I praise Foodie Pen Pals every month, only because I love it so much. This month was all about a few Trader Joe’s favorites and a few other snacks thrown in. Vanilla Apricot White tea that I think is a serious new addiction of mine, dark chocolate acai berries, pecan pie granola, homemade trail mix (I can’t get over how darn cute that jar is) and so much more.
All of these were perfect snacks for my drawer at work.. you know the one you have that is full of mostly healthy treats with the occasional piece of chocolate for those 3pm I need something right now days.
This month’s box was sent by the lovely Shannon of Skinny Sometimes which is all about that balance. And this box was a great balance of healthy and fun treats. Thank you Shannon for such a great box!
Interested in Foodie Pen Pals?
1. On the 5th of every month, you will receive your penpal pairing via email. It will be your responsibility to promptly contact your penpal for a mailing address and any other information you might need like allergies or dietary restrictions.
2. Please be mindful of your matches dietary restrictions if they have them. ie, if they’re gluten free, don’t send them wheat bread…or if they’re vegan, don’t send them bacon…it’s also nice to ask if there’s anything they really don’t like, so that you’re not sending them a package full of coconut stuff if they hate coconut…Consider asking your match if they would like to receive healthy snacks, treats or a mix of both.
3. You will have until the 15th of the month to put your box of goodies in the mail. This will ensure everyone receives their goodies in time to post about them. PLEASE make sure you get your box in the mail on time. Feel free to mail it earlier if you can. It sucks if someone can’t post on the day everyone else does because they haven’t gotten their box yet.
4. At the end of the month you will post about the goodies you received from your penpal!
5. The boxes are to be filled with fun foodie things, local food items or even homemade treats! However, if you plan to include homemade treats, please check with your partner to see if they want them. Some people do not like receiving items that are homemade or not sealed. The spending limit is $15.
6. 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!
7. You are responsible for figuring out the best way to ship your items depending on their size and how fragile they are. (US participants- Please mail through the post office (SO MUCH CHEAPER THAN UPS and USE flat rate boxes!) If you’re mailing something breakable, please make sure it is well cushioned to avoid breaking!
8. If you’re a reader and you get paired with a blogger, you can choose to write a short guest post for the blogger to feature on their blog to show off what they sent you. If two readers get paired together, no one has to worry about writing a post
9. BE SURE TO THANK YOUR PENPAL FOR ALL OF THEIR THOUGHT & EFFORT! Also not really sure how else to get this one through your head. Seriously, this should be a no brainer but you’d be surprised how many people I hear complaining that their penpal never even said thank you or even let them know they got their box. SAY THANK YOU. SAY THANK YOU. SAY THANK YOU. It’s common courtesy, people!
10. If you’re on twitter, you can use the hashtag #foodiepenpals when tweeting! Tweet up a storm, friends. Don’t forget the "s" on the end- #foodiepenpals, not #foodiepenpal.
