Ryders Eyewear Giveaway Winner!

And the lucky winner of my Ryders Eyewear Giveaway is.... #6 according to the fabulous random.org generator!  That means that meeyeehere will be sporting new VTX sunglasses soon :-).

Thank you so much to everyone else who entered the giveaway!  Don't worry if you didn't win, there will be more giveaways in the near future :-).

By the way, did any of you brave the crowds and go shopping on Black Friday?  I've done it before, but I was actually able to skip the madness this year and get some awesome deals online instead, such as this external hard drive from Walmart to backup all of my digital photos, music, and other files.

I'd love to write more now, but I've only got 2 weeks left in the semester and it's crunch time!  Thanksgiving break was nice, but I'm looking forward to my winter break even more. 

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Happy Thanksgiving!

I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving!  I'm going to take this time to state the 10 things I am most grateful for in my life:

1. God - He's there for me even when I'm not aware
2. Family and friends - the people I can turn to in joy or sadness
3. Health - the ability to run and be active without much pain
4. University of Illinois - an excellent school
5. Champaign-Urbana - a fabulous place to live
6. Technology - iPod, laptop, digital camera... I couldn't live without them
7. Healthy and delicious food - to nourish my body
8. Books - the knowledge and stories they contain is priceless
9. Music - it can bring me to my feet in dance or simply soothe my soul
10. Internet - Facebook, Blogger, Skype, YouTube... these are some of my favorite things :-)

What are you most thankful for?

I'm also thankful that I can host giveaways and bring a little joy to others' lives :-).  I have two giveaways going on right now here and here!

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Progresso Panko Bread Crumbs Prize Pack Giveaway

My participation in MyBlogSpark certainly has its perks :-).  I was recently sent a package that contained a package of Progresso Lemon Pepper Panko Bread Crumbs and Michael Chiarello's Bottega cookbook!  I haven't used the bread crumbs yet, but this is the recipe I'm looking forward to using them with.  I wanted to get this giveaway posted sooner rather than later, so you'll just have to wait to see how my recipe turns out and if I actually follow the recipe 'as is'. 

Here is what is included in the prize pack:

Chef Michael Chiarello is "known for his emphasis on creating delicious dishes with fresh, premium ingredients,  uses panko as his go-to bread crumb for a crunch that won’t quit. An Emmy-award winning TV chef and cookbook author, Chef Chiarello is the tastemaker behind Bottega Napa Valley Restaurant, NapaStyle and Chiarello Family Vineyards, and appears on The Cooking Channel and Top Chef Masters only on Bravo." (MyBlogSpark)

Giveaway: This giveaway is open to U.S. residents and will end on December 1, 2010. The winner will be picked via random.org. and will have 48 hours to respond to the winning email to claim their prize or another winner will be drawn. Make sure you leave a valid e-mail address in your posts!

Mandatory Entry: Leave a comment and let me know how you would use the Progresso Lemon Pepper Panko Bread Crumbs. Please include your e-mail address with your entry so I can contact you if you win.

Extra Entries (leave 1 comment for each): Blog about this giveaway and leave a link to your post.

Become a follower of my blog.

Best of luck to you all!

*General Mills provided me with the information and giveaway through MyBlogSpark.

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Ryders Eyewear Giveaway!

I told you this was coming :-).  I reviewed a pair of red VTX sunglasses from Ryders Eyewear earlier this week here, and now one of you is going to have a chance to win a red pair for yourself!

Giveaway: Ryders Eyewear is going to provide one of my readers with a red pair of VTX sunglasses. This giveaway is open to U.S. Residents and will end on November 27, 2010. The winner will be picked via random.org. and will have 48 hours to respond to the winning email to claim their prize or another winner will be drawn. Make sure you leave a valid e-mail address in your posts!

Mandatory Entry: Submit a photo (by e-mailing me at got2run06 at yahoo.com of your current sunglasses that need to be replaced because they're beat-up, ugly, etc. OR visit the Ryders Eyewear site and mention another model you are interested in.  Please include your e-mail address with your entry so I can contact you if you win.

