How to Cook Everything, by Mark Bittman

My favorite books

Time for another giveaway! And this year, I wanted to mix it up a bit for Home for the Holidays and make it a bit more personal, from me to you.

Today I’m giving away a collection of my favorite books—not all my favorites, of course (oh goodness, that would cost me a million dollars), but these are a collection of both favorite classics of mine and recent reads I’ve enjoyed. I think you’ll like them, too.

One person will win ALL these books! Give them to different people you love, wow one person with a reader’s paradise, or (shhh) keep them for yourself. I won’t tell. Here they are, in random order.
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Giveaway: KitchenAid Waffle Baker

Today is the first day of our annual Home for the Holidays week! And I’m psyched to kick it off with a fun giveaway, the first gift I’m highlighting for your holidays.

We love KitchenAid in our household. Quality appliances that last a near lifetime, and beautiful to boot. This naturally includes their stellar Waffle Baker.

With its two sides, it makes two 7.5 inch Belgian-style waffles in less than two minutes. The clamshell baking unit rotates to provide seriously consistent waffles.

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Weekend giveaway: a-thread

Today’s weekend giveaway comes from Simple Mom sponsor a-thread. Based in L.A., a-thread is an online boutique that’s all about giving back – their motto is, “Look good, do good.” Find out more about a-thread, in their own words:

a-thread is a new boutique that just celebrated its six month anniversary, and we aim to provide women everywhere with classic, affordable, and trend-inspired fashion! We carry everything, from dresses, tops, bottoms, accessories, and gifts.

We’ve been called the “quirky-preppy” brand, and we focus on wearable styles that have a unique twist, whether it’s in a pop of color, fun texture, or pattern.

a-thread is also about more than just fashion – we believe in giving back. As a part of our Shop & Effect program, we donate 5% of our sales to our charity partners. Current partners include Kiva, Thirst Relief, Children of the Night, and Los Angeles Animal Services.
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plan to eat

Weekend giveaway: Plan to Eat

Today’s giveaway comes from loyal monthly sponsor Plan to Eat, a genius little online program that pretty much does everything for you but actually cook your meals.

This is a simple tool that allows you to store your favorite recipes (and import them from around the Internet!), create menu plans using those recipes, and even provide grocery lists based on those same recipes.

My favorite feature? How simple it is. Its clean interface allows for intuitive interaction — it took me mere seconds to get my account up and running, and I had my weekly menu plan created in minutes.

This is a great tool for busy families with hungry kids.
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Our family purpose statement, displayed (Red Letter Words giveaway)

When I first wrote about our family purpose statement, we were a younger family living in a different country. I was in the throes of depression, and we were one person short.

It’s not that we’re old hats at the parenting thing now, but I can pretty confidently say we’ve grown and wisened-up a bit in the past few years. We’ve been through a lot, and we’re a little different. More of who we were made to be.

But what’s refreshing is that I look at our purpose statement, and it still rings true. We wrote it to be as timeless as possible, while still being specific enough to be useful.

Our family purpose statement

We will:
Put each other first.
Cultivate deep relationships with one another.
Extend love to those around us.
Live simply.
Be true to who God made us.
Take care of our health.
Be good stewards of creation.
Be lifelong learners.

This summer, Dee of Red Letter Words sent us a canvas emblazoned with our purpose statement. I may or may have not teared when it arrived in the mail.

I love that her talent sits in our living room, purposed as a reminder for us to be who we are. To be the Oxenreiders.

Dee’s family purpose statement hangs in her house as well. Beautiful reminders, they are.

And this weekend, Ree would like to give a Simple Mom reader the chance to get his or her family’s purpose statement printed as a canvas as well. To remind you to be you.

Giveaway

To win your family’s purpose statement on a 20×30 gallery wrapped canvas print in any color from Red Letter Words, please use the widget below (if you’re reading this via email, you’ll need to click over to the blog to enter the giveaway):

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Important: Because the cost of shipping something this size is rather costly, Dee can only offer free shipping to a U.S.-based winner. If you’re outside the U.S. and are chosen as the winner, you’ll need to pay for the difference in shipping to your country. Thanks for understanding.

This giveaway will end Saturday night, October 20 (that’s tomorrow!), and I’ll announce the winner soon after. I hope you win!