Once Upon an Adventure

 Hello Friends,       After our first Haunted Columbus experience, Autumn was eager to attend another one. I was definitely intrigued by some of the other tours they offered, but then COVID 19 hit. When things began opening up again, she diligently kept checking their website to see what their precautions were, and if and when they would be doing tours. She texted me saying they were doing a Hallowed Halls of Horror Tour at Ohio State. As a huge Ohio State fan, I freaked out and said of course I would do this one. I agreed to do this tour because:  1. Each tour has a limit of how people can attend.  2. We'd be outside the entire time, so social distancing wouldn't be an issue.       After parking in one of the two parking garages on campus by the Ohio Union, we were instructed by the email sent out to meet in front of Hayes Hall on the Oval. Our tour guide informed us that there was only one other group signed up and obviously we ha...

Happy Saturday! One of the hardest things for me during this pandemic is that I can't plan my next Disney vacation. It is one of my favorite stress relievers and gives me something to look forward to when things are tough. 2021 isn't even looking promising, so who knows when I'll get back to the magic. In the meantime, I started saving recipes from various Disney restaurants to make at home and hopefully bring some of that magic to Ohio. I decided to make the first test group from the restaurants at the Polynesian Resort. This is one of my favorite resorts because it is right on the beach, has a view of Magic Kingdom from across the lake, and everything is Moana/Lilo and Stitch/Hawaii themed. It is also home to my favorite coffee on all of Disney World property. Kona Cafe is our breakfast spot. Their Kona coffee is my absolute favorite. A few weeks before I decided to do this home-cooking adventure, I heard Joffrey's was selling the coffee that they created sp...

Hello Friends,      I hope everyone is staying safe during this outbreak. I'm an essential worker in Behavioral Health, so I'm about a month and half late making this post. My birthday was a week before this all started hitting hard in our country. I'm thankful to have gotten to have one last adventure before quarantine began.      If you know me, you know that my favorite time of year is Halloween and that my favorite genre of movies is horror. After doing a tour of Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania four years ago, I've been looking at traveling to other cities to do haunted tours. It's not so much the paranormal I'm interested in, it's the history and stories behind the locations. Basically every big city has a haunted tour, so I thought I should start where I live. The Haunted Columbus tours take a break during the January and February months since the weather can be so cold and unpredictable, but thankfully my birthday weekend...

Winter's Greetings,      If you're feeling the winter blues like I always do in February, a vacation to somewhere warm sounds amazing. Can I afford it? Nope. (Thank you, Emergency Room bill.) So when my best friend Christina suggested a getaway, I told her we should stay close to home. Indoor waterparks offer that 85 degree weather without the price of airfare. Sandusky, Ohio had the most options. We had it narrowed down to Castaway Bay, Great Wolf Lodge, and Kalahari. We only had two requirements: a lazy river and a spa. Castaway Bay had no lazy river. Great Wolf Lodge had no spa. Kalahari was the only one with both.      Now I will admit, I was nervous. I read some reviews a couple days before we went, and I was worried. Everything from customer service to the cleanliness of the rooms and waterpark. I also read that the food was bad. Check-in starts at 4pm. We arrived around 5:30pm because the GPS was all about the country roads. First impression was ...

Greetings,      I have been watching Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives for a number of years now. I'd say at least 10 years. I keep a little notebook of all the places I want to try and the food Guy Fieri ordered. I love finding locations when I'm traveling and trying them out. I even have a scrapbook of the Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives and Man vs. Food places I've gone to. I feel that it is time to honor my absolute favorite location so far-Lucky's Cafe in Cleveland, Ohio.      This restaurant is pretty small, but when the weather is nice you can sit at the picnic tables outside next to the garden. The food is farm-to-table. The vegetables, herbs, and fruits are grown in the garden or bought from local farmers along with the meat and eggs. There is a seasonal house-made jam that I ALWAYS buy a jar to take home for $6.50. (The jar is small, but seriously, just do it.)      They're only open for breakfast and lunch. Beware of the w...