Wanderlust

Life gets kinda crazy sometimes, doesn't it?

A lot has happened since September. Going through a break-up, traveling virtually non-stop for work (Lexington & Frankfort, KY + Farmington, Minnesota), and having to buy a new car (RIP Landon, my '95 Pontiac Grand Am) are what I would consider the top 3. So September and October have left me rather scatter brained and exhausted. Which has actually inspired a lot of songwriting - a new hobby of mine.

Thank goodness I love traveling. I wish it was for enjoyment rather than work, but I still get to explore the city in my free time. I'm currently in Lexington until the end of next week, so I'm doing my best to explore every nook and cranny - especially local favorites. Good thing I've basically been living in Lexington during the week since August because I'm finding tons of hidden gems!

I've learned recently that travel is a part of who I am. I love it. I find joy in exploration. So I keep planning little weekend trips to different, not so far away places. And because I love what I find, I want to share it with you. So PD is now going to take a little bit of a different angle. It will definitely still be about food and memories (which is key to the vision of PD), but it will also be about where I go on my travels. And this gives me a good excuse to practice photography! Soon I'll talk about Lexington, KY and Columbus, OH and Mammoth Caves, KY. 

Pretty things in Mammoth Caves, KY.

Before the end of the year I'll probably return to Columbus, as well as journey to Cancun (so excited!) and do a "stay-cation" in Cincinnati (Over the Rhine, specifically), along with a small Thanksgiving break trip to a place TBD. Next year I'm planning to go to Nashville, TN and Atlanta, GA, as well as a potential trip to Greece and Italy (still only a maybe right now) and possibly a missions trip to South Africa. And I will DEFINITELY be returning to New Orleans in July for the fourth time!

I'd also like to show you some places I went and never blogged about -  NYC & Albany & Paris (VA, not France) & the Bourbon Trail (KY) $ New Orleans.  And did I ever blog about my 3 weeks in Europe back in 2007?!

So many adventures completed, and so many more to come. I've got some wanderlust in me.

Stay tuned, friends. Some good things are coming!

WhirlyBird Granola GIVEAWAY

It's TIME for our first giveaway in December...and the first giveaway for our birthday bash! Hooray! Get ready to eat your heart out in GRANOLA...and even better, it's local (from Cincinnati)!

WhirlyBird Granola. I can't get over how cute their marketing is. Just go look at their website and you will see what I mean: burlap flag banners and birds that whirl. And it must be delicious, because Drew Lachey (brother of Nick Lachey and a Cincinnati native) eats it for breakfast.

I met up with Christy, the owner, at a Starbucks in Cincy to snag a few bags of Whirlybird and give it a whirl (pun intended!). She was really sweet and excited to be working with PD! Plus, she has three ADORABLE little kiddos, and you all know how much I love kids (in fact, as I'm writing this, I'm nannying a 12 week old infant! SO CUTE.). 

They currently have four flavors: Original, Vanilla Berry, Chocolate, and the seasonal Gingerbread. As far as my favorite flavor goes, I'm having a REALLY hard time choosing between Gingerbread and Chocolate.

WhirlyBird uses all natural ingredients and makes every bag in small batches. It is free from artificial flavors and preservatives, so that's a plus. It's also vegan friendly and incredibly delicious! Their website offers a lot of great, unique ways to eat granola besides just tossing it with milk or grabbing it by the handful (although that's not bad, either!).

Is your mouth watering yet?

I thought so. 

Here is what you need to do to win FOUR BAGS (one of each flavor) of WhirlyBird Granola.

Each thing you do is an entry. Please leave a SEPARATE COMMENT in the comment section for each thing you do or your entries won't be counted!

1. Follow Passing Daisies on Twitter and tweet "I just entered to win FOUR BAGS of @WhirlyGranola from @passingdaisies! Head to the blog and ENTER TO WIN now! #birthdaybash #giveaway"

2. Instagram a picture of this post (or a picture on it) and say "I just entered to win FOUR BAGS of Whirlybird Granola from @passingdaisies13! Head to the blog and ENTER TO WIN now! #birthdaybash #giveaway"

3. Pin this post on Pinterest and say "I just entered to win FOUR BAGS of Whirlybird Granola from @passingdaisies! Head to the blog and ENTER TO WIN now! #birthdaybash #giveaway"

4. Comment on the PD Facebook page and tell me how you would eat this granola. 

5. Follow PD on Google (right hand column, where it says "Followers" AND//OR subscribe to PD via email.

That's all she wrote, folks! Now get entering! Only people living in the United States can enter to win. Giveaway ends on FRIDAY DECEMBER 13TH at 11:59PM. Winner will be contacted by email.

