Rainbow Oatmeal Bowl + PBK Oat Smoothie #BringYourBestBowl

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Momma Told Me: It's what you put into the bowl that counts.

Spring is my favorite season.

Aside from the fact I would spend hours alongside my mother in the local pick-your-own fields March-June, the over-abundance of fresh fruits and festive holidays inspired a plethora of fun food creations from Momma. While April Fool's Day was without a doubt her biggest triumph each year, much fuss was always made over what treat would be devised to craft out St.Patrick's Day treat. A stop at the bakery for green bagels was a must, but Momma always had a way of reminding me food need not be fancy to be fun.

While most of my breakfasts were rushed during the week, it was those special holidays that fell on or near weekends I looked forward to most. I'd awake excited to the sound of Momma's pots or bowls clanking in the kitchen. Rainbow waffles, green eggs and ham, mint chocolate chip pancakes. I never knew what I'd find but some of my favorite creations often came in a bowl. A bowl of Quaker® Oats that is. Quaker® Oats not only come in delicious varieties, but time conscious ones as well- I always keep a container of Quaker® Quick One Minute Oatmeal on hand for baking, breakfast, or even a post workout smoothie. In fact, Walmart and Quaker® have teamed up asking oatmeal lovers to Bring Your Best Bowl in the search for the most delicious and creative 2-5 ingredient creations.

Of course the best part about a bowl of Quaker® Oatmeal is how you choose to personalize it with your own ingredients, toppings, or mix-ins. Since it's so easy to make in as little as a minute in the microwave, you can spend a little extra time creating your perfect bowl. I know you have your favorite way to enjoy Quaker® Oatmeal, so why not share your bowl and enter to win $250,000 - Top recipe entries will even be created and sold in Walmart stores for a limited time in Fall 2016! The Bring Your Best Bowl contest began in January 2016 and ends March 12, 2016, so hurry up and get your entries in!

Not that creative? That's okay, if you're more of the Pinterest type browse the Bring Your Best Bowl Quaker® Love hub and check out some serious Pin-spiration from other amazing foodie bloggers like me. (There are even some savory suggestions that might make the cut for your next meal!) Of course I heard the call and headed to my Walmart to pick up my Quaker® Oats and a few (just 4) ingredients to make a bowl inspired by Momma and her love for festive holiday food.

Sometimes life gets overly complicated, and this week was no exception, so I kept it nice and simple with beautiful fresh fruit ingredients direct from Walmart's in store produce department. Kiwis, peaches, strawberries, and blueberries were the only add-ins I needed to make a colorful bowl to remind me my best bowl we somewhere over the rainbow. It might not be the fanciest flavor composition but a hearty bowl of Quaker® Oats and fresh fruit makes my smile any day. And any little ones who happen to be afoot are sure to smile at the beautiful purple oats and delicious fresh fruit colors.

Ready? Let's Begin.

First prepare a small portion of your Quaker® Oats Quick 1 Minute Oatmeal in a microwave safe bowl, following the instructions on the container. Set this aside- these are your 'clouds.' Next halve about 10-15 fresh blueberries and toss them in 1 1/2 cups of boiling water in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Stir until the blueberries begin to soften and the water has reduced about 1/3. Add 1/2 C Quaker® Oats Quick 1 Minute Oatmeal and cook until prepared to desired texture. Service your 'purple' blueberry oatmeal as the base of your rainbow bowl, dropping the reserved regular oatmeal at the bottom to form 'clouds.'

While there's no right or wrong yo a bowl creation my St. Patrick's inspired bowl does use some creative fruit selection to meet the necessary color spectrum- Since blueberries naturally dye things purple, you'll get a two for one with blue blueberries whole, and the blueberry oatmeal base. #WIN You can use any variety of red, yellow, orange and green fruits to make the rest of your rainbow but I chose kiwi, strawberry and peach for their appealing oatmeal textures and harmonious flavors.

I'll admit it's hard not to smile when you see the beautiful purple oatmeal underneath that sea of beautiful fresh fruit color- but Momma wouldn't have stopped there. This is in honor of St. Patrick's Day and we need something green. The Quaker® Oats were already out so....have you ever tried oats in a smoothie? Adding my favorite Quaker® Oats directly to my afternoon smoothie is the perfect way to keep that 'full' feeling into the evening- and it adds a delicious texture too!

