My mom says that I’m a grazer, and always have been. I think she’s right. I like to eat little bits of food throughout the day. Some people say that snacking on bites of food every few hours helps to keep one’s metabolism rolling along. Yes, having a balanced lifestyle is important and keeping that metabolism churning is even more important.  But, you want to know what is more important to me?  Making sure I don’t get hangry.

You know about hangry, right?  Hit the jump to find out what I mean…
Hangry – It’s when you’re so hungry that you turn angry. (If you still don’t understand – read this hysterical Huffington Post article for a laugh out loud explanation, complete with GIFS.)
When one is hangry, they lose all sense of right and wrong. One suffers from delusions of grandeur where Drive-thru restaurants, king sized candy bars, and their kid’s macaroni and cheese start looking like the Holy Grail. 

Perhaps you have seen those candy bar commercials with Betty White in them? That is a completely accurate account of proper hanger.

It’s bad man. Bad.
So what’s a busy, working, Tall Mom supposed to do? I can’t be hangry towards Itty Bitty, Tall Dad, my new students, or in general population of the world. Well, maybe the general population deserves a little hangry 🙂 But, you know what I mean.
I need to tame the beast, and this takes preparation folks.  Here’s how to beat the Hangry:
Figure out a couple of staple “go-to” snacks that you can bring to work or have at your house. For example, I love fruit. But, I also need some non-perishible items that I can stow away in my work desk or work bag.
Right now, my favorite items are a banana and an individual serving sized bag of low calorie popcorn.
Much better options than king sized candy bars and mac n’ cheese, right?
I buy a crazy amount of bananas each week. Maybe I’m part monkey. Or maybe it’s the potassium. I also read that bananas help stave off depression, and can also help lower blood pressure. 
My other go-to snack is mini microwave popcorn bags. I LOVE keeping a few Skinnygirl popcorn bags in my purse. I eat them in the office, and at work when I have a free period, and I’m practicing the piano parts for my chorus. 
Popcorn rocks my socks for multiple reasons. It’s a whole grain, is packed with fiber, and even has TONS of antioxidants. 
Alright, confession. I’m a huge popcorn connoisseur. If a brand makes a mini bag of the fluffy stuff, I’ve probably tried it.
The newest variety to hit store shelves is by Skinnygirl. You know, the brand created by Bethany Frankel?  Well Skinnygirl just came out with a few rockin’ flavors, including butter & sea salt, and lime & Butter. I purchased my boxes at Walmart.

Are you drooling? I sure am. Excuse me while I take my hangry break ….

(Note: selfies of catching popcorn in your mouth – not the most attractive thing I’ve ever done. Yikes.  I will spare you the horror…)

Ok, back on track…

Skinnygirl popcorn is free of artificial flavors, colors, and sweetners.  Plus, it’s has 20% less calories than the competition.  I love popcorn, because you can eat it nice and slow, and munch at your own pace.
One evening, I decided to take two of my loves, and blend them together – peanut butter popcorn balls!
I put some agave and peanut butter into a sauce pan, and melted it over low heat.
Next, I poured it over my freshly popped Butter & Sea Salt Skinnygirl Popcorn. 
I added some peanuts, raisins and crasins, and some chopped up dark chocolate covered pretzels
Last, I mixed up the gooey substance, and formed the mixture into several popcorn balls. 
Hard to believe, but this snack is also pretty healthy. Packed with protein, fiber and antioxidents! I’ll be saving these for a movie night with friends tonight. 

It’s just a shame that Betty White won’t be making her appearance.  Or is it?

What are your go-to healthy snacks?
#SkinnyGirlSnacks #CollectiveBias

Talk soon friends,