Earlier this week the Facebook page for this blog hit 20,000 followers. I remember when my Facebook page hit 1,000 followers and I was blown away. We had a giveaway to celebrate!
Now, at 20,000, I have to admit the feeling is a bit different. I’m thrilled and humbled and flattered by the milestone, but it’s not just my page anymore. This group that’s grown up – of gardeners, cooks, homesteaders, thoughtful spenders, green-living advocates – it’s a critical mass of people who give and take with each other and with me. It’s community.
I’m honored to step back and see how this community has grown in the just-under-three years since I started this blog. Back then I thought maybe people in my hometown would like to know when to plant their fall cabbages (hint: July). Now, people on my Facebook page answer other people’s gardening questions. Everyone is just happy to pitch in with what knowledge they have. It’s kinda amazing to be a part of, honestly.
I try not to let this blog become a shrine to self indulgent navel-gazing, but regular readers may have gathered that 2012 was a rough damn year for me personally and 2013 has mostly been about recovering from 2012. Through up moments and down, writing here – about my garden and my homekeeping and the constant exuberant cycles of life and growth and rest – has been a comfort and a challenge and a joy.
Periodically, readers email me, or comment that my posts have inspired them or motivated them or taught them a new skill. But I know that sharing what little I’ve learned in the many years I’ve gardened inspires me, and teaches me, and encourages my own habit of continued (some might say compulsive) learning. And as often as I teach, I am the student, learning from our community and being inspired by it. So it is a two way street, and I thank you so much for being part of it.
Thank you for reading, for taking the time to like and share, and for commenting. Thank you for being a member of this community.
The Giveaway!
Just over two years ago, I hosted a giveaway for hitting those first 1,000 Facebook likes. Now I think it’s time to do it again.
So, here’s the deal: I’m feeling mellow, I’m feeling contemplative, I’m feeling winter coming on. I would love to give someone a suite of my favorite kitchen, home and garden books to get them through the off season. Just add coffee, and you’ll have my favorite way to spend a quiet afternoon.
And so I’m giving away a collection of a few of my favorite books. These are reads I simply adore, books that cycle onto my bedside table frequently:
- An Everlasting Meal: Cooking with Economy and Grace by Tamar Adler. A beautiful ode to simple and frugal cooking as a way of life.
- Art of Fermentation by Sandor Katz. Last time I had a Facebook page celebration I gave away Sandor Katz’s first book, Wild Fermentation. Giving away his follow-up work, an even more comprehensive look at fermentation of all kinds, just seems appropriate for this follow-up Facebook milestone giveaway.
- Vegetable Gardener’s Bible by Ed Smith. This is my favorite beginner’s gardening book. It has all the basics of vegetable gardening explained in an accessible way and is useful to gardeners in nearly every climate.
- All About Braising by Molly Stevens. This is possibly (probably) the best cookbook in the entire world. Stevens is a gifted cookbook author, and inspires and educates through her writing. Every recipe can be counted on to turn out deliciously.
- Free-Range Chicken Gardens by Jessi Bloom. This book is the best source for know-how for people who want both happy hens and thriving gardens.
- The Encyclopedia of Country Living by Carla Emery. This book is a tome, a legend, a doorstop sized work that manages to be as engaging and funny as it is comprehensive. No small feat. A deserved classic.
In celebration of the 20,000 Facebook Like milestone, one lucky winner will receive one shiny new copy of each of these books – essentially a productive homekeeping mini-library delivered right to your door. I’m self-sponsoring this giveaway just to say thank you, so this is just between me and y’all.
To enter to win this collection of books:
If you haven’t already, like the NWEdible Facebook page and leave a comment here on this blog post letting me know you’ve done so. If you already follow NWEdible on Facebook, just tell me that. If you have a conscientious objection to Facebook, let me know what it is and we’ll call that good enough. I hate giveaways that exclude people because they aren’t into whatever social media thing is being pushed.
It’s not a condition of entry or anything, but I would sure love it if you guys would remember that my bread and butter is the sharing you do of my blog posts and Facebook page. Please – like, share, comment and let your friends know about about my blog and my Facebook page.
