You Know Bob, Stuart + Kevin, But Can You Find #The7thMinion?

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #The7thMinion #CollectiveBias All photos contained below are property of Momma Told Me Blog 2015.

Momma Told Me: Eat your breakfast before you play with your toy!

It's hard to imagine a world where a child would have to be talked into eating their breakfast cereal. With colorful shapes, marshmallows, flavors, and mascots, it's a wonder that the cereal box toy ever came to be in the first place. And yet, here it remains, all these years later (103 to be exact,) as one of my favorite 'small things' in life. Yes, tearing open that box of Apple Jacks in 1992 to reveal my shiny Super Mario Land Maze still shines as one of the highlights of my childhood. I quite literally cried when it became wedged between the seats of our family's mini van, effectively lost forever.

After all, what could be more awesome, as a child, than pouring a heaping bowl of your favorite breakfast cereal and watching in wonderment as a tiny trinket plops out? The nostalgia of cereal box prizes and toys has been discussed here many times before. While the 'kids meal' toy notion still goes strong, that of physical toys and trinkets in modern cereal seems to have been replaced by animated mascots and 'send away' or sweepstakes promotions. So you can imagine how ecstatic I was to learn that my favorite animated characters, the Minions, were to bring cereal box toys back with a special General Mills promotion!

And, let me let you in on a little secret, only Walmart has specially marked Family Size boxes of the 7 General Mills cereal varieties containing an exclusive 7th collectible Connect And Collect Minion! It's a great thing some of my favorite cereals, Reese's Puffs, Lucky Charms, and Golden Grahams happen to be on that list- because those Family Size boxes contain up to a whopping 20.5 ounces of cereal (that's over a pound of Lucky Charms, for example!) While you can collect the core 6 Minion Connect and Collect toys, you'll only find that elusive 7th Minion toy on specially marked Family Size boxes of General Mills cereal, at Walmart, so be sure to hurry on in and grab your boxes before the Minions carry them all away!
I'll admit, Minions and cereal are some of my favorite things, so I walked out of my Walmart with 11 boxes of specially marked cereal- that's enough to feed an army, ya'll! I was certain I'd have to force feed myself a bowl with every meal, or host a Summer cereal spritzer (hey, that's not a bad idea) just to discover which Minions cereal box toys I'd actually brought home, but was delighted to discover I could in fact use the boxes as a stockpile. In every box of specially marked Minions toy cereal boxes the toys were individually wrapped and contained outside the actual cereal bag.

I'm not ashamed to admit, shortly after this discovery I slid the bottom of each and every box open and plopped my Minions toy onto the dining table. I am sad to report I have not found the elusive Prehistoric 7th Minion yet, but I did wind up with a set of 6 and some duplicates (not a bad start, I'd say!)  So, while the hunt for #The7thMinion continues, I've found myself getting a little creative with my cereal stockpile. For instance, I've come to enjoy my Golden Grahams in what I call my 'Bello-Berry-Banana Breakfast,' served with fresh blueberries and banana slices, alongside a glass of orange juice.

Of course the excitement of the upcoming Minions film, July 10th, and the collectible Minions cereal box toys had also inspired me to create something whimsical and nostalgic of my own. Every proper cereal fan knows one doesn't have to have milk to enjoy their favorite cereal. In fact, more often than not, I munch on my cereal straight from the box, so this 1 In A Minion Munch was the perfect gift idea for some of my fellow Minion fans- and it just so happens I had a few extra Collect and Connect Minions to gift with it!

There's really no right or wrong when it comes to making Minion Munch- you could use a puppy chow mix technique and melt some sugar with juice and food color, then toss your munch contents in powdered sugar, or simply drizzle your mix with melted chocolate melts. For our base I used popcorn and Cheerios, with a few graham teddy bears for Minion Bob.

Using some black and silver pipe cleaners and extra large googly eyes I made Minion goggles, though you could also draw the eyes and goggles directly onto your cellophane/snack baggie as well. Be careful if you use a chocolate for your colored snack mix portion, as it will tend to melt in the bag if handled too much and leave the end product looking a little muddy. It took some experimenting on my part, but nobody's perfect- and I certainly am not, so you can see I experienced a little of this melting making our Minion baggies.

