Close

Blog

Tomato Mozzarella Salad with Balsamic Vinegar
,

Tomato Mozzarella Salad with Balsamic Vinegar

Ingredients

  • 4-5 similar sized tomatoes, sliced 1/4-inch thick
  • 2 (16 oz.) logs of fresh mozzarella cheese, sliced 1/2-inch thick
  • generous bunch of fresh basil leaves
  • extra-virgin olive oil
  • coarse sea salt and fresh ground black pepper
  • 1 cup good quality balsamic vinegar (if you are not using Moxie Mom Balsamic Vinegar – you will need to reduce enough to reduce it to 1 cup)

Instructions

  1. In a small casserole dish (I used 8X11X3) arrange slices of tomatoes, mozzarella, and basil vertically, in an alternating pattern until you have created two rows.
  2. Drizzle olive oil over the top of the salad, followed by balsamic vinegar.
  3. Sprinkle with sea salt and fresh ground black pepper. Serve immediately.

Moxie Mom
,

Food for Thought

When I found out I was expecting Sarah, my oldest, my doctor told me not to eat anything with Sodium Nitrate in it. He gave me a list of foods containing that preservative. I made the decision then and there that I wasn’t going to eat anything with that ingredient while I was expecting nor after I gave birth.- It wasn’t something I wanted to eat anyway, regardless of being pregnant. I also decided my child would not eat anything with it either.

Moxie Mom

Sodium Nitrate and Sodium Nitrite are widely used as preservatives in packaged foods such as hot dogs and lunch meats. Both of these salt compounds have the same effect. When mixed with meat in the body during digestion, they create a carcinogenic compounds. Carcinogenic compounds are believed to cause cancer and could affect the future health of both mother and unborn child. In addition to that, they react with hemoglobins and create a modified protein, methemoglobins, and they do not deliver oxygen effectively.

If you are pregnant – your baby is depending on your hemoglobin to deliver oxygen to the placenta. This is something that should be taken seriously because your baby’s development could be affected in a negative way.

As you can see- I take this seriously. I’m so sorry to bore you with the details but I feel it is important to explain.

Obviously my doctor had a profound effect on how I would look at feeding my kids throughout their young lives. I realized that what I fed them could have a lifetime consequence and I was obsessive about making healthy food for them. Making their lunch for school, making healthy snacks instead of buying convenience, and not eating fast food became our way of life. It wasn’t just about what I was feeding them. It was also about teaching them to want to eat healthy. Don’t get me wrong – we always had homemade cookies and ice cream in the house.

Moxie MomNext I became enslaved with only buying local meats. It was around the time that mad cow disease and chicken flu were in the news. I had already stopped buying meat at the grocery store because when I asked them they could not tell me where the meat was from , let alone what country. I started buying all of our meat at a local butcher shop. The butcher bought only from the county I lived in and I trusted him for all of our meat including deli meat and fresh uncured bacon.

During this time I didn’t want them eating fast food because I had read about steroids being given to cows so they would grow bigger and faster so they could be slaughtered sooner. I was not only disgusted by this, both for the cows and the use of the steroids, that I didn’t take my kids to McDonalds. When they ate at McDonalds it was because their Grandparents took them. I did not want them eating hamburgers from there!

Today it is easy to find organic options at the local grocery store. Now I’m obsessed about only buying produce from the USA. When I go through the produce isles, I will look at everything I want to buy, but if it’s from another country I don’t buy it. This can be limiting in the winter months but I can usually find some options from Florida or the southwest region. This is just my opinion but I do not expect quality to be the same in other countries as it is here in the good ole US of A!

I know – I was probably overly obsessive with what my kids were eating. It was the late 90’s, early 2000s. Fast forward to today and I’m right on queue with what matters today to moms everywhere! I guess I was just ahead of my time but people thought I was a bit crazy. I was a locavore before it was popular. And it all started with what my doctor told me when I was expecting my first child in 1989.

children meals
, , ,

Why Healthy Lunches Make All the Difference

Introduction – Leah is the busy mom of 7 children focused on teaching her children how to make healthy food decisions. Her approach is straight-forward and she gives some great ideas on how to pack healthy lunches. I hope you enjoy her blog post!

“Why Healthy Lunches Make All the Difference”

Written by my guest blogger – Leah Morency

Let’s start with the hard reality when it comes to packing school lunches: the struggle is real! Successfully filling your young one’s lunch box with foods in all the colors of the rainbow, seems like an impossible dream for moms and dads, but it doesn’t have be that way.  We can take back our kid’s lunch time appetite, one bite at a time. Today, thankfully, safe and healthy lunch options are gaining momentum against their nutrient void and processed counterparts. For our kid’s physical, mental, and emotional health, now and into their adulthood, taking back lunch is absolutely worth our effort. 
 


