Get & Give Away

Selfishly I don't want to blog about the Get & Give Away over at E, Myself, and I's blog- but it's an extra entry if I do and I'd like to help her get as many entries as possible.

The good news is that she has a handful of chic giveaways lined up for one lucky winner and a few options for how you can enter.  If anything suits your fancy, you should give it a shot.  But before you do, let's make a deal.  If you win and heard about her contest here, you have to give me the calendar.  Fair enough?

Coolest Space in Your Place Photo Contest

It’s that time again and my company is sponsoring their annual consumer contest.  Trust me when I say that I only promote work when I think it’s relevant to friends and family, so you can rest assured that this contest has already passed that test.

To make a long description short, ForRent.com and Homes.com have teamed up to present “The Coolest Space in Your Place” photo contest.   All you have to do is upload a photo of one of your favorite spaces in your home here.  It’s that easy.  The winner will receive $2,500. 

Whether you own your home or are renting like me, this is the perfect opportunity to show off your favorite decorated rooms!  If I could enter, I would... so since you can, you should!  Good luck and if you have your own blog, feel free to spread the word... unless you're feeling especially competitive already!

There is a limit of three (3) photos per entrant- official contest rules and details can be found here.

all stepped out

Do you remember the post about my company's walking competition? Well the contest isn't over, but I definitely think our team is over it. We gave it a good run, but it seems like we're a million steps behind the team in first place. Currently, we are still holding strong to our 5th place standing out of 63 teams (we actually moved up to 4th and then back) but it seems impossible to catch up now. Not to mention, one team member has started experiencing shin splints and our pedometers are starting to break. The competition ends this Friday and I'll be sure to keep you posted on the outcome- our hope at this point is to just cling to 5th.

On a positive note, I actually started to notice a slight physical change after 2 weeks of consistent power walking during lunch and the two-a-day garage walks (we move at a sweat producing pace). I actually might try to keep the routine up but certainly won't be heartbroken to retire my "pedo". Not to be vain, but my clothes already fit snuggly and this little pink box that rattles when I walk isn't exactly doing anything for my outfits or my figure- you should see it sticking out on my hip... it looks ridiculous!

Step Masters

Well, well, well... our company has created a step contest with the winning team getting a paid half day off. Now, those are some serious stakes and my team is seriously set on winning. Currently we are in 5th place company wide, but it's only been one week and we've already heard some grumbling from teams that are ahead; odds are good that we will improve after week two (I'll definitely give you an update).

Just to show you how serious we are, I want to share the following facts:

1. We kicked off the week with an encouraging email from Jessie, commenting on our average steps and what our increased goal should be individually... and as a team.
2. We have a strategy for incorporating steps into the work day; which includes but is not limited to taking the long way to the restroom, stepping in place while at people's desks, pacing while waiting for the elevators, walking the entire garage (twice a day), avoiding options for a sedentary lunch, and always taking the stairs... from the 16th floor.
3. Our team captain, Meredith, emailed her "concerns" regarding accurate readings by our brand pedometers to the Dominion contact for the competition.
4. At one point someone suggested we have a mobile bible study... as in we walk around the mall, bibles in hand, with one note taker of prayer requests (I'll keep you posted if this happens).
5. There is some stalking of our competition; I can't go into details here because we don't want our ways to be discovered, but it isn't anything too creepy.
6. A reward system for most percentage improved from week to week has been established.
7. Personally, I've been baited with treats to exceed my daily goal.
8. Our team has started building their work attire around the potential to break a sweat. We're moving away from pants all together and are shifting toward skirts.
9. We've coined the term, "pedos" and we use it often.
10. One person on our team has a personal goal to have the most steps as an individual across the company; she is averaging 25,000+ steps a day, with the average person getting between 6,000-10,000.

sweepstakes

Monday I randomly decided I wanted to start entering online sweepstakes as often as I could just to see if I would win anything with little to no effort. Now that I think about it, I suppose a Nest newsletter I received that advertised a drawing for a free kitchen aid mixer (you know the kind on every single wedding registry that no one ever gets) could have spurred this on, but that is neither here nor there. What matters is I have won absolutely nothing after 5 days of trying... its just awful.

On Wednesday we got one of those scratchers in the mail for a chance to win $30,000!!! All you had to do (or so it said) was to scratch off all three boxes and if your #s in any of the 3 boxes matched perfectly the #s listed then you won! Well, low and behold, our middle box matched! Now, I knew there was a catch but as Jake casually asked, whether I won, I calmly said yes. Unbelieving, he grabbed the card and diligently started reading the disclaimers, etc. The funny part of all this is the smile he had while doing so. His words said he understood this was a ploy... but his face, no, his face said he was excited we'd won $30,000. Poor guy.

As a side note, I would like to put out there that I am very open to doing something to earn the free item, as long as the entry requirement is relatively easy. This said, if you know of any feel free to pass them my way. I don't care for video submission-type contests, but I'm not opposed to photos or written entries. Keep your eyes open and your ears peeled for me.

By the way, my work's pet contest is coming to a close and finalists have been selected. Now it comes down to the people's vote! Feel free to vote now for your favorite pet (as long as it is Addy, just kidding... but seriously, help Elizabeth out)!

This is Addy and her PERFECT picture, make sure to look her when you cast your vote!

I Swore I Would Never Do This...

...but my work has created a consumer promotion around pets and I thought some of you could enter. Here goes my shameless plug.

The winning pet will receive $1,500 cash and three finalists will receive a $400 gift card to a national pet supply store.

Main stuff you need to know:

• photos should be emailed between April 12th - May 12th, 2010 to contest@forrent.com with the following info: Pet's name, location (city & state), breed, & a brief description of the image
• you can submit up to 5 photos and can include more than one pet
• ForRent.com enthusiasts and pet lovers will vote for the winner and the runner ups from May 14th - May 23rd, 2010; winners will be announced on May 24th

If you don't live in an apartment you can still enter. The idea is to show us in pictures how your pet lives...and if you can make it appear like its an apartment setting then that is even better! We're just after some creative and cute pictures of your four-legged family members, so send em on in!!!