For years, I’ve eaten a Nature Valley granola bar for breakfast, often in the car on the way to work. Also for years, I’ve listened to people expound on their love for their morning smoothie with only polite interest. “You get in an early serving of veggies!” they’d say. “You stay full so long!” they’d say. “Mmmhmm,” I’d say. And then my younger sister visited in early August, and we got to talking about her daily eating routines. She’s a minor health nut and starts her day with – you guessed it! – a smoothie. For some reason, her enthusiasm shifted something for me and I’ve had a smoothie for breakfast almost every day since. A few other factors helped: — I realized I wasn’t eating as many fruit and veggie servings as I wanted to throughout the day. I can’t taste the big handful of spinach in my smoothie, but knowing it’s there makes me feel like I’m a gosh darn health food superhero, ha! — Breastfeeding = I’ll always take a chance for more liquids. — The protein powder really does help me stay fuller, longer. — John’s been on the smoothie train for awhile, and for his birthday, I got him a new blender*. It’s AMAZING and is way better at its job than our old hand-me-down one. Smoothie making is now a pleasure :) My current favorite smoothie recipe: — A ripe banana— A big handful of spinach— A spoonful of chunky peanut butter— Half a scoop of chocolate protein powder (Kim recommended this one, which apparently includes two different kinds of proteins and keeps you full longer)— A spoonful of chia seeds (I get mine from Publix)— About 1/2 cup of frozen mixed berries (also from Publix, I eyeball the amount)— About 1.5 cups of