Advertisements and fake food products from the grocery aisles scream that we don’t have time or money for real food and that we can’t do what’s best for our kids. At the same time, they offer us this sorry solution: factory packaged, processed, chemically preserved, sugary-syrup sweetened, artificially colored, and artificially flavored lunch box convenience foods. Sadly these foods fail to provide the nutrients a healthy growing child needs. 



Lunchables are the perfect example of well marketed convenience food that is full of the toxins we are trying to avoid. Kids generally go nuts for these packaged snack packs that hold the illusion of a balanced meal while delivering mega doses of preservatives, additives, sugar, sodium, and a long list of artificial sweeteners.

children meals

So, why is it so important for us to overcome this challenge? Why not just give in and let them have their fun at lunch?

Well, here is the rub: physical, mental, and emotional health in adult hood is founded on the habits learned in childhood. Physically, kids bodies absorb much more of the food content they consume because they are growing, making all of these questionable ingredients more impactful to every area of their physical development. Every health problem linked to poor nutrition and obesity comes into play if poor eating habits are left unchecked.

Kids are under pressure, mentally and emotionally, to perform their best academically, while also being expected to balance social interactions, peer relationships and a broad range of societal expectations. A diet that keeps their blood sugar in check while providing a steady stream of energy and nutrients lays the foundation for a smooth day of learning. Sugar highs bring sugar lows, and with that low, a young person’s emotional resiliency, and their ability to exercise their best judgement, is compromised. Behavioral issues with teachers and peers can negatively impact your child’s daily learning experience, attitude towards school, and over all learning potential!

Turning your energy to preparing home packed lunches that are fresher, and better able to meet your child’s specific taste and nutritional needs, is the best place to create solutions and make the difference for him or her.

First, Empty Calories Alert! Kids can quickly fill up on empty sugar calories, and then loose an appetite for the real sources of nutrition you have worked hard to pack into their meal! Besides the obvious lunchables, cookies, candies, donuts, and sweets to avoid, beware of these hidden sources of empty calories:

  1. 100% fruit juices, and really almost all juices period: they simply add more sugar than nutrients.
  2. Yogurt squeezes that are sweetened with fructose corn syrup: they cease to be healthy at the amounts of sugar added.
  3. Deli Lunch meat: most contain added sugar and are full of preservatives!
  4. Crackers, pretzels and snack bags: made from processed grains that are high in starch, these convert to sugar calories when eaten, raising blood sugar levels that can contribute to a post lunch sugar low!
  5. Fruit chewy snacks: again, more concentrated sugar, with no nutritional value, stealing the healthy appetite meant to be satisfied with nutritionally rich foods.
  6. Potato Chips: standard white potato chips are high in calories, salt, and fat but low in nutrients.

 

Instead provide healthy alternatives for your kids!

Why Healthy Lunches Make All the Difference
Why Healthy Lunches Make All the Difference
children meals
, ,

How You Can Take Back Your Child’s Health, One Bite at a Time

Introduction – Leah is the busy mom of 7 children focused on teaching her children how to make healthy food decisions. Her approach is straight-forward and she gives some great ideas on how to pack healthy lunches. I hope you enjoy her blog post!

“How You Can Take Back Your Child’s Health, One Bite at a Time”

Written by my guest blogger – Leah Morency

If your kiddos are used to the processed sweets, try trading out the items to one every week or two until they have had a chance to get used to a slightly different looking lunch box.

A strong foundation in balanced eating habits will give your kids respect for healthy food and its positive effects on their emotional and physical well-being.  

Be prepared for some push back if you are making changes in the nutritious direction, but they will follow your lead. When you make feeding their growing minds and bodies with the good stuff a priority, they get the message that you care about what’s best for them, and in turn, they learn how to take the best care of themselves. That is why healthy lunches make all the difference.

