Good morning everybody and welcome to The Balancing Act.
We're so glad you joined us.
I'm Julie Moran.
And I'm Olga Villaverde.
Alright, the first full week of the new year is almost over, and how you doing with those
resolutions, baby?
Failing!
I knew you were going to say that.
But I'm failing, too.
So, we're in this together.
We are.
And speaking of together, we've got some motivation for your health and money goals, like that.
Like that.
Plus, travel tips and tips on moving forward with your next act.
This is a new year and a new you.
We're so glad you're here with us.
It all starts right now.
But I'm trying…
You're trying.
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Are you ready for your second act?
Well, we start the show with a woman who made a life changing decision for the better.
Take a look.
So you may be saying, "Yes, I know it's a new year, but I'm still dealing with last
year's problems."
Well, if that's the case, we've got great news for you this morning.
You may be in the perfect circumstance to make a major decision that could dramatically
change your life for the better.
You don't believe me?
Wait until you meet my next guest.
I love her!
In 1997, while going through major personal change, Shanna Peeples made the life changing
decision to go back to college.
And the rest, as they say, is history.
Good morning.
So excited to have you.
Thank you.
Alright, so you go back to college at what age?
About 31.
Wow.
And that's not an easy decision.
Tell me what happened.
You're 31 and?
I'm 31 and I decide that I'm a reporter, and I'm covering schools, and I'm in these schools.
And the more I'm with these kids, the more I think I want to work with these kids not
write about these kids.
And so I went back to school at West Texas A&M University.
And I wasn't 18 anymore.
And that was very apparent.
You had children?
Right.
Two kids and a single mom.
And so yeah, very very tough.
So, I'm thinking to myself, "Okay, two kids, a single mom, you have so much to do and offer
your children, finances for that matter."
It must have been frightening.
It was.
And that's the great thing about a school that's small enough to feel like home but
big enough to give you these great experiences, which is what happened for me.
And I was the first person in my family to go to college.
So, my professors were really kind of like champions for me.
They were the ones who were able to say, "Go here.
Do this.
Try this."
And was it hard, Shanna, to kind of like reinvent yourself, if you will?"
Oh sure!
Because, again, you're not 18.
Sure.
You're surrounded probably by teenagers.
Oh yeah.
You're in a university.
Yes.
Well, and it's hard because that does sort of scare you a little bit, but I think that
they make it very safe there.
And, you know, that safety builds your confidence, it builds your self-image.
And you think, "I can do this.
This is something I can do."
So, you get your degree then at West Texas A&M, and then what?
You become a… 7th grade teacher.
Middle school.
Yeah.
Oh my goodness, middle school!
How is that?
Scary.
Really scary.
Way scarier than college.
And I cried every day my first week of teaching and thought I wanted to get my job back.
And then six years later when I went to teach high school, I cried because I thought I'll
never love anything like I love these kids.
But fast forward, and I'd love my viewers to know this right now, fast forward years
later.
You are awarded the 2015 National Teacher of the Year.
Yeah.
Tell me about that moment when you get the call.
Well, it's crazy.
I was actually in a meeting that was very sad, and so I got this call and I couldn't
believe it.
And then they said, "But you can't tell anybody for six weeks because we've got to get things
together."
So, it was like they said, "We need you to swallow this helium balloon and act like everything
is normal."
Tell me about that day.
You were with the President.
Yes.
It's really amazing because the President brings everyone to the Rose Garden, and it's
54 teachers from all the territories and all of the states, and he really honors the work.
And, you know, you can just see everybody smiling and everybody's so proud to represent
this profession, you know.
And then for him to call me out special is even more amazing.
And then you had tea with him?
Yes.
Oh my gosh.
What was that like?
That was crazy.
Well, it wasn't planned, and his security was not happy about it at all.
At all!
What was it like meeting him?
He is amazing.
He is so focused, and engaged, and present.
I mean, and he just happens to be the President of the United States.
Just a minor detail.
Talking to me, you know, from Palo Duro High School in Amarillo.
And I did my research because I am a former reporter, like you are, and I looked this
up and this is the oldest and highest honor any teacher in the United States can receive.
And I believe we have some great video of students of West Texas A&M honoring you.
Let's take a look.
Ms. Peeples was the first teacher that believed in me that I could like, like, get into those
big schools and that I wasn't' dumb.