All you need to make my 'famous' PBK Oat Smoothie is your choice of milk substitute, fresh kale, half a banana, a 1/4 C of peanut butter, 1/4 C Quaker® Oats Instant Oatmeal, some ice, and a TBS of Chia seeds. If you really want to go for the mean green machine impact add a handful of spinach. And don't knock me on the kale here folks- you wont's taste it at all beneath that delicious peanut butter banana oat base! Serve with a few banana 'coins' tossed in the top for good luck.

However you decide to Bring Your Best Bowl make sure you do it soon, entries must be in by March 12, 2016 (*Complete sweepstakes rules here.)- but the delicious inspiration will be live on the Best Bowl Quaker® Love hub much longer. Your bowl will never be bored again with the amazing recipes my fellow bloggers and foodies have developed from across the country. I do have to say, though, my Rainbow Oatmeal Bowl and PBK Smoothie is appropriately festive for the upcoming week. I do think Momma will approve. Now, tell me, what are some of your favorite ingredients when enjoying a bowl of Quaker® Oatmeal?

What Daughter Says: My bowl's full of color, flavor, and harmonious texture. Those blueberry oats make me smile with every bite!

Rainbow Oatmeal Bowl

***Click here for printable Rainbow Oatmeal Bowl recipe

5 Simple Tips To Become (More Of) A Morning Person

***I received a Quaker^® Protein Instant Oatmeal product sample as a member of BzzAgent. I was in no way required to share the following info with you. All photos and opinions are copyright Momma Told Me Blog 2015. The following is not to be taken as medical advice.

Momma Told Me: Ready or not, it's time to get up!

I am not a morning person. In fact, there have been very extended patches in my life where I would refuse to go to bed until the sun was just bout to come up. In my college years I would often sleep clear from sunrise to sundown on the rare days when I did not have work or school. 'They' tell you when you're younger that one day you'll yearn for the time when adults forced you to take extended naps in the middle of the day, and it's true. Such a reckless lifestyle ultimately led to horrible insomnia when I was once again to rejoin the living with a 9-5 job that demanded rosy social skills. While I am much better than I ever was, about rising on time and with a chipper disposition, it is still something I struggle with from time to time. There are a few simple things that can be done to help ease yourself into an early morning routine.

1. Sleep Sound: This may sound obvious but the biggest culprit to waking refreshed is interruptions in sleep patterns. While you may not notice yourself physically waking up during the night, your body likely experiences harsh interruptions to REM waves as it responds to outside stimuli. Similarly, if you do notice yourself a 'light sleeper,' and rise throughout the night to the sound of a car alarm or dog barking, you may benefit from noise conditioning as well. The key to making the most of your sleep, whether 3 hours or a full 7, is ensuring you fall asleep and stay asleep from eyes shut to eyes open. Invest in a white noise machine or noise filter application to help layer ambient noise that will better distract your sleeping mind from the distractions within the world just outside.

2. Think Positive Thoughts: As cliche as it sounds, there really is a right side of the bed to get out on. How you jump start your mental process, first thing in the morning, really does impact how your entire day unfolds from there. We all have chores and tasks we'd rather not awaken to tackle, so leave those thoughts for later. Begin your first few minutes of every day mentally discussing that which you are MOST looking forward to. The more you ruminate on the positives to come, the more endorphins your body will naturally release as you pull yourself from bed and work towards them.

3. Hit The Gym Early: While this is one tip I'm still trying to reshape my day to tackle, studies show that our bodies experience their peak performance sometime around mid-morning. Rising around sunrise and heading straight to the gym or workout room, for as little as 30 minutes, will also release those 'feel good' notions and kick start our systems for optimal performance during the day. If the promise of more energy and a sunnier outlook isn't enough, exercise before breakfast and see your morning calories burned near doubled!

