Things I'm Loving

Hey guys! How's it going? I thought today I would try a little something different. Let's talk about some things I'm currently loving! I thought I would try to do this every Friday, and you guys can link up and join me each week! What do you think?

1. Luna Fiber
The wonderful people from Luna Bar sent me some of their new Luna Fiber bars to try. I was really excited about this because I have been wanting to try these bars for quite a while, but I've only seen the boxes and not the individual bars around me, so I haven't had the chance. They sent me two bars of each flavor - Chocolate Raspberry, Peanut Butter Strawberry, and Blueberry Vanilla.

I clearly forgot to take a picture before all the Blueberry Vanilla disappeared...

The thing I love about these bars is that they are like Nutrigrain bars, but without the high fructose corn syrup and other yucky things that are in Nutrigrain bars. They are around 110 - 120 calories per bar. Each bar has 7g of fiber, and the "Core 4" combo of calcium, iron, folic acid, and vitamin D.

Let me tell you, Luna Fiber is DELICIOUS. My favorite is the Chocolate Raspberry, obviously - the addition of sugar sprinkled on top totally makes it. The Peanut Butter Strawberry tasted just like a PB&J sandwich, and the Blueberry Vanilla? Well, it tastes like its name. They were all really yummy. I will definitely be buying these on a regular basis.

2. Luna & Larry's Coconut Bliss
You may have read my review of this brand a while ago - I bought some for my 20th birthday, and this was the first product review I did on my blog over a year ago! (Click here to see the review). Then, I reviewed Dark Chocolate & Mocha Maca Crunch. It was one of my most popular posts for the longest time on PD - until only very recently!

I ran into the company when I was in Washington DC for the Fancy Food Show - we connected, and they sent me two free product coupons to review some more of their ice creams. They are a vegan ice cream, and they use coconut milk as their base for all their ice creams. They also use agave syrup as their sweetener. Yum!

This time, I decided to try Cherry Amaretto. This is really delicious. I was expecting there to be chocolate in it, much like a cherry cordial ice cream, but there wasn't - it was more like cherry and coconut ice cream swirled together, with cherry pieces and amaretto flavor. It is delicious. I'm saving my second coupon, because - get this - my local Whole Foods had a power outage and lost a lot of product. When I went to the freezer section, all the Coconut Bliss products were gone! I hope they get more in soon, because I absolutely love this company!

3. Cottage Cheese
It's delicious. Enough said. Oh, and the fat free cottage cheese from TJ's is super low in sugar and has tons of protein. It's a win-win anywhere.

4. Kraft Tomato Basil String Cheese
I wasn't sure about this string cheese when I bought it at the store, but after trying it, I'm in love. It is described on the package as tasting like a caprese salad - and that it does! Only 70 calories per stick. Try it!

5. Pinterest
I think everyone and their mother is obsessed with Pinterest nowadays. I love it because it gives me great DIY project ideas. The problem is, I pin the projects and never do them. I decided it was time to change that! Check out what I made (so far) - thanks to Pinterest!

1. File Cabinet Makeover

(Find the how-to here)

2. Workout Shirts from L/XL tshirts

(Find the how-to here)

3. Glitter Iphone Charger

(See the pin here)

Another idea. Would you guys like if I started making cool printables you guys can use? And graphics? Think social media buttons, fitness charts, food journals, to-do lists, blog buttons, banners, etc. I would love to open up an Etsy shop and sell some of this stuff. Freebies here on the site, too, of course. What would everyone like to see?

Join me by posting about the things YOU are currently loving & using the button below! This post will be able to link up through next FRIDAY, JULY 27 since this is the first post. Please join me and share the love!

  <center><a href="http://www.passingdaisies.net"><img src="http://i1066.photobucket.com/albums/u401/passingdaisies/thingsimlovin.jpg" border="0" alt="Things I'm Lovin'"></a></center>

Much love, 

April Foodie Pen Pals

Friends! It's time once again for Foodie Pen Pals, brought to us by the lovely Lindsay! :) 

This month, my box was shipped to me from Shannon, and it was her first time doing FPP. Super exciting, right? I could tell she was excited from the moment she emailed me; her email was vibrant (if an email can be vibrant) and full of energy. I knew this would be a good package. She also mentioned that one of her goals was to send me items I had never tried yet - I must say, she definitely succeeded! Take a look at all the yumminess:

The box included: TJ's sunflower seed butter, Zico chocolate coconut water, TJ's dark chocolate nutty bits, TJ's peach salsa, TJ's roasted red pepper and artichoke tapenade, peanut honey pretzel luna bar, and Larabar chocolate hazelnut jocalat bar. AND homemade peanut butter cup cookies! Whee!

Congratulations, Shannon - I had not tried a single item before in the box you sent me! :) She was also the first FPP to send me something homemade. I loved everything. I have been wanting to try sunflower butter for a while but never bought it, so this was exciting. It's a little sweeter than peanut butter, but I love it. I drank the coconut water right away, and I was surprised by how much I enjoyed it - it was like drinking chocolate milk, but made with coconut cream and coconut water! Yummy. The salsa was sweet, and the tapenade was devoured for dinner one night. I haven't tried the Larabar yet, and I'm a little skeptical, beucase the last Jocalat bar I tried tasted and smelled like perfume. But I will let you know how it goes when I try this!


Overall, a wonderful box. thanks so much, Shannon! Great job!


I also sent a box this month to Shreya - she is not a blogger, so below is what she had to say about my package:
"I really like the stuff you sent me. I tried the chips last night. They were really great with salsa. Unfortunately, the salsa bottle you sent broke and I couldn't salvage it. I am having the granola for breakfast this morning :) Thanks for the lovely package and the note."


I was so disappointed that the salsa from Whole Foods (Tequila Lime) broke! Ugh! I also sent some Cherry Cacao drink from Honest Tea, local blueberry granola, and raw sweet potato chips.


Time to learn about FPP!

-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 May, please CLICK HERE to fill out the participation form and read the terms and conditions. 

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


*If you're from somewhere besides the US, Canada or Europe and want to participate, send me an email and I'll see if we get enough interest this month!


Much love to everyone!