Travel Swellness: 12 Days of Wine Country Ontario GIVEAWAY

THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED FOR ENTRIES. For the winner of the $150 giftcard to Norman Hardie Winery courtesy of Wine Country Ontario, scroll to the bottom of this blog post.

After too many years of few road trips, this year I feel like I got to rediscover Wine Country Ontario. A few trips to Niagara-on-the-Lake (including on taking GO Transit) and one weekend getaway to Prince Edward County reminded me what great wine is produced here and I got to discover so  many great shops and beautiful spots.

So I was super stoked that WineCountryOntario.ca asked me for a second year in a row to take part in their 12 Days of Wine Country Ontario (#12daysVQA). Still stuck for a gift idea? Check out the fun gift ideas and I think you’ll be able to happily declare your shopping done!

Today is Day 8 and I get to share my top wish! And let me tell you it was a difficult choice. I took days hemming and hawing, emailed in my wish…and then immediately emailed again changing my mind…I had to go with a giftcard to Norman Hardie Winery, though. I first became familiar with the winery at the the positively phenomenal lunch I was treated to at OK Friday (the farmer’s market at Burl’s Creek) this summer. And after obsessing for weeks over Instagrams of the winery and their pizza from their wood-burning oven that open early May to late fall, I finally got a chance to visit about four months ago.

It was our first stop when we drove into PEC and I just wanted to stay there all afternoon drinking wine and eating the incredible thin-crust pizza. But alas, we went on to discover other charms in the area (check out my story on Vitamin Daily for some of my faves). We did have the best time over lunch, though, and I immediately made plans to return next year if not sooner.

So…because sharing is caring, well, this holiday season Wine Country Ontario is providing me with one $150 giftcard to Norman Hardie Winery to give away to you, my lovely wine-drinking, pizza-eating Health & Swellness readers (remember, the resveratrol in red wine has antioxidant properties!). You can use this both to dine on pizza (and the heirloom tomato salad I drooled over on the next table) and/or to buy some bottles of wine to bring home.

Are you excited to possibly win? I’m excited for you (and a wee bit jealous, to be honest).

How to enter? You can enter in four different ways (each way counts as one entry, so go ahead and enter in all four methods!):

1. Email me at healthandswellness@gmail.com with your name and mailing address (it just makes it quicker for us to send you the prize  if you provide me with your address off the bat). Please put “Norman Hardie” in the subject line.

2. Twitter: Follow me on Twitter (@healthswellness) and  tweet:

I need to #win this @WineCountryOnt #12daysVQA $150 giftcard to @normhardie from @healthswellness. http://bit.ly/1T8Sixz

3.  Like the Health and Swellness page on Facebook and then leave a comment on the wall post about this Wine Country Ontario giveaway — tell me specifically what you would spend your giftcard on at the winery.

4. Instagram: Follow me on Instagram (@healthandswellness) and in the photo for this giveaway tag someone you would like to go with to Norman Hardie Winery.

The giftcard is valued at $150 and the giveaway will close at 11:59 p.m. EST on Saturday, December 26, 2015. Please note that this giveaway is open to Canadian residents only. The winner will be chosen at random. If I cannot reach the winner within five days, another winner will be selected. The winner’s name will be announced on the blog once confirmed with the prize winner.

Good luck and cheers!

Congratulations to Linda T., the winner of the giftcard to Norman Hardie Winery courtesy of Wine Country Ontario! (Linda, please email me if you have any questions or concerns about your prize.)

Leave a Comment December 19, 2015

Foodie Swellness: Share a free Pizza Pizza and make someone’s day #betterwithpizza!

FREE PIZZA!

Now that I’ve got your attention: free pizza sounds pretty good, right? I mean, I can pretty much always go for a slice, and for free, even better! But think of how warm and fuzzy you’d feel inside if you were able to surprise someone with a free pizza?

Until November 1, 2015, if you order a pizza from Pizza Pizza and use Visa Checkout to pay for your order, you’ll then receive a code for a free pizza after placing your order. And, sure, you could use it for yourself, but why not give that code to a great friend, a family member or a coworker whose day you’d like to brighten up? You can easily make their day #betterwithpizza and it’s no skin off your back!

(Not familiar with Visa Checkout? Well, it’s Visa’s online checkout service that allows you to store your shipping and payment information without ever having to enter your information when you’re shopping online. When making a purchase online, you just have to enter your Visa Checkout username and password and then click to complete your buy. Makes online shopping so much simpler!)

I ordered me up a pizza pie and with my code, I decided to give it to my friend Shawna. She’s been busy with work so I know it’ll make her day a little easier and she’s been a great gal pal. How’s she a good friend? Well, for one, we often run together, and she’s knows I hope to qualify for the Boston Marathon, and she immediately offered to run the last 10k of my marathon in October with me. Those last 10k can be brutal so she will either be keeping me on pace so that I make my qualifying time (“You’re going to hate me!” she jokes, because we both know how painful the last part of a marathon can be, and she’ll be pushing me to keep pace), or if by the 32k mark where she’s meeting me I’m already at a point where I will not meet my goal time, she will simply help me complete the race and not give up when every muscle  in my body and every thought in my head is telling me I just want to stop running.

(and, well, I guess this is a little self-serving, too, as the pizza will help her get some carbs, which she needs as she prepares to run with me. She gets free pizza as fuel, I get a race-ready pal, it’s a win-win situation!)

I ordered up a whole-grain, thin crust pepperoni and mushroom pizza, and can’t wait to give Shawna her free pizza code!

Who do you want to share a free pizza with? Take care of dinner (you’re craving pizza anyway) by ordering Pizza Pizza and by using Visa Checkout you can easily make someone’s day better all in one. Life is #betterwithpizza, yes!

Bon appetit!

(sponsored)

Leave a Comment September 25, 2015

Foodie Swellness: North of Brooklyn Pizzeria

What: North of Brooklyn Pizzeria

Where: 650 1/2 Queen St. W., Toronto

Atmosphere: Comfortable little nook with industrial-style seating and rustic wood bar counter and chairs.

Go here if: You want need to refuel with a light snack while out shopping along Queen St. West.

What you must order: Several slices of the neapolitan-style pizza if you’re quite famished. The slice I had was yummy–I like the delicate, crisp crust and the balance of ingredients on top–but it was so thin and light that I think I could’ve easily eaten four more slices (and it’s not like I’m a linebacker who eats a heavy volume of food). I’ve only been once so I plan on popping in more often to try more slices (which cost from $3.90 to $4.40 per slice) and the arugula salad.

P.S. For the record, I’m not fond of the term “foodie,” but I couldn’t think of another name for the category. If I do (got a suggestion? Email me!), I’ll be changing it up.

6 Comments January 7, 2013