5 Ways Quaker Has Saved – and Fueled – My Mornings

The very hungry, very pregnant blogger in me is thrilled to be writing a sponsored post on behalf of Quaker and their spectacular line of breakfast foods. Yum.

When you have little kids – I've got two and another on the way – you learn very quickly that it’s important to feed them. (Like, all the time.) You also learn very quickly that they like options. Delicious options. Especially for breakfast, which is defined as “a very, very early meal needing to be served to your family before you've had your first cup of coffee.”

The good people at Quaker understand me and my breakfast dilemmas. They dig that, while I’m totally onboard to serve my kiddos healthy and tasty foodstuffs, I’m not the most awesome 7:00 am sous chef. So, to that end, I present 5 Ways Quaker Has Saved – and Fueled –  My Mornings:

5. Quaker Oatmeal. (Which my preschooler calls “oppameal,”something I hope will nevereverever change). We’re currently digging on Quaker’s Perfect Portions cinnamon instant oatmeal, a resealable bag of awesome. And did I mention “instant”? Listen, the quicker we can get to the coffee-makin’, the better.

Try some, kids.

4. Healthy Nourishment. Those really, really good aforementioned instant oats? They contain no added sugar. I could make some kinda cutesy joke about how my kids are sweet enough, but the honest truth is that I fear those sugar crashes.

3. Energy. Everybody and their Mama knows that oat-based breakfast foods give you (read: your kids) enough get up n’ go to actually get up n’ go. (Like the kind of physical activity that’ll inspire them to ride their bikes/run around the yard/ leave the kitchen long enough to let you wipe down the room.) I love seeing how it fuels their days.

2. Soccer! Lately we've been talking about how our hometown soccer team, the Chicago Fire, is teaming up with Quaker to host The Quaker Invitational. It will bring together hundreds of Chicago Fire Junior teams from around the country for a weekend of soccer, community, and fun. (Considering the type of breakfast-table convos that can occur between two little kids, this new topic is straight refreshing.)

1. Cookies. Quaker makes breakfast cookies. Cookies that are for breakfast. I cannot get enough of them. Namely,Quaker's Soft Baked Bars Banana NutBread. High in fiber, crazy amounts of vitamins and protein – lalala – I’m eating cookies for breakfast.

Full disclosure: My daughters do not yet know about number 1.

I feel not a qualm in the world.

Neither does Susannah.

I've been compensated by Quaker for my review, but all thoughts and opinions (and empty soft baked bar wrappers) are my own.

Keely's Best Weekend Ever (AKA Who's Paying For All These Sitters?)

So here's what's happened since we last spoke...

An Awesome Weekend

('cause yeah, I'm totally channeling college and pretending that Thursday is "the weekend"):

I met up with a bunch o' bloggy pals on Thursday (although not nearly enough- it was sadly but a mere cross-section of the girls with whom I wanted to dine and shriek and hold hands)...

Even though we were seated at a table for 20, Kristin and I pretended to be on a super romantic date.
Which entails feeding each other truffle fries. Obviously.

And I hugged Jennie- but not nearly for long enough. (Gal made it here from France!)

Also at this fabulous dinner were Arnebya, Deb, and Kristen...and they're all too cool for school.
And taller than me.

And this lady and I couldn't stop high-fiving each other and laughing like loons.

On Friday, I went to our darling friends' KT and Nate's rehearsal dinner...and was on a date with this guy...

Cheer up, buddy.
Seriously, it's a good thing I am currently With Child,
because this kid was giving me ridiculous Baby Feelings.

Saturday brought a stunning wedding, a radiant bride and groom, and at least one unexpected photo op:

It's kinda like a prom photo. Sitting down. Looking in opposite directions.
And someone on the date is pregnant. Otherwise- uncanny.

And P.J. and his pals (all the way from high school through college) performed a song.
By the Backstreet Boys. Maybe "performed" isn't strong enough. Try "emoted."
Again, to the Backstreet Boys.

Since it isn't possible to wish you this kind of week (because they don't come along all that often), I'll just go ahead and hope that your week includes dancing and laughter and incredible food and divine friends.

And hopefully a Backstreet Boys song. 

Best Friends You Haven't Yet Met.