Here are our suggestions for some of the best options optimizing nutrition with the convenience factor packed into these lunches. Some items can be made at home, and many can be purchased individually wrapped and in bulk for easy assembly, but all are healthier versions. We always encourage organic options when available as well! Remember Start small, One Bite at a Time!

children meals
children meals

 

 

  1. The first suggestion isn’t lunch at all, but breakfast! Begin the day with plain yogurt with honey and fruit, or eggs and toast, instead of a bowl of sugar cereal. This sets kids up for balanced blood sugar, protecting them against sugar crash and sugar cravings.
  2. Pack only Water to drink! It’s really all they need, it’s cleansing, hydrating and saves money.
  3. Whole milk yogurt sweetened with honey in re-usable plastic containers. Or, for convenience, read the labels and search carefully, there are a few brands of squeezable yogurt, especially the organic options, that are low in sugar and have no artificial ingredients.
  4. Cheese sliced at home, or sold in individually wrapped packages, not American cheese product, but real cheeses.
  5. Sliced veggies, carrots, peppers and cucumbers, served up for dipping with hummus cups, or alternatively guacamole cups.  Hummus and guacamole cups are now sold in bulk packages, individually wrapped for convenience! Hummus is rich in protein and guacamole rich in healthy fats, are both great choices.
  6. A simple boiled egg, rich in protein and healthy fat, easily prepared ahead of time, can also be purchased prepared.
  7. Home cooked meats, choose a cut of meat to roast on weekends, once prepared and sliced in advance, can be quickly added to a lunch box meal, rolled in whole grain tortilla, make a meat and cheese wrap! Most cost effective way to add meat to lunches! Even a chicken leg from a baked chicken is an easy and fun unexpected lunch option.
  8. Nuts, seeds, and dried fruit are excellent finger foods for snacking, providing super nutrients, healthy fats, minerals, and vitamins. The great variety makes it possible to find a mix your child prefers.
  9. Sugar free apple sauce cups, along with fresh fruits! Sliced fruits with nut or seed butters in the center for easy packing. Whole fruits come ready to pack!
  10. Chips made from sweet potatoes and root veggies are the best choice, as well as whole grain varieties, as they contain more nutrients in exchange for their calories.
children meals
Top 10 Sights To See In Savannah
,

Top 10 Sights To See In Savannah

Should you plan for a vacation, Here’s my list of the top 10 sights to see in Savannah which definitely will make you feel excited about.

#10 Rocks on the Roof – is a rooftop bar where you can watch the sunset from a perfect vantage point. If you’re lucky you can get a table outside and enjoy the views of the beautiful city lit up at night.  To get there walk into the lobby of the Grand Bohemian Hotel on River Street. Walk past the front desk and over to the elevators. Punch the R to go to the rooftop and enjoy!

If this doesn’t sound like fun to you then I would recommend you check out The Pirate House for lunch or dinner.  Kids would get a big kick out of a visit here because they can learn all about the pirates who brought their business and money to Savannah in the 1700s.

#9  Tour a mansion – there are several that offer tours.  We visited the Davenport House Museum because I found it on Groupon.  It was built in 1820 for Isaiah Davenport. It was opened as a Museum in 1963 in an effort to prevent it from being torn down.  The Historic Savannah Foundation started out with a group of ladies who didn’t want to see the historical part of Savannah be demolished.  

This group went on to raise funds to save many of the mansions around Savannah’s Historic District during a time when many cities were tearing down the old to build new.  Other Mansion tours are Owens-Thomas House, Mercer Williams House Museum, and Juliette Gordon Low’s Birthplace (who founded the Girl Scouts of America).

#8 Tour a Fort – there are three to choose from: Jackson, McAllister, or Pulaski (which is a National Monument and part of the US National Park Service).  Fort Jackson is the oldest standing brick fort in Georgia with river views, daily cannon firings, and other interactive programs. Fort McAllister State Park is located along the Ogeechee River and features the best preserved earthen fortification of the Confederacy.

There are cannons, a hot shot furnace, palisades, barracks, and a museum.  Fort Pulaski was a masonry fortification built to protect Savannah from any attacks. It was under siege during the Civil War and was penetrated after a 30 hour bombardment by the Union forces until the Confederate commander surrendered. Fort Pulaski was declared a National Monument in 1924.

#7  Take a Ghost Tour!  Again – there are several offerors in Savannah.  They have walking tours as well as Trolley and Hearse tours.  Personally – why not go with the Hearse tour? It looked like a lot of fun – I will definitely try that one the next time I am visiting.  The ghost tours go around to various buildings in the area where there have been sightings.

With Savannah being one of the oldest cities in our country – there are plenty of ghost sightings reported.   Depending on your guide – this can be very interesting and entertaining.

#6 Leopold’s Ice Cream is a must experience.  It’s an old-fashioned ice cream/soda shop and has been around since 1919 serving up delicious ice cream and other cool treats.  Don’t be swayed by the line – it goes fast and they have a guest attendant providing cold water in little plastic cups as you wait as well as passing around the menu to expedite ordering.  It’s worth it – just do it, at least once.

