The day is really long when it starts at 4:30 AM. Believe me – I speak from experience.
What on earth was I doing up at such an ungodly hour? I’d love to say it was something inspiring, like trying to start the day on a good note by fitting in an awesome workout before heading off to work, but the truth of the matter is that I was up before the crack of dawn because I was trying to appease a wonky appetite that just so happened to decide that it felt like kicking in at a rather inconvenient time.
Really, stomach? Really?! You couldn’t have held out for another hour or so? You had to force me to get out of my comfy bed, head to the kitchen, and stand there bleary-eyed and half-conscious, with a banana in one hand and a spoonful of almond butter in the other, while I wondered if I was actually awake or if it was all just a bad dream? We are not on speaking terms today, you and I.
But yeah… Despite my best efforts to get back to sleep, it just wasn’t happening. I stayed in bed and read for a little while before giving up at around 5:30 and starting my day…
You would think that having so much extra time in the morning would motivate me to whip up something extra fancy for breakfast (read: pancakes or waffles), but for some reason, breakfast is a meal that I don’t like to mess around with too much, so I went with a tried-and-true classic instead…
Plain Greek yogurt with a banana, homemade applesauce, Weetabix, almond butter, and cinnamon.
Oh cereal, you never fail me; even when I cheat on you. I’m actually trying to cut back on oats again for a little while to see if they’re what’s behind my mysterious stomach woes, since those seem to have started at around the same time that oats came back into my life… I’m seriously hoping that’s not the case, seeing as I fell in love with them all over again, but it would be nice to be rid of the wonk. And if it does turn out to be the oats, then I may just have to switch over to those quinoa or rice flakes that I found in the depths of my pantry…
Oh! And speaking of which, I’ve been doing pretty well on the whole “operation: pantry cleanup” ordeal. Okay, so my morning snack wasn’t exactly the most creative…
Banana and hardboiled egg.
… lunch was just some leftovers (which tasted even better cold)…
… and my daily cappuccino is better at emptying my wallet than it is at emptying my pantry…
BUT!! I did manage to sneak some kamut flakes into my [otherwise] oatmeal cookies…
And I finally got around to opening up my carton of almond milk to cater to my newfound addiction to, for lack of a better name, fruit soup…
I’m not even sure how I came up with this oddity of a snack, but it’s basically become my newest obsession. What I do is scoop some plain yogurt into the bottom of a bowl and toss in a sliced banana, homemade applesauce, and cereal crumbs. Then I top the whole thing with almond milk and let the cereal get a little soggy before going to town. It sounds a little out there, but trust me… the combination of flavors (especially the yogurt and almond milk) and textures is to die for.
So is the combination of cookies and ice cream…
… which, while it may appear as a nice little indulgence at first glance, is actually yet another cleverly devised way to get rid of some unwanted items. Why I buy gluten-free cookies when I’m not gluten intolerant is beyond me, but I have a feeling it has something to do with the fact that they’re also labelled as nut-free, which always makes my allergy-ridden heart do a little happy dance.
But let’s see; what am I missing? Ahhhh dinner… I had cereal…
… on my chicken. I loosely followed this recipe, but used Weetabix instead of corn flakes; and while it may not have been as good as having an actual breakfast for dinner, I have to admit that it wasn’t half bad 😉 Even the quinoa and green peas were a nice touch.
So that, my friends, is what I’ve been eating [lately]…
Odd hours and odd combinations, but no complaints 😀 Happy Wednesday!
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Have you ever had to get out of bed at odd hours to satisfy a grumbling stomach?
What’s a food combo you’re loving lately?
What was today’s breakfast?
now i have a major oatmeal raisin cookie craving 🙂 ..ok so i’ve been asking everyone because i’ve been thinking of maybe joining in on the WIAW fun, but my iPhone pics aren’t cutting it – what kind of camera do you use?
I have a Canon EOS7D, but I use my iPhone for a lot of pics too. There are a lot of apps you can download that allow you to apply filters to your pictures so they don’t look so bland. Instagram is really good for that, and another one I really like is Picframe – that one allows you to make collages too.
I love putting milk over yogurt and cereal! I haven’t done it since college, so now you made me hungry for it! Specifically, I love using Puffins because they really soak up all the milk. Yum! I hate when my stomach wakes me up at like 3 in the morning because I know if I go down to eat anything, I’ll never fall back to sleep. I just pray it can wait until I get up in the morning. I have no idea how I used to sleep barely eating anything. NO idea.
