Mixed Berry and Nut Yogurt Breakfast Bowl

Halloween has come and gone. The leaves have almost completely fallen off the trees and last week it snowed in Seattle. The days are getting shorter and all I want to do is curl up in bed and eat comfort food until mid-March. I really struggle with the winter months. Especially since moving to the Pacific North West, where during the winter, we almost always go a few months with non-stop rain and no sight of the sun. In the past, I've tried bright light therapy. I've tried imagining myself on a tropical island laying on the beach. Nothing has really seemed to work, until a few years ago, just after I had Sebastian, I told myself I was going to dedicate 100% to my health and see where that got me. I was sick of feeling moody, sluggish and full of anxiety.

Three years ago, when I became pregnant with Sebastian, I was in terrible shape. I had been completely inactive and relied on a lot of comfort foods to get me through the difficult times I had been experiencing months before becoming pregnant. During my pregnancy, I had gained at least 40 pounds, which I mostly blame on having a large baby, but I think there were some unhealthy late-night snacking habits that might have also contributed. By the time I had Sebastian, my body felt worn down and I knew that something had to change. Even though I had a newborn and spent most of my days sleep deprived, I vowed to start treating myself better.

I started my health journey by joining the gym just down the street and committing to 5 days a week. Some days I dragged myself out of bed to the gym and ran on the treadmill like a zombie, but I knew that eventually, all the hard work would pay off. I vowed to eat healthier, eat smaller portions, and stop the late night snacking. Two years later, and I have managed to keep true to myself. I still workout 5 days a week, although I have switched my routine from HIIT workouts to pilates and barre. Our healthy eating is still on track, minus a few hiccups here and there. Now that I'm busy with a toddler and we're all trying to stick to a healthy lifestyle, I find it really important to have easily accessible snacks on hand, for when Sebastian gets hungry, and to prevent me from overeating later on. I'm always on the hunt for handy snack ideas, which is why I was super excited when I came across the goodnessKnows snack squares.

Each goodnessKNOWS pack is divided into four snackable squares. They contain whole nuts, fruit, toasted oats and dark chocolate. They contain 150 calories per pack, are gluten-free, have no artificial colors, sweeteners, or flavors. They come in 6 different flavors - strawberry and peanut, blueberry almond, peach cherry and almond, apple almond and peanut, cranberry almond, and mixed berry almond. I think they are all super delicious, but I would have to say that mixed berry and almond is probably my favorite.

Not only do goodnessKNOWS snack square make snacking easy and delicious, I've also found a way to incorporate them into my morning post-workout yogurt bowl routine. Sebastian is also really into yogurt bowls, so it's a nice way for us to share a meal, and he loves to name all of the different ingredients he can spot in our bowl.

If you're interested in trying any of the goodnessKNOWS flavors and live in the Seattle area, goodnessKNOWS will be at the Northwest Chocolate Festival, November 11-12 (9 am – 5 pm) and the Seattle Marathon, November 26 giving out samples.

Because I love the goodnessKNOWS snack squares so much, I'd love to offer you guys a 25% discount for Amazon to give them a try. You can follow the link and use the promo code 25FOODIE on any flavor.

For additional information, including product nutritional content and ingredients you can visit goodnessknows.com or goodnessknows.com/products to purchase.

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of goodnessKNOWS. The opinions and text are all mine.