And for someone to believe in me when I didn't believe in myself at the time that I could,
like, achieve these goals.
She also help me find myself.
As a person, she would use her gifts as a writer, as a teacher, and basically as a mother
that I never had.
I think that she's an amazing person.
I think she's a fantastic woman and somebody that all women can look up to.
I think she's a great mother and I think more than anything a fantastic educator.
And that's why she is where she is.
Oh man, I've learned so much from her.
She's just, she's amazing.
Just the way that she interacts with the students.
Everybody loves Shanna.
It's kind of impossible not to.
Do you love it?
Well, it's crazy.
Well, you know, going back and I do want to end with the fact that you really are an inspiration.
There are so many people I hear a lot saying it's just too late, I don't have the time,
I can't juggle everything.
And you are the epitome of the example.
What would you say to anybody out there that says, "Well, you know, maybe West Texas A&M
would be good for me but I just can't right now?"
I would say, you know, Eleanor Roosevelt says you have to do the thing that scares you because
that's where the good stuff is.
And it is scary.
Reinvention is scary, but you can do it.
And I say your dreams matter and you matter.
I also noticed you have a beautiful necklace there.
I have to just ask you what is it?
It says TY of 15.
Teacher of the Year 2015.
My family gave it to me for Christmas.
So, it's very special.
They must be so proud of you.
Yes, very much.
And you being that example, as all mothers want to be, to their children.
They must look up to you and say, "Way to go, mom!"
Well, you know, I think they probably do, just not in front of me.
(Laughter).
Thank you so much.
Good luck to you, again.
Congratulations.
Thanks for being here.
And God bless you for that middle school and high school calling that you have.
(Laughter).
That's where my daughter is today.
Thank you.
Of course, January is a great time to enroll, so login to WTAMU.EDU or go to our website,
TheBalancingAct.com.
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Coming up, financial hacks that will have you smiling all the way to the bank.
Stay with us.
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Join Olga as she shares tips for your next road trip, what to take so you can make your
adventure by car the most enjoyable and safe as possible.
Now You Know Travel Tips sponsored by TA and Petro Stopping Centers coast-to-coast, coming
to Lifetime Television and the Balancing Act.
It's morning TV made for a woman.
(music).
Welcome back, everybody.
It's the new year and saving money tops your to-do list.
No worries.
Our next guest has got you covered.
Thanks, Julie.
Financial Planning Associate, Daniela Ricaldone, from Meg Green and Associates is here, and
she's going to show us some great money saving life hacks.
Good morning.
Thanks for being here.
Thank you for having me.
Alright, so I have a few questions regarding some tips and some advice.
You ready?
Yes.
First one, I pack my lunch.
A lot of people here do not.
They go out.
They're spending a lot of money, right?
Absolutely.
And you would be surprised how much money they're actually spending.
If you're averaging about $15 a day on eating out to lunch…
Oh my gosh.
The annual savings right there would be $3,600.
Just for packing your own lunch?
That's right.
Alright, shopping online.
Can you really save there?
Shop online and get free shipping, okay.
This is a huge one.
There's so many ways to save.
You can use coupon codes up to $450 in savings right there.
That is so easy to do.
Alright, so what about credit cards?
I sometimes think, "Well, I should just keep one.
Maybe I should throw them all away."
A lot of people just owe so much with that.
Right.
And you want to stay away from cards with high interest, and you want to look for the
cards that offer cash back on purchases anywhere from 1% - 5%, no annual fee, and sign-up bonuses.
And by the end of the year, you can save up to $450.
That's a lot of money there.
Now, here's one that I'm always curious about.
Generic versus name brand?
I'll go get something and I'll see there is a difference.
I tend to grab the name brand.
You can save with the generic.
What do you say?
Yes, you can.
You can save an average of 25% per item with generic, and a family of four can save up
to $1,100 per year.
Wow.
And then I guess the last one would be the best way to track all these expenses, right?
It helps.
Absolutely.
It helps to keep track of what you're spending.
Make sure you have a budget.
Use technology that's available these days, and make sure that you're just awake and aware
and savvy.
A little bit truly can go a long way, Daniela?
Absolutely.
And if you wanted to go on that vacation, you most certainly can by following these
tips.
Well, it's really true because we went through five tips and with these five alone, we have
saved more than $5,000.
That's amazing! $5,000 is a lot of money.
