I am once again honored to be a member of the Bumble Bee Foods Bee Squad, which including them sponsoring my entire trip to BlogHer ’11.  I wore a Bumble Bee Tuna t-shirt both days of the conference, and both days I had at least one person notice my shirt and either say something positive about loving Bumble Bee Tuna, or singing me a bit of the Bumble Bee Tuna Song from the commercials, like this one - http://youtu.be/zjHvmbYk-Dg

I was already a Bumble Bee customer when I joined the Bee Squad, but my palate was limited to chunk or solid tuna.  The winner of this giveaway is going to get the same chance I did to try other Bumble Bee products and find out for themselves just how good they are! (Well, I have to be honest, I haven’t had the salmon because I don’t like it at all in any form lol).

This huge prize pack is what the winner of the giveaway will win:

Bumble Bee apron
Bumble Bee pen
2 Bumble Bee recipe cards
Bumble Bee Prime Fillet Tonno in Olive Oil
Bumble Bee Prime Fillet Solid White Albacore in Water
Bumble Bee Prime Fillet Atlantic Salmon
Bumble Bee Sensations Sundried Tomato & Basil
Bumble Bee Sensations Lemon & Cracked Pepper
Bumble Bee Sensations Spicy Thai Chili
Bumble Bee Premium Albacore in Water Pouch
Bumble Bee Premium Wild Pink Salmon Pouch

MAIN ENTRY: For your main entry, leave a comment on this post telling me your favorite kind of tuna – chunk or solid, packed in water or oil, which do you like best? This must be done before any bonus entries will count. Comments left with keywords instead of a real first name or blog name will be DELETED, no exceptions.

ENTRY DATES AND RULES: Enter by August 27th 2011 at 11:59 p.m. EST. Open to U.S. mailing addresses only. The winner will be chosen using the “And The Winner Is” plugin and emailed for their mailing address and daytime phone number (for package tracking). This information will be forwarded to the P.R. person handling the giveaway and the shipment of the prize. Table for Five is not responsible for lost or stolen prizes.

BONUS ENTRIES: Earn a bonus entry for each of the following that you do or have done. Leave a separate comment for each-

• Subscribe to the Table for Five feed in a reader or by email using the convenient RSS button in the sidebar. Leave a comment telling me which way you subscribed. (1 entry)
• Stumble or Digg this post or use any of the social bookmarking buttons at the end of the post to bookmark it. Leave a comment with the URL for EACH site where you bookmarked the post. (1 entry for each site you submit this post to)
• Like this giveaway on Facebook using the FB button at the end of the giveaway post, leave a comment letting me know. (1 entry)
• Add the giveaway URL to any blog contest linky. You get one bonus entry for each site where you link the giveaway! Leave a comment for each that includes the URL of the linky site. (1 entry for each)
• Follow @Table4Five on Twitter and tweet the giveaway by using the retweet button at the bottom of the post or by copy/pasting this message: I’m entering to win a #BumbleBeeFoods Prize Pack from @Table4Five! Ends 8/27, 11:59 pm EST. http://wp.me/p9SRW-2qg You can tweet once per day, leave a separate comment for each with your tweet URL. (1 entry per day)

THESE ARE WORTH THREE ENTRIES. LEAVE THREE NUMBERED COMMENTS FOR EACH THAT YOU DO:

• Connect to Me! Become a Google Friend Connect Fan of mine using the button in the sidebar and let me know in each comment. NOTE – If you don’t see the button and you’re using Chrome, try switching browsers.
• Network with Me! If you use NetworkedBlogs, follow me using the badge in the footer and let me know in each comment
• “Like” Table for Five on Facebook by clicking the “like” button in the sidebar and let me know in each comment. My page loves having fans!

THESE ARE WORTH FIVE ENTRIES. LEAVE FIVE NUMBERED COMMENTS FOR EACH THAT YOU DO:

• Link to Table for Five on your sidebar or grab my button from the sidebar and post it on your blog. Leave five separate, numbered comments with the URL. NOTE: I redesigned my button so if you already have it, please replace the code, thanks!
• Blog about the giveaway with a link back to this post. Leave five separate, numbered comments with the URL.

