Thursday, January 21, 2010

My First Giveaway

I've been blogging for less than a year now and in the process I've learned a lot. I have a lot more to learn from the knowledge and talents of other bloggers so I'm hoping to blog and read blogs for a long time to come.

One of the things I've learned about, and participate in with glee, are the giveaways that various bloggers sponsor. I think giveaways are fun and I always try to participate to show bloggers that I am paying attention to what they write. I think it also shows gratitude for what they do to develop reader participation.

The winter Olympics will be here in a few short weeks so I thought it would be fun to giveaway one of the Olympic mascots. There are actually three of them and I like Sumi best so Sumi is part of the giveaway.

My regular readers know I live in Canada and that I am a proud Canadian so I thought it would also be great to provide a few souvenirs of my country. These few gifts will go in a reusable tote bag with the word "Canada" embossed on the front. This is in homage to the many people out there who I know are into the simple life and want to keep our planet free from as many plastic bags as possible.

Here are a few photos to show you what will be in the Canada bag.

[Pens, stickers, souvenirs, luggage tags and Olympic mascot]

In order to participate, please leave a comment and let me know what you would like to learn about Canada or Vancouver. I then hope to feature a blog post on the winning subject in a future post.

The winner will selected at random and be announced on Friday January 28, 2010, (changed to Thursday, January 227, 2010 to allow time for wrapping and posting) and contacted for address information so I can mail your parcel before I leave town on the same weekend. In the meantime, happy blogging. If you have children or grandchildren, be sure to enter as they tend to love these sorts of things though I've tried to include things that adults might also use (luggage tags and pens). If you are from another country, it would be lovely for you to have some souvenirs from Canada. If you are not from another country, please enter anyway. Everyone is welcome! Good luck

29 comments:

Jonnie (JB) said...

I'm from Canada but I hope it's okay for me to enter. I would love to know about Vancouver's weather. I've always heard it never gets very cold there.

dftrew(at)gmail(dot)com

Joyful said...

Hello Edmonton! Yes, it is very okay if you enter. Thank you for your response and the suggestion. All the best in the giveaway :-)

Lynn said...

I'm Australian and I live in Canberra, the capital city of this country. We have lots of national buildings here that people come here to visit. The most famous is probably our Australian War Memorial and the National Art Gallery of Australia. We also have a very impressive Parliament House. What would you take me to visit if I came over to Vancouver and why? What is the best time of year to visit if you don't like too hot or too cold weather?

Are you going to the Winter Olympics Joyful? My father was member of the Australian ski team that came over to Squaw Valley, California in 1960. There will be an interview with him on our pay TV channel Foxtel during the Winter Games coverage here in Australia. He is 82 now and lives in Brisbane, Queenlsand, Australia.

bless you Joyful, I look forward to finding out more about Vancouver : )

love

Lynn xx

~♥~ Sveettalk ~♥~ said...

Well as you know, I am not from Canada. Been there though, as I have family from all over Canada. My own mother and grandmother were from Vancouver, with more family I know all over British Columbia. My mother now lives in Colorado, and my grandmother passed a few years ago still missing her Queen(grandma resided in Canada her whole life).

Maybe we are related somehow, lol...

I have been so busy I had forgotten that the Winter Olympics were coming up. *blushing*

This is such a fun idea.I hope someday I can do the same. I don't need to win. I just want to follow so you can teach me and tell me how it goes for you. : )

P.S. Where are you going? If you don't mind sharing. : )

My Castle in Spain said...

I'm not from Canada either but i gladly participate !
when I think of Canada, i immediately see the flamboyant colors of trees in autumn and that is definitely something i want to see one day !
Have a great week end, dear friend...
xoxo
Lala

Ps : your little notebook was shipped today :-)

Laura in Paris said...

Oh, I want to show Paris to that mascot!!!!!
Laura in Paris

Diary From Africa said...

Oh, what fun ! Well, what I would love to learn about your beautiful country would have to be - food related ! Traditional foods and recipes, history of Canadian food, foods which you get in Canada which you won't find in other parts of the world and what foods you mainly grow there. Mmmmm .... now that would be good to read & learn all about ;)

hether78 said...

I'm from Ontario, Canada and a new follower of yours! Even though I live in Canada, what I'd be interested to learn is about the economy (are housing prices considered high or low), the weather and the scenery in Vancouver! Thanks for the chance at a great giveaway!

hether78(at)gmail(dot)com

Velva said...

What an absolutely cool giveaway! I would love to participate.

I have traveled to the Pacific NorthWest and the scenery is stunning. Had I realized at the time about bringing my passports , we would have definitely taken in the beautiful evergreens and wildlife in Vancouver. No doubt that Canada is a beautiful country and there would be a lot to discover.

affectioknit said...

That is so awesome - we've 'crossed over' into Canada a couple of times - we just live about an hour away from the border = we saw a Black Bear too - Scout's oldest friend's Mom is from Canada - we were pregnant at the same time. We're always anxious to hear new information about our closest neighbor!

momofemmett said...

Hey Joyful!

Since I homeschool 2 granddaughters and my daughter homeschools her son, it would be nice to know a lot about Canada! How the govenment is run, what your rights as a citizen are... With the unrest we have here in the United States, this is what I'd like to know. Of course you have famous heros and such, those are the kind of things our students would like to know about. We all love stories about people who do great things.

I have enjoyed all the pictures you take, to know you have a lovely garden in the warm months, and have a love of all the beauty around your city. It is amazing, as I've always thought of Canada as a cold place, but you tell me it's not the case all the time. You said it was sub-tropic where you live! That was new to me.

