The Joy of Gourmet Meals & Giveaways - Ideal Balance Gift Baskets!

Eating good food and giving gifts are two topics I love talking about! First let's talk about food, then we'll talk about gift giving. To me, a good meal is as enjoyable an experience as you can get. My favorite type of meal involves moist savory morsels, a little dry kibble and a lot of love. I am on a wheat, soy, and corn free diet, so Mommy is very finicky about the types of foods I ingest. I, on the other hand, just want it to taste good. I savor every bite! When I eat my meals or have a treat or two, I never let even the tiniest bit of food or crumb escape my clutches. I am, after all, the official "Finder of Long Lost Kibble", so I take eating very seriously and believe a good gourmet meal that is well balanced helps keep me strong, healthy and active.

My friends at Hill's Pet Food feel the very same way. They too take food very seriously and believe that a pet's daily feedings should include a combination of dry kibble (my favorite!), wet food and little treats throughout the day. Now that's MY kind of thinking! Hill's has an excellent new line of food for dogs and cats called "Hill's Ideal Balance" that is wheat, soy and corn free. Some of their recipes are Grain Free as well. Ideal Balance is a perfect blend of all natural ingredients like chicken meat, sweet potatoes, peas, and apples, plus there are no artificial colors, flavors or preservatives. When you feed Ideal Balance foods, you can be assured that your pet is getting natural ingredients in perfect balance.

When Mommy and I wanted try Hill's Ideal Balance complimentary nutrition of wet dog food, dry dog food, and treats for ourselves, she said we would be getting a special delivery of it. I couldn't wait for that package to be delivered to our door. I hung out near the front door for days just waiting. They say a watched pot never boils. Well, a watched driveway never has the delivery man show up either. Finally, several days later, the package arrived. I was overjoyed!

The moment Mommy opened up that box of heaven and started viewing the contents, I dove in before she could even see what all was inside (even though she kind of knew already). We wanted a good well balanced sampling of their dry, grain-free foods, some of their wet canned food, and some treats...a dog can't live without treats. Mommy says it's very important to feed your pet gourmet meals filled with love that combine wet/dry food and treats throughout the day.

My sisters Peanut and Dixie Mae were on hand to check out what we'd had delivered. Dixie and I looked deep into Mommy's eyes, clearly letting her know we needed to try one of the treats first. "Which one do you want to try first?" she asked.

Peanut already had her eye on one of the treat bags while Dixie and I were staring Mommy down. She had picked out the Soft Baked Naturals with Beef and Sweet Potato dog treats right away. Look at how excited she was! I thought she was going to paw the bag open herself.

But Dixie Mae and I really wanted to try the oven Baked Naturals treats because we love the crunch! I gave Mommy my best puppy dog eyes and said, "Please Mommy?" She gave in and we all got our wish. Now, you must understand that my sister Dixie Mae is pretty laid back about everything; you might even say she's a little reserved in her judgement of things. She doesn't always show a lot of excitement...

So imagine Mommy's surprise at the sheer joy and exuberance that Dixie Mae showed over the new Hill's Ideal Balance Oven Baked Naturals with Chicken and Apples treats. She was absolutely giddy about them! They say that a picture is worth a thousand words, so this photo says it all.

Mommy feels good knowing that, in Hill’s tradition, making nutritious food is at the core of their philosophy; quality and safety first is above all else. You will surely have peace of mind when feeding any Hill’s food and treats to your pet. Knowing that it tastes really good and that we all love it is very reassuring, because like all pet lovers, Mommy wants us to be happy with and enjoy what we are eating.

As you know from other posts of mine, Mommy works out all my meals and treats so that I am not getting over fed, but that I feel special with every tender morsel. Instead of feeding me one big meal a day, my sisters and I get several small meals that equal out to the right amount of food for each of us according to our ideal weight. So, let's talk about the logistics of a typical day for me and my food loving self, shall we? Remember, a perfect balance of nutritious gourmet meals and treats keeps me healthy, energetic and very, very happy.

First off, I feel it's important to mention that breakfast is often said to be the most important meal of the day for your body. You are literally 'breaking the fast' from a night of sleeping. Pets need to break that fast just as much as humans do, so me and my sisters get an early morning meal. Hill's Ideal Balance wet grain-free dog food is a great way to start off the day. I tried the "Braised Lamb & Vegetables Recipe" first. That sounds like food fit for royalty! The meat pieces were pretty big, so Mommy was kind enough to cut them up into more manageable pieces for a little dog like me. Mommy says a Princess of my stature gets special treatment when being fed a gourmet meal. I love it when she talks like that!