Extra Entries (leave 1 comment for each): Blog about this giveaway and leave a link to your post.

Become a follower of my blog.

Follow me on twitter and tweet about this giveaway by saying, "In need of a new pair of sunglasses? Ryders eyewear giveaway by @cygirl88 here: http://tinyurl.com/28k3u68"

Best of luck to you all!  I look forward to your entries, especially if you send me some pictures :-).


P.S. I've added some more photos to my photo blog here: http://ashleymphotos.weebly.com/photos.html

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Ryders Eyewear review

A new week and a new review for you :-).  This time I was sent a complimentary pair of sunglasses from Ryders eyewear.  They offer a great selection of sunglasses and even some goggles.  Here is the pair I was sent:

VTX sunglasses: 10 of 10!  These glasses are stylish, very comfortable, and they wrap around my eyes so as to eliminate any glare from the sun at my side.  The case is very sturdy, and the interchangeable lens mean that this can be my go-to pair of sunglasses for just about anything, but especially exercise such as running and biking where you really need some quality glasses that won't slip.

Guess what?!  One lucky reader will be winning a red pair of the VTX sunglasses like I received... but you'll have to stay tuned for the giveaway details :-).

I don't know about you all, but Illinois has been having some very unseasonably warm weather.  It was sunny and in the 70s today!  I went on a 1.5 hr. bike ride (with my VTX sunglasses of course) and thoroughly enjoyed myself. 

Have a great week everyone!

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Jay Robb Protein Powder Review

Last month, I reviewed Jay Robb's JayBar here.  Now I'm reviewing his protein powders, which I was sent along with the bars to review.  Jay Robb offers both whey protein isolate and egg white protein powders.  Here are some facts about Jay Robb whey protein isolate:

• From Grass Fed Cows Not Treated With rBGH (Recombinant Bovine Growth Hormone)
• Now with 25 Grams Protein Per Serving!
• Mixes with a blender or Shaker Bottle
• No Fat, No Cholesterol
• No Sugar
• No Aspartame
• No Artificial Sweeteners or Colors
• Made With Stevia
• No Casein
• No MSG
• No Gluten

More information on Jay Robb's protein powders can be found on his site here.

I was sent the following flavors: Vanilla, Chocolate, Strawberry, Pina Colada, Tropical Dreamsicle (the last two flavors are only available in whey protein isolate).

Vanilla (whey): 9.5 of 10. Great vanilla flavor.  It mixed in with milk quite nicely and was great with oatmeal (as seen above).

Vanilla (egg white): 9 of 10.  Very nice taste again, though it seemed like this powder was harder to stir in.

Strawberry (whey): 9.5 of 10. Smooth, strong flavor that blended well and was quite foamy!  I appreciated that it wasn't pink because I hate artificial colors.

Strawberry (egg white): 9 of 10. A stronger strawberry flavor, but it didn't blend as well.

Chocolate (whey): 10 of 10. Wonderful chocolate flavor.  It mixed up quite well in my blender and came out nice and foamy :-).

Chocolate (egg white): 8.5 of 10. The chocolate flavor wasn't as strong as I would have liked and it didn't blend as well.

Tropical Dreamsicle (whey): 9.5 of 10. Very nice tropical flavor with orange and some other tropical fruits thrown in.  It was unique, but not overwhelmingly so.

Pina Colada (whey): 10 of 10. I mixed it with milk, and it tasted just like I'd imagine a pina colada would taste like!  Delicious!

Overall, I enjoyed the whey protein isolate flavors better.  They were easier to mix into liquids and didn't have clumps like the egg white protein powder sometimes had.

Look at this awesome tank top I was sent with my samples!!  I love it!  Thank you Jay Robb :-).

I won't be able to blog until next week now because I have a lot of class work and projects.  I hope you all have a wonderful rest of the week and weekend though! 

If you're looking for a smile, check this out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TAibh3SqRUo&feature=related

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