A Special Mother's Day Giveaway!

Me & my mum

Who is the most inspiring woman in your life? Mine would have to be my mother, with my grandmother coming very close behind. My childhood was a very happy one, with such a wonderful mother. She was always there for us, and she still is. (In fact, she only lives two doors up, and so my children are very blessed to have Grandma close by.)

This is where we all hung out after school - with mum in the kitchen. 

(That's me holding my little brother)

Some of my favourite childhood memories are of cooking with mum in our little kitchen. It was always a noisy, happy place - kids, visitors, cups of tea, bread fresh out of the oven, apricot fried pies, chocolate cake, laughter, old cookbooks spattered with milk and cocoa and flour, beans bubbling on the stove, a roast cooking in the oven, the screen door slamming, neighbour kids running in to ask for a homemade bikkie and iced tea... and above all, mum. Always there, always welcoming anyone and everyone who happened to turn up.

Mum and her famous homemade bread

When mum's delicious homemade bread came out of the oven, we'd run out the back door and yell at the top of our voices, 'HOT BREAD!!' and kids would come running from everywhere... We'd cut off all the crusts, slather them with butter, and run out the door to play. What a way to grow up.

Thanks for all the hard work you did to keep us well fed and happy, mum. I hope you know how much we appreciate you. Because it still continues... now it's the grandkids and all their friends!

Cookie decorating at Grandma's house

Some of you may not be so privileged to have your mum close by, but I'm sure you all have women who inspire you and encourage you to be all that you can be. In the past year I have met many gorgeous ladies who inspire me. Many of them I've only met 'online' or over the phone or skype, but I know that if I turned up at their door they'd invite me in for a cuppa and we'd be laughing and chatting all afternoon as if we'd known each other all our lives.

There are also some ladies who I don't know personally, but I'm just really impressed with the products they make and sell. A lot of thought and creativity has gone into their work, and I think they deserve to be recognized. Some of these lovely women have donated gifts for me to share with you as a special Mother's Day treat! To win one of these prizes, all you have to do is leave a comment on this blog post telling us about a woman in your life who inspires you - it may be your mother, your daughter, your grandmother, an aunty, neighbour or friend. Let's celebrate the beautiful women in our lives, their creativity and caring, and the world they've opened up for us all. Enjoy.

{This giveaway is now closed, as of 12pm, May 8th, 2013. Thanks to all of you who participated, and for all your inspiring stories! I've loved reading them. Winners have been drawn via Random.org and will be announced shortly in a separate blog post. Stay tuned!}

I really have to start with Jude Blereau. Jude is one of the most inspiring and beautiful women I've ever met, and I'm so excited to be able to offer you the chance to win a copy of her NEW cookbook, Wholefood Baking.

Me & Jude

Jude is a wholefood chef - I call her 'the wholefood guru.' Her knowledge of healthy, wholefood cooking is amazing, and she is always happy to share it. From her books, classes, seminars and blog you will learn not only what foods are good for you and how to prepare them, but how to bring deliciousness back into healthy eating. Because without deliciousness, eating well is just another task on our to-do list.

This book is chock-a-block full of useful information and scrumptious recipes. I know it's going to become a favourite in our house, and I expect it won't be long before it looks a little food-spattered, like all good cookbooks are when they're well-loved. I've made a couple of recipes from it already, including this gorgeous Carrot, Pistachio and Amaranth Cake with orange and cardamom and a delicious orange glaze... so good! There are lots of allergy friendly recipes and variations and tips in this book, so I know my readers will love it.

I have two copies of Jude's new book, valued at $38.99 to give away, but if you can't wait any longer and want to buy Jude's book for yourself, click on the photo below and order online! You can connect with Jude via her blog & Facebook page.

Wholefood Baking

Jenny Tschiesche, The Lunchbox Doctor, is another lady who I find very inspiring. She is doing a great job of spreading the word about healthy eating for kids. Jenny is a nutritionist in the UK, and her award winning book, Not Just Sandwiches, is a great help to many parents who want to send their kids to school with a nutritious, balanced lunch.

