Ice Cream Treats at Riverbottom Ice Cream

Summer for my family usually means exploring ice cream! A couple of weeks ago, we tried Riverbottom Ice Cream Co. a local shop in Algonquin, Illinois that churns its own ice cream.  In addition to scooping up delicious ice cream, Riverbottom also is a coffee shop and has a whole range of coffee concoctions. I love the ice cream - coffee combo because there is a larger range of temptations depending on mood.

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Jolane's in Glenview Serves Up Delicious Home Cooking

Jolane's in Glenview is a great location for a family, home-cooked meal. We have celebrated a few family occasions there and find it to be a comfortable location if we want a meal with all the trimmings but not make it at home!

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Making Our Dinner Time Easy While Still Healthy with Meez Meals

**Disclosure: I did receive a complimentary experience with Meez Meals to bring you this review. No other compensation was received and all opinions are 100% my own.

We love preparing fresh, healthy meals each evening. But, some days our schedule can be a bit challenging. We have tried those "30 minute meal" recipes that are only 30 minutes if EVERYTHING is prepped for you. We have had quite a few frustrated evenings when recipes took much longer than planned thus giving us little time to enjoy the meal before heading to an activity. I am sure quite a few of you can relate! Meals should be a time to relax and share the day, not a source of aggravation.

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Sweet Temptations at Gigi's Cupcakes in Wilmette {& Giveaway 1/13/16}

**Disclosure: I received complimentary cupcakes in order to bring this review to you as well as a giveaway. No other compensation was received. All opinions are 100% my own.

Over the holiday break, we took a little excursion over to the new Gigi's Cupcakes in Wilmette. Who can resist a little sweet temptation, right? On any given day, Gigi's has 12-18 varieties of fresh cupcakes to choose from--most of them looking too beautiful to eat. But, with a 10-year-old in toe you must try at least one......just one....well...maybe more......

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Date Night Idea: Champagne Tastings Coming to Vin Chicago in December

**Disclosure: I have been invited to attend one of the Vin Chicago Champagne Tastings and will be reviewing the event. No other compensation has been received. All opinions are 100% my own.

As the holidays approach, many of us are thinking about what type of wines we should serve during holiday festivities. Celebrating certainly means popping a bit of bubbly! If you are unsure about how to choose champagne or are just curious about trying different champagnes and sparking wines, Vin Chicago's December Champagne Tastings are for you! Plus, what a fun date night! Selections will include some of the usual suspects like Dom Perignon and Bollinger but I am pretty excited to try a selection from Oregon! Here is a run down on the info for Champagne Tastings at each Vin Chicago location. Be sure to reserve a spot!

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VIN Chicago: Family Business Focusing on Hand Picked Wines {& a Giveaway 11/15/15}

**Disclosure: I did receive a gift card to experience Vin Chicago. No other compensation was received. All opinions are 100% my own.

One of the fabulous things about living in Chicago is that the entire area is a treasure trove full of unique and interesting finds to discover. This past week, I visited Vin Chicago for the first time and quickly learned that it is a wine store that truly stands out from the others. While my husband and I were excited to sip wines during Vin's weekly Saturday tasting, we were immediately captivated by the story behind Vin Chicago and developed an appreciation for their personalized approach to wine selection.

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Parents' Night Out: Elements Massage Client Appreciation Night June 27, 2015

Looking for an EXCUSE to GET OUT and be PAMPERED! Next weekend, Elements Massage in Palatine will be holding its annual Client Appreciation Night at Lamplighter Inn in Palatine. The event will be held on Saturday, June 27 from 5pm-9:00pm! While at the event, you will be able to shop local vendors and learn about special deals and packages. Enjoy complimentary mini services including mini facials, mini manis, massages and more! The fun also includes complimentary food, prizes, raffles, samples and more! Tasty beverages for be available for purchase. A great way to spend the evening and support local businesses--while pampering yourself!

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Xocai Healthy Chocolate: A Delicious Way to Help your Body {Review}

**Disclosure: We did receive complimentary product in order to perform an accurate review. No other compensation was received. All opinions are 100% our own.


Chocolate. The word stands alone. Hearing the word easily elicits a smile. When improving our health, we often begin by chucking treat foods. Chocolate is a food we enjoy and often consider one of those treats. However, research has shown that there is nutritional benefit to dark chocolate. Finally--a treat that may actually be helping us! Recently, we met with Michelle Myers, a local distributor of Xocai, to learn about their Healthy Chocolate. She is very passionate about the health benefits of quality chocolate and wants to help us all understand what chocolate can do for us. Since we love chocolate and love supporting local businesses, we had to find out more about this healthy chocolate!

What did we learn about Xocai?

