Road Trip (part 2) ▷▷

Hey guys! I hope you all are having an amazing and productive week! I promised a part 2 to my trip to Cleveland. If you have not read part 1, I hope that you will do so, as it will give you a little preview to why I was there. This part of the blog is dedicated to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and our little jaunt to A Christmas Story house. 

So let's begin, shall we? ❤︎

As in part 1, you were able to see the B&B that we stayed in, which was quite relaxing and very nice. We actually found out from a local person that we were only less than a mile away from A Christmas Story house (where they filmed it). Ya know, "you'll shoot your eye out kid," and the infamous leg lamp. Actually, my favorite part of the movie is where Ralphie says the F bomb (not fudge) haha!  It's all funny to me, and one of my favorite Christmas movies. 

We thought since we UBERED everywhere, why not again. I know... it's less than a mile, but we had no idea how to get there exactly, so why not meet another UBER driver. 

When we arrived at the house, it was so weird to see it in person. It was so perfect and well manicured... and no SNOW! They also have a little gift shop and museum across the street with all of the filming photos, garments worn, etc... so cool! 

A Christmas Story House

As you look closer, you can see the "leg lamp," or his "major award!" As we entered the house, we had a tour guide that showed us the various rooms and then let everyone wander on their own. It was fun trying to imagine each scene as we were looking through each room. 

The living room where they sat and opened presents... it was difficult to get a lot of pictures, as there were people all over trying to do the same. Just look at that TREE!! I can't wait to decorate for Christmas now. 

A fun fact: we were told that Ralphie's little brother Randy was given the part in the movie based on his contagious laugh! I can still hear it. (Remember when he would not eat his mashed potatoes... that laugh tho). 

You were not getting out of this blog without viewing the "leg lamp!" Very funny and creepy indeed. 

Moving right along... a different day, we decided that since we were downtown Cleveland-- why not go to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame! I was so excited... perhaps, I ran all the way there. Geeeeeeee!!! 

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame 

As we entered this amazing building that was about 5 floors tall... this is what I immediately was drawn to... isn't it beaut-iful? ▽▽

It literally took 3-4 hours to go through this exciting place... the music that was blaring throughout was sooo amazing as well. I miss it already. As we were wandering through each floor, I stumbled upon the Beatles... my Dad is a huge fan! My favorite display of theirs was seeing the drum set and organ. Elvis had a huge display as well... he actually dominated them all (of course)!  Please excuse the reflections in the cases and other people in the pictures... hah! It was extremely busy there, and hard to snap a pic. 

Then-- a little bit of MJ. :) I was literally inches away from touching the sequin glove and what he wore at the Grammys when he received a ton in 1984. By the way, as we were carefully strolling and spotted the "glove," we noticed the guard sitting behind us. We had to behave...

And finally-- the whole reason for visiting this amazing city with wonderful people... SHAKLEE (#1 Wellness company in the United States, and the reason for myself being healthy and happy all the time). It's a pretty amazing company. Here we are... (a tad on the blurry side).  Hehe. 

I really hope you enjoyed these past few posts on the road trip to Cleveland. I learned so much in this quaint little city, and also learned a lot about others.  If you ever get a chance to travel here... do it! It has improved so much in the past 5-10 years. The people are wonderful, and the the history is like no other. 

Take care, 

Jennifer 💕

   Road Trip (part 1) ▷▷

   

Hi guys, I'm back! The road trip was so amazing and very fun, but it's nice to get home again. We traveled to a Shaklee conference in Cleveland, OH for 5 days. I have to be completely honest-- when I first heard that the yearly conference would be in Cleveland- I was not too excited. But... I have to tell you that I would travel back again anytime! I promised some blogs on the trip, so this is the first part. Hope you enjoy them, and they are not too boring. 

We left at 4 am from Superior, Wisconsin and traveled to Cleveland, Ohio going through 6 states total. We drove for around 15 hours (I would NOT recommend this). To keep myself an optimist, we stopped at a few places to stretch, grabbed some food, and just marveled at the amazing things we haven't seen before. We did bring some good snacks in the car such as popcorn and nutrition bars... I was NOT going to sit and munch on junk food the entire car trip! I also apologize in advance if the pics look a tad blurry... it was a challenge snapping a pic at times. 

After the many hours of driving and sightseeing and driving again, we finally arrived around 12 am.  We actually found a B&B through the app AirB&B (very helpful) and was so happy that it was a cute little apartment complete with a kitchenette, dining area, laundry, bathroom and 2 bedrooms. It was so cozy and complete, and in a good neighborhood!

Our little apartment was walking distance from downtown Tremont, which was very nice.   Cleveland has little neighborhoods instead of cities. There are so many charming shops, eateries, and super nice local folk. The locals would stop to say hello and ask us where we were from... so refreshing! We also used UBER a lot! For those wondering, it's an app that you download, when you are ready to go out- you open the app, text where you want to be picked up-- and one of the drivers will arrive in lighting speed time! Our first driver was there within 2-3 minutes! The app also gives the name of the driver, make of car, and how much time it takes to pick you up. Pretty amazing! The price of the ride is not too bad either. 

Cleveland is really a beautiful city! They are home to the Cleveland Indians, Cavaliers and Browns. It is the second largest city in Ohio and sits on beautiful Lake Erie. Actually, we felt quite at home-- as our home in Wisconsin sits on one of the other Great Lakes... Lake Superior. Cleveland has a population of around 390,000 and is very multicultural. The gigantic pic below in downtown Cleveland is of LeBron James, who plays in the NBA for the Cavaliers. 