#5 City Market is an area about 2 city blocks long where the street is closed all the time for street vendors, cafes, stores, galleries, and street performers.  It’s easy to find if you are using the hop on hop off trolleys, they all stop here at Trolley Stop Gifts. It’s also next to Ellis Square and there are plenty of places to sit and do some serious people watching.  This area has a lot of nightlife if you don’t want to go to River Street.

#4 Just by doing #3 you will see amazing architecture and many beautiful parks.  But you must see Forsyth Park because it’s Savannah’s version of Central Park, surrounded by very old but beautiful mansions.  The park has 30 acres in the center of the city featuring playgrounds, basketball courts, tennis courts and large fields for flying kites.  There are also monuments along with an incredible two-tiered, white cast iron fountain.

#3 Visit some or all of the 22 squares in the city.  There were originally 24 squares but two have been sacrificed to city development.  Interestingly the statues in the middle of the square do not necessarily go with the square.  As an example the towering monument of General Casimir Pulaski does not reside in Pulaski Square, it is located in Monterey Square.  

This is the same square where the Mercer House, featured in the movie “Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil” where the murder took place.  Also be sure to check out Chippewa Square – the square made famous by Forrest Gump. It’s in the center of the historic area surrounded by theaters and restaurants.  There are a couple of ways to tour the city.

We have found when visiting cities for the first time – using the hop-on hop-off tours are great because you get familiar with the lay of the land, so to speak.  I always have a map on my lap and snap pics of places I see on the tour that I want to go back to. If we do this the first day we are visiting – we are oriented with the city.

We have recently started taking Segway tours – they are so much fun to ride!  This is another great way to get familiar with the area and you get history with the tour. We used Adventure Motion Tours in Savannah when we visited two weeks ago.

#2  The Olde Pink House is the only 18th century mansion in Savannah and is now a beautiful restaurant with a ballroom.  How many restaurants have you eaten at that has a ballroom? Naturally I had to go up and check that out – it has mirrored walls and crystal chandeliers.  When we were there it was setup for a wedding reception later that day.

The house was built in 1771 for James Habersham, Jr., one of Savannah’s most important businessmen due to his family-owned cotton empire.  The outside architecture is Georgian but features Colonial décor inside.

This is one of the few buildings to survive the fire of 1796. It’s an expensive restaurant so we chose to go for lunch, which was very reasonable.   Our waitress gave us some of the histories and encouraged us to walk around so we could see the ballroom and the tavern.

The tavern was really impressive because the bar is original from the prohibition era. At one point the mansion was used to house the first bank of Georgia, Planters Bank, in 1865.  So there is a vault in the cellar that is now used to house their wine inventory and you can also reserve it for a private dinner for two!

#1 River Street along the Savannah River is a must see – even if you’re not into nightlife.  The street is over 200 years old. It was originally lined with cotton warehouses. After the yellow-fever epidemic in 1818 it was closed for quarantine and sat abandoned for over a century!  In the mid-70s a group of landowners and urban planners put a plan in place to revive the waterfront street. By 1978 there were already shops and businesses thriving along the street.

 

Today the street a popular area that draws visitors from all over the globe and there are more than 70 shops, inns, and restaurants.  On the weekend there are tents and entertainment – giving it a festival atmosphere. From here you can take the ferry over to Hutchinson Island and get some great pics of riverfront Savannah.

The ferry is free so you can ride it round trip or get off and walk around the beautiful Westin hotel riverfront boardwalk. This is also where the Savannah International Trade and Convention Center is located.

Savannah is fun for a weekend trip or longer.  So much to do and so many amazing restaurants to try.  

 

Steps to improve credit score
,

Simple Steps to improve credit score

Credit scores are very important to all of us, no matter how young or old we are because we are judged on those scores.  People who do not have good credit scores end up paying more for car or house loans because the interest rate given on the loan is dependent on the credit score.  A credit score is a three-digit number based on your credit reports. The score determines your worthiness of borrowing money. Simply put – the lender wants to know how well you will do paying back the loan. Of course, there are simple steps to improve credit score.

After my divorce 10 years ago, my credit score wasn’t great.  Remember when you used to get credit card offers in the mail every day?  My ex-husband loved those! He would use the card and I wouldn’t even know about it until I got a bill in the mail.  I would try to pay a bill off and as soon as I did there would be another to take its place. During the divorce, the court split our expenses and the house payment was assigned to him to pay and I paid all the other bills.  Our divorce took 8 months to finalize and he didn’t make that payment even one time. Now you know why my credit score had taken a nosedive.

