Banana Oatmeal Applesauce Muffins


When you have a one year old, mealtime is an adventure, and it definitely takes a little planning, if you want to give your toddler the most nutritious meals as possible. Breakfast has become fairly easy for me. I generally make everything ahead of time.  In the morning  I just have to throw things on a plate and heat as needed. Thaxton really likes muffins, so we have those quite often. I’ve been making them from scratch in order to pack them full of nutritious ingredients. After baking a batch I then put what we will need for the week in a container in the fridge and I freeze the rest for later. (Currently I have 4 types of muffins in the freezer.)

My favorite muffin is banana, so I just had to make it the first muffin Thaxton would try.  As I searched for a healthy recipe, I wanted something with oatmeal and applesauce. Oatmeal has so many great health benefits, and applesauce definitely helps make a moist muffin; plus you have health benefits there too!  I also added spinach to the recipe; this is an ingredient you can leave out if it is a turn-off for you, but I assure you that it doesn’t take away from the taste, and it definitely adds more nutrients to your muffins!  Hope you’ll try and enjoy these Banana Oatmeal Applesauce Muffins! [Read more…]

Apple Carrot Spinach Muffins

Thaxton is now 14 months old! How time flies!  He eats a variety of food, including a lot of vegetables!  Our biggest eating challenge has been getting him to eat chunky foods and different textures.  As a result, he still eats a lot of purees. For his non-pureed foods, I try to give him things that are as healthy as possible.  One thing that he is very good at eating is breads and anything else from the grain group, so I started looking for healthy muffin recipes.

Today I’m sharing a recipe for Apple Carrot Spinach Muffins. Don’t let the spinach throw you!  If you didn’t see the specks of green in the muffin, you’d never know they had spinach in them!  I put spinach in Thaxton’s scrambled eggs, all of our muffins, and smoothies!  It’s a great way to get some extra greens, which is something I struggle with myself!

I did take one shortcut with these muffins.  I used applesauce instead of chopping up fresh apples.  Thaxton enjoys applesauce, so we keep that in the fridge, and I like the idea of using what I have, rather than going out and buying more ingredients.

Apart from being very wholesome, these muffins are delicious and very moist!  Hope you enjoy! [Read more…]

Chocolate Banana Oatmeal Cookies & Carnation Breakfast Essentials

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #CarnationBreakfastEssentials #CollectiveBias #sponsored
chocolate-banana-oatmeal-cookies-and-carnation-breakfast-essentials

When I was in college, I used to walk in to my early morning classes with my coffee cup in hand, but I wasn’t sipping a latte or cappuccino, I was sipping a Carnation Breakfast Essentials breakfast drink!  To this day, I still enjoy starting off my morning with Carnation Breakfast Essentials, mixed in milk or  milk and fruit for a quick and delicious smoothie.  Today I’m going to tell you a little more about the breakfast drink I love, and I’m going to share a recipe that uses Carnation Breakfast Essentials in a whole new way.  (If the idea of eating cookies for breakfast sounds good to you, keep reading! I have some Chocolate Banana Oatmeal Cookies you will love!) [Read more…]

Friday Favorites – Week 332 – With Breakfast Delights

Hi everyone! Welcome to this week’s Friday Favorites party! This week I’ve been busy preparing for our son’s first day of school next week.  We’ve paid his school fees, picked up his schedule, purchased clothes and shoes, and tomorrow I’m picking up the rest of his school supplies.  With all this back to school preparation, I’ve got breakfast ideas on my mind, so this week I’m featuring a few yummy “breakfast delights.”  Not only would these make for some yummy breakfasts for the kids, but they would also make great mid-morning or mid-afternoon snacks for Mom!  Hope you enjoy them!

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Friday Favorites – Week 322 – Breakfast Recipes

Hello everyone! Welcome to Friday Favorites. Let me first say an early Happy Memorial Day to everyone here in the U.S.  And I hope you all have a lovely weekend.

For this week’s party I’m looking at one of my favorite meals of the day: Breakfast!