I sealed the Minion munch bags with a yellow ribbon tie and designated 2 to a box for my gifting presentation. Each box got at least one of my duplicate Connect and Collect Minions cereal box toys. I tied the bottom of the gift boxes with an adorable denim ribbon I'd found at the craft store, which reminded me of the Minion's overalls, and titled the top '1 In A Minion,' making them suitable for gifting to just about anyone for any occasion. Of course what they should have read was: "I bought too much cereal trying to collect the 7th Minion, please enjoy some of my leftovers."

Naturally, one of these 1 In A Minion boxes is making it's way to my favorite Minion, Sabrina, in the Minions Care Package I featured in yesterdays post. I'm also sending one to Momma and will be passing a few out to my friends at the bowling alley tomorrow night. They might not all be as excited about the upcoming Minions movie as I am, but who can keep a frowny face when there's delicious cereal involved?

Of course, you could just do as Sabrina suggests and begin eating cereal for dinner once a week to help curb the cereal influx from your 7th Minion hunt. It's okay, I won't judge- but I WILL be quite jealous if you post that Instagram photo with the elusive Prehistoric 7th Minion! Now, tell me, do you remember cereal box prizes from your childhood? What was your favorite cereal box toy discovery?

What Daughter Says: Now that I'm an adult I can finally play with the toy while I eat my cereal, and there's no shame in that!

Red, White, And Bacon- Sweet Treat Double Takes

Momma Told Me: The best foods sneak up and surprise you.

Summer is nearly here and that means lazy afternoons napping in the hammock, sunny picnics in the park and plenty of gatherings with family and friends over good food. I'll admit, I'm not much of a grill master, but I do love entertaining. Whether I'm the hostess or the lavished attendee, I always have something special on hand for Summertime soirees. Our neighbors and friends always know I'll have something especially unique to add to the spread of delicious Americana staples. This year I'll be causing buffet line double takes with some special sweets masquerading as savory faves!

Believe it or not, sometimes I just want to play with colored sugar dough globs, like modeling clay, at 2 am without having to set up a lighting rig and host a tutorial. Sometimes I have an idea and I go online hunting for someone else who's had an equally zany idea to see how they tried to tackle it first. Bacon sugar cookies are a prime example of both. I apologize, deeply, for the lack of step by step photos on what may seem like a rather involved treat.

Essentially these bacon sugar cookies were pulled off by layering slabs of white, pink, and brown (generic bag mix) sugar cookie dough until they formed a slab of sugar meat, as seen above. 2 hours in the freezer, and side sliced, they produced the adorable cookie dough forms above. Do not be fooled, this was my 3rd batch attempted- it IS trickier than it seems in Not Your Momma's Cookies deceptively complete and simple tutorial. In the end I decided to ditch the 'rods' for 'waves' and used crumpled foil beneath my parchment paper, as well. (If you check out the tutorial, you'll see.)

And, because no self respecting Summer shindig would be complete without some Deviled Eggs I pulled out the plastic egg tray and poured some white melting chocolate carefully into each cubby. While you can place the chocolate directly in the freezer for 2 minutes, then 'pour' the center out and end up with a similar effect, I choose to carve the centers out with a spoon. It turns out I use coconut oil to thin my melting chocolate and this leaves it at quite the agreeable consistency for coring (who knew?)

Decorating my faux deviled eggs was really quite elementary- color a buttercream frosting yellow or make a simple ganache. Just heat 1/2 C Heavy Cream to a boil, remove from heat, add 1 C white chocolate chips, and let sit, covered for 3 minutes. After 3 minutes have passed whisk until even and add yellow food coloring. Pipe into chilled 'egg' chocolates. For some 'bacon' or paprika flecks, use fine red sugar sprinkles to decorate.

Whether you pin these for April Fool's or bust them out this coming Memorial Day weekend, these Bacon Sugar Cookies and Chocolate Deviled Eggs are sure to turn heads and solicit smiles. Again, I'm sorry I decided to tackle the bacon cookies at midnight and left you without one of my tutorials- perhaps another time I will sit down and show you my methods now that I've mastered the concept. In the mean time, do refer to Not Your Momma's Cookies post! Now, tell me, do you have plans for the upcoming holiday weekend?

What Daughter Says: Tired of bringing egg salad to the party? Try one of these fun ideas for Summer cookout-foods and really turn heads!

Summer's In, Heartburn's Out- A Day Of Colorful Eats

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone and should not be taken as medical advice. All photos are copyright Momma Told Me Blog 2015. All characters copyright Universal Studios/Universal Entertainment. #GiveHeartburnARest #CollectiveBias

Momma Told Me: I've got something for that!

