My foodie pen pal for this month does not have a blog but she sent me a nice email about what she received and after making sure it was okay to share, here is what she had to say:

March came with some great surprises from my pen pal Brianne Kilkpatrick and she did an amazing job!  As you may guess, these last few months haven’t been easy so the timing of this package was perfect, before the day we even had to ship it!  OMG!  Thank you Brianne!

I have to tell you that when that Priority Mail package comes in, I am the happiest girl in the world!  I love that box.  It is my Christmas, with all the exciting goodies that might come in the box and this month was no different.  Brianne did a great job!

She satisfied mine and Brittany’s sweet tooth, Zachary too!  This was a yummy package that I have thoroughly enjoyed!

As you can see, we LOVED these!  I have to get some more of them and I think that as far as Weight Watchers points, they were only like 1 or 2PP per serving.  The only problem with it was that each serving was one piece.  That’s okay.  I ate them and truly enjoyed them.  They looked like they were going to be a little crispier than they were but they were soft and chewy and oh so yummy!  Brittany and I ate them up by the handful!  Oh my!

I love anything bars, chocolate, granola, anything and these didn’t disappoint either.  The chocolate truffle candy bar was yummy!  I love truffle.  Quest Bars are so good and this one was chewy and chocolaty and super tasty.  The Cinnamon Pecan Protein Simply Bar smelled amazing but wasn’t as tasty as I thought it was going to be.  The smell promised more taste than there actually was.

Plaintain chips are a great little snack and was happy to have these.

The last two things in the package were my favorite thing and something that I did try though with much trepidation.  I am not a big spicy person so the Wasabi Peas were not one of my favorites.  I do have a friend that I believe will love them and am sending them off to her.

Lastly, my favorite thing in the package.  I have been looking at this myself for months to send to a foodie pen pal at Trader Joe’s and now I am going to have to get some and send it to someone.  Oh my!  This on a piece of toast with some butter, it just drips off the side and on to the plate.  Brittany and I have enjoyed this so much.  Strangely, Zachary isn’t as much of a fan of it as I thought he would but apparantly he’s a bit nuts because this stuff is so good!  With a little bit of Fluff too.  Again, I must just say Oh My!!

Thank you Brianne!  This was perfect!

Do you want to be a foodie pen pal like me and get yummy treats in the mail?  It’s super easy!  To participate in April’s swap, click here.  Remember that in order to participate, you need to sign up by April 4th as the pairing will be emailed on April 5th.  If you are unsure, read on to see what this is all about.

~ On the 5th of every month, you will received your pen pal pairing via email.  It will be your responsibility to contact them and get their mailing address and any other information you might need like allergies or dietary restrictions.
~You will have until the 15th of the month to put your box of goodies in the mail.  On the last day of the month, you will post about the goodies you received from your pen pal!
~ The boxes are to be filled with fun foodie things, local food items or even homemade treats (my favorite)!  The spending limit is $15.  The box must include something written.  This can be anything from a note explaining what’s in the box to a fun recipe…use your imagination (I’ve written mine out in the tune of the song My Favorite Things).
~ You are responsible for figuring out the best way to ship your items depending on their size and how fragile they are.  (Don’t forget about flat rate boxes!).
~ Foodie Pen Pals is open to blog readers as well as bloggers.  If you’re a reader and get paired with a blogger, you are to write a short guest post for your pen pal to post on their blog about what you received.  If two readers are paired together, neither needs to worry about writing a post for that month.
~ Foodie Pen Pals is open to US, Canadian and European residents.  Please note, Canadian residents will be paired with other Canadians only, same with Europeans.  We’ve determined things might get slow and backed up if we’re trying to send foods through customs across the border from US to Canada and vice versa.

Now that you’ve read the rules, easy aren’t they.  Have you clicked here yet?  What’s stopping you?

So February came and went fast! I can’t believe we are already through the first two months of 2013! Thankfully, I got another amazing package in the mail from my foodie pen pal. Tasha Zarbo from Home Made by TZ sent me a great package that the kids and I thoroughly enjoyed!