4. Morning Showers Bring....: I tend to want to shower in the morning. Not only is it a sort of treat I look forward to when I first get up (see Tip #2,) but I feel it re-focuses my mind for the day ahead. Unfortunately as women, our hair is often one of the biggest time consumers in the daily beauty routine. Nothing can ruin the promise of a good day quicker than a bad hair day. Ashley Stone, of Beauty Entourage, suggests showering in the evening and placing damp hair in a lose braid. When you rise style your hair with a quick blow dry for instant volume without the fuss. And for those who simply must shower in the morning- consider a quick rinse, sans hair washing, for an immediate pick me up without the styling woes.

5. Pile On the Protein: You already know the saying 'Breakfast is the most important meal of the day,' and it truly does set the tone for how the rest of your morning will proceed. After a night's rest our metabolism and blood sugar are at their lowest. This means what you put into your body first is what will be consumed at the most efficient rate, as your body will quite literally be jump starting based on what nutrition you do or don't decide to feed it. I don't know about you, but I, personally, don't have time to make a gourmet breakfast in the morning. I need something that is quick, colorful, and appetizing, or I will find myself skipping breakfast all together.

Quaker's new Protein Instant Oatmeal is ready in just 3 minutes and offers a hearty bowl of deliciousness in 2 satisfying flavors; Banana Nut Bread and Cranberry Almond. Chocked full of 10g of energy producing protein, these delicious breakfasts can also be enhanced with a few slices of fresh fruit, and 'cooked' with calcium and protein rich milk substitutes such as soy or almond milk. Just one bowl of Quaker^® Protein Instant Oatmeal keeps me fueled well through the afternoon without a single tummy rumble, and that means I keep the morning grumps away!

What's your best tip for rising on the right side of the bed and staying energized throughout the morning?

What Daughter Says: You don't have to want to get up, you just have to get up. Start your day with positive steps to make the process easier.

It's Not Oatmeal- It's Granola! Quaker's New Breakfast Revolution

Momma Told Me: It's more than a meal

As a young girl I favored cereals over pastries and oatmeal for the unique contrast in texture they would offer while jump starting my morning. Today I am ashamed to admit my breakfast regimen is much less complicated and usually involves a protein shake or nothing at all. Let's face it, by the time the kids are dropped off at school, the floors have been scrubbed, the laundry is in the dryer, and the groceries are unloaded it's after 1PM and it's time to head back out again to pick up the rugrats. Now, more than ever adults are leading busy lives that require a strong balanced breakfast that will fuel the day ahead. And, not too surprisingly, more and more of them are like me; skipping the most important meal simply because they feel stopping for breakfast is too much work.

Aside from the occasional bowl of Malt O' Meal with a swirl of brown sugar, warm breakfasts such as oatmeal were often my least preferred. I do, however, recall a brand of Quaker children's oatmeal pouches that included dissolving sugar eggs that revealed tiny colorful dinosaurs. The novelty of this breakfast seems to have stuck with me and still finds the product creeping into my adult shopping cart from time to time. So, when I heard about a new range of Quaker warm breakfasts, Quaker Warm and Crunchy Granola, my interest was piqued. Honestly, without the word crunchy, I would have overlooked the product as another type of oatmeal; which it is not.

This unique warm-serve granola product is currently made in 3 flavor varieties; Cranberry Almond, Apple Cinnamon, and Honey Almond. Retailing between $4-$5 a box, each Warm and Crunchy Granola box features 6 individually packaged servings. However, I've found that an adult such as me requires 2 pouches and a banana to satisfy me completely on a busy day. Thankfully it is no more of a hassle to prepare two or one; adjust the added milk to create the texture of your choosing and pop the bowl in the microwave for 15-20 seconds. It truly couldn't be any easier to enjoy a sweet, heart healthy, breakfast that has plenty of texture.

While I typically use a 1/4 C of fat-free milk for two pouches (half the suggested amount), I find that the bottom half of my granola softens quite nicely, and the rest stirs in well for a delightful crunch. Remember, this is not an oatmeal, and because of such some younger family members may not care for it as much as those with a more developed palette. Personally, Quaker Warm and Crunchy is a home run for me! I love how easy it is to toss a pouch in my purse and even enjoy one at work. The process is simple, and the flavor isn't overly sweet- making for the perfect encouragement to start my day right! Have you ever eaten warm granola for breakfast?

What Daughter Says: Start your day right, don't skip breakfast- it's the fuel for your day!