EDIT// Giveaway now closed. Congrats for #4, Ray! Please email me your contact info.

It's (almost) our birthday... how do YOU want to celebrate?!

Guess what?!

PassingDaisies.net turns THREE YEARS OLD on December 26, 2013. That means our birthday is only a little over a month away... and I want to CELEBRATE!

The question is, what kind of celebration would YOU want to see? Giveaways for certain items? Recipes? Guest blog posts from well known food and fitness bloggers? Something COMPLETELY different?! It's so much more fun because our birthday is the day after Christmas, so we get to have a Christmas AND birthday celebration all in one!

The fact is, I simply cannot believe I've been blogging for three years already. When I started Passing Daisies back in 2010 (originally called The Vegan Collegian), I didn't think it would last much longer than a year. It was definitely slow getting started, but the payoff has been crazy. I've discovered some really great food blogs (and bloggers), tried a lot of new products, learned a lot of new web design and graphic design skills, and just generally had a lot of fun.

I haven't always been consistent about blogging, but I've always come back. This little place on the internet is like my child, and I know a lot of bloggers feel that way! We pour our hearts and souls (and stomachs) into our food blogs. And that is definitely what I've done with PD. I hope you are able to tell that. 

So, the question remains - what kind of celebration would YOU want to see? And how long would you like it to last? A month? A week? A year? (Ok, I'm kidding about a year long celebration. But a month is completely acceptable.)

Give me your feedback! :)

Reawakening

Hey, friends. I think it's about time this food blog comes back from the dead, don't you? 

I'm sorry its taken me a month to update. There has been a lot going on in the real world. But that doesn't mean I haven't had time to think about the site! 

A couple things. First, if you read the "about me" page on the site, you'll find the following statement: 

Memories are a big part of my life. Good or bad, wonderfully beautiful or horribly ugly, how you remember something affects your perspective of that thing. Personally, I have a lot of great memories and a lot of horrible memories. I'm sure everyone does. 

So, for me, I like to pass daisies. I like to share my experiences with others, especially in the world of baking. Yet this blog will not be JUST a baking blog. It will also be a blog about my life and who I am, which I think will make blogging much more enjoyable. 

I think it's high time I return to making this a true statement. When I revammped the site a while ago, I promised I would be focusing more on connecting memories to the food I am presenting on the site. I have failed this in a couple ways. For starters, I haven't been reflecting on memories. I also haven't been sharing many recipes. I'm back to change that!

One of the food blogs that serves as my inspiration, both for journalism and food blogging, is 17 and Baking. Elissa has a way with words that I really admire, and she always seems to be able to connect her memories to the baked goods she shares with her readers. That is how I hope to be, and the direction I want to take this blog. 

That being said, I hope you will all join me on this journey to a new, real, and beautiful Passing Daisies. Do you have ideas of things you want to see? Leave a comment. 

What are some of your favorite memories involving food? Please share! 

Product Review & Giveaway: WayFare

Hey everyone! I have another product review for you today, but before we get into that, I have a site update that I'm really excited about. 

I'm starting to go through all of my recipes and include nutritional information, like calories, fat grams, protein, etc. Like I said, I'm really excited about this! I know a lot of my recipes are probably not the healthiest (except for the more recent ones), so I'm interested in knowing just how unhealthy (but yummy) they are for you. I'm starting at the top of my recipe list and working to the bottom. So far, I've done two of my banana bowl recipes - here and here, if you wanted to check them out. How cool is that?! Since I've been tracking my calories recently, I like finding blogs that tell you all this information before you make a recipe and then figure out how high the calorie levels are. I'll keep you updated as this progresses, but I can't wait until they all have nutritional information! 

Alright. Let's crack into this next product review from WayFare products. I've been waiting to do this review because of the lack of WayFare products in my area. I went to Jungle Jims, but they only had one product - the one I will be reviewing - and that's it. How depressing! The next place closest to me in an hour away, which would have to become a family weekend trip or something. This is really sad for me because I wanted to review their puddings. Oh well! 

Since I only used one of the seven coupons (wow!) they sent me, I'm going to be giving away the last six coupons! They expire August 31, so enter fast. Just make sure before you enter that you can find WayFare products in your area. Click here to do that! 

