Foodie PenPal: Let the Awesomeness Begin

So I was surfing the blog web one day and I cam across something that made me stop. I mean REALLY stop. It was a blogger who had the ingenious idea of connect other bloggers and blog readers through food. Yup, you read that right, through food!! Naturally I was like "Sign Me Up!!!" so that is exactly what I did.

My only concern was that I might end up being paired with someone who is not as conscious about what food goes into their mouth.  Well, I need not have worried. I was blessed to have been paired with Julie from ROJ Running. She asked me if I had any food preferences or allergies. I responded and this is what I got in return...

Seriously guys, how awesome is she? Not only was everything a healthy snack, they all tasted AMAZING!!! I mean, can you SEE the super cute mug she sent me??? So, let me give you the low-down of everything, going from left-to-right:

 Almondina® (The Original Almond Biscuit): these things were crunchy, sweet but not too sweet and were a great way to satiate my sweet tooth without me going overboard. All in all, I'm going to go buy these to restock our bellies :)

Setton Farms® Mixed Veggie Chips: I'm not sure HOW she knew I loved salty snacks, and how I avoid buying potato chips since I have a problem to eat just one. But somehow she must have, and in turn introduced me to these babies. Let me just say that I almost ate the whole tub in one sitting... almost.

The Ginger People® Ginger Chews: These are the ONE snack I have not tried yet. I used to love ginger, I mean LOVE. And I still do love fresh/pickled. But when I was pregnant with my little man I had such bad nausea I tried everything under the son to stop it, and candied ginger was one of them. So, every time I look at the box that feeling resurfaces and I continue to walk past it.  I will try it one day though. I promise!

World Market® 100% All Fruit Bars: Julie sent me Strawberry, Apricot, Blueberry and Apple. I would love to tell you which one was my favorite, but I honestly CAN NOT decide. Nom nom nom.. so good!

Summersaults Snack Co.® Cinnamon Crunch: Talk about yummy in my tummy.These little things are like little mini-crunch cookies. The sunflower seeds give it an amazing taste and texture. My little man even loved them. He sat down beside me after I opened them and just ate through the bag one by one, until I realized how much he had eaten and I had to put it away for another day. Yeah, he wasn't too happy about that.

Wild Garden® Traditional Hummus Dip: Ok so at this point I'm starting to wonder if Julie can read my mind. She sent me hummus. HUMMUS!! Y'all, I can not begin to tell you how much I L.O.V.E. hummus. Throughout college it was my dinner at least 3 times a week. Seriously. I can easily finish a freshly made container in one sitting. I could tell you numerous stories about my love-affair with hummus, but I won't. What I will say is, knowing that I have an emergency stash in my purse makes my life complete.  Julie, you're an Angel and my new best friend :)

All in all, I kinda wish I had Julie EVERY month. She was super awesome! To top it off, her blog is so inspirational. It makes me feel like I can go run a marathon (I ran my first 10K this past Spring which was a HUGE accomplishment for me. So a marathon is NOT in my near future. I just feel like I could run one.)

Now, I bet YOU want in!! No problem, check below for details!!

Here are the Foodie Penpals details:

• 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 new and interested in participating for September, please CLICK HERE to fill out the participation form and read the terms and conditions.
• You must submit your information by September 4th as pairings will be emailed on September 5th! You will receive a confirmation email within 24 hours if you sign up. IF YOU DON’T GET ONE, send an email to Lindsay at theleangreenbean@gmail.com!