Food - Pocketful of Joules

Running with Wine & Food… but not Scissors

I classify myself as a fair-weather runner, because I pretty much just like to run outside when it’s 60 degrees or warmer.

And sunshine. You’ve got to have sunshine.

I mean, while training for my Relay Marathon last year I totally ran when it was cold and icky, but that is NOT my preference.

Now that the weather is starting to warm up in Maryland, it’s giving me the urge to strap on my running shoes… so I thought it would be a good time to find some upcoming races to add to my schedule.

As I was looking through my options, I was impressed at how many events center around running AND food. I mean, most races provide you with some lame bananas and bagels at the end… but now there are tons of events that combine running and wine, running and beer, and even running and crabs (did I mention I live in Maryland…?)

If you want to get really crazy, there is a Krispy Kreme Challenge race in North Carolina where you run 2.5 miles, eat a dozen donuts and then run 2.5 miles back. I’m not going to lie, that sounds pretty amazing and I’m thinking of taking a little road trip next February! {I’m not sure that I could eat a whole dozen donuts, but there is an option to be a ‘casual runner’ where you can just eat as many donuts as you’d like}

I ran the Charm City Crab 5k last year and thought it was great. I mean, the 5k portion was terrible because it was so hot and humid, but the beer/cider/wine festival with food trucks and crabs was pretty fantastic!

My plans for this year are to run a race every month from April to November, starting with a 5k in Ocean City. Then, I think I’ll hit up the Crab run again, a trail run at a nearby vineyard, actually run the Diva race in September (you can see what happened last year here) and finish with another go at the Team Relay Marathon where I met a penguin at mile 3 last year!

So, now I’m wondering… have you ever run a weird race that combined running with something else?

Like what you see? Share me with your friends!

Foodie Fun: Hole in the Wall Box

It’s raining subscription boxes here this month and I have another fun box to share with you!

The Hole in the Wall box is a great way to explore what makes a city truly special, without leaving your home. They put together an amazing box full of unique goodies form mom and pop shops, delicacies from local farmers markets and gourmet treats from hole-in-the-wall restaurants. They are very passionate about working with small, local businesses and ONLY feature items from stores that embody the local spirit – not just any item that you can find in a supermarket. You can find their mission page here.

Every two months they feature a different city and I was able to experience their Seattle, WA box.

Here’s what they say about this month’s box:
Seattle is a city of many neighborhoods: Eclectic, urban, outdoorsy, artsy, gritty, down-to-earth, or posh—it’s all here, from the quirky character of the Seattle Waterfront and the eccentric “Republic of Fremont,” to hipsters walking baby carriages past aging mansions on Capitol Hill. There’s something for just about everyone within this vibrant Emerald City. Taking a stroll, browsing a bookstore, or enjoying a cup of coffee can feel different in every one of Seattle’s neighborhoods. It’s the adventure of exploring that will really introduce you to the character of Seattle

Here’s what was in my Seattle Hole in the Wall Box:

Orange Honey Hazelnut – $5.99
Dried Bosc Pears – $2.99
Healing Hemp Lotion – $8.00
Seattle Salt – $7.00
Whiskey-Smoked Salt Caramels – $10.00
Pinot Noir Cherries – $3.99
Boehm’s Chocolate Bars – $2.95
Vanilla Lemon Lip Balm – $2.99

The total value of this month’s box according to their provided product list was: $43.91.

My favorite items – chosen by how quickly they were eaten – were the pino noir cherries and the whiskey-smoked salt caramels. Both were AMAZING and I didn’t even share them with Travis or Jack. Sorry guys! I also really enjoy the Seattle salt and recently used it to flavor some sautéed spinach, which was pretty great. I mean, as great as sautéed spinach can be… nothing like those caramels!

Costs to subscribe:
You can purchase one box for $35 (+ shipping), 3 boxes for $32.50 each (+ shipping) or 6 boxes for $30 each (+ shipping). They are a bi-monthly subscription box, so you will only receive one box every other month. Hole in the Wall has provided us with a promo code for 10% off: HOLEINWALLFAV so if you want to try them out, you can save a little cash!

What do you think about the Seattle Hole in the Wall box?

Disclosure: I received the February Hole in the Wall box for free for review purposes. If you decide to use the promo code for 10% off, there is no benefit to me.

Like what you see? Share me with your friends!

Organizing my Kitchen with Joseph Joseph

I’m on a purging kick and it has found its way to kitchen. Even though we’ve only been in this house for about 4 years now, it’s like decades of stuff suddenly multiplied inside our kitchen cabinets.

Take this cabinet for example:

The top level has like 40 wine glasses. And they aren’t even nice wine glasses – most of them came free with a tasting at a wine festival or vineyard. Do you know how many adults live in my house? TWO. So WHY do I have so many wine glasses? I’m pretty sure that I don’t even have 40 friends…

I tore through the cabinet and here’s how it looks now.

I feel like my cabinet can take a deep breath now (even though that is kind of a creepy thought). After cleaning out the unneeded stuff, I just kind of sat there and smiled at it for a minute. Then, I went into a purging frenzy. I took only about 15 minutes, but I literally went through all my cabinets and grabbed out anything that wasn’t actually used or needed.

I could have spent a lot longer and actually removed everything and cleaned down the insides of the cabinets… but who has that kind of time when a random MUST PURGE THE KITCHEN mood hits?

I’m pretty sure my kitchen purge was sparked when my Joseph Joseph order showed up at my door:

A photo posted by pocketfulofjoules (@pocketfulofjoules) on Jan 6, 2016 at 2:41pm PST

The nice people at Joseph Joseph sent me a couple of their most awesome products to try out for myself. Not only are they just all together pretty and well-designed, they really help keep the clutter under control!

Here’s a little ‘before’ shot of my storage container cabinet before I attacked it. It’s actually not too bad in this picture, but it has certainly been a lot worse.

I went through and got rid of anything gross looking, anything missing a top and any free promo items I received and never used. I then replaced some of the discarded items with my new Nest 12 Piece Storage set. Each storage container has a colored dot on the bottom that coincides with its lid to make them easy to pair. They also fit inside each other with each lid snapping into place!

I can’t believe how streamlined they are to store away in such a small space. And I kind of love the pretty rainbow of color from the lids!

Joseph Joseph also sent me their Nest 9 Plus which carries over their space saving design with food preparation items. This set contains: a large mixing bowl, colander/strainer, stainless-steel mesh sieve, small mixing bowl with measurements, and 5 measuring cups.

And the best part… look at this:

Yup, they all fit together for easy-peasy storage!

Just take a look at my formerly messy drawer now:

Yeah, I’m pretty much in organizer heaven. I really like the design of my new Joseph Joseph products and I’m hoping that they can help me keep my kitchen nice and organized in 2016!

Do you have a drawer in your kitchen that looks like my ‘before’ picture? What is your best tip for purging unneeded items?

Disclosure: I received the Nest 12 Piece Storage Set and Nest 9 Plus from Joseph Joseph for the purposes of my honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Like what you see? Share me with your friends!