We met with Michelle a couple of weeks ago to learn about her business and Xocai Chocolate. Michelle is very down to Earth and eager to share her knowledge with you. Her family has been using Xocai products for quite some time and have been enjoying great results. Michelle is so passionate about her product and loves to share. We learned so much during our meeting!

Xocai Chocolate is very high in antioxidants. Since antioxidants are quite the powerhouses, healthy chocolate may help reduce inflammation. Inflammation causes a whole host of problems in our bodies, so reducing it is important. Xocai products are quite unique in that they are cold pressed. Cold pressed chocolate is higher in the nutrients that we are all looking for! A wonderful bonus--Xocai products do not have added fats, artificial colors or preservatives. They are sweetened with raw cane juice crystals, acai berries and blueberries. Why add junk to something that already tastes great? Xocai has a range of products including products that include a probiotic and Omega-3. Wow--these "treats" do pack a punch!

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Mother-daughter bonds bloom with Yapa Events and Bloom Salon

**Disclosure: We did receive complimentary admission via Yapa Events in order to make an accurate review. No compensation was received. All opinions are 100% my own.

Two weeks ago, my daughter and I were invited to a lovely Mother's Day Celebration organized by Yapa Events at Bloom Salon in Arlington Heights. We were so excited about this event because it provided us with some girl time as well as a new adventure. We had very special experience and were introduced to two new businesses in Arlington Heights at the same time.

Bloom Salon sports a very relaxed yet sophisticated atmosphere. Such a perfect place for a Mother's Day Celebration involving some pampering for the little princesses! When we entered, we were warmly greeted with a cute little card displaying my daughter's choices for services. Of course, she could not decide right away! Decisions, decisions!

We were engaged in activities together during the entire event. We spent quite some time in a cozy nook area working on crafts. First, we made a lovely flower pot for some pretty spring flowers. Working together, we were able to make a adorable pot full of cloth patches, pearls and paint. Next, I urged my daughter to have one of her services. Sipping some pink lemonade, she expressed desire to complete a second craft. She never can turn down a craft! Together, we made a cute Japanese blossom branch. Such a beautiful craft! I am sure we will replicate it in the future.

Yapa Events is so much about this special bonding time between parents or grandparents with children. Joan Dubnicka, the mastermind behind Yapa Events, is quite passionate about providing memorable opportunities through her events. In the past, Joan ran the Little Village Playplace in downtown Arlington Heights. Her role at the Playplace allowed her to witness some of these special moments up close. Captivated by these moments, Joan sees Yapa Event's mission as a pathway to creating more bonding moments for families while exploring the assets of the local community. These moments are the ones our children will remember. My daughter will definitely talk about our Mother's Day Celebration for some time!

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Playing in the Kitchen With Galena Garlic Company {Tasting Some More Blends}

Companies like Galena Garlic Company are soooooooo much fun. They have so many different spices and blends to explore. Of course, there also is quite a selection of garlic, oils, and vinegars. I always get lost in shops like Galena Garlic Company! Good thing for me--my daughter is just as enamored with such culinary delights making it easy to explore.

We do have a few more seasonings from Galena Garlic Company to share with you this week. It truly has been fun trying out these seasonings!

Of all of the seasonings that we have sampled, we enjoyed the Smoked Paprika Chipotle Seasoning the most. The seasoning has a bit of heat from the paprika, chipotle and cumin. I also love the addition of the mesquite--which yields a bit of a smokey, sweet flavor.

We simply used the seasoning to roast some potato wedges. (I admit, I am a sucker for spuds!) The potatoes were easy to make--just cut 1 large potato into small, thin wedges, toss with 1 Tbsp EVO and 1 tsp of the seasoning. Then, spread the wedges out on a preparing baking sheet and bake in the oven at 425 F for 20-25 minutes. Delicious!

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Spicing Things up with Galena Garlic Company

Galena Garlic Company caught my eye some time ago. They have some intriguing unique blends and they are local to Illinois. What isn't to love! Recently, we were given the tasty opportunity to try some seasonings from Galena Garlic Company. We had fun experimenting some of their most popular blends and I thought that we should share some of our experimentation with you!

We were so graciously supplied with five awesome blends to work with. I am going to talk about two of them in this post. Each of the blends is surprisingly versatile and can be used with a variety of meats and vegetables. The spice packages are very handy-dandy. They can easily be resealed. This is very useful if you do not have any empty spice bottles sitting around! Plus, the labels clearly explain the ingredients in each blend as well as suggest great pairings. Two of the blends that we tried were the Coffee BBQ and the Papa Laszlo's Steak. Both were a-m-a-z-i-n-g!

Take a look at Papa Laszlo's Steak Blend:

Here is a quick peek at the Coffee BBQ blend:

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