My husband and I bought just the right home for us when we got married last year: it was reasonably priced (just before the interest rate hike), move-in ready with room to grow, situated in a quiet, suburban neighborhood in a town not far from work, family, and other places we like to be…and half a mile from the nearest Dairy Queen.
We love sweet treats as much as the next person but we’re also trying to be more health- and budget-conscious as newly-married, home-owning individuals. Our Blizzard temptations took a hike a lot more easily once we were introduced to the Ninja Creami Ice Cream Maker! All of our frozen confectionery cravings can be satisfied with additional settings that prepare milkshakes, smoothies, sorbet, and gelato as well.
A device bought from a major retailer will include a booklet with recipes and tips; I found a free app that features recipes, and YouTube has plenty of tutorials, but it’s also fun just to play with your own ingredients. Somebody else we know with a Creami recommended using pudding mixes for bases. My husband and I will either crush cookies or chocolate candies in a food processor to use as a base as well or crumble them for add-ins. I’ll mix yogurt with berries or bananas for my own smoothies too. We can make an ice cream that matches the consistency of most Dairy Queen treats in a fraction of the time it would take to order and have it prepared in-store! Using our own ingredients, our desserts can be a lot healthier too!
James and I are from West Virginia: the wild-and-wonderful, Civil War-born, thirty-fifth state admitted to the Union. Summers are always special here because June 20th is the anniversary of the state’s existence. Two-thousand and twenty-three is even more so because the year marks West Virginia’s one-hundred and sixtieth birthday! In honor of the milestone, James and I want to show you the cool places our own backyards offer to visitors, newcomers, and natives alike!
Tudor’s Biscuit World is a small fast-food chain that originated and now dominates the Mountain State. Their restaurants serve hearty biscuit sandwiches, and breakfast, lunch, and dinner. It’s a place that many are curious about and find that the place is certainly worth the hype for its value, service, and atmosphere. More still, many of their breakfast sandwiches are named for West Virginia’s culture, like the Miner and Peppi–homages to the coal mining industry and the pepperoni roll; or the Ron and Mary B–named for State House employees who were regular customers at the original location in Charleston. While others are named for the major college sports teams, like The Thundering Herd for Marshall University, The Mountaineer for West Virginia University, or The Golden Eagles for the University of Charleston. With over sixty locations throughout the state, one is sure to be along your way!
Scotland has the Loch Ness Monster, the northwest U.S. has Bigfoot, and West Virginia has Mothman! The world’s only museum dedicated to him is found in Point Pleasant! Among their exhibits are rare archives about him and mysterious happenings that occurred in the town in 1966 and 1967; press clippings, video footage, and articles connecting him to the Silver Bridge disaster and UFO activity; the prop collection from the Mothman Prophecies film; and more. Their merchandise store sells all things Mothman from shirts, to books, to Christmas ornaments. Next door is a cool statue and a themed escape room is in the works.
The rest of Point Pleasant is a cool, small town as well with several small businesses, preserved vintage architecture, and a nice park dedicated to the area’s Native American heritage. Additionally, the city is home to a Mothman Festival in the fall.
Take a deep dive into state history at one of the free museums operated by West Virginia’s Department of Arts, Culture & History. Charleston has the West Virginia State Museum, situated in the capitol complex. Wheeling is home to the West Virginia Independence Hall. Moundsville has the Grave Creek Archeological Complex. And Clifftop is the location of Camp Washington Carver.
Oglebay any time of the year is an experience. It’s a two-thousand acre park in Wheeling that features lodging, dining, sports, shopping, and a zoo, among other things. During the winter season, they host one of the nation’s largest holiday light shows featuring over three hundred acres of festive displays along a six-mile drive!
The Greenbrier Resort has been a historic getaway destination since 1778, attracting presidents, celebrities, royalty, and business leaders from all over. An upscale resort, accommodations are offered in 710 signature rooms and 33 suites. Amenities include dress codes, golfing, spa services, 11 bars, 9 restaurants, clubs, a clinic, and over 55 indoor and outdoor activities for all ages.
Bramwell has roots in the coal-mining industry. In the 1800’s, it had the largest number of millionaires per capita in the United States. As such, many of the homes have been preserved and are open for public tours. Other great offerings in town are the Bramwell Corner Shop, Pipestem Park, and the Hatfield-McCoy Trail System.
Princeton is another town where history, art, and culture intermingle. There, one can find the Princeton Railroad Museum, Those Who Served War Museum, The McNutt House, The Chuck Mathena Center, and plenty of boutiques, galleries, and shops. James recommends the Blue Ridge Bee Company, a company specialized in honey and bee-keeping goods.