 There was a time in my life where I carried a handbag exclusively for aesthetic reasons. I'd lug around a 2nd hand shoulder bag with straps 2 feet too long for my height and follow Momma though the grocery store or to her Dr's appointments. I never carried much of value in it, just a couple of my parent's expired credit cards and some chewing gum. And then I grew up and learned that handbags were actually meant to be the modern woman's Sonic Screwdriver/ MacGyver's tote. I was expected to have just about anything necessary to solve just about any crisis, on hand, at any given time.

And for years I've carried it all in my purse; bandaids, wet naps, safety pins, flashlights, motion sickness pills, clear nail polish, pepper spray, suntan lotion, lipstick, nail files, breath mints, and more. But few things have occupied as much retail space in my personal handbag, as heartburn remedies. That's because so many of them are only effective within certain time frames, with certain types of food. From chewy chews to chalky tablets and sticky pink liquid- I've carried Jay's heartburn remedies around for years.

You see, frequent heartburn not only gets in the way of the sufferer's living, but the lives and activities of those around them as well. Whether I had to tone down a new dish I was trying in the kitchen, or tote around expensive tablets of temporary relief, it was clear that there was one guest our family had no room for this Summer vacation; heartburn. So, while I was at our local Walgreens grabbing sunscreen and road trip snacks, I also stopped by the Antacids aisle and picked up a 42 ct of Nexium 24HR, currently $3 off through the end of June with Walgreen Balance Rewards.

Taking one Nexium 24 HR a day can give you all-day, all-night protection from frequent heartburn, so I handed Jay his very own Nexium bottle, and cleared some space in our panda (backpack) bag for the Summer theme parks. Last Summer Jay had restrained from enjoying many of the local parks artisanal selections due to fear of severe heartburn, as consequence. This year he was prepared to partake in all of the park's colorful, cartoon inspired, foods.

Those who've struggled with fighting heartburn know there are several 'triggers' one should avoid, and those with loved ones who suffer should be mindful of them. Foods rich in natural acids, such as citrus, tomatoes and tomato based sauces can cause a flare up of great discomfort. However, the problem doesn't solely lie in food, as beverages as well can make for quite the unpleasant post-meal experience. Alcoholic beverages, beer and wine in particular, are known to make heartburn symptoms flare beyond bearable tolerances. One with heartburn could forgo social libations like these altogether, or they could resume living with a little help from Nexium level protection.

Jay was happy to snap a shot sampling a fictional brew brought to life at the Duff brewery bar, while the girls enjoyed their own Lard Lad Jumbo Donuts, respectively the size of their heads. Then it was on to the Back Lot tour, and some of the park's more intense motion simulators. By early afternoon Jay would have normally been wincing in discomfort between unsavory belches. Lucky for all of us, he was, instead, happily enthralled with snapshot moments, such as a drive through the War of The World's crash site set.

As any good theme park visitor knows, it's just not a visit to the park without sampling some of the various themed foods. For an afternoon snack we all shared a heaping portion of Bumblebee Man's Fiery Carnitas Nachos, complete with a generous serving of fresh jalapenos. Jay boldly took his intestinal fortitude to any heartburn sufferer's worst frontier- 'spicy.' He usually avoids heat infused foods altogether, especially while out traveling, just another way heartburn sufferers learn to adapt to daily inconveniences and diet changes without regular treatment.

While he was anticipating the deliciousness set before him, he also remembered to take his daily Nexium 24HR purple pill. I was quick to note the convenience of taking such a tiny pill, once a day, for 24 hour relief. And, without the chalky residue and unsavory flavorings of other heartburn treatments, Jay's palette was clear and ready to enjoy every last splash of that molten cheese volcano. I'm fairly certain I caught an impromptu Rock, Paper, Scissors for that last cheese covered chip.

With our bellies satisfied we wandered off to meet some interesting, erm, people? Nothing quite beats getting a nice photo with some of your favorite film characters. I think this shot of Minion Kevin and Gru turned out quite nice, don't you say? Because we like things fast, like our heartburn relief, I'd invested in some front of the line passes for our group, so waiting in line for the new Minion ride was a breeze. We even had time to go through some of the feature film exhibits, and get a little wet on Jurrasic park. Pro-Tip: If you're traveling with teenagers and adults consider utilizing the Single Rider line. Your party may get split up, but in most cases will ride at the same time, just on different cars.