In seventh grade, I had a pen pal who lived in Colorado. Through our respective English classes, we wrote weekly letters to each others' schools: What's your town like? Do you play any sports? Isn't my English teacher the best? (In case the letters were being monitored.) After school let out for the summer, we decided to keep writing- after all, this was pre-email (well, all but the most basic and expensive email, that is) and, growing up in Massachusetts, how else was I gonna find out about such glamorous, far-flung locations like Colorado? Even though we didn't meet in person until high school, I had already decided that he was one of the most awesome people I would ever know.

And in Freshman year of high school, I was introduced to what longtime readers of this blog know as the very geeky, very awesome text-based roleplaying adventure/magic/kill 'em online game, the one with which I'd be obsessed for [what my college pals would tell me was] way too long. During my stint with this game, I met a guy- a kid, really- who lived in Illinois. He was just so nice and so cool and, even though my mother had a (not-so-quiet) suspicion that he was a 60 year-old axe murderer masquerading as a high school junior, I was pretty sure that this dude would always be one of my best friends. (It was reinforced, too, when he came to visit my college while I worked admissions. He wanted to see if enrolling would be a good fit for him, too. It wasn't. Waaay too many hippies.)

And tonight, I get to meet even more of these stranger/BFF amalgamations.

When I became a blogger, I met and re-connected with a lot of great people; frequent readers, friends with whom I'd lost touch, and other bloggers. There's something kind of special (and intriguing) about scrolling though the details of someone else's life- and it's even cooler when you yourself are a blogger as well. I now have a wonderful group of gal pal bloggers who know my kids' milestones. My anniversary plans (and subsequent derailments). And why I have a terrible, awful fear of rats. I count these folks among some of my closest friends- especially since I keep up with their comings and goings (and vice versa) more than my high school and college besties. (Note to high school and college besties: Start a blog. For seriously. It will all but eradicate that late night I Haven't Returned Her Call Yet She's Gonna Think I Haaate Her guilt.)

So yeah, I have a trend of forming lifelong friendships with people, distance notwithstanding. Face-to-face chats notwithstanding. (And super-early-advent-of-the-internet notwithstanding. If you think it's easy to maintain a friendship during the age of dollar a minute dial up, well then, friend- you don't know what's what.)

And these relationships hold up. Besides meeting some of these fabulous bloggers tonight, there are already plans in the works for future writing workshops n' retreats n' glorified slumber parties.

And that guy pal from Illinois? He's easily one of my best friends and, just shy of two years ago, became Susannah's godfather.

And as for my first pen pal, he's still quite the awesome guy. But you know who else is awesome? His beyond-terrific wife, whom I also count as a close pal and who also happens to be a wonderful blogger. (And whom I've also yet to meet. YET.) Just goes to show: people who are supposed to know each other always find a way to know each other.

Also? God bless the internet.

Keely Goes Into Sugar Shock At The Windy City Soiree.

A warning: not since my wedding album has there been such a compilation of photos featuring mainly ME. However, yesterday's Windy City Soiree at Chicago's divine Water Tower Place (hosted by the equally divine ChicagonistaLIVE Show) was so supra-awesome fun (and required a good deal of selfies), that I decided to post some of my favorites. 

One of the "missions" involved stopping by Express and trying on our faves.
Whilst pregnant, oversized sunglasses are always a nice n' safe bet. 

This is the face of a girl who covets a skinny-topped li'l Free People dress.

Strawberry shake from MBurger. It made me forget that nothing had fit me at Express.

My editors, Betsy and Kristin, from The Little Style File at the fashion show!

After my gait analysis at S.A. Elite, I tried for a "serious athlete" face.
I think I ended up with "seriously sad."

This is the prize-winning photo at Candyality. No, really, I won a backpack full
of candy and swag because of my natural I LOVE CANDY face.
(Stay in school, kids, stay in school.)

Pose with some high heels at Akira Shoes? Uh, OKIE DOKIE!

Another mission included photobombing with a steamed bun cut-out from Wow Bao.
The least likely placed I expected to find a pork bun? An athletic store.
Well played, pork bun, well played.

So I think we all know the moral of the story, here. Everyone should be a blogger. It is, quite honestly, the funnest job in the history of fun.

Okay, maybe we still need a few doctors and scientists. A third of you? Study those things.

I'll see the rest of you at the candy store.