The thing I hate about entering sweepstakes is filling in my birthdate.  I'd guess more than half of the contests ask for my birthday.  Half of those ask you for a numerical entry such as 01/01/1950.  That is not so bad.  What is really bad is the ones who have a click down entry.  First, the month, click click click.  Then the day, click down 19.  Then the year.  Well if you are a baby boomer like me you will find that 1950 is wayyyy down there.  I really, really hate it and wonder why they make me go through it.  The one I hate so much I sometimes won't even complete the entry is the one with a calendar that you have to go to the right month, then click on the right day and then move the whole darn thing half a century into the past. 

You'd think that for a free gift I would not be so grumpy.  Sorry, I just can't get over it.  

I received a cute little ring from DeLezhen today.  I just love it.  I'm not sure which contest I entered, sometimes the sponsors don't send you an email telling you of your win but that's ok.  I love it anyway. 

This is how I felt today when I wanted to enter just one more time before this sweep closed.

We're sorry, Room Rescue $10,000 Sweepstakes has ended. See Official Rules.
Click here to check out our other sweepstakes.

I have been entering sweepstakes and contests for many years.  Like most hobbies, I pick it up and put it away, sometimes for years.  It has been several years since I have been actively entering sweeps and contests but a couple of months ago -  as in what to do during a pandemic - I started sweeping again.

I have won several books, both hardcover and Kindle, from Goodreads.com.  I try to enter books that I really want and leave the others for folks who are particularly interested.  I think anytime something is offered for free we have to be mindful of others.  It is very easy to get caught up in the game and enter just because you want to win something.  Sometimes I really have to stop myself, just on Goodreads but other sites as well.

I'll be sharing my wins as well as links to sweepstakes/contest.  Please feel free to leave a note in comments about any sources or recommendations you have for others.

So for my first post on this blog, I want to share my first big win: