Rudi's Organic Bakery winner!

Thanks to everyone who entered my Rudi's Organic Bakery giveaway -- and to those of you who took the time to vote in the Let's Doodle Lunch program. (And if you haven't stopped over to their Facebook page and voted, please do!)

And now for the giveaway winner!

I used random.org to choose a winner from all of the entries and the winner is . . .


FireRunner2379


Congratulations! Send me an email at felicehalf at yahoo dot com with your address so you can get your kit!

Thanks to Rudi's Organic Bakery -- a wonderful company -- for this giveaway!

Have a good day, everyone.

~ Felice

Friday fun.

After seeing a bunch of these on Pinterest, I simply couldn't resist making my own:

So there you go. Ryan understands the extra Garmin mileage. Really. He does.

Happy Friday!

~ Felice

The Care and Handling of Roses with Thorns (review).

What is it with me and titles? I'm not sure but I'll tell you one thing: There are many titles that simply don't do their books any favors. The Care and Handling of Roses with Thorns, which I read as part of the BlogHer Book Club, is one such title. The book -- by Margaret Dilloway -- is good. But the title? Yawn . . .

Title aside, I enjoyed this book. The narrator, Galilee "Gal" Garner, is a unique character. A biology teacher at a Catholic school, Gal is still single at 36 and pretty much in love with roses. She's an amateur rose breeder, and she'd love to become a professional one. She also has kidney disease and is in need of a kidney transplant (her third). As she waits for a donor, she goes for dialysis every other day.

Gal's life is turned upside-down when her troubled niece, Riley, shows up to live with her. After that, a series of things happen that shake up Gal's ordered life even more. The shake-up causes Gal to reflect on her relationships, her stubbornness, and her perceptions of her life and the lives of those around her.

There were some weak points to the story and I found a good bit of the dialog stilted and not believable -- even after making concessions for Gal's difficult nature. But, I also found the book and many of the characters interesting. I loved reading about the details of rose breeding and, after I warmed up to her, I was rooting hard for Gal to get her new kidney. Overall, I enjoyed the book, read through it quickly, and would recommend it.

You can read more about the book at the BlogHer Book Club.

Have you read The Care and Handling of Roses with Thorns, or Margaret Dilloway's first book, How to be an American Housewife? What did you think?

Have a great weekend, everyone!

~ Felice

Review disclaimer: This is a compensated review for the BlogHer Book Club but the opinions expressed are entirely my own. 

Rudi's Organic Bakery giveaway!

I have a very cool contest and giveaway to share with you all today!

Rudi's Organic Bakery has a program called Let's Doodle Lunch, through which they've partnered with Chef Ann Cooper, the Renegade Lunch Lady, in an effort to revolutionize school lunch for kids everywhere. Here's some information about Let's Doodle Lunch:

Earlier this summer, Rudi’s Organic fans were invited to upload artwork on Facebook to receive a reusable sandwich box featuring that design on the lid. Fans submitted 18,500 delightful designs to the Rudi’s Organic sandwich box art contest application, Let’s Doodle Lunch, on Facebook. From July 1^st through July 31^st when fans submit their first vote for their favorite design, they will receive a $0.75 coupon good for any Rudi’s Organic product, and Rudi’s Organic will donate $1 to Chef Ann’s The Lunch Box, showing their support for healthier options in school lunchrooms nationwide.

“Chef Ann is an inspiration to all of us at Rudi’s Organic Bakery for helping provide the much-needed resources to transform school lunchrooms so all our children can be healthier and happier,” said Doug Radi, senior vice president of marketing and sales for Rudi’s Organic Bakery. “It made perfect sense for us to partner with Chef Ann as we share a belief that there is a better way to live life and that eating healthy is one step to getting you there.”

The design that receives the most votes on Facebook by the end of the July will be named the Rudi’s Organic Official Sandwich Box. The grand prize winner will receive a year supply of Rudi’s Organic bread, a $100 Target gift card for school supplies, a $150 Whole Foods gift card and a year subscription to KIWI magazine.

Pretty cool, huh? Yeah, it is. So, be sure to visit the Facebook page, vote for your favorite design and download your Rudi's coupon!

Because, seriously, they make good bread. I'm a fan. (My all-time favorite Rudi's product? The Honey Sweet Whole Wheat. It is so good!) 


This time around, I decided to try a loaf of the Rudi's Gluten Free bread and their Whole Wheat Sandwich Flatz. 


Both surprised me. Especially the gluten-free bread. I mean, bread? With no gluten? I expected it to be . . . well . . . yucky, to be honest. It wasn't. Not at all. I ate it toasted and regular and liked it both ways. My son is also a fan -- and you know that kids can be pretty picky!


My only wish would be for it to be easier to find Rudi's bread locally. A few stores carry a limited selection -- I'd love more stores to carry a wider variety of Rudi's products. 


Anyway, on to the giveaway!

To celebrate the Let's Doodle Lunch program, one lucky reader will win a Rudi's Organic Bakery prize pack that includes an art kit, a sketch pad, a beret, a reusable bag and two coupons for free loaves of Rudi's delicious bread.

To enter, leave me a comment and let me know that you want to win!

Additional entries:

As always, you can gain extra entries. Remember, though, you must complete the required entry first! (Leave one comment per entry for the additional ones to count):

• Follow this blog, or let me know that you already do (leave a comment) 
• Follow me on Pinterest, or let me know that you already do (leave a comment)  
• Pin the image from this post to share the giveaway on Pinterest (leave a comment)   
• Link to this giveaway on Twitter using this tweet  (leave a comment) : 

Win a Rudi's Organic prize pack from @TheHappyRunner http://tinyurl.com/d8d5gbv

• Follow me on Twitter, or let me know that you already do (leave a comment) 
• Link to this giveaway from your blog  (leave a comment)  

This giveaway will run through Monday, July 30 at 11:59pm EST and the winner will be announced on Tuesday.

Good luck!

~ Felice

Review/giveaway disclosure: I was sent coupons for two loaves of bread to review. I was not otherwise compensated and the opinions expressed are entirely my own.