This post was sponsored by Princess Cruises. All opinions and experiences outlined are my own.

My love for traveling to the Caribbean is no secret! I have had the pleasure of cruising with Princess Cruises twice now and our family plans on returning, hopefully with our boys soon now that they know what fun we have when we’re away.

Now is the Time to Travel

Recently my heart was just broken for the people of the Caribbean whom I have come to love and respect, when their very homes were hit with category 3, 4, and 5 hurricanes and tropical storms during the 2017 hurricane season. Did you know that NOW is a perfect time to visit the Caribbean, and a Princess Cruises vacation is a great way to experience and enjoy one of the world’s most popular vacation destinations.

Hurricane Relief

Princess Cruises and its parent company Carnival Corporation are working to provide extensive relief to those affected by Hurricane Harvey, Hurricane Irma, and Hurricane Maria as part of Carnival Corporation’s pledge to provide up to $10 million dollars in hurricane relief.

Tourism is critical for Caribbean economies, and cruising is a vital part of tourism’s overall economic impact.

The Caribbean is Open for Travel

The Caribbean expands over one million square miles which means most of the islands were not even in the path of the hurricanes this past August and September. 90% of Caribbean ports are fully open for business – including restaurants, shops, beaches and activities!

Zip line through a gorgeous rain forest in Limon, Costa Rica!

Take a once in a lifetime cruise through the Panama Canal.

I was so mesmerized by this whole trip that I had a lot to say about it! Find out all about my experience getting to touch the ACTUAL locks of the Panama Canal!!

Fall in love with the historical streets of Cartagena, Columbia.

Enjoy a day at sea. Do everything. Or do nothing. Bliss!

Love the Caribbean. Support the Caribbean. Cruise the Caribbean.

Princess Cruises and its parent company Carnival Corporation are working to provide extensive relief to those affected by Hurricane Harvey, Hurricane Irma, and Hurricane Maria as part of Carnival Corporation’s pledge to provide up to $10 million dollars in hurricane relief.

One of the best ways to support these relief efforts is through tourism. Unfortunately, there are some misconceptions about travel to the area and the state of the islands, when, in reality, the Caribbean is open for travel. You can also help the relief efforts by making a donation. Princess Cruises Community Foundation will be taking donations until 12/31/17.

Click through to see my recipes inspired by my travels with Princess Cruises.

I had the pleasure of traveling recently with some wonderful colleagues. Here’s what they have to say about cruising the Caribbean:

Sandra from A Dash of Sanity – a recipe post (Pain au Chocolate) and experience recap

Erin from Dinners Dishes and Dessert – a Facebook recap video

Jen from Baked by an Introvert – experience recap

Brenda from A Farmgirl Dabbles – a Facebook recap video

April from Mama Loves Food – a recipe post (Mango Pineapple Salsa) and experience recap

Lynn from 365 Days of Baking and More – a Facebook recap video

The post Cruise the Caribbean appeared first on In Katrinas Kitchen.

The only thing better than being able to say that I photograph food and write recipes for a living is that I get to meet so many wonderful people doing it. From working with brands that I love, to making friends with women around the country I love blogging because of the people behind the computer screens.

Recently I was able to connect with some of these ladies at a blog conference/retreat in Northern Michigan- Sharing by the Shore. So much of the weekend was spent learning and teaching that I often forgot to take my camera out to snap photos, but I managed to grab a few to share a little behind-the-scenes peek.

Preparing Meals Together

When we weren’t in session we were cooking together. you could always find us around the kitchen island preparing meals and enjoying one another’s company while we divided up kitchen tasks.

Starting the Day Together

We also had some serious breakfast fuel- I couldn’t get enough! Dairy is an important protein source to my family so I was excited to learn about local Michigan dairy. All of the food we cooked during our weekend was generously provided by Milk Means More, Door To Door Organics, Sabra and Bob’s Red Mill.

Hitting the Town Together

Somehow between all of our home-cooked meals and sessions we found time to hit the town and see what Traverse City and Suttons Bay had to offer. We enjoyed time at L. Mawby Winery, Cherry Republic, and Aerie.

Learning Together

Some of my favorite times were spent doing what we love- photographing food!

Some of my favorite ladies…

If you aren’t following these lovely bloggers already then you should be!

Rachel from Rachel Cooks
Erin from Well Plated
Deborah from Taste and Tell
Monique from Ambitious Kitchen
Liz from The Lemon Bowl
Krista from Joyful Healthy Eats
Aggie from Aggie’s Kitchen
Kristen from Dine and Dish
Brandy from Nutmeg Nanny

Learn more at MilkMeansMore.org | Twitter | Facebook | YouTube | Instagram | Pinterest 

Thanks also to – Door to Door Organics, Sabra, Traverse City Tourism, Bob’s Red Mill, Bonne Maman Jam, KitchenIQ, Fair Trade USA, Printable Wisdom, More Sprinkled Joy, KitchenAid and Le Creuset. We were not compensated for attending this retreat, but these lovely brands sent us home with lots of goodies. Check out #SharingByTheShore hashtag on Twitter and Instagram!

