Fueling Up With Snacks On The Go (+Giveaway)
For the past week, the girls and I have started going on walks around our neighborhood. I’ll get into the specifics in another post, because the mere fact that I’m working out with both girls, sometimes before 8 am, deserves its own post (and a high-five), but I want to talk about something else today: how to fuel up with wholesome snacks on the go.
I’ve discovered that if I actually want to get out of the house before the heat index creeps above the 100-degree mark, we have to leave well before 9 am. Maddie’s usually up around 6:30am or 7 am, so as soon as Julia’s awake I get things rolling. I change the girls’ diapers, fill up water bottles, get them strapped into the stroller, and hit the road. The only problem I have with this method is that it doesn’t leave room for breakfastāand this mama needs her fuel when she’s pushing around 75 pounds up the
mountains hills in her neighborhood.
Sometimes the hardest part of being a toddler’s parent is getting her to eat. I seriously think pulling out her teeth would be easier than getting her to take a bite of somethingāanythingāsome days. What used to be her favorite food, now she won’t touch it with a ten-food pole. She could ask for something one minute and then cry her eyes out the next because she does.not.want.to.eat.at. all. Or when she does finally eat, it could literally take all night. She’s more of a grazer, but I really don’t want her to get into the habit of having a two-hour meal, because that’s not going to happen in real life.
The struggle is real.
So when we find something that she actually gobbles up and that’s nutritious, I pretty much jump for joy. That’s how I feel about these new Nature Valley Simple Nut Bars. They come in two flavors, Almond Cashew Sea Salt and Roasted Peanut Honey, and from the second Julia saw me pick them up at Publix, she asked me for one. I almost gave her one right there in the store (because if the girl wants to eat, who am I to stop her?), but dinnertime was just around the corner, so I told her the bars were a treat and she could have on the next time we go on our walk.

We usually come back inside after our walk and everyone is hangry and sweaty, so I decided to start taking snacks with us to take the edge off while we’re out, and then after I shower we make a smoothie for breakfast. I honestly think she eats better on the days we walk.
The snacks below aren’t limited to just when we’re out in the morning; they’re handy to have around all day. The best part is that they’re toddler approvedācan I get an “Amen”?! I also like that the majority don’t have to be refrigerated, so I can just keep a stash with me wherever I’m on the go.
And definitely keep reading, because I have a sweet giveaway happening at the bottom of the post!
Here are our go-to, mess-free snacks on the go to keep us from getting hangry throughout the day:
Hard boiled eggs
I make a half-dozen hard-boiled eggs every Sunday to last through the week. Some mornings I slice up an egg and eat it on avocado toast, and other mornings (or afternoons) I just peel ’em, slice them in half, add a sprinkle of salt, and eat it plain. It turns out that Julia actually loves hard-boiled eggs (I think because she sees me eat them all the time and I let her help with peeling them and sprinkling on a pinch of salt), and I love that she’ll eat them since eggs are packed with protein. (2 Weight Watchers Points+)
Goldfish
What mom doesn’t have a snack-sized bag of these cheddar treats in their purse (or in their car)? My daughter’s obsessed with them, and I’ve been known to sneak handfuls at a time for myself. They totally satisfy that salty, crunchy craving. (4 Weight Watchers Points+ for 55 pieces)
Nature Valley Simple Nut Bars
I talked about these all-natural nut bars up above, but I’m really digging them as far as a quick snack goes, especially because it fills me up for quite a while. A little more info about them: they’re gluten free, I can read and understand every single ingredient (there are only 7 ingredients total), and they taste really, really goodāthey’re not too sweet, but totally satisfy a sweet-tooth’s craving, they’re crunchy, gooey, and have just the right amount of salt sprinkled.
For what its worth, my favorite is their Roasted Peanut Honey, and Julia already finished a box of the Almond Cashew Sea Salt flavor. Want to try some for yourself? If you’re a Publix shopper, here’s a coupon for you (and you should totally enter the giveaway belowāhint hint)! Since these are a little hearty as far as WW points go, I usually only eat them on the days that we walk. (5 Weight Watchers Points+)
Applesauce
This goes hand-in-hand with having goldfish in your purse, but these little pouches of applesauce are way too convenient. I have a few emergency applesauce pouches stashed away in random places both for me and for Julia. While they usually take the edge off for Julia until I can find her some more substantial food, I’m typically still hungry after scarfing one down. (1-2 Weight Watchers Points+)
Fruit
Bananas, apples, berries, peaches, plums, etc. are all good choices. I usually try to eat these as soon as we leave the house, because I’m not a fan of warm fruit, and if it sits out for too long they just get hot and mushy, which is the opposite of refreshing. Julia now loves to peel her own banana now, so that’s her current favorite fruit snack. (Zero Weight Watchers Points)
Cheese sticks
Who doesn’t love cheese sticks? (I’m sorry if you’re dairy intolerant!) We usually have two kinds stocked in our fridge: a simple one for Julia (usually cheddar) and a spicy one with jalapeno for me. If I’m going to have a small snack I want it to be full of flavor. (2 Weight Watchers Points+)
Since I know I can’t be the only mom who snacks on the go, I want to give one of you $20 in PayPal cash so you can go buy yourself a box or two of Nature Valley Simple Nut Bars so you can try them for yourself. Fill out the Rafflecopter below and you’ll be on your way to (hopefully) winning some dough!