I’m pretty sure I didn’t sleep back in the day when I wasn’t eating anything. Not on a regular basis, anyways. There were days where I’d just pass out from exhaustion, but overall? It was all fragmented. And I’ve actually been using the cereal crumbs from my bag of Cinnamon Harvest and Weetabix to soak up the milk. Since the pieces are all so small, it really feels like I’m eating some kind of cereal/oats… as long as I’m not adding too much milk and completely drowning them out.
I’ve been getting so hungry when I lay down to go to bed lately – it’s terrible, because I usually get up and eat rather than just letting myself fall asleep. Maybe that’s why I never want breakfast..and why I can’t wake up in the morning!? Even your fruit soup looks delicious – all of your food photos always make me hungry!
Everything looks so delicious! I hate it when my stomach wakes me up extra early…hopefully everything will be back on track for you soon! I’m the same way about breakfast – I always think the night before that I’ll be exciting and try something different, but I always go with my tried and true favorite. Unfortunately, I notice that if I eat oats too often (so, for days in a row), my stomach goes all weird too. I hope that’s not the case for you, but maybe it wouldn’t hurt to not eat them for a little while? Like I said, hopefully your appetite gets back to normal soon!
my stomach seriously never feels hunger in the morning. I wish it did so I could be more of a breakfast person with ease.
haha, i get up at 4 am every weekday for that workout before work! it is very rough. the cereal, yogurt, milk sounds intriguing.
See now that’s definitely inspirational. I’m pretty sure that nothing short of hunger or some kind of disaster could force me out of bed that early.
Interesting idea of the cereal, yogurt, and milk! I might give that a shot!
This morning’s breakfast: I had a Greek yogurt bowl. Thought of you while I made it 🙂
That fruit soup looks amazing. I definitely need to give it a try. I used to love tossing some greek yogurt + cereal in a bowl and drizzling it with almond milk. I bet the applesauce makes it even better!
Everything looks so good! Especially your cookies – I haven’t made cookies like that in YEARS! Might have to dig out my old recipe at the weekend.
I’m with you on eating odd combos! They always end up being the best! I like the “fruit soup” idea. I would totally eat that!
For breakfast this a.m., I had an avocado/chocolate (I use unsweetened coco powder)/banana protein smoothie. It was soooooo yummy! I made it super thick (like pudding), so I could eat it with a spoon. Healthy and satisfying! Yay!
Your smoothie really does sound amazing! The best kind are the kind you eat with a spoon. My rule is that if I can suck it up with a straw, it’s not thick enough. Happy Wednesday, girl!
I had a big plate of potatoes and eggs today (long day I figured I should eat something good!) I’m loving your cereal chicken though (I usually use corn chex to the same effect).
Isn’t the weirdest combinations of foods the tastiest sometimes? I was always skeptical of brownies that had zucchini in them or pumpkin hiding in there. But they were always delicious.
I never get out of bed to eat, but I have gotten up for a big ol glass of milk or water.
I’ve been on a sweet and salty kick. I put sea salt in my stevia, cinnamon oatmeal yesterday… weird I know. It was good though.
Today I am have birthday cake for breakfast/lunch… It’s my sons b-day money is very tight and I will gladly give up my lunch money to make him a beautiful homemade cake out of a box. 😉 Happy WIAW!
Happy Birthday to your little guy! That’s super sweet of you 🙂 And confession: I add salt to my oatmeal all the time. I find it really brings out the sweetness of everything else!
Oh my, YES I have had to get up just to satisfy a grumbling stomach – and usually I have no idea why I’m so hungry since I usually snack before bed 🙂 Lots of foods I’m loving lately – homemade guacamole, salsa, a crazy amount of fruit, and homemade pickles. Can’t get enough! My breakfast today was delicious – oats topped with banana, blueberries, peanut crunch butter, homemade strawberry jam, and raw buckwheat groats. On the wonky stomach front, have you considered that maybe a different food besides the oats is causing it? In just the same way that the oats did?
Have a beautiful day Amanda!
I haven’t really considered any other foods, no… mostly because I didn’t really change my diet much aside from adding in the oats. If getting rid of them doesn’t help, then I’ll start to consider other options, but it can just be so overwhelming when you have to analyze everything and try to pinpoint what it is…
Yes, I can imagine :/ Hopefully it’s just a fluke though!
Yummmmmm. Your food always makes my tummy happy, and rumbly lol. I HATE when my stomach wakes me up in the morning, that always ticks me off! Glad your appetite has come back tho lol
Seems like you are feeling a little better ….good!
I have recently tried a new to me toasted sandwich that I am all gagas over right now. Its homemade applesauce and macadimia nut butter with a ton of cinnamon toasted to melty perfection..like biting into abit of heaven ;D . I’ve had it for breakfast the past three days.. I’m obsessed!!