I get fed again around midday and then in the afternoon. Sometimes it's dry kibble (kibble is my affectionate word for dry dog food pieces) and sometimes Mommy will supplement the dry food with some wet food. I absolutely LOVE the Grain Free Natural Chicken and Potato Recipe. I scarf that down before you can count to 10. It has all natural ingredients that Mommy feels good about. She loves knowing that Hill's Ideal Balance creators care as much about what is going into my body as she does.

Of course, I can't forget to talk about the treats. Whenever Mommy leaves the house and I can't come with her, she always gives me a treat. That is her way of reassuring me. Without fail I always do at least one full twirl for her, then I gently take the treat from her hand. She loves my pirouettes, and I love the treat (and her of course), so we both enjoy our ritual. Mommy makes me feel special by giving both treats and attention to me. Hill's treats are yummy and so nutritious...a perfect balance of nutrition when given in conjunction with Hill's Ideal Balance wet and dry food.

Well, I am sure by this time that you are incredibly hungry, I know I am just talking about it! What if I told you that I am giving away 20 Hills' Ideal Balance Gift Basket to 20 lucky recipients...10 for cats and 10 for dogs? It's true friends!! Are you excited to try this wonderful, well balanced gourmet food for yourself? Then keep reading and I will give you ALL the details. Now, just because I talked about the dog food doesn't mean I'm leaving ALL my many cat friends out. I'm an equal opportunity puppy. First, I will tell you all the goodies that are in each cat and dog giveaway, then I will tell you what you have to do to have your name put in the running to win. Of course there will be two sets of drawings...10 names will be drawn for the cat gift baskets, and 10 for the dog gift baskets.

In the Cat Food Gift Basket Giveaway, the following items are included:
- Hill’s® Ideal Balance™ Grain-Free natural Chicken & Potato Recipe Adult, 2 lb bag
- Hill’s® Ideal Balance™ wet food variety pack, 6 cans case
- Hill’s® Ideal Balance™ Crunchy Naturals with Real Tuna
- Cat bowl
- Place mat
- Drinkwell Pet Fountain
(Photo of the cat giveaway items coming soon!)

In the Dog Food Gift Basket Giveaway, the following items are included:
- Hill’s® Ideal Balance™ Grain-Free Natural Chicken & Potato Recipe Adult, 3.5 lb bag
- Hill’s® Ideal Balance™ wet food,
6 cans
- Hill’s® Ideal Balance™ Treats,
2 bags variety
- Dog bowl
- Plush Blanket

Here's what you have to do to get in on all this action for your chance to win a fantastic Gift Basket from Hill's Ideal Balance and Pixel Blue Eyes. You can do one or more of the following things but I have to know you did them...it's only fair:
1. Sign up to follow my blog on the right side of this post by selecting the "Join this Site" button. Leave me a comment letting me know you've completed that action and tell me why you think Hill's Ideal Balance is a good food to try and why you would like to get the gift basket. Any reason is a good reason.
2. LIKE my Pixel Blue Eyes Facebook page , then post on my wall telling me you've done so and explaining why you think Hill's is a good food to try and why YOU'D like the gift basket.
3. Follow me on Twitter (@pixelblueeyes) , then send me a tweet telling me why you think Hill's is a good food to try and why YOU'D like the gift basket.
If you do more than one, your name goes in the drawing more than once. Pretty cool huh!
**NOTE: Make sure to tell me if you want the cat basket or the dog basket. I will immediately put your name in the cat or dog drawing.

I will have the drawing on SUNDAY NIGHT, SEPTEMBER 29, 2013 and and announce the winners right here on the blog in a special post. Don't forget to check back here to see if you won. If you are a winner, I will then have you email me your Address and contact information so we can be sure to send it out to the right place.
Just think, any one of you could be a winner!! And there are 20 winners! Each of you will get a fantastic Gift Basket from Hill's Ideal Balance delivered to your door.
**NOTE:  Unfortunately, this giveaway is only for those with a U.S. address. Please forgive those limitations...if I could, I'd make this global! I love all my friends from all over the world.
Good luck friends and let's have some fun! I can't wait to hear from you....

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Author has been compensated for completion of this article.

Hill's Pet Nutrition, Inc. is not responsible for the content of this article.