So, one comment and you’re entered. One entry per person, US residents only please. Any funny business with multiple entries and I disqualify ya. Sorry to my international readers; it’s not you, it’s shipping rates. Contest open until Thursday, October 3rd, 8 PM PDT. Winner will be drawn randomly and contacted via email to coordinate delivery of prize. Good luck and thank you all for reading!
This contest is now closed. Thank you so much to everyone who entered!
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hey erica! thank you for letting us all have the opportunity to win these wonderfull books. we already have most of them, and that in combination that we live in the Netherlands, makes it seem only fair to not enter this competition. however i woiuld like to thatnk you for all the time and energy you put into your blog. we look foreward to reading from you every week. cheers, esther
It never occurred to me to see if you had a Facebook page, so thanks for the prompt! Really enjoy your writing.
I found your page on a page that I liked on Facebook from a post that they shared. My Fiance and I dream of having our own self sufficient homestead some day. I liked your Facebook Page, and I’m very grateful for the information that you are sharing. Thanks!
Jess
Liked you on FB 🙂 I’m pretty bad about not getting around to liking the FB pages of bloggers I regularly read, so this was a good incentive to do so. I really enjoy your down-to-earth-ness and as a fellow gardener and mom with never enough time, it is a real pleasure to come read the things you share.
I’ve been a follower on facebook for awhile now. This blog gives me inspiration every day to live a more productful life. Thank you. Jen
Hey there – sorry you’ve had a rough year. Whew it can be tough sometimes. I just learned about a thing called “thought stopping” and that has helped me so. much. Anyways, thanks for the book giveaway. They look like cool books and we are moving in 25 months (and 1 day and 7 hours but who’s counting?) to our property to start the dream so they would be perfect should I happen to be the lucky winner. I hope your fall and winter are full of peace and love.
Hi! I’ve already “liked” you on fb. I enjoy your blog and have found it very helpful! I attempted my first NW garden this year and it’s been great!
I’m a non-Facebooker because I don’t have the time to shift the wheat from the chaff that would allow me to actually keep up with my friends. Thank you very much for allowing us non-Facebookers to participate!
Liked! (Which I should’ve done ages ago- thanks for the motivation).
I liked you on Facebook. Thank you!
Hi Erica,
I just liked you on Facebook and followed you on Pinterest. As we settle into fall and head towards winter I’m also hunkering down: getting excited about new cooking projects and nesting a bit more around the house. These books look like the perfect addition to the ever-growing home library.
Cheers!
LIKED on Facebook – and LOVE my Carla Emery book. would love to read the others – thanks!
not just a liker I’m a lover!
Erica,
CONGRATS! I recently embarked on a canning-fest with my husband! We juiced, diced, and cooked 66 pounds of tomatoes! Your photos were inspiring and helped us get through the day-the entire day!
(I’ve liked you on FB) and I would love to add these books to my collection! Fingers crossed!
THANK YOU!
I’ve liked this blog for a while now and now I’ve made us Facebook Official.
Congrats on 20k! keep up the great work.
I do follow you on Facebook but I prefer reading the blog. Thanks.
I don’t follow you on facebook but I pin the crap out of your site, it’s so awesome! That practically free tomato sauce has changed my life I think.
These books look amazing! I just liked you on Facebook – but I have been really enjoying your blog posts ever since I discovered you a few months ago. The man of the family is just about to go back to school so frugality and canning for a lean winter are huge topics around here lately! (& I will still be at home with twins turning 2 and a 5 year old- I should probably start home brewing …)
Thanks for the chance!
Thank you for sharing your experiences on your blog, which I found through facebox via a friend’s shared article. Congrats on 20,000!
Just liked the page, and am about to go try out dry brushing for the first time, thanks to your post the other day!
I “liked” you on facebook. Thanks for the giveaway!
I just liked ur fb page.. & would so appreciate & cherish all these wonderful books..