Continue reading »

So the middle of every month is so exciting for me because I get my foodie pen pal package in the mail!! This months came from Dara Peloquin and she didn’t disappoint! I opened it up and saw this:

I love, love, love the Minnie Mouse bag!! Look at how cute it is! How can you not love that girl! I’m jealous that Dara apparently lives close enough to Disney California that it seems she spends quite a bit of time there, she has even gotten to go to Carsland, which I must say, I would love to see myself! She did send me some Dill Pickle Popcorn Seasoning which I will be honest, I was nervous about so I gave that away to a friend who has a friend who is in love with all things pickle. I don’t believe he has tried it yet so I don’t have any feedback on it yet. She says shes a huge fan not because she is 8 months pregnant, but I kind of wonder.

Continue reading »

Can you believe it’s the last day of November! Oh my goodness! Where did this month go? We are almost finished with 2012! I cannot believe it.

Down to business though as this is the last FPP for the year and I received an awesome package from my friend Taylor! She did a great job getting things that I will enjoy so I was super excited.

Continue reading »

So I came home one day right after the 15th to my Foodie Pen Pal package and it put a huge smile on my face! It has been a rough couple of months for me so though I knew it was coming, it was still a happy surprise to come home to find it on my porch on Monday, two days after it was supposed to be sent!!

I was so excited to rip into my package, as I have been every month since I started! I can’t believe that this is my third month of doing it so far! It feels like I have been doing it forever and it’s one of the few things I look forward to coming every month. I count down the days until the 5th of the month when I get my new name and I’m thinking from the minute that I have sent that months package about what to get for the next month right away.

Continue reading »

Yeah! My August Foodie Penpal and it came from Christine all the way in Wisconsin! I love this whole thing and how once a month I get a package from someone amazing in the US! This month didn’t disappoint either!

Look how pretty it is:

She got all my favorite colors just in the wrapping. And it came on what had been a pretty bad day at work and a long day with everything so it was a nice surprise!

And look at all I got this month!!

Let me break it down for you!
Continue reading »

I am so excited that I found this Foodie Penpals courtesy of one of my favorite blogs!! I was paired up for my first month to receive my package from Lena from Lena on the Beach and boy did she do good!!

I received my package a little late but I was okay with it. Came at a good time after what had been a very long week at work and it was filled with some yummy goodies!!

I am loving the cup as my cup that I had just cracked and is leaking now so I needed a new one anyway, and of course, I love the color. The tablets to put in the water are pretty cool. Kind of fun to watch it disappear in the water and nice to not to have to shake it (as I seem to always get covered in water when I do that).

I cannot wait to try the Ranch popcorn flavoring. It’s been a pretty busy week here so I haven’t had a chance to try it yet but I can’t wait to try it! Popcorn is one of my favorite things so I am so excited by Lena adding more to my box. I was just about out of the kernels that I have.

I was a little nervous to try the Fruit Strips and Turkey Sausage, but they were actually a lot tastier than I thought they would be. And only 1 PP each, so good! Sorry about the quality of the picture. I will try and get another one up later but I’ve eaten a lot of them already, so I don’t know if I will be able to get one

The Mixed Berries Dried Fruit might be my favorite thing in the package. They are so yummy! I’ve never really had dried fruit, except in a salad I made once so this was a new thing for me. So good. The crackers were not bad with a little Laughing Cow Swiss Cheese on it. I wonder how they would be with some cheddar cheese?? Going to have to try it I think…

Lastly, I got something that I’m a little scared to try…some very bright green relish. I will only eat it on hot dogs and not all the time so have been wary about trying it. Will do it eventually soon though. She did include a recipe (but don’t tell anyone they came from her) to make real Chicago-style hot dogs so I am definitely going to have to try this soon. Got a few more shifts at the second job and will have to cook up some dogs soon afterwards.

Lena was awesome and I’m glad she got me for my first time at the Foodie Penpals! She was super good to me and I’m glad I got to do this and already thinking of next month.