Once the divorce was final, I set a plan in place to pay the debt off and improve my credit score.  It’s important to say here that this was not done over-night, over a month, or even a year. But if you are consistent and diligent you can greatly improve it within a year.  It actually took me 8 years to pay off the debt from my marriage but much less than that to fix my credit.

The three reporting agencies are Experian, TransUnion, and Equifax. You have probably heard of a FICO score and a VantageScore. While FICO is the one most widely used by credit lenders, VantageScore has about 10% of the market for credit scores used by the industry but it was only introduced in 2013.

Credit scores are based on these points:

    1. The percentage of payments made on-time.
    2. The average age of open credit lines.
    3. Open credit card utilization.
    4. Total number of open accounts
    5. A number of derogatory marks.
    6. A number of hard credit inquiries.

The first step towards improving your credit score is to set up a free account with CreditKarma.com. This is the best tool I have found to see all of my open and closed accounts, see any payment issues, review my credit card utilization, and see any questionable issues such as late payments, derogatory remarks, or credit inquiries.

They also give suggestions for credit cards and loans that may be better than what you currently have. I have also used information in this site to close accounts I no longer want to keep open. Once you have your free CreditKarma account setup – you’re ready to begin improving that credit score!

  1. Review your personal information such as names, addresses, and employment history.  If you have been through a divorce and you have joint accounts – be sure to close all of these accounts.  You can always get an account in just your name.
  2. Review all the accounts that are open for accuracy.  
    • Does the credit limit and balance look correct?
    • Are there any missing payments?
  3. Check the credit card utilization.  You may be asking what is credit card utilization…that is how much of the credit limit are you using.  Example: Your credit limit is $2,000 and your balance is $1,800 – you are using 90% of your credit limit so that is your utilization for that card.   If you are using more than 50% and you are in good standing with the credit card company you might call and ask for them to increase your limit. This is not so you can charge more to the card!  This is to improve your credit card utilization. Any card with greater than 30% utilization could have a negative effect on your credit.
  4. Look at any loans you may have, could you improve your rate?  Could you consolidating your loans at a lower rate? If you can, but then still pay the same amount you were paying on the other loans – you will pay off your debt much faster.  This can reduce your debt to income ratio which will always improve your credit worthiness.
  5. Once you’ve reviewed the above items answer these questions:
    • Are there any late payments?  Can those accounts be closed? I’m still trying to determine if closing an account that you had a late payment on will improve your credit score.  If you have the answer to this question – please comment! I would love to know this.
      • Be careful closing accounts that have are among your oldest because this could lower your credit score.  They do use the average age of your accounts in the credit score calculation.
      • Look at the hard credit inquiries.  Something my daughter and I experienced while she was looking at cars was a car dealership recording multiple hard credit inquiries. We believe that the unnamed dealership was upset because she looked at buying a car from them but changed her mind. At that time it appears they checked her credit 5 times that week.  This did affect her credit because she was only 23 at the time and didn’t have much credit history. Luckily the hard credit inquires don’t affect your credit if you have good credit already unless you have over 10 inquires.  These hard credit inquires drop off your credit history after two years. When creditors see multiple hard credit inquires it can cause some concern but it is up to each lender how much that plays into their decision to give the loan.
  6. Anything that looks incorrect – you can work with the credit reporting agencies by writing a letter to dispute any error.  The letter should include exactly what you are disputing, the information provider of the incorrect information, and your contact information.  Send the letter to the credit agency reporting the error. You should also send a copy to Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. More on that here.

None of these items are difficult and can all be done within minutes.  Be sure to set up alerts on Credit Karma so you will receive an email when anything changes with your credit score.  This is very helpful because then if there is a hard credit inquiry you will know right away. As time passes and you’re making your payments on time the negative credit information will fall off your report.  If you had bad credit habits – you can change those habits and improve your credit score over time. There is no better time than the present to work on this. Once I got on track I have been able to maintain a score of 780.  Considering that 10 years ago it was 635, this is proof it can be done.

Do you have a story to tell about your credit?  Have you had any credit situations to overcome? If so – I’d love to get your take on improving your credit score.  I am always looking for suggestions because people ask me how I did it and I’m happy to share my experience.

Best Savannah Itinerary
, ,

Best Savannah Itinerary for a weekend

Our weekend started on Friday morning.  We had both worked extra hours during the week so we could take Friday off from work.  We live in Charlotte so it’s a four and a half hour drive to Savannah. We got into town around 12:30 and we headed straight to The Olde Pink House.

I had made reservations but we were early and they were able to seat us early.  We sat in one of the front rooms decorated in icy blue with peach colored curtains.  My husband ordered the salmon salad and I order the fresh catch tacos because they were swordfish and I love swordfish!