😯 That -does- sound amazing! I’ve gone the melty banana and almond butter route, but never tried it with applesauce. I’m definitely going to give it a try!
Yum to all of that! The snack combo with the soggy cereal sounds amazing!
YES! I often wake up STARVING at 4-5…I hate eating that early because once I do, I’m really awake and can’t fall back asleep
Lately, I’m loving TJ’s glutenfree waffles with sunflower butter. SO GOOD. Also: baked sweet potatoes with coconut oil and cinnamon and poached eggs on salad
Eating breakfast right now! Farmers’ market strawberries, a few blueberries, plain Greek yogurt, blueberry hemp granola and roasted almond butter. Delicious!
Hope everything sorts out with your stomach!
Your WIAW always make my mouth water! YUM.
And I’m really loving the chocolate + coconut combo lately (as evident by my post today)!
Gah, 4:30 AM is basically middle-of-the-night for me, still. I’m so sorry your stomach insisted on you getting up that early. However, if it marked the return of your appetite than that’d at least be something, right?
Admittedly, I did have a few occasions of getting up sometime around 2 AM to tame the hunger beast last year. Luckily, I was able to fall back asleep after getting enough food in, though.
Ooh, your ice cream bowl reminds me of the Oreo cookies I finally allowed myself to have again lately. Only I tried to be semi-healthy and used them as a topping for chia pudding. Verdict? Thumbs down for the pudding but I’d happily munch on some Oreos again.
One food combo I’ve been liking lately has been Greek yogurt mixed with coconut flour and banana flakes, cooked speltberries stirred in and topped with hazelnut butter (latest addiction).
Happy Wednesday!
As much as I love Oreos, I’m pretty sure that even they wouldn’t be able to save chia pudding for me. I’ve tried it on a few occasions in the past and just couldn’t get past the gloopiness. I definitely recommend ice cream as an alternative 😉
I’ve woken up at 4:30 AM a few times in the past few months, not due to hunger, just due to waking up and not being able to get back to sleep. Whenever that happens, I try to be super productive with the extra time in my day, but eventually get so tired that I can barely function.
I love seeing your WIAW pictures! My stomach has been weird lately too. Yesterday I could barely stuff down a half piece of toast with peanut butter. Today my stomach is a raging machine of hunger. Those oatmeal cookies you made look delicious too!
I’ve never had hunger actually wake me up from sleeping, but I’m usually staaaarving when I wake up!! I love breakfast. haha
Love your Minnie mug! And your homemade apple sauce looks delicious!
Oreos. Yum. You can’t go wrong with those. I hate when my growling stomach wakes me up at weird hours to eat but when it tells me it needs food, I better listen. I hope your stomach gets onto a normal schedule soon so you can sleep!
This entire post made me laugh so hard. Your coffee mug is SO adorable! If you find it missing one day, don’t worry about it 😉 (and ignore the fact that that meant that I snuck into your house to steal your coffee mug…). Your fruit soup actually sounds incredibly appetizing. That may be my lunch…
Anyway, my body wakes me up regularly at 2 or 3 am every few days and demands food. I think this is a sign that I need to eat more at dinner, but my dinners usually are pretty large anyways, so I don’t know what the dealio is. But I feel you; it’s SO annoying.
Maybe it just means you need to start having dessert after dinner 😉 I always eat before I go to sleep, and I’m usually okay through the night. I’m thinking that this sort of thing has a lot to do with the whole wonky appetite. Hopefully it works itself out soon because I want my sleep!
Actually funny story, I normally eat breakfast around that time anyway LOL. Sometimes around 5. Races that start at 7am, I eat breakfast at 4am. I can’t run on an empty stomach so if I’m racing at 6…I’ll wake up even earlier. Moving on, I keep powerbars in my night stand…sometimes I get really hungry around 2-3am. (true story).
Hopefully your stomach is now settling in and tomorrow it will be 530….then 630…then 730…or whenever you eat 🙂
Story of my life.
Those early morning times happens to me a lot, and I’m always confused. Even though I know it’s just out of hunger most of the time that I wake up. Oh well, it happens, but it sure does make the day too long. When I get up that early I always make it an excuse that Starbucks is necessary;)
Ohhh food combo I’m loving…hm tough call! Probably avocado + cocoa powder. Amazing.
2 times in the last week I’ve woken up at 5 starving. But then I go downstairs all zombified, drink a glass of milk, and go back to sleep like a baby!
