biPro 100% Natural Whey Protein Isolate

I recently introduced whey protein back into my diet by being very cautious of the quality of the ingredients. When biPro offered to send me a few samples to try, I did a quick search for ingredients on their site and saw enough to spark my interest.

biPro 100% whey protein isolate

A short list of ingredients is usually a great starting point. Whey protein isolate and sunflower lecithin in their unflavored protein is as short as they’ll come. Which makes a very clean supplement facts list….

whey protein isolate

For their flavored products (just chocolate and vanilla), natural flavors, cocoa (for chocolate), monk fruit, and stevia are all that’s added. Stevia is my preferred natural, no calorie, and tasty sweetener of choice, so when I see it in products, I assume some level of quality care is used in the creation.

biPro 100% whey protein isolate

This holds true for biPro, but I would prefer to see the whey come from grass-fed cows and the rest of the ingredients to be non-gmo to truly stand apart. This isn’t a deal breaker, but would make me feel better about implementing biPro as a daily supplement.

biPro 100% whey protein isolate

Nevertheless, I found that their powder mixes easily in any liquid and tastes surprisingly good with such a short list of ingredients. Actually, I love vanilla, and their French Vanilla mixed just in water satisfied my sweet tooth. At first it was a little too much, but I just needed to add a little more water to dilute and it made a perfectly healthy and tasty pre/post workout drink.

biPro 100% whey protein isolate
Perfectly portable packet for a healthy drink on the go!

I used the chocolate to mix into overnight oats which turned out amazing and was a real treat mixed with Greek yogurt and strawberries for a healthy, muscle-building “dessert”. I didn’t have enough to try, but can only imagine biPro Whey Protein Isolate would make a wonderful Protein Microwave Cake or even Whole Grain Protein Beer Bread if you use their Unflavored Protein.

If you’re looking for a high quality, naturally sweetened whey protein isolate that has no sugar, carbs, fat, or lactose, biPro is a good choice. While I wish it were non-gmo and the source of the whey was from grass-fed cows, I would still have it on occasion and offer it to others looking for a healthy whey protein supplement.

One thing that stands out about biPro is how they support giving back to our most precious assets; kids. They have fundraising options that anyone can take part of to raise funds for schools. To learn more on how you can discover a new whey to raise money and give nutritious protein to your kids’ school, click here or on the picture below.

biPro whey protein isolate fundraising

Disclaimer: biPro provided samples free of charge in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are strictly my own.

Melissa & Doug K’s Kids Bowling Friends Review

The Melissa & Doug line has to be one of the largest eco-friendly kid toy manufacturers around, at least that I’m aware of. My wife and I have brought several Melissa & Doug toys into the home since Avery was born, and the latest is this K’s Kids Bowling Friends Playset.

melissa & doug bowling friends playset

We went a little overboard (by our standards) with buying things for our increasingly active 2 year old this past Christmas. Mainly, as I assume many parents with kids this age know, the books/toys/gadgets your kids have, means you’ll be spending a lot of time with those things too! With that in mind, Going Mom and I made our gift selections something us parents will enjoy while playing with our kid.

As a “surprise” to each other, we both bought things for Avery that the other didn’t know about. Kelley bought this Melissa & Doug Bowling Set and, as expected, we have all spent plenty of time playing with it. Maybe even more than Avery since we keep trying to teach her how bowling really works.

Melissa & Doug K's Kids Bowling Friends
And now the green bear….

At least she understands to knock the pins down. We’ve tried explaining that bowling requires standing back and rolling the ball, but somehow she inches her way to hover right above them and count each animal pin as she knocks it over.

Melissa & Doug K's Kids Bowling Friends

If only we can get her to actually let go of the ball! But then again, the picture on the front of the case does show a kid with ball in hand hovering right over the pins before they meet their doom.

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Maybe we’re the ones in the wrong? I know I’d do a lot better with this style when at the lanes.

Either way you play, this is a fun playset to have around the house. I love that the set comes in a bag that makes it easy to clean up once done, and perfect when traveling.

The set comes with 6 brightly colored animal pins made of soft but sturdy plastic that allows them to easily stand up, even on carpet. The surface is very easy to clean which makes playing outside a non-issue. Avery even enjoys just playing with each of the animals and will carry them around the house making their associated animal noises.

Melissa & Doug bowling

When the ball becomes boring, it’s fun to find different ways to knock the pins over. My favorite is having a “snowball fight” with the animals by using 6 soft “snowballs” to throw at the pins. Avery isn’t quite ready to let go of the ball, so right now, this makes for a great game of Spider-man bowling…

We shall call it. … Spiderman Bowling! #sahd #toddler #playtime #play #parenting

A video posted by RC Liley (@going_dad) on

I wish the bowling ball had deeper dents for the fingers (because adults play too!), but it still works okay. Besides, most adults rarely use the finger holes anyway.

Also, like so many toys, it’s made in China, and I have not seen anything saying the plastic is bpa-free. But I still trust the Melissa & Doug brand for their quality and think this bowling set is well worth it for the fun it provides.

