TRAVELING TO NYC?

Via Inslee

NYC is such an amazing place to live. At times At times I feel like a tourist amongst all the new restaurants and activities the city constantly has to offer. We are extremely blessed to live in the greatest city of the world :). 

There are some places that I will visit again and again. You can find my favorite places on the "TRIED AND TRUE" tab (a list with a little bit of everything). The list is updated as I fall in love with a place, so please come by more often and check out what NYC has to offer through my taste buds!

I hope this guide can help in some way while you plan your next trip to the city. If you have any questions on where to visit or what NYC has to offer when you visit, feel free to email me and I will be happy to help. Welcome to NYC!

CLICK HERE FOR MY PERSONAL RECOMENDATIONS

xo
Meems

NEVER TOO EARLY FOR MEXICAN!

One of my absolute favorite cuisines, Mexican Food and Drink! Cinco De Mayo will be here on Monday and this weekend is the perfect time for a party or an excuse to make a really good show stopper of a drink.

Check this awesome Cilantro Jalapeno Margarita Recipe. Yes, Cilantro & Jalapeno all in one! 

Cilantro Jalapeno Margarita

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 10 minutes

Yield: 1

What You Will Need:

• sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon chili powder
• 1/2 ounce simple syrup
• 1 ounce Cointreau
• 2 ounces tequila
• 1 lime - juiced
• 1 jalapeno - halved, seeded
• handful fresh cilantro
• 1 lime - quartered

What To Do:

1. Place sugar and chili powder into a small shallow dish. Dip glass into simple syrup and then into sugar to create rim. Set aside.
2. Fill margarita glass with ice.
3. Into a shaker add simple syrup, Cointreau, tequila and lime juice. Shake to combine. Strain into glass.
4. Add jalapeno, cilantro and lime wedges.

{Via Paula Jones with bellalimento}

CLICK HERE TO CHECK OUT MY PREVIOUS CINCO DE MAYO POST

xo

Meems

MISS FRUGAL FANCY PANTS

Frugal. When you think of the word frugal, what comes to mind? Poor? Cheapskate? Tightwad?  Stingy?

“There is no dignity

quite so impressive,

and no independence

quite so important,

as living within your means.” 

― Calvin Coolidge

One of the biggest falsities against being “frugal” is that it restricts you from “living a good life.” Bologna. In fact, the more frugal your life the better your life can become! If you are an avid reader of my blog, you know that I love to save a penny! No, I'm not cheap. I've just become very particular with what I spend my money on. I place thought into my purchases and always look for a bargain. I like to see my money build not decline. Who doesn't?

fru·gal

  [froo-guhl]

adjective

1.

economical in use or expenditure; prudently saving or sparing; not wasteful Synonyms: thrifty, chary,provident, careful, prudent, penny-wise, scrimping; miserly, Scotch, penny-pinching. Antonyms:wasteful, extravagant, spendthrift, prodigal, profligate.

2.

entailing little expense; requiring few resources; meager; scanty: a frugal meal. Synonyms: scant,slim, sparing, skimpy. Antonyms: luxurious, lavish, profuse.

Here is a simple example of grocery shopping... and a "frugal" grocery shopping experience.

Let's say you have a budget of $100  for groceries. You head into your grocery store with your list of items and walk straight to the items needed.

You walk down the bread aisle,some of the breads cost $1 a loaf and others cost as much as $5 a loaf. When you examine the cuts of meat, some of the meats cost $2 per pound and others cost $8 per pound. When you look at the milk options, some of the milk costs $2.50 per gallon and others cost $7 per gallon. You could use virtually any product in this example.

At the end of the trip, though, you’ll find yourself with much more than $100 worth of stuff in your cart. 

So, how do you go about getting back under that $100 limit? Do you simply put back some of the items and do without? That’s a pretty miserable response. It doesn't feel particularly good to swap some of the items for cheaper versions, either. Those approaches are why frugality feels like you’re not “living life” – you have this sense of giving up things that you care about.

A truly frugal person takes a completely different approach to shopping.  & HERE IS HOW!

When a frugal person looks at the breads, that person decides whether or not expensive bread is actually important to them. Does it really matter much at all if I get the expensive bread or the cheap one? Does $5 bread signify a major life improvement over the $1 bread? Most likely, no....

Even more important than that, the frugal person asks themselves whether they’d rather take that $4 and use it to get better milk, coffee, or something else they care more about.

When I go to the grocery store, I’m extremely picky about the eggs that I buy. I prefer the free range eggs because they taste much better to me and are less likely to have lots of sulfur in the yolk. I’m willing to pay more for those eggs.