And now it’s time for some details about Foodie Penpals. In case you’re a new reader, here’s a reminder of what the program is all about:

-On the 5th of every month, you will receive your penpal pairing via email. It will be your responsibility to contact your penpal and get their mailing address and any other information you might need like allergies or dietary restrictions.
-You will have until the 15th of the month to put your box of goodies in the mail. On the last day of the month, you will post about the goodies you received from your penpal!
-The boxes are to be filled with fun foodie things, local food items or even homemade treats! The spending limit is $15. The box must also include something written. This can be anything from a note explaining what’s in the box, to a fun recipe…use your imagination!
-You are responsible for figuring out the best way to ship your items depending on their size and how fragile they are. (Don’t forget about flat rate boxes!)
-Foodie Penpals is open to blog readers as well as bloggers. If you’re a reader and you get paired with a blogger, you are to write a short guest post for your penpal to post on their blog about what you received. If two readers are paired together, neither needs to worry about writing a post for that month.
-Foodie Penplas is open to US & Canadian residents. Please note, Canadian Residents will be paired with other Canadians only. We’ve determined things might get too slow and backed up if we’re trying to send foods through customs across the border from US to Canada and vice versa.

If you’re interested in participating for August, please CLICK HERE to fill out the participation form and read the terms and conditions.

You must submit your information by August 4th as pairings will be emailed on August 5th!

*If you’re from somewhere besides the US, Canada or Europe and want to participate, send me an email and I’ll see if we get enough interest this month!

Hi, this is Marne and I’m thrilled to be Julie’s first guest blog post! We were paired up for the Lean Green Bean’s Foodie Pen Pal Exchange.

This was both our first times being involved in this and it was loads of fun. Each person gets paired up with someone to send a bunch of their favorite food finds, etc. and then a different person will send theirs to someone else. Julie was paired with me and wow, am I glad!! We got to know each other a bit over a few email exchanges (we’re around the same age, both Weight Watchers members, etc.). Then I found out she does this blog for family and friends. I’m not a blogger but as a reader I can definitely appreciate the time and effort it takes to keep one up! She has me also thinking about doing a No Junk Food Challenge like she and Brittany are doing.

So, last week I received this ginoooorrrrrmous box of awesome goodies with an explanation of each item along with some funny stories.

Check it out! Awesome, huh?

So, guess what I tried first?

(shocker…not! Yummy homemade Tollhouse Cookies with the story behind them being invented in her hometown of Whitman)

I tasted a bunch of my goodies and shared with The Husband who is a home brewer and lover of hoppy beer so he was really excited about the Waschusett Green Monsta IPA which is chillin’ in the fridge.

It was so fun to open the box and read all the stories about why Julie picked each item. She totally spoiled me with A TON of fun food finds I had never tried before (Pepperidge Farm Baked Naturals Wheat Crisps – love!) as well as some personal childhood faves (Necco Wafers!!!).

She even included the ingredients and recipe for her favorite dressing (I am so making this vinaigrette this week and packing my salad using her salad layering Mason Jar idea – Brilliant!). I even got some beach front property (vial of sand – ha!) and some postcards from the area (so fun).

I think my favorite I-had-never-had-this-before item was the Gibralters’ peppermint. It’s the first confection made in America and it is this delightfully soft peppermint that reminds me of Kraft’s Butter Mints (do they make those anymore?).

I want to thank Julie for all her thoughtfulness and over the top generosity in sharing with me her favorite foods and being my Foodie Pen Pal! Thank you!

Take care all!
Marne

Are you interested in being a Foodie Penpal?

-On the 5th of every month, you will receive your penpal pairing via email. It will be your responsibility to contact your penpal and get their mailing address and any other information you might need like allergies or dietary restrictions.
-You will have until the 15th of the month to put your box of goodies in the mail. On the last day of the month, you will post about the goodies you received from your penpal!
-The boxes are to be filled with fun foodie things, local food items or even homemade treats! The spending limit is $15. The box must also include something written. This can be anything from a note explaining what’s in the box, to a fun recipe…use your imagination!
-You are responsible for figuring out the best way to ship your items depending on their size and how fragile they are. (Don’t forget about flat rate boxes!)
-Foodie Penpals is open to blog readers as well as bloggers. If you’re a reader and you get paired with a blogger, you are to write a short guest post for your penpal to post on their blog about what you received. If two readers are paired together, neither needs to worry about writing a post for that month.
-Foodie Penplas is open to US & Canadian residents. Please note, Canadian Residents will be paired with other Canadians only. We’ve determined things might get too slow and backed up if we’re trying to send foods through customs across the border from US to Canada and vice versa.

If you’re interested in participating for August, please CLICK HERE to fill out the participation form and read the terms and conditions.

You must submit your information by August 4th as pairings will be emailed on August 5th!