November Foodie Pen Pals Reveal Day!

I had another amazing month of Foodie Pen Pals!  First I'm going to tell you a little bit about Foodie Pen Pals and then I will reveal the goodies!

Here’s 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 Penpals 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.

Things are changing for December. Instead of sending boxes out this month, Lindsay is asking everyone to use the $15-$25 you would normally use to buy your box items and mail them to donate to victims of Hurricane Sandy. There are so many people who participate in Foodie Pen Pals that we can make a difference! To learn more about this and to sign up visit HERE.

Donations will be accepted December 3rd-7th so get on over there and sign up!!!

 

This month I was paired up with Janna from Try It You Might Like It! She sent me an awesome box of goodies!

 

 

It was packaged all nice and pretty!

 

Janna told me in her note that she had been visiting Burlington, Vermont with her best friend and so she chose fun foodie items from Vermont for me! She even sent items for my boys and for my cat Cullen!!! So sweet!

 

 

Here is a run down of all my goodies!

 

• Organic Spelt Fusilli by Grand Isle Pasta- This was so yummy! I should have taken a picture of the dish I made with it but I forgot. Bad me! I made something we call "Tuna and Noodles" around my house. We use noodles, canned tuna, a little bit of mayo, and mustard and mix it all together for a quick and easy meal. It's the prefect carbing up meal for me before a long run!
• Distiler's Maple Pretzels- Oh these were soooo good! If you like a mixture of sweet and salty then these are perfect for you! Pretzels with maple syrup on them...sounds like food for those Christmas elves lol!

• Green Mountain Goodness Maple Rub- This was so good! I put the rub on chicken and it gave it a slight sweet flavor. It was awesome!

• CinnaMint VerMints- These were amazing! They tasted just like an altoid but were all natural!
• Recipe for brownies- Yum! I love brownies! Janna said this was her "go-to recipe for brownies adapted from Martha Stewart." I can't wait to make these!

• Recipe Cards- She sent me my own so I could write down my favorite recipes!
• Dan's Chocolates- Yes these were the first thing to go...and my hubby ate them all! I didn't get to try even one! But he assured me they were very good!
• Stash Tea White Christmas and Merry Mint- I'm not a big tea fan (unless it's Southern sweet tea) so I gave these to my sister-in-law who loves tea! She was super excited! Janna did inform me that this was her favorite tea....so maybe I can get the sister-in-law to at least let me taste it! ;-)
• Toy balls for Cullen- And he loves them! He chases them all over the house!
• Stickers for the boys- They were so excited to get mail lol! They decorated tons of pictures for me with their new stickers!!!

Thanks so much Janna for such an awesome box of fun food items!!!

QOTD: Are you a tea or coffee person?

October Foodie Pen Pals Reveal Day + WINNER!

First, I want to wish my wonderful husband Andy a very happy birthday today!!! Yes he was a Boo Baby (born on Halloween)! I am so thankful to have such an amazing man who loves me and my boys and takes such great care of us. I love you Babe!

I had another amazing month of Foodie Pen Pals!  First I'm going to tell you a little bit about Foodie Pen Pals and then I will reveal the goodies!

Here’s 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 November, please CLICK HERE to fill out the participation form and read the terms and conditions.

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

This month I was lucky to get paired with Jacquie from Bee Morse Farm! And boy did she send me a box full of goodies!!! I'm sooo excited to share with all of you!

One thing I love about Foodie Pen Pals is the handwritten note that comes with it! Jacquie included a recipe and most of the ingredients were in the box! Most of the items she included were from her state of Maine which was really awesome!!!

Ok I know all you care about is what was actually IN the box! :-)

• Annie's Bunny Grahams. My boys loved these! And yes...I will admit that I ate some too! Very yummy!
• Peanut Butter Persuasion Cookie. Well this was the first thing to go! My husband and son Sawyer got a hold of it while I wasn't home...and ate the entire thing!!! So I didn't get to try it! :-( But I heard it was good!
• Maine Salt Water Taffy. Oh my! This is sinful! So yummy! How did she know that I love taffy?

• Glee Sugar-Free Gum. Yes between me and Sawyer gum doesn't last long around here! :-)
• Raye's Mustard. Mustard from Maine! I'm not a big mustard fan but the hubby loves it!
• NoNuttin Granola Bars. Chocolate Chip and Apple Cinnamon flavors! I loved that these were made from all natural ingredients, were peanut free, and tasted yummy!