Since we were already right next to Super Silly Fun Land (yes, that's a place, a magical, magical place- It's SO fluffy!!!!) we decided to grab lunch at Gru's Lab. Theme parks offer a lot of food options for meal dining, from nationally recognized chains to food carts and sit down themed restaurants. Gru's Lab happened to be more of a cafeteria style service with several, adorable, Minion decorated desserts. (Hello Twinkie cupcakes!) Jay indulged in an extra large Meatball Grinder with fries- he wasn't going to let a little tomato sauce get in the way of his day.

And because no theme park visit is complete without something sweet, we stopped by Phinneas Q. Butterfat's Ice Cream Parlour minutes before park closing, and on our way to the Water World show, for a carnival inspired confection. Remember those head-sized donuts I mentioned earlier? Apparently the small, normal sized, donuts are unexceptional all on their own. Here they find new, magical, meaning with several scoops of ice cream, hot fudge, strawberries, and sprinkles wedged between them.

Some of us wanted to eat this impressive food shaming concoction, I just wanted to photograph it in all it's pink frosted, sprinkle glory. I'm not going to lie, this place was pretty magical with the smell of cotton candy and buttered popcorn in the air. Our day surely would not have been the same without all of the creative, delicious, theme park food!

And how did Jay fair after consuming all of the colorful fare? Well he certainly wasn't complaining one bit as we stopped into a local restaurant for some late night boneless buffalo wings after making the trip back from L.A. In our family we have a saying when someone's checked something big off their Day/Summer/Life Bucket List- 'Best Day Ever.' I do believe that phrase was thrown around more than a few times that day at the park

If you or someone you loves suffers from frequent heartburn the solution might be as simple as avoiding anything with flavor this Summer. For the rest of us, save $3 on a 42 CT of Nexium 24HR at Walgreens now through the end of June and help put heartburn to rest. After all, I'm sure heartburn would like to spend some time with it's family this Summer too. And my shoulder? It's taking a much needed break from hauling around all those chalky old heartburn remedies. What sorts of foods do you and/or your loved ones enjoy when heartburn goes on vacation?

What Daughter Says: Stop carrying around bulky heartburn remedies. Taking one Nexium 24 HR a day can give you all-day, all-night protection from frequent heartburn.

Would You Try Flyboarding? How I'd Use The New GoPro HERO+ LCD!

This content has been compensated in the form of a Best Buy Gift Card. Product images have been provided by the brand- all other images are copyright their cited sources.

Momma Told Me: The only thing you get to take with you are the experiences you collect.

If it sounds like there have been crickets around the blog lately, I apologize for the week off- this past week marks the first week without a blog post, in the history of Momma Told Me. While there are a few things going on within the family I can't quite discuss yet, I, personally, have been driving up the Pacific coast with Sabrina (12) to drop her with her grandmother for the Summer, and visit my own mother here in Oregon. As luck would have it, I seem to have contracted (what we are lovingly calling) the plague and have been fighting a chest cold. Don't fret, I have meticulously documented the adventures from the past week, and there is a plethora of awesome-sauce content coming to Momma Told Me shortly! In fact, to prepare you for the action packed posts, I'm going to whet your appetite with a little preview of a brand new must have tech device for the adventure seeker, the GoPro HERO+ LCD.

Recently launched at Best Buy, the GoPro HERO+ LCD  is an all new way to capture life's most radical moments with absolutely no professional skill required at all. Seriously, if you have been contemplating investing in a GoPro now is the time and this is the model! Just in time for Father's Day, the HERO+ LCD features a vibrant LCD display to recount those captivating captures just moments after they've been shot. Whether you're looking to document a family vacation, or thinking of trying a new hobby, the GoPro HERO+ LCD is the only mobile camera you'll need. With 1080p60 video, 8MP photos, built in WiFi, Bluetooth and a touch display this GoPro is seamlessly intuitive and ready to inspire any owner to achieve new heights.

In fact, I'd like to propose just one activity a brand new GoPro HERO+ LCD would be perfect for- flyboarding. If you saw last nights episode of America's Got Talent (Extreme) you may have caught glimpse of a brand new water sport exhibited by adorable 17 year old Damone Rippy. In a display resembling a water dancing Iron Man, the 2 minute show introduced America to flyboarding, the sport of water jet-packing with 'water rockets' strapped to one's feet. If this seems a little extreme to you, try watching just one YouTube video of a pro flyboarder and not catching the bug to try it yourself. In fact, in less than 30 minutes, most flyboarding newbies can get the hang of 'walking on water' and flying through the air.

