October MNBloggerBash Recap
I had such a great time this weekend at the October #MNBloggerBash! Each time I hold these events I get so excited to show off something that I love and this was no exception. This blogger bash took place at Zywiec’s Haunting Experience on highway 61 in Cottage Grove where we got the backstage “lights on” tour and then had a chance to give the haunted house and hayride a chance in the dark with the Haunters ready to show us a great time.
I wanted to get everyone out to the Haunting Experience because everyone needs a tradition for October! Getting the crap scared out of you is a great way to bond with your teenage children or go on a much needed date night.
This #MNBloggerBash started out with some pampering from Spalon Montage Woodbury! They were there ready to loosen up our muscles with chair massages, give us a little flair for our hair with awesome colored extensions, and even do skincare consultations.
We then got to learn a little more about the Haunting Experience and try the food. You won’t want to miss the pork chops. They even have a special seasoning just made for them.
Next was a “lights on” tour of the Haunted House side of the Haunting Experience. It was great to see the behind the scenes work that goes into putting on a show like this. They put so much time and effort into each room. You would never guess how they get things to look scary.
It was time for the big show! As the sun went down we anxiously waited in line for the Haunting Experience. We screamed our way through the house and on the hayride. Then it was time to shoot some zombies! Big Zombie Hunter is great for the younger kids. Its not as scary and you get to shoot a paintball gun that is fixed to a trailer.
Overall, I want to thank everyone for coming out to this #MNBloggerBash and I want to thank Zywiec’s Haunting Experience for hosting us!
See all of the pictures from our night HERE!
because I love being scared!
@mplsgossipgirl
If you are a blogger and want to come to the next one, let me know!
Local Crate – New Meal Delivery Service in Minnesota
You have no idea how excited I am about this! A few weeks ago my cousin and his wife were in town and they told me about this meal delivery service that they have in Milwaukee. They have fresh ingredients shipped to their home with recipes that they can make fairly fast. They like to cook like I do but since they have a new baby, time is not on their side. This is a quick way to get a healthy meal and still have the taste of a freshly cooked meal. All I thought to myself is— how do we not have this in Minneapolis?
I ran across Local Crate recently in my Twitter feed thanks to the awesome people that I follow. It looks like they are trying to make a go of this same idea but are sourcing local Minnesota ingredients.
Local Crate is a delivery service that sends fresh, local, portioned ingredients, and chef designed recipes to Minnesotans weekly making it easy for people to cook locally. Now, this is an idea that I can get behind! I enjoy eating out at restaurants but it is not something that I can do everyday. This would be a great fill in for the weeks that I am craving a home cooked meal and when I have commitments that don’t allow me enough time to get to the grocery store.
I usually only cook for two people and you usually can’t buy the ingredients for only two portions. This is a great way to get only what you need for the recipe and eliminates that one jam you needed for that ONE recipe that you made a year ago and it is still sitting in your refrigerator (not from personal experience, nope, not here).
Local Crate was started by the Kitchen Ninja and the Baby Kitchen Ninja AKA: Mike Stalbaum and Frank Jackman. They both were working for a large food manufacturer and realized that they could create a business around helping their community by working with local farmers and providers. They are passionate about changing the way that people eat and want to give back to our community. I am super excited to see where Local Crate goes!
The meals look great with options ranging from Spaghetti Carbonara to Shakshouka. Each recipe on listed on their website is something that I would enjoy trying. Also, they have enough variety that I don’t think I would get sick of the options. Each recipe comes with detailed instructions and a picture (this always helps me).
Currently, they are doing a Kickstarter project to raise much needed, cash flow for packaging, ingredients, cold and dry storage, and photo equipment. They have some great thank you gifts available and if you are interested in getting Local Crate I would suggest that you help them raise the $7,000 that they need to make their goal. I am clearly a proud supporter of this great idea so I backed this project! He
CLICK HERE to help them reach their goal!
Because this is a great idea and I can’t wait to try it!
@mplsgossipgirl
mplsgossipgirl 