• Moose Bee Granola Bar. This was one of my favorite items! Sooo yummy! I am sad I can't get these where I live! 

• Bee Morse Applesaucy. This was homemade by Jacquie at her farm. And it was the BEST applesauce I have ever tasted! My son Hayden LOVED it too! We just opened it yesterday...it didn't last long! :-)

• Blue Potatoes from Aroostook County. These potatoes are local to Jacquie. An interesting fact she told me...almost 50% of the potatoes by McCain and Lays are from Aroostook County! And I tell you they make a fine potato salad! :-)
• $10 bill. These were for Jacquie's favorite chips by Late July....Summertime Blues. She couldn't fit them inside the box so she sent money for them...so sweet! So far I haven't been able to find them but I saw on their website that Fresh Market carries them. We have a Fresh Market being built right now so these will be my first purchase from there for sure! 
• Ingredients for the Pumpkin Spice Muffins: Pumpkin Spice Cake Mix, Jello Instant Vanilla Pudding, Maine Pure Maple Syrup,  and Pure Maine Maple Sugar. And yes! I made the recipe! All of you who know me know that I am NOT a cook. But I tried these and they were a huge hit with my hubby who is a huge pumpkin fan! And yes...I will share the recipe with you below! ;-)

Ingredients all mixed together and waiting to be baked!

The finished product! They aren't pretty but they tasted amazing!!!

Pumpkin Spice Muffins (recipe from Bee Morse Farm)

Ingredients

1 box spice cake

30 oz. pumpkin

3.4 oz. box instant vanilla pudding

2 eggs slightly beaten

1 tsp. vanilla

1 T. maple syrup

1/2 c. canola oil

2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice

1/2 c. brown sugar

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Mix cake mix, pumpkin, pudding, and vanilla.
3. Add eggs, oil, spice, and maple syrup to dry ingredients. Mix thoroughly.
4. Scoop into muffin pans. Sprinkle top with brown sugar. Bake 25-30 minutes or until toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

I hope you enjoy these as much as my family did! :-)

Thanks so much Jacquie for such an amazing box full of goodies!!!!

I also need to let you know who won the BIC Bands giveaway!!! 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Congrats! Please email me your mailing address at mindy@roadrunnergirl.com so I can get your new BIC Bands out to you! :-)

Happy Halloween everyone! Have a safe and fun time today!

QOTD: Do you have any yummy pumpkin recipes? Please share with me in the comments!!!

September Foodie Pen Pals Reveal Day!

I had another amazing month of Foodie Pen Pals!  First I'm going to tell you a little bit about Foodie Pen Pals and then I will reveal the goodies!

Here’s 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 October, please CLICK HERE to fill out the participation form and read the terms and conditions.

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

This month I got paired with Christina Warner! And she sent me an awesome box full of goodies for marathon training!!!

I love how pretty the box was when it arrived! I LOVE polka dots!!!

One of my favorite parts of Foodie Pen Pals is the handwritten note! So sweet!

Christina sent me an amazing box full of goodies!

• Boulder Granola with Chocolate. Soooo good!!! I LOVED eating this straight out of the bag!!!
• Peppermint water. I've never heard of this but it was so refreshing and tasty!!! 
• 4 packs of GU. How did she know I used this stuff? Probably because she has run a marathon before! My favorite flavors are Vanilla Bean and Strawberry Banana and she included those! The other two flavors were Chocolate Outrage and Jet Blackberry....both of which I've never tried! I didn't really care for the Jet Blackberry but the Chocolate Outrage tasted like brownie mix!!! Yum!
• Blueberry ReBar. Pretty tasty...it kind of reminded me of a fruit roll up with some texture but much healthier for you!
• Nature's Path Sunny Hemp Trail Mix Granola Bar. I'm not a huge fan of granola bars but this one was pretty good!
• Coconut Granola Bar. I am not a fan of coconut so I wasn't sure about this one. My hubby decided to eat it but I took a few bites and was surprised that I actually liked it! It was good!!!

Thank you sooo much Christina for such a yummy box of goodies!!!

