I literally thrive on sharing fun ways to make everyday better and today I'm sharing how I plan to celebrate The Chinese New Year with random acts of kindness and delicious appetizers from Tai Pei®.

While I'm no authority on Chinese New Year, I have been a part of a few celebrations and been lucky enough to be handed a red envelope. You may be thinking I'm speaking in code, if you aren't aware of this tradition, but a red envelope is a customary gift around this time of year. It's typically stuffed with $$$ and symbolizes good luck and prosperity in the coming year. Chinese New Year as a whole is a giant celebration, that celebrates the wish of "good fortune". What could be better than spreading that good fortune around my community?

This year, I wanted to spread the tradition of the red envelopes to those that may not know about it while also spreading some joy. I could have given these red envelopes intentionally, which I believe is the tradition. But I really wanted fate to find someone to bless with good luck and prosperity and so I decided to hide them in random places all over town - from the picnic tables at my favorite park to the little freebie "take-one-leave-one" library at my favorite beach,my Chinese New Year cheer can be found all over town.



While hiding the envelopes was fun, I had even more fun stuffing them. Choosing an appetizer was super easy, I browsed the aisles at Wal-Mart and as soon as I saw Tai Pei's® selection of egg rolls and spring rolls, I knew exactly what to make while embracing the celebration at home.

Tai Pei® has so many varieties (with chicken, pork, shrimp, and vegetable options available) it was hard to choose. I ended up narrowing it down to the chicken egg rolls and veggie spring rolls! Both were so good, I'll definitely be going back soon to grab some other options.

Within minutes, I had perfectly crispy and delicious egg rolls stuffed with the most amazing chicken I've ever tasted and spring rolls with fresh veggies stuffed inside. While these Tai Pei® apps are restaurant inspired, they are more authentic and delicious than anything I've ever ordered from take-out... I couldn't stop snacking on them, especially with the sweet sauce that comes with them. So incredibly delicious and all I had to do was place them on a baking sheet and bake them for a bit... the perfect treat!

There are several amazing traditions involved in the Chinese New Year that I would love to take part in, events like Lantern Day and the fact that everyone celebrates growing another year older as a national birthday celebration of sorts... but one tradition I really hope becomes part of America's mainstream culture is sharing red envelopes, especially with children. While the amount inside an envelope isn't the important part of giving, it's the meaning behind the envelopes that makes the tradition so fun.

Hubs and I have already decided that sharing red envelopes with our community and hopefully bringing good fortune to strangers is going to be part of our Chinese New Year celebration every year, as well as Tai Pei's® egg rolls and spring rolls! Tai Pei® is Good Fortune in Every Box™ and every bite!


Don't miss your chance to save on some delicious,authentic apps in celebration of the Chinese New Year. Head on over to the Tai Pei® Facebook page and check out The Red Envelope tab for a coupon (available for a limited time, while supplies last).


If you live in my area, be sure to keep an eye out for the envelopes! :) You never know where you'll find good fortune!