If you're not quite ready to drop $5k on your own flyboarding rig, fear not, you can rent the equipment at fairly reasonable rates, or visit one of multiple flyboarding experience day camps located across the country. Flyboarders soar over 45 feet in the air, at maximum propulsion, and one can only imagine the epic GoPro HERO+ shots that have been captured so far! How awesome would it be to book the man in your life for a one hour flyboarding experience and gift them with a brand new GoPro HERO+ LCD this Father's Day?

If you're not quite ready to take to the skies on a walkway made of water jets, the GoPro HERO+ LCD is easy enough for any age to master and perfect for capturing everyday events to action sports. Maybe your son is working on perfecting that back kick for his big soccer tournament, or you just want to snap that once in a lifetime shot of the icebergs on your cruise to Alaska. With the built in WiFi, it's never been easier to capture professional action shots and share them instantly on social media. Now through June 20, 2015, pick up a GoPro HERO+ LCD 32GB Extreme Memory bundle at Best Buy or take advantage of a $50 Best Buy Gift Card when you buy the #GoProBestBuy in Black or Silver GoPro4. What types of activities or events might you use a GoPro HERO+ LCD for this Summer?

What Daughter Says: #1 Dad mugs make great pen holders, but this Father's Day why not gift the ability to capture and share memories?

Vegan Peanut Butter Cheesecake Cups Recipe

Momma Told Me: Lighten Up A Little.

When I was a young girl it seemed like I could eat anything my heart desired without consequence. Momma wasn't one to indulge me, but she knew Pop was always more than willing for an excuse to get on his daughter's good side. Since he worked 5 days a week, and often late hours, the amount of time we spent together was precious, and he was happy to play the role of the 'nice parent.' Tic-Tac-Toe with Hershey's Kisses, ice cream sundaes the size of my head and candy bars dipped in peanut butter. When Monday's would role back around I'd always whine and complain as Momma sent me to bed without dessert, or forced me to eat my vegetables. "Little girls are sweet enough without all the extra sugar," she'd say.

As an adult I'm the master of my own domain- I can eat what I want, or don't eat what I don't want, whenever I choose. Alas, I don't have the metabolism of a young girl, and the feelings of excitement over sweets and treats are quickly replaced with those of guilt. While we're not committing to any major lifestyle changes, in the dietary department, quite yet, I do enjoy the exploration and challenges of cooking for our friends who have. Earlier in the year a league-mate went Paleo for 30 days and I was fascinated to learn about that.

Over the past year a close friend of ours has become quite the flag waving vegan. What started as a foray into vegetarianism is now a very passionate lifestyle belief. I am constantly moved to learn of his stories about food preparation, the connection to meat eaters and the drought, or the in humane practices of beekeeping. Naturally, like any lifestyle, there are many opinions and views to be seen; for the most part I applaud his decision to remain obedient to the Vegan way of life.

All this being said I was intrigued to hear that one of America's beloved junk food, cookies, makes the cut as Vegan acceptable- Oreos. In fact, there are several wonderful substitute ingredients in Vegan sweets that I rather enjoy- but a life without cheesecake? Well, I don't think I could envision committing to that. So, on the back of our Vegan Paleo Mock Snickers Bar post I set out to experiment with a Vegan approved cheesecake recipe. Using coconut milk as me 'dairy' substitute the result was quite remarkable- in fact, not a single person who tried this blindly second questioned that these were, in fact 'cheesecake.'

Perhaps the biggest drawback to following any major dietary lifestyle is that, the richer the ingredients, to more expensive the cost. Other than the meticulous hunt for Vegan peanut butter cups, this recipe was fairly affordable and yielded a good portion of servings. Even better they can, and should, be stored in the freezer for an extended life- so go ahead and make them ahead in batches!

While I'm not going to convert to a Vegan way of eating and living anytime soon, sorry I love my bacon too much, I do appreciate the cleaner eating and footprint of recipes like these. Try this Vegan Peanut Butter Cheesecake Cup recipe at home and see if you can fool your friends and family with this dairy free 'cheesecake'! Do you have a friend or family member with dietary restrictions? Whats a dish you've discovered, as a result, that you love?

What Daughter Says: Eating cleaner doesn't have to mean eating any less sweeter.

Vegan Peanut Butter Cheesecake Cups