The one product I found was their Cheddar Spread. It's main ingredient is oatmeal, which is how I became interested in the company in the first place (when I was vegan). I'd never heard of oatmeal as a main ingredient before. 

WayFare offers a lot of different vegan products, including three types of pudding, a wide selection of cheese-like spreads, sour cream, and their new vegan bacon bits. 

I have to say, I was a little disappointed in this spread. I thought it would be better. It wasn't bad, it just... lacked flavor. It needed some spices or something to kick it up a notch. I wasn't a fan. 

Apparently this cheese melts, too - something I didn't realize until just now! Kinda makes me wish I had tried this on nachos or a baked potato. 

When I was in Washington DC with Daelia's Biscuits for Cheese for the Fancy Food Show, I got to try their new vegan bacon bits. 

These were really yummy! I loved them. They taste just like those bacon bits you buy in jars at the grocery store. These are definitely worth a try. It looks like you can only order them online right now, so head on over to the WayFare website and get ordering! 

GIVEAWAY TIME!

Now. Can you buy WayFare in your area? Do you want to try some of their products? Enter to win! Two lucky people will each win 3 coupons for a free WayFare product. Here's how to enter - just leave a separate comment for each entry. Giveaway ends TONIGHT AT 11:59PM. Entrants must be from the USA. Get entering!

1. Tell me anything at all. How was your day? What did you do? Did you recently find a new product you like? Do you have a favorite workout or book? Talk to me! :)

2. Subscribe by email (3 entries)

3. Follow me on GFC or Blogger

Good luck! 

Much love, 

21 Days of Giveaways: Lots of Things!

Hey everyone! I apologize for being so, so behind on these giveaways. Returning from Washington DC sort of threw me for a loop, especially the past couple days. I think I caught something while I was down there, because now my throats hurts extremely bad and my nose is driving me crazy. As in, I went to bed at 10pm last night crazy. 

Uhg. 

Here;s the good news. Washington DC was awesome. More pictures from that later. Right now, I'm going to announce some winners and pile more giveaways all into this one post! 

The winners of.....

A case of orange Zevia: therunwithin

A bottle of vegan honey: Ray

A case of Chobani: Linz @ Itz Linz

12 packs of Hail Merry Vanilla Maple Almonds: Laceylovesfood

A case of PB Crave: Pavementrunner

Congratulations, everyone! Email me your info so I can get all these things mailed to you! :)

Now, here is what I am giving away for the rest of the giveaways! 

1. Perfect Fit Protein Powder - two packs. This is organic, raw, gluten-free, and vegan.

2. A box of brownies from Cookiehead. These are so incredibly delicious, it's insane.

3. NuNaturals liquid stevia - in orange and vanilla flavors. There will be four winners for this! A review of their products, including these liquid stevias, will be coming soon.

4. A coupon for Amy's new "Light & Lean" pizzas (there are two flavors), as well as an Amy's tshirt

5. Jillian Michael's "No More Trouble Zones" DVD

6. Trader Joe's $10 gift card

Only open to US residents.

If you want to win one of the above items, here's what to do! Just a leave a separate comment below for each entry. Thanks!

MANDATORY: Follow Passing Daisies on Twitter and tweet the following: "Win brownies, @PerfectFit, stevia, TJs gift card, dvds and more! http://bit.ly/nQkq1N #21daysofgiveaways @cityxlights13 #fitfluential"

Want more chances to win? Who doesn't? Here are more ways to enter: 

1. Subscribe to Passing Daisies. If you subscribe, you get three extra entries!

2. Tell me something you would like to see more of on Passing Daisies. Recipes? Reviews? Workouts? Anything?

3. Tell me anything you want. Anything at all.

4. Follow me on Blogger.

5. Pin this post on Pinterest and mention PassingDaisies.net in the description.

WINNERS WILL BE POSTED ON TUESDAY, JUNE 26. GIVEAWAYS END ON MONDAY, JUNE 25 AT 11:59PM.

That's it! Side note - don't forget to like us on our newly updated Facebook, if you don't already. Thanks kiddos and good luck! 

Much love, 

21 Days of Giveaways: PB Crave

Let me tell you guys something. I am currently up to my eyeballs in nut butter. There is a problem. In my pantry right now, I have: Earth Balance coconut peanut butter, MaraNatha caramel almond spread,  Peanut Butter & Co. dark chocolate dreams (individual packets), Artisana raw pecan butter, TJ's sunflower seed butter, and 7 jars of peanut butter from PB Crave. 

