As anyone who has been reading here for a while knows, I’m a vegetarian. I’m also an enthusiastic user of Boca products, so when they invited me to a DC area blogger spa night, I was more than happy to go. Free spa services and a product I already use? Why yes, I’ll be there.
I got to meet Linda of Sundry Mourning, a site I’ve been reading since before I even had a blog, and I’m pleased to say she’s just as smart and funny in person as she is in her writing. Beth from So the Fish Said was there too, and it was nice to see her again. I have to admit that I’m a shy and somewhat awkward sort of person at these things, but for me I didn’t do too badly. I didn’t walk up to Linda and say “Hey, we both love kickboxing, True Blood and making zombie jokes! Want to be my new best friend?” and while I didn’t get to meet everyone who was there or get their blog names, I did have some interesting conversations and enjoyed my free massage. Also, they had Boca mini-sliders. I never get to eat the mini hamburgers, but I did this time!
The point of this spa night was to spread the word about an online community, Gather.com and a Boca Balanced Living contest they are running. You can read all about it here, but basically, the idea is that we are all looking for balance in our lives – I know I am – and right now you have the chance to win $5,000 to help you find that balance. Perhaps $5,000 would help you get out of debt and restore your peace of mind…or it would allow you to hire a babysitter and get to the gym twice a week…or pay someone to clean your house so you can spend quality time with your family. All you have to do is write a little essay about what you’d do with the $5,000 and submit it through their website by February 27.
Personally, I think I’d use $5,000 to hire a personal trainer so I can finally finish losing the weight I want to lose and move into the maintenance phase of being fit. Clearly, I either don’t work out efficiently enough, or I need someone to push me harder than I’ll push myself. Or maybe both. Gather.com actually looks like a pretty interesting site, and really, are you going to turn down the chance at $5,000? Go check it out!
Even better, you’ve got two chances to win stuff! Because even if you don’t win the $5,000, the Boca people gave me a gift bag of goodies to give away. Don’t worry, they gave me one for myself too. It has a handy reusable shopping bag that rolls up tiny and can be stored in a purse, a yoga mat, a date book (John is already mocking me for how much I love this date book, but I say he’s just jealous that he didn’t get any free stuff), coupons for Boca products, Boca recipes and more! All you have to do to get it is leave a comment by Friday, February 20, and I’ll pick a winner at random.
Special Bonus since we’re all Boca focused today – recipes where I’ve used actual Boca products:
Toad in the Hole
Stuffing with sausage
I can't believe I've never posted my recipe for Vegetarian Shepherd's Pie. Look for that coming soon.
How lucky for you and nice of Boca to host such an awesome event! I don't eat meat, either, and really enjoy the wide variety of products Boca offers.
So great to meet you at the Spa night!! I'm obsessing over that planner, too. Fabulous!
I look forward to reading more of your blog!
(Obviously don't count me as a giveaway entry!)
Found you via APISS (Jessica). I love your blog design! I would totally use the $5K for some monthly maid service. I hate cleaning.
When DH had to eat Vegan for 6 months (due to his high cholesterol) we discovered Boca. Even he was impressed.