Almost every night before bed, I ask Mr. Neon the same question. It’s a very short question, just one word.

Yes?

Sometimes it takes him a minute to get what I’m asking, but most times he just grins and answers me. And nearly all the time, the answer is yes.

Yes? = Yes, do you want overnight oats for breakfast in the morning because I am going to make some for myself and I’ll make them for you too if you want me to?

As I was making overnight oats last night, the ingredients on the counter made me pause and reflect, especially this one.

Mango. And here’s a secret: before this week, I’d never eaten mango before.

Let’s back track for a bit. Before we began “the change,” I didn’t eat breakfast. For most of high school and college, I skipped it. It wasn’t because I thought skipping breakfast would help me lose weight. Now that I think about it I don’t really know why I skipped breakfast. Maybe because I slept in later than I do now. Maybe because I just didn’t know what to eat. I was still in the dark about my lactose intolerance, and i had an aversion to cereal and bars. My brain and stomach knew to avoid certain foods before I fully even knew why.

When I was pregnant with Runner Boy, I started eating breakfast. I had to, because morning sickness is evil. And then breastfeeding made breakfast even more essential. And then running…well, running makes you hungry. And now breakfast is one of my favorite meals of the day.

Back to the mango. To make overnight oats, I pull out the tub full of Bob’s Red Mill extra thick organic rolled oats, the big bag of chia seeds from Costco, almond milk, and real maple syrup. I mix up two containers of oats, chia, almond milk, and maple syrup. Noel gets diced pineapple, and I get a double dose of diced pineapple and mango. I wipe the drool from my chin and pop the containers in the fridge.

That’s our breakfast. Zero effort clean eating. I used to reach for pop-tarts or pre-mixed oatmeal packets. I never would have considered eating pineapple and mango for breakfast. Back then the extent of my fruit eating was canned mandarin oranges or flavored applesauce. And I thought those choices were healthy!

So what’s my point? The thought of pop-tarts for breakfast grosses me out now. I crave overnight oats and fruit or nut butter on a whole grain piece of toast or a smoothie with vegan protein powder and lots of spinach and fruit. Mango is my new obsession. I can’t get enough of my its tropical peachy goodness. You can make that change too. You can “teach” your body to crave good, natural food. The human body is an amazing thing. When I eat good food, I feel good and unconsciously my body begins to crave all the good food. Fresh mango does taste better than a pop-tart. You just have to remind your brain that’s the truth!

Sharing this too, because it’s beautiful! My lunch from yesterday. Because it was yummy and another example of craving real food. THIS was so good!