moment-wednesday/ … Serenity is such an awesome writer, and this post describes a “perfect” moment with her son.
http://www.almostallthetruth.com/2011/03/its-international-womens-day-2011/ … a great post about the importance of educating women and supporting each other … locally and globally.
You owe me a new laptop because mine just had a drool short.
JJ is experiencing opposite emotions over on ReproJeans.
http://reproductivejeans.blogspot.com/2011/03/no-name.html
You’ve made Purim my favorite holiday. And, like Madonna, I’m changing my name to Esther.
I also left a post over at herewegoagain. Please forgive me for not putting the URL here right now. It is certainly good news, indeed. I’ll be going to comment elsewhere as soon as I’m free. Those sea salt peanut butter cups look to die for 🙂
That basket of goodies looks wonderful!
I left a comment here
http://chroniclesofpookahsmom.com/2011/03/back-to-my-reality/#comment-3029
Rose’s Daughter is going back to work after a surgical procedure, and realizing she needs space for herself. (Something I struggle with!)
After reading the comments, I looked at N’s post, and left a comment here
http://2years2tryfor1.blogspot.com/2011/03/absolutely-nothing-to-do-with-ttc-if.html#comment-form
Brings back memories!
Clare has reached a major milestone, she’s interviewing midwives – she’s so happy to have reached this point. Plus, it looks like she has found a great midwife match:
http://thepitter-patter.blogspot.com/2011/03/good-news.html
I left a comment on that post 🙂
Joining the chorus of people rejocing with Jen!
http://herewegoajen.com/?p=1450
She sure does have good timing, eh?! I wonder what big news I can come up with to annouce on the day you put up this post next year?! 😉
I have a busy day today with a showing of our house in a few hours, but will be back over the next few days with more comment links.
Those PB cups look awesome! 🙂
And Cali: http://creatingmotherhood.com/2011/03/10/pain-in-the-paint/
And Mrs. Spit: http://mrsspit.ca/?p=2392
And Julie: http://www.alittlepregnant.com/alittlepregnant/2011/03/ribbedfor-her-pleasure.html
And A’Dell. http://jakethedog.typepad.com/im_just_saying/2011/03/acid.html
(Can you tell that I am home from my errands now? I’ve been away all day.)