The waitress was very nice and gave us a lot of history about the house. I asked if the tavern would be open for us to see – I had read about the history of the house and wanted to see it if possible.  She said we were free to walk around to see the whole house and be sure not to miss the ballroom.

They brought our plates out to us after a short wait.  The salmon salad had a huge filet and looked very good.  My tacos were deconstructed on a wooden slab – not exactly what I expected.   The tacos were good the fish was not dry as I thought it might be since it was exposed (?), if that’s the right way to put it.  There was guacamole so it was all good. David said his salmon salad was very good, it was all arugula and the salmon was cooked very well.

After we finished our lunch we went upstairs and there were quite a few rooms for dining up there as well.  The ballroom was amazing! It had mirror-lined walls and so many chandeliers – it was very elegant and it was set up for a wedding reception later that day.  The room also had a fireplace that was beautifully decorated where the flowers on it matched the centerpiece flowers on the tables. It was a magnificent place for a wedding reception – so very elegant.

Next, we went down to the tavern.  There was a shadow box that had some historical pieces that had been found over the years during remodeling.  I was anxious to see the tavern. Our waitress had told us about the mansion being used as a bank in 1865, it housed the first bank chartered in Georgia.  A vault had been built in the cellar during that time. It now houses their wine storage. There is also a table for two in there and you can schedule to have dinner in that little room.  I loved seeing the bar which has been there since the prohibition era. I highly recommend this as a stop during your visit to Savannah.

Next, we checked into our hotel and then we started walking along Broughton Street which is full of restaurants and shops.  It’s a fun place to spend some time and money.

For dinner that evening I had made reservations at Collins Quarters.  What a cool restaurant! See pics – very cool bar and I loved the décor.  I had branzino served with a risotto cake and roasted tomatoes. It was delicious.   My husband, adventurous eater that he is, had salmon quinoa salad. It must have been good – he ate almost all of it and it was a lot of food.  

After dinner we went out and walked for an hour or two, most of the stores were closed so we took this time to look at the squares and monuments. Suddenly ice cream sounded good so we walked over to Broughton Street and found Leopold’s Ice Cream.

The line was ridiculous but it moved quickly. Soon we were inside ordering our ice cream. Everything looked good from their menu but we both decided on an ice cream sundae.

Their menu is substantial in that it has a lot of options for ice cream sundaes, banana splits, and ice cream sodas but they also have a café menu with sandwiches, soup, and coffee drinks.

The dining room area is like an old-fashioned parlor and they have a lot of movie posters of movies filmed in Savannah. There is also a working jukebox with old songs. But you go for the ice cream so enjoy it – it’s delicious!

After we enjoyed our ice cream we walked over to Bay Street where there are restaurants, bars, and touristy shops. We walked over to the City Market area and listened to some live music and made our way along the shops.

There is a place called the Tree House there and it seemed to be filled with people enjoying the night without inhibitions if you know what I mean! We made our way to the hotel and slept soundly after all that walking.

The next morning we had brunch reservations at The Ordinary Pub. I wish there had been a good way to get a picture of their sign. It’s a restaurant built into the basement of a very old building. They lovingly kept what they could and created an authentic experience with the atmosphere and food. Stained glass and lighting fixtures were made by local artists. The concept is minimalistic and lets the original brick and mortar shine throughout. They are becoming well known for the brunch and bottomless mimosas.

After fueling up we took on the shopping on Broughton Street. Many unique boutique shops are worth mentioning here. Custard Boutique is not far off Broughton on Whitaker Street. They feature a lot of Made in America clothing, handbags, and jewelry. Plus they have a website if you want to check that out. Red Clover Boutique is on Bull Street. They have unique clothing here and it’s worth checking out. There are also many other shops – I enjoyed the Spartina store because I had never seen one before. And I bought something at Kendra Scott to remember our trip. There are a lot of designer shops but still enough independently owned boutiques to keep it interesting.

ShopSCAD is a store selling items produced by students of Savannah College of Art and Design. The store has art, jewelry, home décor items, and accessories. It’s fun to walk around and see what they are coming up with product-wise but also what materials they are using to create their designs.

I had read about the Paris Market for the last couple of years but had never been. It was a nice little shop but I may have been expecting too much. However, I did find a really great shop that had a great selection of home décor items, Yeti, Spartina, custom furniture, jewelry, hostess serve ware, bath /body products, and too many other things to mention.  One Fish, Two Fish (onefishstore.com) has so much to offer and the owner is so nice. I was blown away by the selection and what they had to offer. They were also voted best home accessory store by Savannah Magazine earlier this year!  