Why 7 jars, you ask? 

Well, I think PB Crave didn't realize they already sent me a box to review - so two boxes of 4 jars of peanut butter each (lots of nut butter) showed up on my doorstep! Crazy. I mailed one jar off to another blogger to try a couple days ago. But you know what is good about this "problem?"

I love peanut butter! And more importantly... I love PB Crave!

This peanut butter is crazy good. 

And can you believe the company was started by a guy who used to hate peanut butter?! Insanity.

Just look at the packaging. Isn't it eye catching? I was sent some of each flavor to review. I loved them all. I think my favorite was the Razzle Dazzle - it was both dark & white chocolate, wild honey, and raspberry. Yummy!! They also have Coco Bananas (which definitely tasted banana-y!), Choco Choco (which is lightly chocolate-y), and Cookie Nookie (which tastes like a little bit of cookie dough). They are all delicious. I ate it straight from the jar with a spoon! 

One lucky winner will win the Choco Choco variety pack, shown below: 

Unfortunately, this does not include the Coco Bananas flavor, which I thought had the second most flavor (Razzle Dazzle was first, of course). But never fear! You will really enjoy these three jars of nut butter! I promise. 

The Daisy Rating 

4.5/5 daisies

Here's how to enter for your chance to win...just a leave a separate comment below for each entry. Thanks!

MANDATORY: Follow Passing Daisies and PB Crave on Twitter and tweet the following: "Enter to win a case of peanut butter from @PBCrave on PassingDaisies.net! http://bit.ly/nQkq1N #21daysofgiveaways @cityxlights13"

Want more chances to win? Who doesn't? Here are more ways to enter: 


1. Subscribe to Passing Daisies. If you subscribe, you get three extra entries!
2. Tell me something you would like to see more of on Passing Daisies. Recipes? Reviews? Workouts? Anything?
3. Tell me anything you want. Anything at all.
4. Follow me on Blogger.
5. Pin this post on Pinterest and mention PassingDaisies.net in the description.
6. Like PB Crave on Facebook. 


THE WINNER OF THIS GIVEAWAY WILL BE POSTED WEDNESDAY, JUNE 20.
THIS GIVEAWAY ENDS TUESDAY, JUNE 19 AT 11:59PM EST.


Sorry, open to US residents from the lower 48 states only.


That's it! Side note - don't forget to like us on our newly updated Facebook, if you don't already. Thanks kiddos and good luck! The winner will be posted tomorrow morning, along with the next giveaway!

Much love, 

21 Days of Giveaways: Hail Merry

Hi friends! Today is a big giveaway from Hail Merry! 

Hail Merry is awesome because they create raw snacks that actually taste good. I'm madly in love with their macaroons. In fact, I have some sitting underneath my desk right now. 

Everything they make is raw and vegan. The macaroons are fabulous because of the maple syrup - I think it makes them just perfect! 

They also have some really delicious nuts. I'm a huge fan of their vanilla maple almonds - it's just too bad that no where around me sells them! They are crazy good. They also have a really yummy line of pecans.

One really, really lucky person is going to win TWELVE 1.75oz bags of these vanilla maple almonds. Holy moly, that's a lot of almonds! I am so jealous! I wish I could win this myself!

Here's how to enter for your chance to win...just a leave a separate comment below for each entry. Thanks!

MANDATORY: Follow Passing Daisies and Hail Merry on Twitter and tweet the following: "Enter to win vanilla maple almonds from @HailMerrySnacks on PassingDaisies.net! http://bit.ly/nQkq1N #21daysofgiveaways @cityxlights13 "

Want more chances to win? Who doesn't? Here are more ways to enter: 


1. Subscribe to Passing Daisies. If you subscribe, you get three extra entries!
2. Tell me something you would like to see more of on Passing Daisies. Recipes? Reviews? Workouts? Anything?
3. Tell me anything you want. Anything at all.
4. Follow me on Blogger.
5. Pin this post on Pinterest and mention PassingDaisies.net in the description.


THE WINNER OF THIS GIVEAWAY WILL BE POSTED WEDNESDAY, JUNE 20.
THIS GIVEAWAY ENDS TUESDAY, JUNE 19 AT 11:59PM EST.


Sorry, open to US residents only.