I've enjoyed getting to know Jenny this past year, and have learnt so much from her. She has recipes and tips for every kind of 'eater' - from the fussy eater to the adventurous eater, and everything in between. Jenny also knows about food allergies and the healing power of food, so she has lots of ideas to help if you're feeling overwhelmed and needing ideas for children with diet restrictions. I have two copies of Jenny's book valued at $15.86 each, to give away. You can order her book online here. Jenny's blog has lots of recipes to try and short videos to watch, and you can get in touch with her via her Facebook page &Twitter.

Wendy of The Vegie Smugglers is another lovely lady who is working hard to help parents get more vegies into their kids. She has donated an e-book bundle valued at $29.95, which includes four digital titles:

• 10 Quickbakes plus 10 Sandwich spreads
• The Complete Vegie Smugglers lunchbox planner
• Six Weekly meal plans
• Craft for non-crafty parents

These fantastic e-books will help you revive your lunchboxes, plan your life AND be the creative parent of your dreams! Includes over 90 recipes that focus on seasonal ingredients and sneaking healthy ingredients into your family. All files can be viewed on your PC, your iPad or iPhone. The Meal Planner comes complete with three formats - one for easy printing, one for your ipad and one for your kindle. Keep up with Wendy's great ideas via Facebook & Pinterest!

I'm so excited about these natural 'mother and baby' bags! Pamela from BaoBag contacted me a while ago to tell me about them, and sent me a couple to look at, and WOW, I was so impressed!! What a great service these ladies are offering. BaoBag is a free gift to new Mums through private hospitals when they give birth, and through obstetricians and other practitioners specialising in pre and post natal care. You can also buy a bag for a new mum you love right here on their website. They contain samples of only the finest natural & organic products. Around 70,000 new mums receive a BaoBag each year.

I really wish I'd gotten one of these when I had my first baby. I received one of the usual mother and baby packs that are given out in hospitals, and the information inside confused me, more than anything. Without mentioning any product names, I learnt that eating lots of sugar is good for new mums because it gives you energy; sugar filled, coloured, over-processed juices are the perfect drink for weaning your baby; and chemical filled baby products will make your baby smell so lovely and feel so good. Ugh. I wish I'd known better.

BaoBags are more than just a "mum & baby" bag. BaoBag's aim is to capture people at a time when they are likely to be re-evaluating many things in their lives now that they've got this new little person to look after. Pamela says, "Everyone wants the best for their families, homes and themselves, and we aim to provide samples of many things that are better - for them and the planet. So our bag is something for the whole household, and we hope via our blog and Facebook to maintain the dialogue with recipients on making better choices beyond just receiving the bag."

I have one Deluxe BaoBag to give away - photo of contents above! Help spread the word about BaoBags, and connect with them on their blog, Facebook page and Twitter.

Here's an exciting prize for those of you with kids at school... Shionagh of Biome Eco Stores is offering a great eco-friendly lunchbox kit valued at $130!

It includes:
A Built roll-top lunch bag
An Ecococoon 500ml insulated drink bottle
A Black & Blum Box Appetite bento box

If you haven't checked out this store, you really should - they have an amazing array of products! Connect with Biome on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest!

Jen of Living Synergy has developed her own nut milk bags, and they're the best I've found. Very easy to use, easy to wash, high quality and long lasting. I highly recommend them for squeezing the pulp out of nut and coconut milks, rice milk, oat milk, chia milk, and even for taking the pulp out of juices if you prefer your juice without all the fibre. I have 10 of these bags, valued at $17.95 each to give away. You can buy them at many health food shops, and also online here. Check out Jen's facebook page here.

Now something every mum gets excited about - CHOCOLATE!! Pana Chocolate is offering 2 of their "I love you Mum" 4 pack Gift Boxes valued at $28.95 each - one for you and one for your mum! This is the perfect present for a loving mum, with four 45g bars (Mint, Rose, Coconut & Goji and Raw Cacao) and a cute gift card to write your own personal message. (Not exclusive to Mother’s Day, a perfect gift for Mum on any occasion!)

Pana Chocolate is a raw, organic chocolate that is handmade in Melbourne, Australia. It contains only natural ingredients such as raw organic nuts, organic goji berries, organic coconut flakes and pure 100% essential oils. This lovely chocolate is crafted with the vision that the chocolate should be good for everyone. (I totally agree!) Connect with Pana Chocolate via Facebook & Twitter.