If you’re into décor and design be sure to stop by 24e Design Company on Broughton. They won the Arts Award for #1 single location retailer in the nation. 2 steps into the store and you know it’s different than any other furniture and design store you’ve been in and you’re hooked. I was making what I thought was a quick stop but I couldn’t stop looking at everything! Be sure you go upstairs too because the landing has a very unique setting you don’t want to miss. So much to see that you can’t catch it all in one trip through the store.

Vic’s on the River was where we had dinner that evening. The food was very good as was the service and it’s right over River Street. I enjoyed the sea scallops which were perfected seared and served with citrus risotto.

My husband had the crab cakes which were served with parmesan risotto. Afterwards, we went down to River Street and walked around and did some shopping and people watching. I found another boutique which had a good offering of clothing made in America called Missing Pieces.

The shop owner was very nice and said he preferred to carry apparel made in USA. No trip to Savannah would be complete without a trip to buy pralines – irresistible!

We boarded the ferry over to Hutchinson’s Island, where the Westin Savannah Harbor Resort is located across the Savannah River. We walked along the riverfront and then went into the Westin’s lounge and had a drink to enjoy the view of Savannah. Before it got dark we took the ferry over to River Street.

To watch the sunset, we walked to The Bohemian Hotel and walked into the lobby. We went up to the rooftop to Rocks on the Rooftop, a bar with a terrace over the river. There we got a table outside and watched the sunset. We stayed to enjoy the lights of the city for a while before walking back to our hotel.

The next morning we walked to Good Feathers Café for breakfast – it’s quick and dependable. Then we walked to Adventure Tours in Motion for our Segway tour of Savannah. My husband and I recently discovered how much fun it is to ride Segways and now we do it wherever we can. We didn’t really need a tour – we’ve been here a few times – we just wanted to ride the Segways.

Next we toured the Isaiah Davenport House Museum built in 1820. It has survived almost 200 years and it is beautiful inside and out. It’s a good way to see how they lived back then and to hear how the house survived almost town down in the 1950s.

After our tour we walked over to B. Matthew’s Eatery on Bay Street for lunch. We split the vegetable strudel and the kale salad (although we swapped the kale for arugula). Both dishes were very good and we ate all of both – we had worked up and appetite. Then we headed home!

Here are some things we have done on past trips:

steps to saving money icon
,

Top 10 Steps to Saving Money

We would all like to have more money in our savings account – there’s no denying that.  But how can we make it happen? There are little changes you can make that will add up if you stick with it. Personally, I followed this top 10 steps to saving money.

I have found the best way of saving money is to set a goal. My job requires I utilize Microsoft Excel so this is easy for me.  But if you have any type of spreadsheet application on your computer you can use it.

Step 1:  Document your goal!  In your spreadsheet – type what your goal is for saving this money.  Then add what you will do with the money once you achieve the goal. If you think it will help enter a few words about how you will feel once you reach your goal, proud…encouraged to save more….etc.

Step 2:  Write up your plan to save the money.  What will you give up or sacrifice to meet this goal? This part is amazing to me because some people think that stopping at Starbucks each day or a few days a week is a necessity.  

I stop at Starbucks when I’m traveling for work or I’m on vacation. Starbucks is a treat for me and I like it that way. I make coffee at home daily and I have an espresso maker that I use on weekends.  So I spend about $70 cents a day during the week and $2-$3 a day during the weekend for my espresso.

I don’t need to tell you how much more it is at Starbucks, we all know what it costs to get coffee there and that’s if you say no to all the bakery items!  

Back to Step 2:  Can you give up making vending machine purchases?  Take your lunch to work each day? Eat out less during the week and weekend?  How about a few meals without meat?

During my divorce, I had zero money for groceries.  I remember having to ask my parents if I could borrow $50 for groceries. The kids and I lived on peanut butter sandwiches and meatless spaghetti.

 And guess what – we still love peanut butter and spaghetti. We all look back on those days and realize it was a price we were willing to pay for our freedom.  It’s all in how you approach it with your kids.

I made it a positive thing and the kids look back and feel the same way. We laugh about it and think fondly of those days when we were learning a new life.

Step 3:  Commit to this plan but letting others know you are doing it – that makes it real and accountable.  You aren’t going to tell people about it and then fail – right? You don’t have to share all the details but let a few people know so in case you think of slipping while shopping – you have a friend there to pull you back to reality.

Step 4:  Cut out the extras that you don’t really need.  I recently became alarmed at what I was spending at Amazon each month.  The first thing I did was go change my Subscribe and Save to things that I really can’t get for less anywhere else.  Check Jet.com and Walmart.com (ewww – I know) because these are two companies that are jumping at the chance to beat Amazon’s prices.