My grandson got some stickers with different states on them. One he put on my back, so I guess I'm going to Idaho. The ones he put on my water bottle are, Iowa, Nabraska, Kansas, California and Hawaii. I guess he knows I would love to travel! I was born in California, so I'm a prune picker!

Like a lot of email friends I have, "travel" is done on the Internet. So much information available, and pictures of places I'll never see in my lifetime.

Keep blogging, I really enjoy reading what you have to say. It makes my day!

And Thank you for the blog and pictures of Kericho and the children. It put more fire under my ....... well, I have gotten off track, now I want to get back and make my needles fly. If only there were 10 or more of me! We could get a lot done in a short time.

Have a great weekend!

Jan

Unknown said...

Hello from Canberra Australia!

I love Canada! I have always fancied the idea of coming over to play some gigs and see the sights. I love how patriotic you are about your country and especially your city. Perhaps I may need to hope for that baggage tag so I can start planning a future trip to your beautiful, fellow Commonwealth country!

All love,

Shell xx

Jo said...

Hi from Jo - a South African expat in the Sudan (North Africa) Thanks for inviting me to enter into your giveaway. How exciting. I would love to know all about [human] life in your city and the culture of your country. congrtulations on your beautiful blog. (((Hugs))) Jo

weeseaweed said...

hi, i'm not entering your contest, but i'm responding because of what you said about showing people you read what they write. i think your prizes are wonderful and it's brilliant that you love your country so much you want to share it with other people.

Joyful said...

Lynn, thanks for sharing about your city and your suggestion for future blog posts. Participation in the Olympics is somewhat up in the air. Initially I was going to be away but now I will likely be here. I don't have tickets for events but I may be taking in the "free events" that are happening around the city. It just depends on the ability to get from point A to point B. As you can well imagine, there are many changes to traffic routes and also a much heightened security presence in the city. I also have a relative who is here on very critical health need so may be busy with that too.

Joyful said...

Lala, thank you so much for the suggestion. I believe I have some photos of fall scenes but haven't posted them on my blog. We don't get the vivid variety of colours they have in eastern Canada with the maple trees but we do get a lot of wonderful gold colours.

Laura, thank you for entering the giveaway! I'm sure Sumi would love to have you as his tour guide :-) and would love to sit with his feet up with sipping a glass of champagne with you on your patio.

Joyful said...

Sveettalk, welcome! I'm so glad you entered my giveaway. I didn't know you were part Canadian. Perhaps we are related, lol.I'm always surprised how many Americans have a Canadian family connection in some way. I plan to go for a week or so to Kamloops which is about 4 hours north by road.

Joyful said...

Velva, welcome to my blog and thank you for leaving a comment. I very much appreciate your blog suggestion too!

Joyful said...

Affectioknit, so glad you think the giveaway is awesome. Thanks for entering my giveaway and for the new follow :-)

Jan, my you have given a lot of thought to what you'd like to know about Canada. Thank you for all the suggestions. I will see what I can do :-) I'm like you in that I love to see scenic photos of other places.

Joyful said...

Shell, my dear. So nice to see you entering my giveaway. Wouldn't it be cool if you could sing your way across the country? Best of luck with the giveaway :-) xx

Joyful said...

Jo, my new friend. So glad you could join us here. I've loved reading all about your life in Khartoum and I hope to read much more. Thank you for your lovely compliment and your suggestion for future blogs.

Joyful said...

Weeseaweed, Welcome to my blog. What a delightful name you have selected. How did you come to choose it? I'm so glad you were prompted to leave a comment as it is ALWAYS lovely to hear from one's readers. Now that you've stopped by, please don't be a stranger.

The Happy Sparrow said...

Hi there Joyful!! I love seeing Canada through your eyes! Canada is place I have always wanted to visit...to see those beautiful pine forests...go to Vancouver Island and into some of the more "pioneer" areas. Something I would love to know more about would be traditional Canadian dishes...like what would a Canadian Christmas, Easter dinner be like...favourite family meals?? Also what is your favourite coffee shop/restaurant in Vancouver? Thankyou for being such an encouraging blogging friend! Many blessings to you and I know a little boy called Noah who would LOVE your parcel!!!

Love Martine

Fokxxy said...

HI!!

I am from Ontario!! I love Canada! I am wondering about the job market there. I am also wondering how the Olympics are impacting the regular citizens there (in every way- I am sure it is or will be affecting them a lot)

ssummmer(at)gmail(dot)com

Joyful said...

Jo, my new friend. So glad you could join us here. I've loved reading all about your life in Khartoum and I hope to read much more. Thank you for your lovely compliment and your suggestion for future blogs.

Joyful said...

Sveettalk, welcome! I'm so glad you entered my giveaway. I didn't know you were part Canadian. Perhaps we are related, lol.I'm always surprised how many Americans have a Canadian family connection in some way. I plan to go for a week or so to Kamloops which is about 4 hours north by road.

Joyful said...

Lynn, thanks for sharing about your city and your suggestion for future blog posts. Participation in the Olympics is somewhat up in the air. Initially I was going to be away but now I will likely be here. I don't have tickets for events but I may be taking in the "free events" that are happening around the city. It just depends on the ability to get from point A to point B. As you can well imagine, there are many changes to traffic routes and also a much heightened security presence in the city. I also have a relative who is here on very critical health need so may be busy with that too.

Joyful said...

Hello from Canberra Australia!

I love Canada! I have always fancied the idea of coming over to play some gigs and see the sights. I love how patriotic you are about your country and especially your city. Perhaps I may need to hope for that baggage tag so I can start planning a future trip to your beautiful, fellow Commonwealth country!

All love,

Shell xx

Joyful said...

hi, i'm not entering your contest, but i'm responding because of what you said about showing people you read what they write. i think your prizes are wonderful and it's brilliant that you love your country so much you want to share it with other people.

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