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Before this year I was a first time cruiser and I found myself scouting the internet for cruising tips and tricks. Specifically I wanted to know what to pack for my trip with Princess Cruises to the Eastern Caribbean. Here I’m outlining my personal uncommon cruising essentials. I brought lots of things on the trip, but these are the items that I will definitely be bringing again! We’ll start out with the ones that are a bit more obvious and we’ll end with my off the beaten path must-haves. (more…)

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Later this week I have a giant post filled with lots of the delicious food I experienced aboard the Regal Princess cruise ship. But I couldn’t decide on just a few of these beautiful food carving sculptures so I’m giving them a whole post!

I had the opportunity to watch a food carving demonstration one afternoon on the main piazza of the ship and I was mesmerized watching thees gentlemen create these beautiful works of art right in front of us within minutes. They didn’t even use many special tools- just knives, toothpicks, pliers, wire cutters, and lots of wooden skewers.

All of the men said they essentially taught themselves the craft by watching YouTube videos. How cool is that?! They also have different responsibilities aboard the chip like carving ice sculptures for special events, as well as preparing all of the chilled soups.

I hope these pictures inspire you to get creative in the kitchen. Look at this adorable fish!

Aww such a cute little critter!

I think these happy birds were my favorite animals.

This post has been sponsored by Princess Cruises. I’m so happy to be able to work with companies I love and believe in. All opinions are my own. 

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Upon checking in at the Hershey Lodge you are treated to a full-sized Hershey’s chocolate bar but that didn’t stop me from swinging by the gift shop and snagging a few more chocolates for my boys. I mean I was traveling to Hershey Pennsylvania; I couldn’t come home with anything less than a suitcase of goodies!

Not surprisingly our trip was full of good food. After being spoiled with crab cakes with Creole remoulade and a mango tartar sauce we headed to The Chocolate Lab  to try a Countries of Origin Chocolate Tasting. 

Drinking chocolate served at the perfect temperature was a great way to end our first night. We learned all about cacao pods and the how Hershey makes its famous Hershey’s Kisses chocolates and bars.

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I am a bad blogger. Bad bad blogger. Well, I’m a bad summer blogger. I just can’t help it- I have 2 little guys who love to be outside soaking up the sun. We’ve eaten festival food and ridden lots of ferris wheels. We’ve soaked up the sun on the shores of Virginia Beach with some dear friends who spoiled our kids and gave them a taste of beach life. We watched rats play basketball and made robots disco dance at COSI. We groomed goats and were spit on by animatronic dinosaurs at the Columbus Zoo. Add in lots of swimming, overnight trips to Grandma’s, celebrating the college graduation of the boys’ favorite aunt ;), and a little {big} behind-the-scenes project that I’m working on I just haven’t had time to drop by here and bake for you. I promise lots of deliciousness coming your way so stick with me!

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Well I did it. I ran 13.1 continuous miles. And I survived. This is a LONG post with lots of pictures if you’re into that sort of thing. If not then you can just scroll to the end for a $200 Albion Fit giveaway. There’s not a pop quiz at the end.

So many of you started this journey with me when I ran my first 5k race in May 2012. That was such a big deal for me. In my training for that race I remember laying in bed the night before I was supposed to run for 20 minutes. I was out-of-my-mind nervous and filled with self-doubt. I don’t like trying new things beyond my comfort zone. Imagine my surprise when I ran that 20 minutes without walking and went on in the coming weeks to run 3 miles!

I don’t know what happened to me this past February but I got this CRAZY idea to run a half marathon. I found a reasonable 12 week training plan, sent a text to my husband saying that I was going to need some extra me time, and I started running. I remember the confusion I felt when I heard people talking about long runs, race pace, tempo runs, intervals, and fuel belts. How and when was I supposed to hydrate? What is Gu? I need to consume calories while I’m running? What?! As I marked those days off of my schedule I looked at each weekend long run with doubt. Then came the day I had to put my money where my mouth was and register for the race. I think I was only up to about 5 miles at that point and I was still very emotional about the whole thing. I literally cried after I hit submit on that registration website. I was scared, and nervous, and beyond excited.

Could I run 6 miles? Could I run 8 miles? Surely I could not run 10 miles without stopping. I remember very specifically the day of my 7 mile training run. It was a horrible run. I looked down at my garmin watch at what I thought was surely the 6 mile mark and I hadn’t even hit 5 miles. I wanted to quit. I wanted to cry. I held back tears. I was mad at myself for thinking I could run 13 miles. I was mad at myself for being mad at myself. I was mad that it was 30° out and I was freezing cold but also sweating. Every runner talks to herself during runs and I had to tell myself the shut up. Just shut up. I had to shut myself up and move past that self doubt. I had made this choice and there was no way I was quitting now. I tried to think of training for this race as a gift to myself. I was giving myself the gift of running- a sport I actually love. I still felt pretty defeated at the end of that run but I came out a new person. I’ll be honest, the following week I was nervous to try and tackle 8 miles and I was messaging with my friend Cindy (daily!) for her running wisdom and inspiration. You know what? It was an amazing run and I never looked back. 

