Bits and Pieces and a Giveaway

So, spring is almost ready to poke it's head in the door and I've got an early case of spring fever. I'm dreaming of digging in my garden and getting my hands dirty. I'm already looking forward to picking out which veggies we'll grow and all the things I want to accomplish in the yard.

I thought a giveaway at this transition period between winter to spring might be a good idea. More coming up on that. I wanted to share a few things with you.

First of all look at this beautiful little bowl that I received in the mail about a month after Moose passed. I can't tell you how touched I was when I opened up the package and saw this:




I had purchased some items from Eileen's shop Say Your Piece on Etsy years ago. She has a great little shop. I encourage you to visit and check out all the beautiful custom and personalized ceramic work she does.

So this package arrives out of the blue and I'm thinking to myself "I didn't order anything". I opened it up and was in a puddle of tears, not only because the dish was so beautiful, but because Eileen had taken time out of her busy life to make and send this to me. I am so thankful that there are truly special people like her in the world. She touched my heart with this precious gift that I'll cherish forever. Thank you again Eileen.

I also had this amazing portrait done of Moose. It's by a local artist named Laurelin Sitterly who owns Blockhead Craftwerks. She draws gorgeous animal portraits and even donates part of the purchase price to local animal charities.

I was in tears again when I saw this portrait of Moose and his baby bunny.



She captured his soul and spirit in this. Another one to cherish.

Thank you Eileen and Laurelin.

Your works of art keep Moose's memory alive.

So because spring is around the corner and because Thursday it's my birthday and because I haven't had a giveaway in a good long time, I've got a few handpicked items I'd love for one lucky winner to own. They are a bit of a mish-mash. I've been picking up things that have caught my eye over the past few months. First up is one of my all time favorite cookbooks. Cristina Ferrare's Big Bowl of Love.

I own and love this cookbook. I was a big fan of Christina's show and I'm an even bigger fan of her cooking....and my friends Todd & Diane (White on Rice Couple) took all the gorgeous photographs in this book. It's a stunner filled with the most delicious recipes you can imagine. I'd love for it to be in someone kitchen.

Second item - might sound a little strange, but trust me on this one, it's a uni-tasker that I love. A silicone butter softener.

How many times have you gone to make a recipe and you see these words next to the butter "room temp" or " softened"? Ugh. I forgot to take the butter out and now I have to wait hours before I can make this recipe. Well wait no more. You pop this baby in the microwave, remove, then slap one or two sticks of butter in it and in about 8 minutes you have perfectly softened butter to use in your recipe. The forgetful me loves it! It really works!

Third - this little pitcher just called to me. I love the color and the design. It's the perfect size to hold some milk or cream to go with you tea and it looks adorable on the table. I had to have it and I wanted one of you to have it too!

Last but not least the infamous half roll pan.

Back in 2011 I posted a recipe for a Swedish Almond Cake. Immediately following I had many inquiries as to where the pan could be purchased. I must have had 20 people trying to find that darn pan. Mine was bought eon's ago. I did find some half roll pans and bought quite a few with future giveaways in mind. I'm adding this into the winners package. I can tell you that even if you only make that Swedish Almond Cake and nothing else in this pan, it's so worth it.

So there is my little giveaway. It's open to everyone. All you have to do to enter is to answer this question:

What's your favorite thing about spring?

One lucky reader has a chance to win it all!

If you don't have a blog, please leave me email address to contact you (no email and I'll move on to the next name).

There are three ways to enter: (1) leave a comment on the blog (2) go “like” The Cutting Edge of Ordinary on Facebook or (3) Already a fan? Just leave a comment here to let me know! 

Giveaway ends on Friday, March 22nd at midnight EST. Good Luck!