It is, and it adds up, and you'd be so happy that you can have this extra money by the
end of the year for vacation or to put into your children's college funds.
Just be smart about it and be savvy.
Absolutely.
Thank you so much for your tips.
I appreciate it.
And if you'd like more information on these money saving life hacks and more, just logon
to our website TheBalancingAct.com.
Every penny counts.
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I tell you, so many great ideas.
Thanks, Olga.
And coming up, satisfying a snack attack with healthier choices.
(music).
Okay, admit it.
We've become a nation of snackers.
But as Olga discovered, that doesn't have to derail your plans to eat healthier.
(music).
I love that sound.
Throughout the day and sometimes night, we are snacking.
We have become a nation of snackers.
Now, most of us, it's said an estimated 94% snack at least once a day.
Wow.
And half of us snack 2-3 times a day.
Guilty.
And then we wonder where the extra weight gain comes from.
Well, if you're going to snack, be sure to grab the good stuff.
And lucky for us, Registered Dietitian, Heather Baer, is here to guide us for this New Year,
New You.
Good morning.
Happy New Year.
Happy New Year to you.
Okay, guilty.
I love to snack.
Guilty.
Confessions of a Dietitian.
Okay.
There you go.
I don't know if it's the time of month, when I was pregnant, when I'm nervous.
For whatever reason, I'll pick up chips or maybe some veggies.
That's what we do.
You know, boredom, exhaustion, for every other reason besides being hungry, we snack.
And the children.
My daughters dance about 21 hours a week.
They're always hungry.
And I get it.
I mean, they're burning so many calories.
Exactly.
But sometimes not snacking on the right stuff.
Right.
That's where you come in because we have to stay on the right track.
How do we do that?
You know, it's so important.
We want to be good role models.
We want to find the best kinds of snacks.
You know, one thing you want to really do is really be a strategic snacker and pick
healthy snacks.
A strategic snacker.
Yes, and you want to really think about what kind of snack is going to take the longest
but also be portioned controlled.
Some of my favorite snacks include things like frozen grapes.
I also like to take a greek yogurt and stick it in the freezer.
I do that.
It takes a while to eat.
You could take an apple, cut it up, and then get single serve packs of peanut butter.
I also like taking an orange.
You could freeze it and even put some cinnamon on it.
You know, that, again, it's a fun snack but it takes a lot longer to eat.
And it's great ways in terms of planning.
Now, what if you just kind of want to get the bag one.
Right.
Because everybody wants the bag one.
Exactly.
And those are not the most healthy, right?
Exactly.
I mean, well there are the bagged versions, but the thing is is that while we'd love to
have a garden in our backyard, I think busy people busy moms just like you and me, we
don't always have time to have that garden and pick it every single day.
So, when you're looking at packaged products, you want to make sure you look for that organic
seal, non-GMO stamp, but you also want to take a look at the ingredients.
By looking at things like high quality healthy ingredients such as olive oil, for example.
That's huge.
Rich in monounsaturated fat, it's heart healthy, antioxidants.
You want to take a look at even avocado oil is another great one.
You know, it's rich in unsaturated fats.
Even sweet potatoes, for example, could be in the ingredient, but that's rich in vitamin
C and other nutrients as well.
So, taking a look at those ingredients and making sure that you're getting the most out
of them is a great way to go when you're food shopping.
And you have a great spread for us this morning that really really gives us great options
out there.
What was it again?
What was the double "S" word you gave me?
Strategic Snaking.
Yes.
Alliteration.
Alright, so let's have some strategic snacking lessons.
You know, when you think about snacks, you want to think about not only the nutrition,
but you also want to think about the sodium and the calories and all those other parts
of it as well.
So, take a look at popcorn, right.
We've all heard about fiber.
What is fiber important for?
It's important because it helps us stay full, it helps us stay regular.
Well, popcorn is a really good source of fiber.
But the other beauty of good health popcorn is that it's low in calories.
Oh, that's awesome.
You know, you could have, one cup is only 25 calories.
One cup?
Five cups, 120 calories.
And the whole bag?
The whole bag, you know, it's like 220 calories.
So, if you want to go crazy, this one right here.
There's just a hint of olive oil.
So, again, you get that olive oil which is rich in the heart healthy monounsaturated
fat.
Good health popcorn.
Let me try this.
It's so good.
I'll try it, too.
Mmm!
It's good, right?