Don’t know if I “liked” your page before, but I did again just for good measure. After the recent weather maybe we should abandon gardening and start looking at aquaponics!
i already follow NWEdible on Facebook
I’m a huge fan and follow you on Facebook and on this site, just to make sure I don’t miss anything, lol! Thank you for helping this southern girl transplant figure out the PNW’s gardening calendar since it was driving me crazy, haha!
I just joined your facebook page today, found you from a great article you wrote and I share the article on facebook with a friends page 🙂 Thanks for offering this fun giveaway !
I have liked you on Facebook! Thanks for running such a nifty blog 🙂
Thanks for not excluding those of us who don’t do Facebook! I don’t have a conscientious objection, just that I already spend PLENTY of time online, and don’t really want a forum that will encourage me to spend more…
I do really like your blog, and have shared it with friends already. I’ll definitely keep doing so! Thanks for creating this blog!
thanks for not excluding us non-facebookers. (Facebook = too much temptation for comparison. my life is great! i’d rather remember that.)
yay gardening!
I don’t do facebook, but I love your blog!!!
Wow, 20,000 followers. I can see why. I have found your blog to be amazingly inspirational and a good laugh too! Excellent combination, can’t get too serious about these things, but good solid, tried and true information is still key. Thanks for all you do. I’d “like” you on Facebook too if I was a user, but I’m not. Thanks for recognizing that. Cheers
I just liked you on facebook. Didn’t know you could be found there. Now I know. So excited to learn more about eating real food. Hope I win the book give away. Those books look like an amazing resourse for my quest to live and eat better.Thanks for a great site with so much great information.
I just liked you on Facebook. I’ve enjoyed reading your blog for almost a year but don’t frequent Facebook much and didn’t realize you were on there. Beside my wife’s bakery, I think you’re one of the few other Facebook pages that I’ve “liked.” Trying to balance teaching college chemistry, taking care of my almost three year old daughter, and keeping up with the house work while my wife runs a small business doesn’t leave much time left in the day. I enjoy the few moments I can take to read your posts which inspire me to get outside and tend the small garden that I put in this summer. Thank you.
Your sure is great
I love your blog and facebook updates. I discovered your blog after canning 5 boxes of tomatoes and trying to figure out what to do with the skins and have been addicted ever since. I really enjoy your writing and voice, and your honesty, on parenting, gardening, cooking and chickens. Thank you
I don’t have facebook, but I read the blog and would love to win these books! Thanks for your website.
Great blog ,great recipes, with real talk, about the ups and downs of growing your own food. Already a follower on face book. I Would love some new books.
Love your info- and would love to win these books! Thanks-from a fellow book lover….
Would love to win these books. Even if I don’t win it’s given me an idea of what to read over the coming months 🙂 Thanks!
I don’t know why I didn’t know you had a FB page but I didn’t. I have liked it now. I share your posts on FB all the time. The canning post/image was AMAZING. That got a lot of shares from my friends.
I liked you on the Facebook!! but I never win anything boo.
Just became a fan of Erica’s blog last month. Love the content and style of her articles. I certainly appreciate the depth of her knowledge and character.
Liked your page on fb… Thanks for the chance to win all these great books!
Just like you on facebook and a bit surprised I just found you- great blog. I am a gardener and cook in southern Oregon.
I liked you on Facebook.
What everyone else said. You rock. I liked you on FB. Your kale post is by far my favorite and I go back and read it everytime I feel the food/GMO/organic anxiety creeping in. It brings me down a notch.
I liked you on facebook!
I found you through our CSA in Wisconsin – how to store winter squash. Thank you! Other posts intrigued me, so here I am. I like your blog, so I “Liked” your Facebook page and look forward to learning a lot.
Eventually we will “retire” to a remote location in northern South Dakota and I will need to learn to work with the land much more as I will not be able to get to stores often. The books you are giving away would be a great help. Thanks for offering them. Even if I don’t win, I now know what will be the most helpful!
All the best!
– Holly
I am not on FB but I adore your writing. Your blog has changed my family’s life. You have offered so many helpful solutions for trying to lead a more “radical homemakerly” life. I currently have Tamar Adler’s book checked out from the library but I plan to buy it unless… I should be so lucky as to win it. Thanks a million!