During the fall we are on the go a lot. Packing meals and snacks for ballgames is a must for the protection of our health and our budget; but finding tasty, portable, and good-for-you snacks isn’t always easy.
One new snack I can feed my family without reserve is Nature Valley Granola Nut Clusters. I snagged several bags a few weeks ago when our grocery store was having a sale. We all love them (my favorite is almond), they’re easy to take to the ballgames, and my 2 year old thinks she’s somethin’ handing them out to everyone around her.
The best thing? No high fructose corn syrup. Yay!
Nature Valley Granola Nut Clusters are a bite size blend of 100% natural ingredients that include select roasted nuts, whole grain oats and a touch of honey – a wholesome and delicious pick-me-up any time of the day. If you love nuts, you´ll enjoy this flavorful little snack featuring the perfect combination of sweet & salty flavors paired with a crunchy texture that you can see and taste. And with the first unique cluster-shaped granola packaged in a handy re-sealable pouch, it´s perfect for sharing on the trails or in your living room!
MyBlogSpark sent me a box full of all 4 flavors of Nut Clusters, plus some fun things for our next camping adventure (even if it is in the backyard). My children will flip over the binoculars!
And guess what? They want to send this exact prize pack to one of you, too! In addition to the 4 varieties of Granola Nut Clusters, you’ll receive a sling backpack, binoculars, stainless steel water bottle, and a flashlight.
To enter, leave a comment telling us what you look for most in a snack for your family: portability, cost, health benefits?
Giveaway will end Sunday, October 4, at 8 PM Central time. Good luck!
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{ 113 comments… read them below or add one }
Great giveaway. Healthy snacks are important in my house.
Cost (affordable – not too expensive because my kids eat LOTS of snacks) and how safe/healthy it is for me to feed to my family!
I’m all for the health factor, but they also have to be easily portable. Soccer season is keeping us on our toes!
I look for snacks with no HFCS, artificial colors, and artificial flavors.
Cost is a big factor for us! Thanks for the giveaway!
I really want snacks that are healthy, but it can’t be at the expense of our tight budget! So I suppose I would have to say affordability – with a very close second of health benefits!!
)
It is a toss up between cost and healthy, but I think cost probably wins.
I look for healthy and portable. My 2 year old loves to snack on the go, so it has to be something we can take with us. I don’t mind forking over a little extra for healthy snacks (of course, he gets unhealthy things too sometimes). He LOVES the nutclusters, so this would be awesome!
I like snacks that easily fit in my purse
I just need things that are healthy yet easy to grab as we’re heading out the door.
I would say cost is first and health second as far as snacks go. We love bananas and granola as a healthy snack after lunchtime. I have attempted to make my own granola, but find I love the Cascadian Farms brand too much
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Love healthy snacks
Easy portability is a big issue but health and affordability are very important too.
I am so excited to have come across your blog! Cost is huge for us as we are on a tight budget to allow me to be a stay at home mom, but the snacks have to taste great too!
What a great healthy snack you can just grab and go!
A healthy snack is important and portability is very important too because my husband and I are on the go a lot so we can snack on them when we are out and want something to snack on.
I think cost, healthiness portability and taste all play a huge part in the snacks I choose!
For my family, I look for snacks that are healthy for my growing boys. It also is a tremendous blessing if they are portable and affordable! Thanks for all of your hard work.
I strive for our snacks to be healthy and affordable.
In theory, health benefits. In reality, cost and, though not listed, availability in our local stores. That’s a toughie. Thanks for the chance!!
I look for variety, affordability and healthy. We are on the road a lot and like to keep a stash of snacks in the van or in the cooler. I love these snacks. Mmmm.
Those look good! Not sure, I think I look for all three. Unfortunately my teenagers don’t eat like they should.
Thanks for the giveaway!
~Liz
Fun giveaway! I would have to say at this point with four always hungry kiddos, cost is one of the biggest factors.
Healthy and cheap! Thanks!
Right now we don’t have too many needs, but the little one does get hungry from time to time when we are out and about. We look for portability and health for sure. Typically we’ve got a banana, cherios, and other snackies along wherever we go!
And if I’m right, this mama will be needing to snack an awful lot in the next couple of months to curb nausea!
So hopeful right now!
Heather
cost is a huge factor, but we also try to look at nutrition! thanks for the yummy giveaway!
1. Healthy
2. A tie for cost and portability – we are on a budget, but pack a lot of food for on the go, too.
I really love the look of that giveaway – and the snack offers health and convenience which is cool. I really care more about health than any other aspect of a snack. And I write this as I eat candy. Go figure.
Thanks for offering such a lovely family giveaway!
Right now, health is the number one factor for me. It’s got to have a lot of protien and not have added sugars. These are the perfect snack!
I like healthy snacks that taste yummy enough for the hubby and kids to like AND can be grabbed and eaten on the run for when things get crazy!
I usually try to find snacks that are safe for my allergic son. This usually means I have to make them myself. Thanks for the giveaway.
Health benefits and portability are equally important for my family – I like to send healthy snacks that travel well in my sons’ backpacks as they head off to school each day.