When I made the decision to train for a half marathon you can be sure all that anxiety came back along with a whole lot of WHAT IFs…

What if life gets too hectic and I can’t fit my runs in?

What if my knee acts up again like last Fall?

What if I can’t find babysitters to watch my kids during my long runs?

What if I don’t know what to eat or drink?

What if people laugh at me?

What if I wimp out and quit training?

What if I cry?

What if I’m too slow?

What if I need to use the bathroom?

What if I come in last place?

What if I can’t physically run my body for 10 miles?

For 11 miles?

For 12 miles?

For 13 miles?

What if I can’t finish the race?

But WHAT IF I CAN.

And I did!

Can I just say that I was a little annoyed with this “10 year anniversary” medal?! It looks like I only ran 10 miles instead of 13.1!

Please leave a comment on this post to be entered. Use the giveaway form below. By entering you are agreeing to the Official Rules.

Albion Fit $200 Gift Card

This Giveaway is CLOSED. A winner has been chosen and the prize(s) have been fulfilled.

You can find the training plan I used and some other inspirational pins on my Run Katrina Run Pinterest Board.

Disclosure: I was not compensated for this post. Giveaway provided by Albion Fit.

The post Outside Katrina’s Kitchen | My First Half Marathon appeared first on In Katrinas Kitchen.

So, I teamed up with some other bloggers to hopefully start your 2013 out with a bang. I’m truly happy that each one of you are here and I love blogging for you! Good luck, friends!!

To enter: Leave a comment on this post and click the +1 on the Rafflecopter entry form that confirms you commented. You will be given the option to earn LOTS of bonus entries.

Also, you do not have to go to each blog to enter. If you enter on one of our blogs you are automatically entered in all 10! 🙂 But I hope you know these ladies…they’re pretty great!

Buns in My Oven | Crazy for Crust | Sally’s Baking Addiction | Shugary Sweets | Love From the Oven | Chocolate Chocolate and More | Bakeaholic Mama | Inside BruCrew Life | My Imperfect Kitchen

This Giveaway is CLOSED. A winner has been chosen and the prize(s) have been fulfilled.

Please use the Rafflecopter entry form. This giveaway is a sweepstakes. Open to USA and Canada to persons over age 18. Sweepstakes will end 1/15/13 at 11:59 pm CST. Winner(s) will be chosen by random, announced here, and will be contacted by email. Winner(s) must respond within 48 hours to claim the prize.

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This Giveaway is CLOSED. A winner has been chosen and the prize(s) have been fulfilled.

As part of the Verizon Wireless Savvy Gourmet Bloggers I have had the opportunity to “use technology in the kitchen” while giving a Motorola Xyboard tablet and LG Intuition phablet (phone + tablet) a test drive. When starting this partnership it was made clear that all opinions would be my own and I can honestly say that I have loved every minute of being a Verizon Wireless Savvy Gourmet Blogger.

Today it’s time to give back! I had so much fun offering you a Mobile Hotspot Jetpack a few months ago. Verizon has been generous once again and is giving one In Katrina’s Kitchen reader the brand spanking new DROID RAZR HD plus a $50 Verizon Wireless gift card!! I am totally jealous of you! 😉

The phone – the latest RAZR from Motorola – launched as the most compact 4.7-inch smartphone with a full-screen and edge-to-edge display and has a ton of great features, including:

• An 8-megapixel camera and HD display that makes movies, photos, magazines and websites appear with vibrant clarity.
• Circles Widget makes it easy to view battery life, text notifications, missed calls or weather updates, right on the home screen.
• Near-field communications-enabled, so customers can use Android Beam to share contacts, documents and maps directly to compatible phones.
•  A battery that allows for up to 32 hours of normal use and double the internal storage (of older RAZR phones) to 32 GB.
• Runs over 4G LTE, combined with Chrome for Android, meaning customers can enjoy blazing fast speeds that make downloading documents or surfing the Web a breeze.
• Device is Global Ready, so calling home or sending emails is possible from more than 205 countries around the world.

This Giveaway is CLOSED. A winner has been chosen and the prize(s) have been fulfilled.

Please use the Rafflecopter entry form below. This giveaway is a sweepstakes. All entries must have a continental US mailing address and must be over 18. Sweepstakes will end 12/14/12 at 11:59pm EST. Winner(s) will be announced here and will be contacted by email. Winner(s) must respond within 48 hours to claim the prize. Also- let’s be super honest and not claim this prize more than once if you win it on more than one #VZWSG blog, okay?! Please add inkatrinaskitchen (at) yahoo (dot) com to your address book so my notification doesn’t end up in your spam folder!

The post Droid RAZR HD Giveaway and $50 Verizon Wireless Giftcard {closed} appeared first on In Katrinas Kitchen.