Avery has had a blast with this bowling set and will ask us to “play bowling”almost daily.

Play bowling?
Play bowling?

This makes a perfect gift for any baby/toddler. And for only $22.49 on Amazon, it’s well worth the fun you and your kid will have. Maybe they’ll even be a bowling pro one day. Or maybe not….

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I give this bowling set my seal of Going Dad-proval and am sure you’ll do the same.

Buy the Melissa & Doug K’s Kids Bowling Friends Playset on Amazon by clicking here!

Healthy Overnight Oatmeal Crisp Recipe on MLK Day

Today’s post is an oldie but a goodie with a recipe from my old healthy foodie blog, Just Add Cayenne. It dates back to 2012, before we even thought of having a beautiful girl named Avery. But now, we couldn’t be happier with our constantly growing girl, her curly hair, and mesmerizing blue eyes….

healthy oatmeal crisps

Since I originally posted the Overnight Oatmeal Crisp recipe on MLK Day back then, I figured today is as good as any to share here on Going Dad. I don’t make this version in the oven like I used to, but now I’m seriously craving some healthy, homemade crispy goodness.

Do me a favor and make some for me and let me know how you like them. Maybe when Avery is a little older and knows not to pull on the hot oven door (yes, I know there is a lock and yes, I use it), I’ll make them again.

I’m being lazy and pasting the html directly from my old blog post, so you get to read about what’s going on in our lives at the time. Of course, you could just skip it and get to the recipe, but where’s the fun in that? Hope you’re having a great day!


We get this Monday, 01/16/12 in honor of Martin Luther King Jr.  Thank you, Mr. King, for helping us be free from working today!!

Unfortunately, Kelley has been and still is sick with a vicious cold; the thing won’t go away!  So today she is getting some needed rest while I do things in the kitchen (surprise).  I made a mini version of Tomato and Bean Bread Soup (recipe will come in a future post) that she really enjoys.  It wasn’t the same as usual since it calls for white kidney (cannellini) beans and I didn’t have fresh garlic or many tomatoes to use.  Either way, I think she was pleased and I hope the wholesome food helps fight the crap inside.  The soup plus lots of herbal tea is hopefully working for her…..at least it can’t hurt!

Besides chopping a jicama to bring to work for the week and cooking a work lunch for us, I made Overnight Oatmeal Crisps.  I just recently started to make these instead of baking so much with eggs, egg whites, and pumpkin puree in order to save time.  The beauty of these is you can use mostly the same spices and flavorings you like in cookies, but in a much healthier way.

Just soaking rolled oats by filling with water to the top of the oats in a container is nothing, and they make for a great warm cereal meal on a cold day.  If it’s hot outside, just eat the soaked oats cold…..it’s very refreshing.  My favorite add-ins are vanilla whey protein powder, peanut flower, and cinnamon with several drops of liquid stevia.

I just use an empty yogurt container to fill with oats, spices, powders, and a dash of salt; fill with water and let sit overnight or at least an hour in the fridge.  The starch from the oats help bind things together for that cookie-like result. Here is what I commonly use to make these, but this is easily customized to suit the tastes of anyone.

Overnight Oatmeal Crisps
healthy oatmeal crisps

 

Ingredients
– Rolled Oats; I just buy these in bulk and use how ever many will almost fill various containers
– Peanut flour, natural whey protein powder, non-fat dry milk powder; I try to use in a 1 part flour to 4 parts oats ratio, but doesn’t have to be exact.
– Dash of sea salt
– 10 to 15 drops of liquid stevia
– Optional: Chia Seeds (these gel up nicely when soaked and help bind the oats even more); nuts or dried fruit might work too, but I haven’t tried.
Directions
Once I have an empty yogurt container (no need to clean it out), I pour the oats in leaving some extra space at the top for the other ingredients. I usually add a good amount of peanut flour along with some vanilla whey protein and a few chia seeds.  Together, these make up about 1/2 a cup for the 32oz container in the picture.  Add a sprinkle of sea salt, cinnamon, and 12 drops of liquid stevia (honey or agave would work too) then gently shake the container to mix together.  Add water (use milk if you wish) to where it rises just above the oats and stir everything together until well incorporated. 
You’ll notice the mixture already thickening; just let sit in the fridge for at least an hour.
healthy oatmeal crisps
When ready, pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees, spread the oats thin on a cookie sheet and bake for about 30 – 40 minutes turning once you see them browning on one side.
healthy oatmeal crisps

These should come out nice and crispy; enjoy!  They are usually sturdy enough to hold up to a good yogurt and peanut butter dip or to let soak in milk.  I like just having something tasty, crunchy, and made in our kitchen.

If you have ripe bananas around, mash one and mix that into the oats too.  Bananas are great when using peanut flour and cocoa powder in the mix…try it!

I hope you give this a shot and let me know what flavors you used.  Happy MLK day, try not to get sick!!