Oh man! I joined Psssst and they sent me a full size bag and about 15 coupons for $1/1. Jason and I loved this new snack. For us it’s all about getting snacks that our healthy because it’s far to easy for us to eat two dozen cupcakes in one evening. The more healthy snacks we get, the better!
I like snacks to be good for us, not too much sugar, and of course the cost factors in too.
Honestly, I look for healthy benefits, portablilty and cost!
Portability is so important, BUT I want it to be healthy as well. NVG is perfect for both requirements!
Cost is the major factor and then the next would be the healthy benefits. The kids and husband need to like it. I love that it doesn’t have high fructose corn syrup!
I like to make most of our snacks, but sometimes it is nice to have a healthy and portable option. I can definitely see the necessity as my kids get older and we’re more “on-the-go”.
For our day to day snacks we eat cheese, crackers, pickles, fruit, home-baking etc. since we’re at home most of the time. Sundays we eat ‘on the go’ snacks because we live 1/2 hour away. Portability and easy are two big things for me!!
We tend toward healthy snacks to help my husband keep his cholesterol numbers down.
Health always comes first – no matter what.
Joe loves granola…this would be great for him.
Cost is a biggie. Lately I’ve been trying to be a little healthier, but I still have a long way to go. It’s so easy to grab not-so-healthful crackers, cookies, etc. These nut clusters look great!
this sounds like a great snack! yes, that is what I look for – all the above!!
For me the most important thing is to look for healthy snacks.
These nut clusters look great! I just got coupons for these so I was going to try them. It would be even better to get them free! Thanks!
Health benefits is the most thing I look for snacks.
I think all three are important, depending on the time we need the snack! Portability is important during the school year. Healthfulness is important most of the time (except when it’s a special occaision). And cost is important almost all of the time – except when I’m in a desperate hurry, which happens once in awhile!
We go for affordability first, healthy comes in second then portability for us. I have started trying to make alot of ours.
Honestly — I think one of my biggest factors is how many people will like it. I can’t justify buying things when maybe only one kid likes it. So, the more kids that like the same thing, the more likely I am to buy it.
We like snacks that are healthy, but costs plays a factor as well, as with most things!
Affordability would have my top concern followed by health. I have started being more careful about the foods I feed to my family, but I have a long way to go before I feel that we are making the absolute best choices. Heck, I plan on never reaching that goal fully – I love my chocolate and ice cream and cookies and…
I try to balance health and cost- a hard thing to do! I make a lot of my own snacks and package them up in the snack sized ziplocks- making them very portable!
For snacks I intend to buy a lot of, healthy is most important. Cost is a big factor too. But sometimes I bend the rules and buy a treat that isn’t healthy or something expensive!
A good snack is hard to find: I want healthy, natural ingredients, packaging that is minimal or can at least be recycled, great taste, kid appeal and not too expensive. Of course we eat our share of junk, but I thought you were going for my ultimate goal!
Having a two year old, it’s all about portability! She never fails to ask for a snack everytime we are out!
Ooo, no HFC!? Really? I didn’t know that! I’d love to win this.
I like healthy snacks that are easy to pack for school lunches.
I’m looking for it all in a quick healthy snack. It needs to taste good, not have additives or HFCS (bleck!), and be reasonably priced and easy to pack and go. I’m not asking for much, right? LOL! These nut clusters look great and would pack a good protein boost as well. Thanks for hosting the contest.
A healthy choice is first priority, then cost, then portability. It’s nice that there are more healthy, low cost choices coming to the shelves.
I would say cost and health. I do try to bring based on health first and what I have on hand already (which is food that I buy on sale). These look delicious!
The things that are important to me when it comes to snacks would be a good value for my dollar. As well as, being a more healthy option. Thank you for the giveaway.
Cost is an important factor however, I would say in this house taste would be the number one factor. I have teenagers in this house. If they don’t like the taste, they won’t eat it.
We don’t eat a lot of snacks because most are so loaded with corn syrup.
Great giveaway! With 2 little ones, we’re constantly taking snacks when we go and it’s difficult to find healthy, not too expensive and yummy(!) treats.
Cost is the biggest factor at our house… healthiness probably comes in second, but we’re not health nuts, so if it’s “free” or “almost free”, we’ll probably go for it!
I LOVE healthy snacks! I look for snacks without artificial ingredients to help keep my family healthy!
I look mostly for portability… Healthy is a bonus!
I look for a snack that has nutritional value and not a lot of sugar but yet yummy enough that my 3 yr old would like it
I really look for portability and a healthy alternative to fast/junk food! I have teenagers and they would rather grab chips or candy bars or greasy food from the “Jacks & McDees” of the world instead of something good for them. These snacks would be awesome for them!! Convenient & quick, good for them yet tasty.
I am also a Massage Therapist so I need quick, nutritious snacks between sessions…these would be perfect!
Thanks for the giveaway!
I’m always looking for something that will not leave us hungry again in 5 minutes & will boost our energy.