I sent my box to Christina Almond...who doesn't blog...but she said she enjoyed everything I sent her! :-)

I know you are all wanting my race recap...I promise to get it up asap!!! :-)

QOTD: How many days off from running do you take after running a half marathon?

August Foodie Pen Pals Reveal Day!

I had another amazing month of Foodie Pen Pals!  First I'm going to tell you a little bit about Foodie Pen Pals and then I will reveal the goodies!

Here’s 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 September 4th as pairings will be emailed on September 5th!

This month I was lucky enough to get paired with Summer Blankenship this month! She tweeted me several times this month about her box being one of her best...and boy was she right!!!  It was slam packed full of goodies!!!  I also love that she sent me goodies in mind of my marathon training!  Thanks Summer!

Don't you just love getting packages in the mail??? :-)

She had everything wrapped in bubble wrap!

And the sweetest note...filled with recipe cards!!!!

I'm not a great cook but usually I can follow a recipe! :-)

And here's a picture of all the goodies Summer sent me!

• Dried cherries. Sooo good!  I'm usually not much of a fan of cherries but these were so yummy!!!
• Fruit strips. These were a hit with my boys!  They loved them!

• Buddy Fruit Pouches. These were AWESOME!  I've seen so many kids with these but have never tried them.  My boys and I both loved them!!!

• Dark Chocolate Espresso Beans. This was shared with the whole family AND the grandparents!  Sooo good!!! Who doesn't like dark chocolate with a taste of coffee???  YUM!
• Vega Energizing Smoothies. You all know how much I like these!  If you haven't seen my review of these you can read it here!  She also sent the Vega Pre-Workout Energizer and the Vega Electrolyte Hydrator.  I haven't tried these yet...I'm saving them for when I run those high mileage runs (like 18, 20, or 22).  

• Reusable Shopping Bag from Publix. I'm excited about using this bag on my next shopping trip to Publix!  I think I might use it next month when I am shopping for my Foodie Pen Pal!!! :-)

Thank you sooo much Summer for such an amazing package!!!!

I sent my box to Melissa...she doesn't blog so I can't show it to you...but hopefully she enjoyed her goodies from me! :-)

QOTD: What yummy foods are found only in your area?

July Foodie Pen Pals Reveal Day!

I'm so excited!!!!  This was my first month participating in Foodie Pen Pals and it was awesome!!!  First I'm going to tell you a little bit about Foodie Pen Pals and then I will reveal the goodies!

Here’s 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!



For my first month I was lucky enough to get paired with Virginia from Virgie's Place!  Check out her awesome blog...she has a ton of great recipes!!!  She sent me a box slammed full of goodies!!!  You wanna see???

She wrapped everything so pretty!  And she included an awesome note inside the box telling me all about what she sent!!

She also was awesome enough to send my boys a little something...card games!!!  They were sooo excited!!!  And we spent a good chunk of the rest of the day playing these games!

Virginia also sent me a few things non food related....just for me!  I love what she said about the colorful headbands..."Road Runner Girl should never go without!"

Here's a look at ALL the goodies she sent me!

• Mango passion fruit flavored granola. This was sooo yummy in my yogurt!  I also just munched on it as a snack!  

• Nori Maki- Rice crackers wrapped in seaweed.  These were sooo good!!!  I couldn't quit munching on them!
• Orange Marmalade with Champagne. Oh words cannot describe how delicious this was!  I spread it on toast, waffles, bagels, and even put some in my oatmeal!  Sooo yummy!
• Garam Marsala. Virginia sent this with one of her favorite recipes from one of her books!  I haven't had a chance to cook it but can't wait!  

• Disney Cars Card Games.  For my boys!  :-)
• Coconut Lemongrass Lip Balm. She purchased this at her local Farmer's Market.  It made my lips sooo soft!  Love it!
• Handmade Soap.  Another goodie from her Farmer's Market!  It made the whole box smell so good!  And made my hands smell good once I used it!
• Fun Pen.  How did she know that I LOVE office supplies???  Fun pens are my favorite!!!
• Votive Candle Holder. I love candles and candle holders!  She said she liked this one because it matched the penpal theme!  
• Colorful Headbands. Of course I've already worn these tons!

Thank you sooo much Virginia for such an amazing package and for making my first experience with Foodie Pen Pals a great one!  I'm already signed up for next month!  ;-)

QOTD:  What is ONE food item that you cannot live without?