Growing up, parents, teachers, caretakers–just about any authority–probably urged us constantly to eat our vegetables and fruit. Even today, we may still skirt some of Mother Nature’s sustenance, despite knowing better.
The National Fresh Fruit and Vegetables Month is a movement established in 2019 by The Produce for Better Health Foundation. Have A Plant is their latest brand identity that champions bold, new initiatives, particularly to us Millennials and Gen Z’ers, to create consumer demand for fruits and vegetables. The foundation believes in tapping into our emotional connection to the fruit- and vegetable-eating experience by inspiring long-term, sustainable behavior changes and thus creating demand. Their goals are brought about by educating consumers through various communication tools and digital platforms, inspiring them with compelling reasons to believe in the powerful role fruits and vegetables can play to fuel happy, healthy and active lifestyles.
Their socials and website are full of tips, recipes, articles, photos, and more from industry ambassadors and experts to help followers get the most out of their produce! I need to try some of the storage and prep hacks to keep my fruits and veggies longer!
Let’s Have a Plant and make our parents, teachers, caretakers proud that we’re eating healthy!
We love letting you know about fun and exciting new food subscription boxes. That’s why today we will be discussing the Grill Masters Club. Summer is the perfect time for grilling and we all know that food taste better with seasonings and spices. The products in the monthly subscription box are high-end BBQ products designed to make your grilled food taste the best.
The cool thing about this box is that it isn’t just for experts. Maybe you are new to grilling, and that’s perfectly fine, because each box also includes tips and information on how to achieve the perfect flavor with the ingredients in the box. It’s nice that the creators of the box thought about everyone and not just the professionals.
The curated sauces that are included in each box are enough to justify the subscription, but the extras are what really make this box stand out. In each box you will get a sauce, a rub, a chef’s choice item, wood chips, and a product info card. We haven’t seen a food based subscription subscription with this much value in a long time. We are happy with our box and can’t wait to see what the future holds for this unique subscription service!
Oh, spring! How beautiful the blossoms that bloom in the warm sunshine are! How sweet is the smell of fresh green grass! Of course, with those most welcome sights comes a terrible price to pay! Every allergy sufferer knows what I’m talking about: pollen. Pollen is the unseen terror that causes most of us to stumble with itchy watery eyes to the nearest corner store and buy an ungodly amount of antihistamine so that we can hopefully get through our day without sneezing, coughing, and staring bleary-eyed into the distance.
Most of us who try to dodge taking medication as often as we can seek out natural remedies. Allergy sufferers are no different, but one of the natural remedies is so much sweeter: locally made honey. Honey made from local bees contains pollen from local bees contain pollen from trees and flowers nearby. If a person ingests a teaspoon of honey every morning, it is believed that they will become less sensitive to the pollen in the air. Overtime, they will be bothered little to none by the seasonal changes. It is in no way meant to replace allergy shots or prescribed medication. Always consult a physician before making any changes with those, but it is certainly a sweet and tasty alternative for those of us who run for the hills every spring, trying to escape the sneezy season.
Fit Snack is a monthly subscription box for those of you who care about the foods that you eat. We decided to try the box to see the types of snacks that are sent and if they live up to the hype presented on their website. We are pleased to say that it exceeds anything that you might have previously read about Fit Snack.
The box itself is pleasant to look at and features the crisp Fit Snack logo on it. The product information sheet included in each box is well-designed, organized, and easy to read and understand. Our box had a little bit of everything in it, with foods ranging from Columbia County Flax Granola to the famous Justin’s Nut Butter.
There was even a cool added bonus in the box which was a sample of Musclewerks Detrim Capsules. It helps to round out the overall theme of the box which is making lifestyle choices that will better your overall health and wellbeing.
When you flip over the information card there is a fast and effective workout plan included. This was a very nice addition because not only do you get snacks and foods that taste amazing and are healthy, but you get more information on exercises that you can do to stay fit as well. This is one of the most well put-together boxes that we have ever tried. The variety of foods included was nice, the taste and flavors were fantastic, and the added information made it feel like something truly special and unique.
We highly recommend that you check out Fit Snack and get a box for yourself! To add to the awesomeness, you will get a free GYM Bag when you sign up using our link. So go ahead, get fit, and have fun doing it with Fit Snack – Click here to visit their website and get a box of your own!
Mitten Crate is a monthly subscription box that is different from other food subscription boxes because their aim is to provide you with foods that are the pride of Michigan. We decided to give their subscription box service a try and taste some of the gourmet offerings that are included in the box.