It takes a little homework but you can comparison shop online easier than going to the stores to comparison shop.

Another place to cut cost is all the automated billing that hits your debit or credit card each month. If you have monthly subscriptions to Netflix but you aren’t using it – cancel it! If you are getting Birchbox and you aren’t seeing the benefit of spending that $10 each month – cancel it!  Today we see these subscriptions for everything – even Fabletics!

The responsibility is on you to ensure you are getting the benefit of these subscriptions.  Take a good hard look at your statements – you may be surprised how much money is being spent each month on these types of things that aren’t necessary.

Something else to look at – insurance.  I had a boss who was always telling us to go ahead and switch to a higher deductible and pay less for car and homeowners insurance.  If you take the money you’re saving on having a higher deductible – you can save up and keep that deductible in savings in the event you ever need it.  Doing this long-term makes sense because you will save significant money each year over having that low deductible.

Step 5:  Take a few minutes each day to look at your progress on your spreadsheet file.  How are you doing? Can you do more? Are you on track to meet your goal? What would it take to exceed your goal?  By taking time out each day to think about it – you will be less likely to spend money that should go into your savings because you are accountable.

side job image

Step 6: Are there ways you can make extra income to help meet or exceed your goal?  Sometimes we have extra “stuff” sitting around that could easily be sold for cash. Some examples: last year’s designer purse you just had to have, clothing, shoes, electronics, furniture, household items, and kitchen electronics.  Setup an account on EBay and sell that crap. It’s not doing you any good in your closet! Plus it will help you to meet or exceed your goal!

Step 7: Take on extra work or side hustle.  This is becoming more and more common. Back in the 80s and into the 90s it wasn’t unusual to have a part-time job in addition to a fulltime job.  Now it’s trending again so don’t be weird or embarrassed about it.

There are too many ideas to write in here but there are a ton of part-time jobs depending on your skills.  Just to name a few – bartending (probably not a good idea if you have a family), photography, cleaning, pet sitting/walking, tutoring, Uber/Lyft driver, caregiver, handyman, and event planner.

Okay – I know those were all over the place but it’s just to name a few and maybe jog your memory of something you can do to earn some extra cash.

Step 8:  Stop eating out so much!  A year or so ago my daughter and her husband took a look at their finances to see where all their money was going.  Come to find out they were spending between $250-$300 a week on eating out. That’s around $1200 a month! Now they just eat out maybe once a week and do carry out once a week.  

Just doing carry out can save you money if you pick it up yourself because you don’t order drinks with takeout (or you shouldn’t) and you don’t have to pay taxes (in some states) or a tip.  My daughter loves to cook so it was crazy that she wasn’t doing it.

You can also sign up for a meal plan service such as CookSmarts.com. They only charge $6-$8 per month and you can personalize your menu each week according to your preferences.  This is a great way to plan ahead because the meal service also creates your shopping list for the week.

It’s so easy and they let you try it for 3 weeks for free to see if it will work for you and your family. Yes it’s a subscription service but if you are one of those people who says every night – what can I make for dinner – I highly encourage you to check it out.  Also, you can cancel it at any time, no contract.

Step 9:  Take your cell phone bill and either go into the store or call them.  There have been radical changes to the cell phone data plans at all the carriers.  We recently went and for less money per month, we were able to switch all the lines (that’s 6 lines in all) to unlimited data.  Just set aside an hour and do it – you will be glad you did!

shocked with credit card bill image

Step 10: Don’t carry cash or credit cards, only your debit card.  This way you will only spend money you actually have available and you will be less likely to spend it if you don’t have it.  Only keep your credit card for emergencies or for travel.

I want to encourage everyone to keep a separate credit card for online use.  There are so many scams and this is a rule I have followed since online shopping started.  I have a Paypal account that I use whenever it’s available. If it’s not available – I use the same credit card my Paypal account uses where I earn cash back on every purchase.  

I review my online account every week and make sure there are no charges I don’t recognize. My Paypal account alerts me every time I use my Paypal account. This way in the event of my credit card number being stolen – I would know right away.  

I have been told by several professionals in the banking industry that you should never use your debit card online because they don’t have the same protection as a credit card. If your money is taken out of your account via a debit card – you are less likely to get the money back if it’s a stolen card.  

Hopefully, this list has helped you think outside the box on saving money/spending less money.  We all face financial crisis at points in our life – save this so you can come back to it later as you need it. Best of luck to you in all money matters!