Don’t forget to check out these new nut bars from Nature Valley, and then tell me what your favorite snacks on-the-go are in the comments below!
My favorite snack is fruit, but I’m interested in trying the Nature VallyNut Bars! They sound delicious!
Back in 2013 we did a 5K in California and I bought some Nature Valley bars for Fredrik and he still talks about them! These ones sound really good: Almond Dark Chocolate Nut Crisp Bars!
I love hard boiled eggs, home made granola bars, and nuts! Great post! – Wendie
I’m a granola bar girl, so I’d love to try those but bars!
I love healthy snacks on the go!
The Almond Dark Chocolate ones sound good!
I always keep a box of nature valley granola bars in my desk so that I don’t get hangry mid-day at work. I would love to try the almond cashew sea salt bars!
Fair warning if you try them: they’re really, really good!
I love Nature Valley, and those almond dark chocolate ones sound amazing!! My kids also love those little applesauce pouches, so convenient!
Ooooh the Almond Dark Chocolate Nut Crisp Bars look so good! My husband and I buy their protein bars all the time (:
We buy those all the time. We love the cashew ones!
Almond dark chocolate are my favorite!
I would try the almond dark chocolate.
I love the Almond dark chocolate š
The struggle is real! Getting my 3-year-old to eat healthy meals is a struggle these days. All she wants to do is snack on junk. We try to stick to a lot of the basics you have covered, which are great for on the go. I really want to ensure she’s developing healthy eating habits that she can carry with her as she grows up.
It’s SOOOOO hard when they’re this age and are so picky! I don’t even know if “picky” is the right word…maybe stubborn?
Roasted peanut honey sounds amazing!!
These are great snacks, and perfect for toddlers and even older kiddos! š (Hey, even adults, too!) Love me some Goldfish! š Love this post, and the graphic and photos too!
Thanks! Haha it’s hard not to grab a few fish when the kids are having them (or any time, really)!
I will like to try Almond Cashew Sea Salt Nut Crunch Bars.
dark choc nut yummy
I’d Like To Try The Almond Cashew Sea Salt.
Those are our favorites too! XOXO
Oh, and I would try the Almond Crunch!
Almond Cashew sea salt sounds so good!
My kids are big Goldfish and squeeze applesauce fans! I have to try those Granola bars! I am doing WW so 5 points is a bit high, but the bar plus a 1 point smoothie would be a perfect breakfast if I had some exercise! Thanks for the coupon!
Yup, on WW over here, too š I usually only have the nut bars on the mornings I walk since I know I need a little extra that day!
the almond cashew sea salt sounds awesome!
These sound delicious!!!! I can’t wait to go grocery shopping to pick up a box or two!
I love snacks on the go and I don’t even have kids. One of my favorites is pancakes baked in mini muffin tins. I add a smashed banana and some syrup to the batter.
It is so hard to find snacks my toddler will eat! Love your ideas! And the hard part for me is staying stocked up on everything . =) Great post!
I was out of hard-boiled eggs for a few days and I thought my daughter was going to lose her mind. I had to explain that it takes time to make themāI’m sure there was a good learning lesson in there somewhere. ha! I buy goldfish and the applesauce pouches from Costco, so I generally will stay stocked forever with those.
the dark chocolate almond
I would love to try Almond Cashew Sea Salt!!!!
I’d like to try the Roasted Peanut Honey, as well as the Salted Carmel Peanut Nut Crisp Bars.
Very good post! I still walk and enjoy early mornings… I also use gold fish, Apple sauce, nut bars and eggs for snacks and all my kids are grown up and having kids if there own! Now the grand kinds look for “Nanna’s’ Snack Basket!”
Oh the grazing. Abbie does it too – must be the age I guess? I am a big fan of Nature Valley stuff but haven’t tried the nut bars… definitely going on my list!
Thank you for hosting the giveaway! And goldfish and almonds are our must have on the go treats!
Roasted peanut honey sounds yummy!
We love Nature Valley Bars! The Almond Dark Chocolate is my fave.
Fruits are always the best. I also love nutrition bars! š
I love cheese sticks!