Alisha of Naughty Naturopath Mum's Blog has offered a Mother's Day Pack of her Bush Flower Essences - the Woman Essence and the Calm and Clear Essence. Calm & Clear Essence is great for hyperactivity in kids and especially good for all mothers! Can help turn off those racing and worried thoughts that cycle around the brain. Used very effectively in ADD/ADHD behavioural conditions. The Woman Essence is excellent if hormones are still a bit all over the place from pregnancy or for pre-mentural and menopausal symptoms. For more information on Bush Flower Essences, see her blog post here. Alisha has a lively Facebook page, and will bring a smile to your day!

Rebecca of 4MyEarth makes eco-friendly food covers which you can use to cover meals and leftovers in the fridge, instead of using plastic wrap. She is giving away a set of two medium food covers in flowered print. Check out her site and Facebook page to see her whole range of eco-friendly food wraps and food pockets (perfect for school lunchboxes).

Robyn of Overcoming Overwhelm is giving away a pack each of daytime, nightime and panty liner "Love-Moon Anion Sanitary Pads". Did you know that: Most brands of sanitary napkins are made from bleached and recycled papers which are not properly sterilised and do not meet Quality Assurance standards? Did you know that: Asbestos is added to many tampons?  

Each Anion pad contains a negative ion strip in each pad that releases a large amount of oxygen. It is the oxygen in Anions (or negative ions) that kills 99.9% of bacteria. Many women find that these are very helpful with thrush, menstrual cramps, headaches, urinary tract infections, fibroids and other symptoms associated with bacteria and menstruation and the reproductive system. Anion napkins have a breathable bottom layer which allows free-flowing of air instead of a plastic bottom layer found in other brands which does not “breathe”. These napkins are fully bio-degradable and entirely environmentally friendly. Each pad is machine packed and sealed on the production line (and does not come into contact with human hands), thus ensuring a high standard of Sterility which meet GMP standards. The vegetable glue used on Anion Sanitary Napkins is non-toxic as compared to most sanitary pads which tend to use industrial glue, which is harmful to the body.



*     *     *     *     *

I have one more gift pack to offer, from my MiEssence shop. I love MiEssence products - they are very gentle and organic body, health and home products. I've been using them for years. MiEssence is putting out a 10 day Superfood Vitality Challenge, and one of you can win
a Vitality Challenge Kit worth $75, as well as a sample size of Delicious Perfume (my favourite perfume).

The Superfood Vitality Challenge leads you through a 10 day journey to better health. The Vitality Challenge kit contains:

• 10 day supply of BerryRadical Antioxidant Superfood
• 10 day supply of DeepGreen Alkalising Superfood
• 10 day supply of InLiven Probiotic Superfood
• 20 page Vitality Challenge book including self-assessment guide, detox guide and bonus Smoothie recipes

The MiEssence Delicious Perfume is just a little added bonus, because I LOVE it, and I think you will too! It's the perfect perfume for a cooking addict like me, because it's made of chocolate, honey and vanilla, with a hint of sweet jasmine. Just gorgeous. Perfumes usually make me sneeze and give me a headache, but this perfume is made with essential oils, and I don't react to it. I hope you'll love it too. You can buy the 10ml bottle of Delicious perfume pictured above (valued at $148.50) at 40% off at the moment ($89.10) - here's where to buy it.

*     *     *     *     *

So there you are, a whole bunch of exciting gifts to celebrate Mother's Day, and the wonderful women in our lives who inspire and encourage us. Don't forget to comment below, sharing with us something about the woman in your life who most inspires you. And I'll be back in a week's time to draw the prize winners!

[Note: You will need to click on the title to this post to open the comments. If you're on a mobile device, scroll to the bottom of the page and click on 'view web version' so that you can see the comments.]

{This giveaway is now closed, as of 12pm, May 8th, 2013. Thanks to all of you who participated, and for all your inspiring stories! I've loved reading them. Winners have been drawn via Random.org and will be announced shortly in a separate blog post. Stay tuned!}

Happy Mother's Day, mums -
I hope you have a relaxing day, and are loved, appreciated, and celebrated!

A younger me with my first baby