That's it! Side note - don't forget to like us on our newly updated Facebook, if you don't already. Thanks kiddos and good luck! The winner will be posted tomorrow morning, along with the next giveaway!

Much love, 

21 Days of Giveaways: Chobani

**Please remember that all winners will be announced on the WIAW post next week, Wednesday June 20 when I return from Washington DC**

Today's giveaway comes from one of my favorite companies - Chobani! 

I love this company simply because they are so friendly and put out a delicious product. Whenever a recipe calls for yogurt, I grab Chobani. 

Their yogurt is creamy and comes in a wide variety of flavors. I love all the fruity flavors!

I'm sure we all know what yogurt tastes like, so I will just cut to the chase. One reader will win an entire case of assorted Chobani! Awesome!

Here's how to enter for your chance to win...just a leave a separate comment below for each entry. Thanks!

MANDATORY: Follow Passing Daisies and Chobani on Twitter and tweet the following: "Enter to win a case of  @chobani on PassingDaisies.net! http://bit.ly/nQkq1N #21daysofgiveaways @cityxlights13"

Want more chances to win? Who doesn't? Here are more ways to enter: 

1. Subscribe to Passing Daisies. If you subscribe, you get three extra entries!

2. Tell me something you would like to see more of on Passing Daisies. Recipes? Reviews? Workouts? Anything?

3. Tell me anything you want. Anything at all.

4. Follow me on Blogger.

5. Pin this post on Pinterest and mention PassingDaisies.net in the description.

THE WINNER OF THIS GIVEAWAY WILL BE POSTED WEDNESDAY, JUNE 20.

THIS GIVEAWAY ENDS TUESDAY, JUNE 19 AT 11:59PM EST.

Sorry, open to US residents only.

That's it! Side note - don't forget to like us on our newly updated Facebook, if you don't already. Thanks kiddos and good luck! 

Much love, 

21 Days of Giveaways: Bee Free Honee

**Please remember that all winners will be announced on the WIAW post next week, Wednesday June 20 when I return from Washington DC**

Today's giveaway is for Bee Free Honee! 

Click here to see my review.

This delicious vegan honey is made from apples! And it has a deliciously sweet apple flavor. It pours like honey, looks like honey, tastes like apple honey, and smells like apples. Delicious on bananas, as you can tell from the above picture, and is a great alternative for vegans. 

Wanna try it? One lucky reader will win a bottle! 

Here's how to enter for your chance to win...just a leave a separate comment below for each entry. Thanks!

MANDATORY: Follow Passing Daisies on Twitter and tweet the following: "I entered to win some vegan honey from PassingDaisies.net - you should enter too! http://bit.ly/nQkq1N #21daysofgiveaways @cityxlights13 "

Want more chances to win? Who doesn't? Here are more ways to enter: 

1. Subscribe to Passing Daisies. If you subscribe, you get three extra entries!

2. Tell me something you would like to see more of on Passing Daisies. Recipes? Reviews? Workouts? Anything?

3. Tell me anything you want. Anything at all.

4. Follow me on Blogger.

5. Pin this post on Pinterest and mention PassingDaisies.net in the description.

THE WINNER OF THIS GIVEAWAY WILL BE POSTED WEDNESDAY, JUNE 20.

THIS GIVEAWAY ENDS TUESDAY, JUNE 19 AT 11:59PM EST.

Sorry, open to US residents only.

That's it! Side note - don't forget to like us on our newly updated Facebook, if you don't already. Thanks kiddos and good luck! 

Much love, 

21 Days of Giveaways: Zevia

First thing's first - congratulations to the winner of a Healthy Surprise "Starter" box - #12, KAT. You rock! Email me you address so I can get that box mailed out to you! (Rebecca @ Blueberry Smiles, please don't forget to email me your address for your FREE Larabars...or I will pick another winner!)

Before we get started with the Zevia giveaway, I have a few updates for you! 

1. I am leaving at 5:30AM TOMORROW to head to the airport! I will be flying to Washington DC around 8AM to work the Fancy Food Show with my internship, Daelia's Biscuits for Cheese. I'm actually pretty excited about it, even though I'm new to flying. Learning the rules for flying is like speaking a new language.

2. Because I am leaving tomorrow,  all of the upcoming giveaways (through Wednesday) will last until Tuesday at MIDNIGHT EST. All winners will be announced either Wednesday for WIAW or Thursday (6/21). I return Tuesday around 11pm, so it just depends how exhausted I am.