At the same time, I’m not particularly picky about the bread that I buy, as long as it’s whole wheat and low carb. Getting the great expensive bread doesn't add to the quality of my life in any significant way. So, I buy the cheap bread and the money I save helps to buy the expensive eggs while still keeping me under budget. {via the simple dollar}

My choice is to spend less on items I don't care all that much about so I can afford the items that I do care about.

Try using this idea and expand this into the rest of your life. For example, I personally don’t care about expensive jeans, the GAP makes perfect jeans for a fraction of the price of what I used to pay. This allows me to budget in the items I need to spend money on, such as professional work attire.

This is what Frugality is all about -  Smart spending!

Im not asking you to limit your life. I believe in doing so you are expanding on your happiness. Less money problems less stress!

Take the time and think about your purchases. You don't need the most expensive brand of water bottles or shampoo, but if those 2 items are truly what makes you happy then cut back on items you don't care about. Being frugal is all about balance. 

Please allow me to recommend one of my favorite books to help guide you in the process... click here

How do you live a frugal life? Are there certain items you would never be "frugal" with spending on? I'd love to hear!

xo
Meems

THOUGHTS....

QUALITY vs. QUANTITY Challenge

Hello! I have been in such a good mood the past few days, partly because I've overcome a few boulders that violently swept through my life the past few weeks (even months) and I rose above my obstacles. So yeah, I’m feeling really good right now. (It could also have to do with the fact that I’ve been consistently working out the past few months and I'm starting to feel like the healthy woman I used to be)

So, onto today’s post. There was "many a time or two" when I would shop to ease pain. Shop because I had money, shop because I needed it all. The older I get and the more confident I have become, I find the the less I need to shop for. As long as I have quality, abundance doesn't even take a back seat – abundance gets the boot! Quality in food, quality in relationships and friendships. But today's post, I'm talking about  quality in your closet.

I used to have this worry that if someone saw me in the same dress for an event, the sky would just fall. Ok, maybe I'm being a bit over dramatic but truthfully I felt like I had to wear something new to fit in with the “Jones's” or in today’s society… the Kardashian's.

I now recycle my wardrobe options and it pushes me to become creative with what I already own. click here for my previous post on how I do this

Here is the deal, I have a few dresses that I've had for ages and look great. I take care of these pieces and wear them differently each time. When the time comes up for an event, I don’t need to scramble and make a “trendy purchase” or put a dent on my bank account for a this event or that event. I go to my closet and without stress have the most perfect dresses to choose from. Dresses that look great on and and have been tailored for my shape. 

I'm talking about simplifying your wardrobe down to quality pieces.

What's stopping you from creating the wardrobe you want and actually dream about? Is it Fear? The fear of letting go, not having enough clothes? 

Go into your wardrobe and start shopping! Here is how to do this:

Invite your best friend over and make it a fun night. Blast music and sip on a cocktail (sip is the key word)

Empty your closet, shelves and drawers. One by one try every piece on. Label bags or boxes  “sell”, “keep”, “tailor” & “charity”.

If you are in doubt with your items and if your best friend is your size have her try on the “undecided pieces” to see if the item gets kept or given to charity, etc.

Once your bags/boxes have been filled, wipe your closet down. Vacuum the drawers and dust the shelves. Place scented satchels in the corners and start building your wardrobe with quality pieces from your “keep” pile. click here for how I organize my closet

Oh & most importantly read this statement below…. 

via the savvy life 

HOLY MOLY. Does that not make sense or what!?

You can create the wardrobe of your dreams. Keep to good quality pieces that can be interchanged and pieces that highlight your beautiful shape. Rid yourself of pieces that do not flatter and allow space for the good quality items.

The less you keep the more options you have and more outlets of creativity to come through. 

I hope this inspires you to go through your wardrobe and rid your clothing space of junk. I hope you take care of the quality pieces and allow more room for less. 

I'd love to know if you are taking this challenge on! If so, what steps worked for you in simplifying your wardrobe down to the quality pieces?

xo

Meems

click here for an earlier post to help with this process

THIS & THAT

Hope you all enjoyed the past weekend! We have been so busy entertaining and I've really been enjoying the whole process of it all. From preparations, to cooking and cleaning (yes, cleaning).

Our apartment is close to being finished and even though its not entirely done we are still able to host. 

Here are some random weekend shots....

My Caprese Salad

Sicilian Oranges - Drizzle a good o/o and a dash of salt and pepper for a refreshing appetizer.

My 1st poached egg over steak tomatoes and fresh basil! Look how nice my 1st attempt came out!

My new cheese plate from HomeGoods

& Me! Ive been working hard at the gym & eating healthy, finally its starting to show again:)
How was your weekend? Did you get outside and enjoy the spring weather?

xo
Meems