I love that.
And you know what, it just satisfies the crunch.
Exactly.
Mm-Hmm.
And you could portion that and put it in single serve bags, or you could go crazy and eat
a larger volume.
This one has flavoring.
This one is the buffalo version.
So, that gives you a nice little kick.
So, I like doing that, too.
Sometimes I'll put my own hot sauce on this one, but if you want more of a kick with popcorn,
that's a great way to go.
That was nice.
Now some people are concerned about sodium, right?
I'm not.
But I know some people are.
But some people are.
Now, apple chips is a great way to get your apple in when you can't get an apple.
These are Washington State apples.
Great.
Okay, Good Health Apple Chips.
They're very low in sodium, but they're also high in vitamin C. So, it's a good way to
get both of those in one.
What a great idea.
And my kids are really not an apple a day kind of girl, but this could be a great option.
That's a good way to get their apple in, in a chip.
Okay, I've got my eye on this.
So, these are the amazing veggie straws.
You know, we have all sorts of different ones.
There's veggie chips, veggie straws.The really amazing thing about these is that they're
a lot lower in fat than potato chips.
So, you get less fat but you also get all those nutrients.
You know, you've got broccoli and spinach and tomatoes and peppers.
And with a little jalapeño spice to it.
This one's got the little jalapeño spice, so you get a nice little kick.
It's also good for your metabolism.
Oh my gosh!
These are really good.
They're really good, but again, less fat than potato chips, but you're getting your nutrition
in for you and for your kids which is really great.
And you know, and you're satisfying a little snack desire that you have in the middle of
the day or the middle of the night.
Exactly which is such an important thing when we have that craving, right?
I love this.
And finally there's chips?
Now, we've got these chips, but they're different.
They've got a little different kick to it.
You know, we've got olive oil chips, which you know is really great again for those unsaturated
healthy fats that are good for our heart.
But we also have avocado chips which are really popular.
Avocados are rich in omega 3's, unsaturated fats.
So, again you're getting really good nutrition while you're eating your potato chips which
is, you know, it's always more fun when you can enjoy being healthy, right?
I love it.
With Good Health, you stay healthy.
Exactly.
Where can our viewers go for more information?
They can go to GoodHealthSnacks.com.
GoodHealthSnacks.com.
This was absolutely perfect for our New Year, New You.
New snacks!
Yes, so delicious.
And I've gotta tell you, they're wonderful but I've got --
Go for one more, go for one more.
So good.
It's always more fun when you can enjoy being good.
With strategic snacking!
With strategic snacking.
That's right.
Thank you very much.
Happy New Year.
Thank you.
Happy New Year.
Thanks for having me.
And for more information on healthier snacks, visit GoodHealthSnacks.com or our website,
TheBalancingAct.com.
Happy snacking!
Awesome!
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Now You Know Travel Tips.
When it's time for a road trip, it's time for a lot of fun and adventure.
You know, getting together with family, friends, making memories that will last a lifetime.
But the key, and I say it again, the key to any successful road trip is preparation.
So, what are some smart things to take along on your next road trip?
Let's take a look.
One of the most important items to have is a first aid kit.
You never know when a bandage, antibiotic ointment, moleskin pads, aspirin, even rubbing
alcohol will come in handy.
Water.
Seems pretty basic, so take plenty along.
Stay hydrated.
It will keep you alert and feeling good.
And don't forget snacks to munch on to keep you rolling along.
And, of course, a flashlight.
Things do happen at night.
And speaking of night, taking a blanket can keep your loved ones warm or it can let them
catch a snooze or two.
And let's not forget the car.
How about some basic tools: screwdriver, wrench, pliers, socket set.
These can really save you an expensive repair or just get you back on the road.
Check tire inflation before you leave and during the trip.
Make sure you have a tire gauge, too, a calibrated accurate one.
And always check that oil before you leave.
Simply locate the dipstick -- it's this -- and see if it reads full.
Running low on oil or anything, stop into a travel center along the way and pick up
what you need to get you back on the road.
And most of all, have fun and drive safe.
Bye!
Now You Know Travel Tips sponsored by TA and Petro Stopping Centers coast-to-coast.
Refill.
Replenish.
Refresh.
(music).
And thanks so much for watching, everybody.
Remember, check out our website and Facebook page, too.
That's right.
And don't forget New Year, New You.
See you next time.
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