box of sunshine from florida

This month for the first time I participated in Foodie Pen Pals, a sort of secret santa for food bloggers and food lovers across the country. Things like this are why I love The Internets. I sent off a box of treats to some stranger, specifically Emily aka Chatty Dabbler. I sent a box of picnic treats but you'll have to hop over to her blog for the details. 

[This lovely box of treats? Straight from a stranger in Florida.]

And then Christina from Bad Communication sent ME a box. Inside were: Publix brand "cheetos" which she claims are THE BEST, pink lemonade cake mix which demands being made into cupcakes, frosting that can be flavored, Fiber Plus bars (perfect for breaks at work- chocolate! almonds!), mint marshmellows*, and of course, a Florida orange! 


Plus in that plastic bag are "chocolate milk straws" with little balls of chocolate powder to flavor milk. I tried them out on Friday. I stirred and stirred and stirred but they didn't dissolve. Left them for 5 minutes and came back to a glass of milk with chocolate powder on top. I stirred it up and drank the slightly-chocolatey drink. I think Cornell Dairy spoiled me on chocolate milk that isn't pure decadence. 


*Christina included a sweet note in which she joked about summertime hot chocolate. I think she has no idea how perfect SF summers are for hot chocolate. I haven't done it yet, but sampled a few on their own and they were just slightly mint chocolate-y, great for hot chocolate. 

If you live in the US or Canada and are interested in being a Foodie Pen Pal, check it out here! Basically, you send a box of treats ($15 max) to someone, someone else sends you a box and the lovely  Lindsay of The Lean Green Bean does most of the coordinating. You sign up just a month at a time, so if you are tempted, just try it out! Details.

sharing the holiday spirit with blog swaps

I'm very excited to be participating in two internet swaps- a Holiday Gift Swap and the Great Food Bloggers Cookie Swap. You don't have to be a professional crafter or baker to participate so sign up!

The Holiday Gift Swap is open for sign ups through Friday, November 4th. You'll make five items to send out to five participants (on November 7) and you'll get five goodies to keep or give as holiday gifts. The goal is to simplify your holiday shopping while allowing you to give homemade artisan goods to your loved ones. The Great Cookie Swap is similar, but you send and receive three batches of a dozen cookies. Sign up by Friday, November 18 and send your cookies out by December 5th.

Which swap do you want to be part of?