3. I will try my best to get all those giveaways typed tonight so you can still enter each day. Otherwise, I might make one post with all the giveaways that you can comment on for the next few days. Let me know your thoughts.

Alrighty, then. Giveaway time :)

I love Zevia.

For a variety of reasons. First, it is the best, sugar-free pop ever! Why? Because it is sweetened with Stevia, a natural, no calorie sweetener, instead of sugar. Which makes me happy, because no calories is a great thing. Especially when it comes to pop! I'm sure you've all heard the disgusting saying that there is something like 9-11 teaspoons of sugar in each can of pop you drink. 

So disgusting. 

Well, Zevia fixes that problem by using Stevia. Perfect. And they fix that problem deliciously. Personally, I hate drinking my calories when I could be eating brownies instead of drinking coke, so Zevia makes me feel guilt-free.

They have a huge variety of flavors - my favorites (so far) are cream soda & orange. I really want to try their new lime, strawberry, and cherry colas. Yum! Maybe they will have it at the airport tomorrow morning?

One lucky reader will win an entire case of orange Zevia! 

Here's how to enter for your chance to win...just a leave a separate comment below for each entry. Thanks!

MANDATORY: Follow Passing Daisies and Zevia on Twitter and tweet the following: "Enter to win a case of soda from @Zevia on PassingDaisies.net! http://bit.ly/nQkq1N #21daysofgiveaways @cityxlights13 "

Want more chances to win? Who doesn't? Here are more ways to enter: 

1. Subscribe to Passing Daisies. If you subscribe, you get three extra entries!

2. Tell me something you would like to see more of on Passing Daisies. Recipes? Reviews? Workouts? Anything?

3. Tell me anything you want. Anything at all.

4. Follow me on Blogger.

5. Pin this post on Pinterest and mention PassingDaisies.net in the description.

THE WINNER OF THIS GIVEAWAY WILL BE POSTED WEDNESDAY, JUNE 20.

THIS GIVEAWAY ENDS TUESDAY, JUNE 19 AT 11:59PM EST.


Sorry, this is open to US residents only.

That's it! Side note - don't forget to like us on our newly updated Facebook, if you don't already. Thanks kiddos and good luck! The winner will be posted tomorrow morning, along with the next giveaway!

Much love,

21 Days of Giveaways: Healthy Surprise

First thing's first - congratulations to the winners of a lovely mix of Larabars -  #37 Rebecca @ Blueberry Smiles, #32 Kamila Gornia, & #46 Jess! You rock! Email me you addresses, emails, and phone numbers so I can get those Larabars mailed out to you!

Today's giveaway comes in a box - a large box, filled with a large variety of healthy, vegan goodies. It's a Healthy Surprise!

I was sent one of their "Healthy" sized boxes to review (there are four sizes: Starter, Healthy, Large, & Super), valued at $66. I paid $10 to ship the box, but that was it. And the $10 was totally worth it. 

Inside, the box had tons of goodies from yummy brands like Hail Merry, Gone Nuts, Happy Hemp, The Moms in the Raw, & many more. See all the deliciousness that was inside my box?

Although the snacks were great, I'm not going to review the snacks individually because this is only partially about the snacks. The review is about the box and how everything was put together! 

First, everything in the box will always be gluten-free, soy free, & vegan. No questions asked. Each box contains different products every month, so you will never get the same thing each month. It is a monthly subscription program, but you don't have to order a certain number of months or anything - you can cancel at any time. If you only want to order one month's worth, go for it! They also ship worldwide. 

In general, I thought the box was a good idea and is definitely helpful for those who don't have time to shop for expensive vegan snacks. However, I thought this month's box was kind of repetitive. I mean, who needs four bags of the same kind of nuts? Not that I don't like Gone Nuts, I'm happy with them, but why not use four different flavors instead of four bags of two different flavors? I think some of the space in the box could have been filled with more new-to-me products that I could discover instead of multiples of the same item. Just an idea. 

With that criticism in mind, I think this is great to give a college student as a present. However, if I had paid $66 bucks for this on my own, I would have been a little disappointed. Again, only because of the repetitiveness. Fix that in next month's box and I'm hooked. :) A big thank you to Healthy Surprise for letting me review your delicious box of goodies! 

Today's winner will receive one FREE "Starter" box - smaller than the one I received, but still a great value - worth $33. Can't wait to see if you won, and want to buy a box of your own? Use the coupon code PASSINGDAISIES at checkout and receive $5 each box you order!

