That’s right, Foodie Penpals is back! First SRC, then Foodie Penpals–things are slowly getting back to normal around here! I skipped September’s Foodie Penpal pairing because we were in the Adirondacks during pretty much the whole pairing/shopping/shipping period. Then in October we moved, then November I forgot, December was canceled, and well, here we are in the new year. I have to say the last few months have been pretty lonely without a care package every month. Sure, the Great Cookie Swap was pretty great, but I didn’t feel like I got to know my penpals all that well because there was no conversation until the cookies arrived. So, you can’t even imagine how excited I am to be back.

I love the formatting change with Foodie Penpals. Rather than sending to someone and receiving from another person, it’s a two way swap. You’re penpal for the month is the person you send to AND receive from. It takes away the stress of having to communicate with two people and let’s you get to know your buddy better. This month I was paired with Clara over at Southern Thintellect. Clara is such a sweetie! Like most of us, she has a day job (in finance) but spends her nights and free time blogging about her love of food and fitness (with a southern twist). Our initial email was a bit brief, but somehow Clara knew exactly what I’d like–coffee from her favorite local roaster and some homemade CHOCOLATE covered cookie dough truffles. Plus, she included what might be my favorite penpal gift ever–a tasting glass from a local beer festival! I never even mentioned beer, but we go to a bunch of fests and have collected a bunch of tasting glasses over the year. This mini mason jar lookalike fits right in!

Thanks Clara for such an awesome box! Be sure to head over to Clara’s blog to check out the stuff I sent her. And if you’re looking for your very own foodie penpal, here’s the hookup:

• 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 & European residents. Please note, Canadian Residents will be paired with other Canadians only. Same with Europeans. 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 joining, please CLICK HERE to fill out the participation form and read the terms and conditions. You must submit your information by February 4th as pairings will be emailed on February 5th!