We look mostly for something that is cost effective and if it’s healthy, we feel like we’ve really scored!
would love to win! I look for portability and little mess. But most important is healthy, or at least not terrible for you. No HFCS, no transfats, no artificial colors. That sort of thing. Chocolate is fair game though, I could never give that up.
Portable while fairly healthy. I prefer things that cost less, but I don’t buy the cheapest thing.
no hfcs is a must. my 2 yo loves these!
I look for low cost and portability. Taste is important too!
The #1 thing I look for in a snack is that my kids like it!! #2 is that it is reasonably healthy…not loaded with sugar / HFCS.
I have been wanting to try these nut clusters, hope I win!!!
mfinn126 [at] gmail [dot] com
These nut clusters are amazing. I love them, but they can be quite addicting. That isn’t such a bad thing though, since they are minimally processed with only goodness. I am so glad there is a product like this on the market. Oh, and to answer your question, what matters most to me, is the ease and portablity (this totally shouldn’t be my answer, I know, it should be nutrition, but I figured, I should tell you the truth!)
My daughter has a metabolic disorder and she has to eat often. We buy lots of snacks. I go for healthy and lower cost things. SOmetimes that doesn’t always go together.
As a large family, I look for snacks that are affordable without making me feel guilty about feeding them to my children.
Granola Nut Clusters are a good healthy after school snack.
wow, hard to choose. Affordable because we are on a tight budget. Healthy because I’m trying to watch what we eat especially my kids. And portability because my 3 year old loves her after “school” snacks.
Thanks!
Healthy and reasonably priced!
I definitely look for healthy snacks (organic if at all possible), that is at a great price. I LOVE the Nut Clusters and keep them in my car for a snack.
Health and cost.
With our fall schedule making thins healthy yet easy to grab and go is a must and truthfully a challenge. We will have to try these.
I look for affordable snacks and I LOVE nuts!
We love Nature Valley but have not tried this product. We look for health and portability since both of our kids go to daycare right now (we are working to remedy this:).
Definitely health benefits! We are learning how to be a diabetic-friendly household, so I’m on the lookout for snacks that will not send blood sugar soaring.
Healthy snacks to me are the most important factor when I buy snacks for my kids but of course cost is important and they have to taste good. So if I can find a healthy snack that is a good price and tastes great I win!!! Thanks for the chance to win this great giveaway.
Melissa
mwilson3@tampabay.rr.com
I look for healthy when I look for snacks. Sure I love junk as much as the next guy, but if we can mostly snack on the good stuff, makes the bad stuff less bad when we do have it. Of course, affordability is important too.
I need a snack low in sugar. We tell people we have 4 kids. We actually have 2 boys, but my youngest is equal to 3 kids! We make a good effort to reduce his sugar, especially if we are going somewhere and he will need to sit quietly (like church).
What I like most is no HFCS so I am jazzed about these. Going to look for them at the store to try out.
Cost, Calories and fiber are my things to check!
I would love to win this. Thank you
For my family, the snack has to be great tasting. I am the only one who measures the cost of things. If I can incorporate healthy, I think we would be getting somewhere.
LOVE the Nature Valley bars!!
I would say taste and cost rate about the same. If my family doesn’t like it or it’s not good for them also figures in. I usually end up making alot of our meals and snacks from scratch.
Jennifer Hayes
It used to be cost, but now it’s Health factor.
Health, cost, and portability (in that order) are so important to us. We’ve been wanting to try these. Fun giveaway!
Nutrition, high fiber, low salt, low/no sugar, portability, cost
I like to find high fiber foods that don’t have a lot of extra sugar.
In snacks, I’m looking for something with no sugar in any form, lots of protein, and something I can keep in the car or in my purse for the inevitable times when my blood sugar takes a nose-dive.
We are on the go with soccer season and always looking for a good healthy snack that we are love. I like to keep them in my van as you never know when that “snack attack” may bite!
I look for two things, cost and is it healthy. Thanks for the chance to win.
I always have to have snacks in my purse for my toddler. So, first thing I look at is will it last in a ziploc bag in my purse? then, I look at health benefits and tasted. thanks!
Would LOVE to try these! Nutrition and all natural is key for me and will gladly sacrifice elsewhere if I need to pay more for a healthy snack. It must contain fiber, protein, or a good source of at least 3 vitamins. It cannot contain HFCS or anything hydrogonized.
Thanks for the chance to WIN!!
The first thing I look at is cost then portability.
The most important thing I look for in a snack is health benefits.
My main concern for snack food is the ingredients. I have food allergies (DEFINITELY no HFCS for me!), so the less ingredients, the better!
I mainly look at health benefits and of course taste. My girls are very athletic and eat a few snacks a day to keep up with sports. I like something healthy and something that really gives them that extra nudge as well!
I love that they are healthier than most other snacks kids like. We tried these and they are great.
ALways looking for healthy and GLUTEN FREE products.
I bought the Nature Valley Cashew Clusters today and saw it contains fructose. Fructose isn’t the greatest thing and I wonder why with the sugar, tapioca syrup, and honey in it, it even needs it…