Remind me to stop whining to you when Atti wakes me up at 5:30-6:00 am…4:30 is just ungodly to me. But it’s awesome that your appetite is kicking back in! My stomach is usually pretty quiet at night, fortunately…and my desire to sleep tends to beat all if it does start growling. It usually takes me an hour or so for my appetite to kick in, so I can’t remember the last time I needed to head straight for the kitchen.
No matter if I have an hour to make breakfast or 10 minutse, 90% of the time I’m going with simple. My brain just does not want to put the effort into a fancy breakfast that early in the morning.
Food combo I’m loving lately: goat cheese and blueberries. I’ve been throwing it into salads with spinach, olive oil, fig balsamic, chicken and sweet potato, and it has been amazing. Breakfast was PB & J oats with a fried egg…please, act shocked by that. :-p
Complete shock over here. Mind blown 😉
Haha thank goodness I’m not the only sleepless one around today! I fell asleep at 1.30 am last night and was up by 5 am. I wish hunger was to blame but i think it had more to do with my caffeine intake yesterday and just my mind running on overdrive! Although the day seems crazily long today, I also feel very productive- I might have to start waking up before the crack of dawn more often…I managed to get so much done before the time I’d normally be waking up ;)!
See you for dinner on Sunday :)! Dinner is all you but I’m requesting that delicious bowl of cookies & ice cream for dessert….please and thank you!
I definitely love being a morning person, but it makes me feel like I should be going to sleep at 8 PM or something. Things just start feeling a little crazy once you reach the “I’ve been up for 19 hours” mark 😯
That almond milk/yogurt-fruit-soup is SO my taste!! I love soggy cereal and if I coul donly by almond milk and greek yogurt here, I would be all over it (so you know what to bring if you ever come to Switzerland :-))
I experience this disturbing appetite on weekends, when I want to sleep in. If my stomach does not get breakfast until shortly before 9, it starts to curse at me. Ugh.
Today’s breakfast was an omelette – how creative, right? 🙂
Happy Wednesday girl!!
I’ve used cereal as a sub for bread crumbs on chicken as well – I’m a fan! I’ll have to try the fruit soup…I’ve been loving putting frozen fruit in almond milk when I don’t feel like getting all fancy and making it into actual ice cream 🙂
That happened to me last week. I woke at 4:30am but then I went out for a run to make use of the time.
My breakfast today was oatmeal with cherries and PB2. I never knew cherries and peanut butter are actually a good combination. 🙂
Girl, as if I don’t already wake up early enough (4 AM), I was up at 3:45 today with a stomach ready to attack me had I not given it something to eat. I couldn’t believe it.. & you know what, all it needed was a tiny handful of cereal. Really, it woke me up for that!!??!! Ha Ha!
I love the odd combination of yogurt, applesauce, banana, cereal & milk. However I think i’d have to skip the milk bc i HATE HATE HATE soggy cereal. I like it to be nice & crunchy!!
Have a great day love
<3
I’m a big fan of the crunch too, but I’ve found that milk actually changes the taste of the cereal, and sometimes makes it taste more amazing… if that was even possible.
I’ve never gotten out of bed because of being hungry. There are few things that actually wake me from sleep, and my alarm barely makes that list. I just love all food. Basically cheese with anything. I’m not adventurous like you and creating all sorts of unusual concoctions! I usually stick with a bowl of cereal or waffles, but today I had left over blueberry pancakes. They were delicious!
Girl! I swear you are me sometimes. That hunger can wake me up like a nagging toddler sometimes. And then forget about going back to sleep. it just doesn’t happen. I hope the oats arent behind your stomach woes. it’s so frustrating when you have to give up a feel good, healthy food you love because your stomach doesn’t agree. breakfast today was quick and from the office kitchen- 1 granola bar, handful of almonds & cashews, handful of blackberries and a couple slices of turkey. and of course, my sbux nonfat blonde misto 🙂
Ha! I love that you stay loyal to your coffee <3 I had a plain cup of jo this morning, but I'm definitely looking forward to grabbing my capp after work.
Your meals always give me food envy! Especially the ice cream! As a kid, my dad used to always make cornflake chicken. He would dip chicken breasts into sour cream, dip them into a mixture of whole cornflakes + seasonings, bake them, and drizzle with butter. We’d have mashed potatoes and peas on the side. Sooooo amazing.
Yum stuff. I think a lot of casserole-like leftovers taste better cold the next day. Though I suppose lasagna is best hot and fresh, I usually eat the leftovers cold. So tasty!
Sorry about the early morning wake up. Hope you enjoyed an extra cuppa joe!