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I’ll choose the winner using the “And the Winner Is” plugin on August 27th, announce it by editing the post, and email the winner for their mailing address. Shipping will be handled by the sponsor. Thanks for entering and good luck everybody!

disclosure: I was sent the same prize pack as a thank-you from Bumble Bee for hosting this giveaway. No other compensation was received. All opinions are my own.

I’m thrilled and honored to be a Hormel Foods Extended Family Blogger! I’ll be blogging for Hormel Foods each month, starting with tips for incorporating Hormel Foods into your 4th of July celebrations.  Hormel Foods works to fight hunger both here in America and overseas. They’ve donated millions of dollars worth of product to local food banks and Feeding America, and developed a fortified, shelf-stable turkey spread to help nourish children in Guatemala through a partnership with Food for the Poor and Caritas Arquidiocesana. This is a company I’m proud to be representing!

With Independence Day right around the corner, how are you showing your patriotic support this summer?  Are you sending a care package to troops overseas? Do you host an annual 4thof July party with friends and family? Hormel and I want to know! Here are some tips and links to recipes to get you started:

Get the kids together to make cards and care packages for troops serving overseas. Not sure where to start? A hand-made card and care package with packaged snacks are always a good bet. Tip: Troops are sure to enjoy Hormel® pepperoni stix, Hormel® chili or Hormel® Snac*Cups™, which are filled with Hormel® pepperoni, Sargento cheese and Keebler crackers for a protein-rich snack or meal.

Invite neighbors, friends and family over for a backyard Independence Day party and invite each guest to bring an item to send in a care package to troops overseas. Invite everyone to bring their favorite summertime appetizers and desserts to share. Tip: At your party, spend more time catching up with friends by skipping the grill and serving BBQ Blue Sandwiches (recipe below) for the main course with an Applewood Bacon Spinach Salad!

Did you know Hormel Foods makes Chi-Chi’s Salsa?  For hungry guests, put out bowls of chips and salsa to snack on. It comes in jars and also in 3.5 ounce cups called Snackers.

So, what are your 4th of July plans? A barbecue, fireworks, a trip with your family? Tell me in the comments! And finally, here’s that recipe for the BBQ Blue Sandwiches featuring another Hormel Foods brand – Lloyd’s Barbecue, which is SO GOOD. It’s also a great summer recipe because all you use is the microwave, no turning on the hot stove. Plus, a recipe that only has TWO STEPS in the directions is my kind of recipe! Enjoy!

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Hormel Foods Recipes > BBQ Blue Sandwiches

Serves 4. Total time: under 15 minutes.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 (12-ounce) package Lloyd’s Woodfire Barbeque™ Beef Brisket
• 1/4 cup mayonnaise
• 4 Kaiser rolls, split and toasted
• 4 leaves lettuce
• 8 slices Hormel® Black Label® Fully Cooked Bacon, heated and slices cut in half
• 1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese
• Barbecue sauce

DIRECTIONS:

1. Prepare brisket according to package directions.
2. Spread mayonnaise on cut sides of each roll. Place 1 leaf lettuce on bottom half of each roll; top with brisket, bacon and cheese. Drizzle each sandwich with barbecue sauce.

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So, how are you spending 4th of July? A barbecue, fireworks, a trip with your family? Tell me in the comments!

disclosure: I received products and information fromHormel Foods as part of my participation in the Hormel Foods Extended Family Preferred Blogger Program. All opinions about the products are my own.

It’s that time of the year again, time for the annual 5 Minutes for Mom Ultimate Blog Party! Woo hoo! Since 2007, the fantastic Susan and Janice of 5MfM have been hosting the biggest blog party of the year, and everyone is invited!

If this is your first time here, let me introduce myself. I’m Elizabeth Edwards, owner and author of this here blog. I’m married to Chris, who I started dating in 1985 and we’ve been together ever since – high school sweethearts, awww   We live in Lansing, Michigan and have three kids – Ryan who is 14, Nathan who is 12, and Kaitlyn who is 5. We also have a dog named Elvis who we inherited, and an ancient cat we all just call “kitty”. You can see her butt in the first photo LOL

I’ve been blogging since 2005 and I love meeting new bloggers and reading new blogs. The whole point of the Ultimate Blog Party is to meet new people, so please take a minute to leave a comment! If you also wrote an Ultimate Blog Party post, leave the URL in the linky below. Thanks so much for stopping by!