The first thing that we noticed about the boxes that we tried is that they were heavy! This is always an awesome sign when getting a subscription box, it generally means that the samples included in the box will be good sized. Imagine our surprise when we opened the boxes and there were not any samples at all! That’s right, the food products included in the Mitten Crate are full sized products.
It’s rare that there would be a subscription box service that ships out full sized products, but what is even more rare is that all of the products are genuinely unique and taste great. We appreciate the diversity that the food in this box brings, and the deeply rooted connection to Michigan taste that is emanated in each and every bite of the food shipped to you.
We tried a little of everything and have to admit that the foodies in Michigan are on to something big! The tastes were all uniquely individual and left a lasting impression on our tastebuds. Though, my personal favorite was the Beau Bien apple mustard. I tried the apple mustard on a spicy black bean veggie burger and the combination was out of this world. The curators of this box have done a fantastic job at bringing the best that Michigan has to offer to the world.
You can get a single box or subscribe to their monthly service at MittenCrate.com
Brace yourselves! Because the subject of this travel post takes you through time and space!
Well, sort of…and as far as I know, none of the ToastPop staff has ever been here, but us Whovians would be thrilled to hit it up sometime! The Pandorica is a brand new Doctor Who-themed restaurant in Beacon, New York that just opened in July. While The Pandorica as known in the show meant no good for the universe, the eatery of the same name is in a good way the most interesting thing to have graced the Whovian universe (after the season eight premiere this weekend)! ANerdist Review that first covered the location says that the décor expresses many odes to the show: Van Gogh’s “Exploding TARDIS” painting hangs in the dining room, it has a TARDIS restroom and a TARDIS mural, the menus are outfitted with the look of the blue box, and even some of the selections themselves are inspired by and named for references from the shows (Although the “fish fingers” are actually French toast sticks, served with with custard!).
My travels this summer have led me to some low-key, casual restaurants, and this imaginary/virtual trip to The Pandorica is not much different in atmosphere. This place offers live musical entertainment, and even cosplay events from time to time! And it’s great for Whovians of any age! Not only does the Pandorica gain ToastPop’s approval, but the newest faces of Doctor Who, Peter Capaldi, Jenna Louise-Colman, and Steven Moffat, visited recently and loved it!
Plan a real trip to town through Trip Advisor. Check out what accommodations and other attractions Beacon has to offer, and what others have said about them.
Shepherdstown, West Virginia is the oldest town in the state, but a blended atmosphere of home-grown, country, and contemporary combine with its antiquity to make it a wonderful place! There is just as much of a unique atmosphere at its Blue Moon Café. Much of the dining area is furnished outside among a shady green oasis that even includes a fountain. The menu is an affordable variety of sandwiches, salads, soups, wraps, pizza, and a little crab. They have many vegan and vegetarian options, along with several alcoholic beverages. Blue Moon is locally sourced, meaning many of their products were grown or made right in the region. Local entertainment can even be found here at their open mic nights.
Blue Moon Café gets my “Toast Pop Approval” for its support of local agriculture, food quality, meal price, and unique dining experience outdoors! Its well-worth the walk from anywhere in the heart of town.
Food and pics of Blue Moon’s outdoor dining area
Plan your visit to Shepherdstown and the Blue Moon Café!
Scenes around Hymans. That is my family photo there btw 🙂
In the heart of the historic district of Charleston, South Carolina is a wonderful staple business that has stood for over a century. What began as a wholesale center in 1890 has become Hyman’s Seafood restaurant and Aaron’s Deli; a city landmark, a critically acclaimed eatery, and a very popular dining spot! Critics regard Hyman’s for quality food and service all for great prices and many famous faces have dined there at some point, as you will see by the dozens of gallery-style portraits and even on little plaques on the dining tables. It might get a little crowded, but it is not the least bit uncomfortable and worth the wait. Its popularity contributes to the restaurant’s lively atmosphere. There is something for everyone at the cost of twenty dollars at most for a dinner meal. The complimentary boiled peanuts and hush puppies are some of the best! Usually families with children are even presented with coupons for complimentary dessert redeemable at the general store on the way out, and you can take some of your Hyman’s experience with you when you purchase from their array of souvenirs! Beyond the hype, a trip to Hymans can be a great personal tradition. It’s a family owned business spanning about five generations after all. My own family often vacations in Charleston, and our experiences are not complete if we don’t go to Hymans. Southern cuisine and hospitality couldn’t be a better value anywhere else!
We love letting you know about fun and exciting new food subscription boxes. That’s why today we will be discussing the 
Toast Pop 