Here's how to enter for your chance to win...just a leave a separate comment below for each entry. Thanks!

MANDATORY: Follow Passing Daisies and Healthy Surprise on Twitter and tweet the following: "A FREE box of snacks from @HealthySurprise on PassingDaisies.net? Enter to win! http://bit.ly/nQkq1N #21daysofgiveaways @cityxlights13 "

Want more chances to win? Who doesn't? Here are more ways to enter: 

1. Subscribe to Passing Daisies. If you subscribe, you get three extra entries!

2. Tell me something you would like to see more of on Passing Daisies. Recipes? Reviews? Workouts? Anything?

3. Be creative and write me a snazzy poem or song for my birthday. Bonus points if you make a YouTube video and sing it to me! :) I will feature your songs/poems on the blog if you do this! 

4. Follow me on Blogger.

5. Pin this post on Pinterest and mention PassingDaisies.net in the description.

That's it! Side note - don't forget to like us on our newly updated Facebook, if you don't already. Thanks kiddos and good luck! The winner will be posted tomorrow morning, along with the next giveaway!

Much love, 

WIAW #29 & 21 Days of Giveaways: Larabar

Hey guys! Before we get to the giveaway, let's start with some WIAWing! And before that, let me show you my dream car...

Isn't it gorgeous?! I went to a classic car show with my friend Robert on Sunday, and I fell in love with this 1940-something Metropolitan. I'm a sucker for vintage cars. Especially pink and yellow ones. And I kinda wish I was from the fifties. Or the twenties.

Not to mention there was a pink beanie baby in the back seat. :) 

Anywho. Here's a look at some of my eats this week!

Basil Lime Peaches - made on my grill pan. Yummy!

Tomato Soup

Hazelnut Fig Cheesecake

Apple Martini

Grasshopper Mocha Latte from Rohs Street Cafe

Bought these cute red solo cup shot glasses for Stuart's birthday present...although a bit (ie: a month) late...oops! I'm really jealous of them. They are ADORABLE. I'm pretty much the best girlfriend ever.

Now, time for the giveaway!

First thing's first - congratulations to the winner of a box of artisan biscuits from Daelia's Biscuits for Cheese - #10, MOLLY. You rock! Email me you address so I can get those coupons mailed out to you!

Today's giveaway comes from another of my favorite companies - LARABAR! 

I've interacted a lot with this company, including recording a video of myself singing about their Cinnamon Roll flavor. Yes, I will do anything to win two boxes of free Cinnamon Roll Larabars (which are now retired). Yum!

I love Larabar because they use minimal, healthy ingredients, like nuts and fruit. And sometimes chocolate :) They are also really filling. 

When I contacted Larabar about being part of the giveaway, I gave them a list of some of my favorite flavors. And you know what? The company is so fabulous they put together three prize packs, including everything I mentioned! Do you know what that means?

There will be three winners today!

Here's what you could win!

Prize #1: Cashew Cookie, Cappuccino, Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip, & Key Lime Pie

Prize #2: Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough, Chocolate Chip Cherry Torte, Peanut Butter & Jelly, & Blueberry Muffin

Prize #3: (UBER BARS) Bananas Foster, Roasted Nut Roll, Cherry Cobbler, & Apple Turnover

Don't those sound amazing? What three lucky people the winners will be!

Here's how to enter for your chance to win...just a leave a separate comment below for each entry. Thanks!

MANDATORY: Follow Passing Daisies and Larabar on Twitter and tweet the following: "3 lucky people will win prizes from @Larabar on PassingDaisies.net! I wanna win! http://bit.ly/nQkq1N #21daysofgiveaways @cityxlights13 "

Want more chances to win? Who doesn't? Here are more ways to enter: 

1. Subscribe to Passing Daisies. If you subscribe, you get three extra entries!

2. Tell me something you would like to see more of on Passing Daisies. Recipes? Reviews? Workouts? Anything?

3. Be creative and write me a snazzy poem or song for my birthday. Bonus points if you make a YouTube video and sing it to me! :) I will feature your songs/poems on the blog if you do this! 

4. Follow me on Blogger.

5. Pin this post on Pinterest and mention PassingDaisies.net in the description.

That's it! Side note - don't forget to like us on our newly updated Facebook, if you don't already. Thanks kiddos and good luck! The winner will be posted tomorrow morning, along with the next giveaway!

Much love,