Foodie Pen Pals!
I stumbled upon The Lean Green Bean website a little while ago and when I saw the words "foodie pen pals", I of course was immediately intrigued. Lindsay has put together this AMAZING program for anyone anywhere interested in food! Here is how it works...
Everything in this box puts a smile on my face :) The sweet potato chips are awesome, especially because I've been on a serious sweet potato high for the last few weeks (they are just so good!) I haven't yet tried the chocolate coconut water but I'm SURE it will be the best replenish drink I've ever had after my next tough workout ;-) The chocolate mint tart.. well... do I even need to comment on this one? I think you can imagine how delightfully sinful it is (while still so healthy!) The ginger chunks are great - strong in flavor but great for the tummy! The dark chocolate with espresso beans.. mm mm mm, who doesn't love chocolate and coffee?! Lastly, and what I have to admit is my favorite, the strawberry lavender jam. It is the PERFECT combination of sweet and floral, the flavor is light and perfect for these hot summer days in Colorado. I'll definitely have to start the hunt now for this in my local grocery stores because I'm pretty sure this jar will be empty by the end of the week!
I strongly encourage all of you to join Foodie Pen Pals - it is so much fun and it's a win win! Whether you are a blog reader or blogger yourself, anyone with a passion for food will absolutely love what Foodie Pen Pals has to offer!
Now, enough talking... I'm off to enjoy some chocolate along with a spoonful of strawberry lavender jam... perhaps a mix of the two... ;-)
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.
This was my first month participating and I already can't wait for my next pen pal assignment in June!
I was so lucky to have truly great pairings with who I was delivering a box to as well as the person who sent me a box! It was so much fun putting together my favorite goodies and getting such a warm response! Not to mention, the goodie box I received from Leila all the way in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma was packed full of incredible and fun foods I have already fallen in love with! Let's take a look shall we?
I opened my box to find the sweetest handwritten note from Leila! What a doll!
In addition to her welcome note, she included sticky notes on every item with a little description of why she chose it.. so cute!
Drum roll please... here are the goodies!!! Raw Sweet Potato Chips, Zico Chocolate Coconut Water, Hail Merry Chocolate Mint Miracle Tart, Strawberry Lavender Jam, Organic Ginger Chunks, Dark Chocolate with Espresso Beans
(If you can't tell... I totally scored on this one!)
Everything in this box puts a smile on my face :) The sweet potato chips are awesome, especially because I've been on a serious sweet potato high for the last few weeks (they are just so good!) I haven't yet tried the chocolate coconut water but I'm SURE it will be the best replenish drink I've ever had after my next tough workout ;-) The chocolate mint tart.. well... do I even need to comment on this one? I think you can imagine how delightfully sinful it is (while still so healthy!) The ginger chunks are great - strong in flavor but great for the tummy! The dark chocolate with espresso beans.. mm mm mm, who doesn't love chocolate and coffee?! Lastly, and what I have to admit is my favorite, the strawberry lavender jam. It is the PERFECT combination of sweet and floral, the flavor is light and perfect for these hot summer days in Colorado. I'll definitely have to start the hunt now for this in my local grocery stores because I'm pretty sure this jar will be empty by the end of the week!
Leila, thanks again for the amazing box!
Lindsay, thank you for creating this program and for doing such a wonderful job at keeping it going!
I strongly encourage all of you to join Foodie Pen Pals - it is so much fun and it's a win win! Whether you are a blog reader or blogger yourself, anyone with a passion for food will absolutely love what Foodie Pen Pals has to offer!
Now, enough talking... I'm off to enjoy some chocolate along with a spoonful of strawberry lavender jam... perhaps a mix of the two... ;-)