I love eating breakfast foods any time of day, and I think it’s safe to say that any of these recipes could also be enjoyed any time of day and for any occasion.  Hope you enjoy!

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Friday Favorites – Week 318 – With Fruit Recipes

Hello all. Welcome to this week’s Friday Favorites party. This week I’m having another round of delicious breakfast-y foods…although I’d eat these any time of day! And they all include some of my favorite fruit flavors: banana, apple, and strawberry! Yum!  Hope these give you some baking inspiration for the weekend!

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Apple Custard Pastry

Apple Custard Pastry from Baking for Blessings

Banana Bread

Banana Bread from Gluesticks

Double Strawberry Breakfast Parfait

Double Strawberry Breakfast Parfait from Team Never Going Back

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Friday Favorites – Week 322 – With Morning Delight Breakfast Recipes

Hello Friends! Welcome to this week’s edition of Friday Favorites. This week I have a collection of posts to share that I’m very excited about.  I’m excited because they all involve two things I love: Breakfast and Something Sweet!  I hope you’ll go over and check out these delicious looking recipes!

And as always, I invite you to share your recipes and projects using the linky at the end of this post.  If we like your post, you could be featured here or at one of the other host blogs!

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Old Fashioned Oatmeal Cake with Broiled Coconut Topping and an Easy Holiday Brunch

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #BIGSeason #BigLots #CollectiveBias

Holiday Brunch Table

As we prepare for the holidays, the love, joy, and cheer can quickly turn in to stress, frustration, and a little bit of bah humbug, especially if you are designated cook and the hostest with mostest, but it doesn’t have to be that way! There are so many ways you can simplify during holidays the so that it’s enjoyable for everyone, including yourself! [Read more…]

Fueling My Family with Jimmy Dean® and State Fair® + Meal Planning with Online Calendars

 This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #FuelForSchool #CollectiveBias
Fueling My Family with Jimmy Dean and State Fair

I’ve been so busy this month!  It seems like every time I scratch something off the old to do list, I end up adding 3 MORE things to the to do list.  This week  I’ve got my usual housework to do, plus several blogging projects.  We’ve also got the usual school, band practice, and ball game schedule.  Plus, this Saturday we have a band festival and scholar’s bowl tournament. AND….if all that is not enough, my mom and I are working on going through stuff at her house and my house so we can have a yard sale.  Eek!

But regardless of how much stuff we have to do, the family still has to eat!  Luckily I keep a lot of convenient, yet delicious and hearty breakfast and dinner food options to fuel my family no matter how busy life gets!  A couple of family favorites are Jimmy Dean® Sausage, Egg & Cheese Croissant and State Fair® Classic 22ct Corn Dogs. [Read more…]

Chocolate Peanut Butter Protein Oatmeal

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Building Muscle with EAS

The fall season is almost upon us, but that doesn’t mean we have to let our summer health and fitness routines fall by the wayside.  Didn’t have a summer health and fitness routine?  Well, in that case, the fall season is a great time to start one!

My husband and I are both at a good weight and are in fairly good health.  In my case,  I’m in my early 30s (and holding).  I’ve still got a lot of energy, and I’m fairly strong for my tiny size, if I do say so myself!  But I’m the Skinny Minnie who wants to be Mighty Mouse! Haha!  My husband and I are always working on DIY projects, and I hate it when we get to the parts where I can’t help!

As for my husband, he’s getting ready to turn the big 4-0.  He was actually very sick a few months ago.  And although, he’s mostly recovered, he lost a lot of his muscle strength, and he also struggles with neuropathy, which sometimes keeps him down. He’s always been an active person, and he loves working and fixing things, so I definitely want him to get back in shape, so he can do activities he loves!

Regardless of your age, size, fitness level, and situation, I believe the right supplements and fitness products are a MUST if you really want to get serious about your health and/or fitness levels!  With 42 grams of protein and 24 vitamins and minerals, EAS Myoplex Ready to Drink Shakes are a great choice to help you build muscle and strength. [Read more…]