breakfast :: fruit, yogurt and a bagel

with this being my first post, i'd like to warn you all that breakfast, for me, is usually really boring.  on most days i have four kids to get fed and ready for the day.  i need something quick and easy and something that will get me through my workout without upsetting my stomach.

today's breakfast (courtesy of the phone camera):

.5 cup fresh strawberries
.5 cup fresh blackberries
1 medium banana
1/3 cup fat free vanilla yogurt (mountain high)
1/2 100% whole wheat hearty grain bagel (thomas')
1 tbsp raw-natural almond butter (maranatha)

breakfast summary (less coffee and creamer)
445 calories, 10.6g fat (.8 saturated fat), 78.2g carbs, 14.6g protein, 13.8g fiber


once a week we visit costco and stock up on fruit.  usually strawberries, blackberries or raspberries, grapes and banana's.  we are on a very tight budget so eating the same foods most of the time helps me to stay within our budget.  i buy non-organic foods knowing better. if i had the choice, i would choose organic.

i prefer mountain high yogurt because they do not use artificial sweeteners in their low fat/fat free yogurts.  i also prefer the creamy texture.

i got the thomas bagels on sale even though the calorie content is on the high end (which is i why i split it in half).  they are high in fiber with 10g of protein.  we know we need to consume foods made with whole grains and stay away from those made with refined grains but the creative food packaging can cause confusion.  my strategy is to simply check the nutritional facts and ingredients. if the first word in the ingredient list is "whole," i believe it's usually a wise option.

i prefer raw almond butter to natural peanut butter (almond butter is an excellent source of stress-reducing monounsaturated fats, vitamin E, magnesium, and potassium).   i always add a sprinkle of truvia natural sweetener for a little sweetness. truvia is a new product.  so far, the reviews seem good in regard how safe it is.  a tiny bit goes a long way. i will open one packet and use it for an entire week. 

last of all, coffee. i can't live without my coffee.  it's my addiction of choice and i usually drink one to two cups every morning with a little fat free french vanilla creamer.  i get frownies on my food diary log every day for the sugar in the creamer but i prefer it to the sugar free versions that leave an awful aftertaste.  this is one of my daily guilty pleasures.