The Cleveland Public Auditorium was where most of our meetings were held, and it just happens to be the auditorium where the Rock and Rock Hall of Fame inductions are held! I was so excited to sit and marvel at the STAGE. We also knew that we would probably be visiting the Rock and Rock Hall of Fame the next day! It was very hard to control the excitement level of someone who loves music so much!

The stage!!! OMG! (I know- I'm so dramatic)!  ▲ ▲ ▲ 

Now, this week was designated to meetings and such, but we did find some downtime to shop, eat, and visit a few places. First of all, there was an amazing place downtown by our convention center called Cleveland Steakhouse. And yes, I got the best dang salad ever... at. a. steakhouse. It was fancy and very filling! The atmosphere was artsy and modern, and the staff was wonderful! 

There was this quaint little coffee shop on the corner of where we were staying. It is called Civilization, and they made us a mean Iced Mocha Malt. The shop used to be an old bar, as you can see the long part where people used to sit. They also served a few baked goods and lunch specials. Again, the staff was wonderful and helpful. 

                          

                         

We decided to take a short walk to the local Pizza place called Crust (I just love the name)! This eatery is very small but creates some pretty delicious pizza! We decided to try a slice or two or eight, and each slice is the size of a small pizza! Whoa! Yes, usually 98% of the time, I do eat organic and good food... but, I had to try this, and I was sorta on vacation too! Who could deny all this deliciousness?! Yes indeed ... I walked and walked and walked the million calories off. I'm still dreaming of this pizza. 

I wanted to end this post with something truly amazing... downtown Cleveland at night! We were fortunate enough to be invited to a special small business party on the rooftop of a condo to look for the meteorite showers and stars!  Lucky! The top of the building changes colors too... it was truly magical and breathtaking. ❤︎

I hope you all have an amazing weekend and enjoyed this first part of the road trip. The next part of the blog will be up next week!!! Rock n' Roll Hall of Fame baby! 

Take care,

Jennifer ❤︎

Organic and Natural Snacking ❤︎

Hello lovelies! First, I wanted to let you know that I won't have a post up next Friday, as we will be in Ohio for a seminar! But... you bet that I will be blogging the trip. I may do like a part 1, part 2, etc... 

I do hope that you are having an amazing week so far! It's been a cooler week here in Wisconsin... thank goodness! We were having some temps in the 90's! Us Northerners are not used to that at all! Anyways, the cooler weather feels a little better. 

Today, I will be sharing some fun organic and natural snacking ideas. We all encounter our stomachs growling numerous times during the day and wanting an immediate filler. Naturally, when I used to work at the mall, I would love to run and grab a super high cal iced drink along with chips or cookies. It would fill me up for a few hours, but then I crashed...bad! I know you all have been here, done that.  

Don't get me wrong... I still adore my favorite high cal snacks once in awhile, and why not? My favorite motto, "everything in moderation." So go ahead, and have a slice or two of that super fattening pizza with everything on it or that coffee ice-cream (my favorite). I just believe that there are other alternatives snack-wise that can energize our bodies a little bit more, and perhaps you will even start to like them...maybe?

Now, I just randomly grabbed some snacks that we currently have in the cupboards... I do love to shop at Whole Foods where there is a plethora of good things. I am finding that many of the snacks are very reasonably priced, if not cheaper than the regular fatty chips and cookies. You don't have to shop at Whole Foods to find yummy snacks that go together. Smarter choices = a fuller and more satisfied tummy. Eating good does not have to be depressing. 

Grab something healthy to drink and let's explore some snacks...

❤︎  Annie's White Cheddar Bunnies... these things are really good! They also come in sour cream and onion and a few other flavors. There is a ton in each bag so you feel like you are getting a lot more for your buck. No artificial flavors, colors or synthetic preservatives. Non-GMO, and the cheese is from cows not treated with the growth hormone rBST as well.

❤︎  Nature's Path Cherry Pomegranate Toaster Pastries (AKA, pop tarts).  Okay, these are so good that I hardly even remember that I'm eating something USDA organic. They even have real organic fruit in them... non-GMO and fair-trade as well. Actually, the maple flavored ones are amazing too, but we can't find them as often. 

❤︎  abound Greek Yogurt Covered Raisins... free from artificial preservatives and flavors. These are really sweet and delicious, and the yogurt delivers probiotic cultures that support the immune system. Win-win, and we found them at CVS. 

❤︎  Shaklee 180 Toffee & Chocolate Crunch Snack Bar - these little snacks contain 9 grams of protein and 3 gram of fiber. They also are my favorite snack bars... they are chewy and have bits of toffee and chocolate chips. My two favorite! You can only get these from a Shaklee distributor... ▶︎▶︎ look to the right and click the Shaklee link if interested in these gems. 

If you don't feel like purchasing these items, you can make your own snacks just as easy. 

❤︎  How about some low-fat crackers or carrots with a dressing that is also low in fat. I love the organic Marzetti dressings, especially bleu cheese. Yum. You can choose any veggie that you love. 

❤︎ Or how about fruit such as an organic apple and cinnamon... it makes a great snack and is filling. This is my favorite Fall snack.. 

These ideas are only suggestions, and you can switch things up if you don't like what I have mentioned.  We are not re-inventing any wheel by any means ... just trying to get creative with ordinary things that we may have in our fridge or cupboard.  

Hope you have an amazing weekend! 

I'm hungry now talking about all these snacks. Hmmm... what shall I have now? 

Take care, 

Jennifer ❤︎