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Our Visit to Wild Mountain Winery in Taylors Falls (& Wine & Cheese Plate Deal!)

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Our Visit to Wild Mountain Winery in Taylors Falls (& Wine & Cheese Plate Deal!)

My friend and I got together this past weekend to just have fun around the Twin Cities, and one of the places we had been wanting to go is a winery.

I had checked out Groupon for deals and found a great one for Wild Mountain Winery which is in Taylors Falls. It’s not far from Wild Mountain Adventure Park, too. Both are open right now during COVID but with social distancing requirements, of course.

The deal was for two glasses of wine, a cheese & meat plate, and a bottle of wine to take home, for only $24! Regularly it’s $38. There’s also a deal for double that (four glasses of wine, etc.) for $48. That’s more ideal for two couples to share, so my friend and I just got the first deal.

Check out the Groupon deals here!

Our Experience

We went on Saturday afternoon and arrived just in time for live music, which we didn’t even expect! Many people were seated at the patio tables enjoying the beautiful day.

Wild Mountain Winery

We traded in our Groupon voucher for our wine and cheese plate. We got to actually choose our wine from a list, and sample up to 3 if we weren’t sure what we wanted. They had about 16 to choose from, listed from dry to sweet. I chose a Mountain Sweet Red wine, which is fairly sweet. It was delicious!

Wild Mountain Winery

My friend and I enjoyed our wine and cheese plate at a table as we listened to the live music. They have a list of their live music on their website.

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Imperfect Foods Subscription Box Review (& Discount Code)

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Imperfect Foods Review

Imperfect Foods Subcription Box Review & Discount Code!

For a long time I had been hearing about Imperfect Foods, which saves foods that aren’t “perfect” enough for grocery stores, but are perfectly good otherwise. You subscribe and get to customize each weekly box with produce, meats, dairy and snacks. I had seen people post pictures of their boxes online, and I became curious about trying it myself.

Then last November at the Minneapolis Holiday Boutique, there was an Imperfect Foods booth. I learned about the boxes and arranged to try one to review here on my blog. However, this spring due to COVID-19, they were super busy and backed up, so I was on a waiting list for a while. But then I got the email that my delivery was coming the following Monday! Yay!

So here is my review of my experience from ordering to delivery!

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Our Front Row Experience at Extreme Sandbox’s “Heavy Metal Drive-Thru” in Hastings

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Heavy Metal Drive-Thru

In April I posted about a unique and FREE event for families in the Twin Cities area. It’s at a place called Extreme Sandbox in Hastings, MN, where you can operate real construction equipment. It’s family-owned and they even were on the popular show, Shark Tank! (Check it out – it turned out well!)

Unfortunately, Extreme Sandbox had to close this spring to regular visits due to COVID-19, but they came up with an alternative – Heavy Metal Drive-Thru, a FREE drive-thru show where you can park your car in their lot and watch their heavy construction equipment at work!

Heavy Metal Drive Thru

Then the show became so popular they added more shows, now through the end of June!

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Our Drive-Through Visit to the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum

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Minnesota Landscape Arboretum Drive Through Visit

After being closed for a couple of months, the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum had opened its doors to drive-through visits only starting May 1st. We visited during May and below is my recap!

However, I just learned that they are now in Phase 2 – which means they are open for walking on designated paths as well. Check out their website for details and updates.

We had visited the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum a few years ago when our kids were younger (see my review!), and it was a full day of walking, exploring and playing. But now with so many places closed due to COVID, we were getting excited for any place we could visit, even in our car. The Minnesota Landscape Arboretum was open to drive-through visits only, so we booked in advance, paid the $15-per-vehicle fee (free to members), and visited on a Saturday morning in May! (Note: Since our visit they have opened some walking paths and the price is now $15 per person, though members and kids 15 and under are free.)

There were a LOT of cars, but traffic moved steadily. There were some spots where it got backed up and we were stopping and starting, but for the most part it was just a nice, slow drive along their 3-mile drive.

We entered and our printed ticket was scanned (you need to have it ready in advance), and we proceeded through. The visitors center was closed, though I learned that the parking lot there is now open.

Note: All of these pictures were taken from our car, since everyone is required to stay in their car except for using public restrooms in two areas of the drive if needed.

Also – this is not a sponsored review. We paid for our visit and this is just our experience!

Minnesota Landscape Arboretum Visitors Center

The first part of the drive was through some wooded area. I loved this little cabin in the woods!

Minnesota Landscape Arboretum Cabin

There were various types of landscaping along the way – sculptured hedges, for example.

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Device Pitstop is Open! Our Experience Selling and Buying Laptops (Maple Grove location)

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In the past few years, our laptops have gotten slower and slower (zzzz), as technology tends to do!

My kids each have one for schoolwork at home (and for some fun kid-friendly websites), and it was just time to replace them both. One had pretty much stopped working, and the other was just too painfully slow. We realized that the RAM for both was only 4 GB (at least 8 GB is ideal), and they were getting pretty old (one was 10 years old), so we figured we got all the life out of them that we could.

We had purchased them used at Device Pitstop of Maple Grove, which buys used devices as well, so we decided to head in to see how much we could get them for and what newer ones we would find!

With practically everything closed right now due to the pandemic, it was so nice to drive up to Device Pitstop which was totally open for business like normal. Computers and other devices are certainly essential right now!

We brought our old laptops up to the counter to sell them, and the team member scanned them to see their condition. As he did this, we browsed the store.

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What Groceries We Got for $20 at Ruby’s Pantry in Bloomington (Minnesota)

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Ruby's Pantry Groceries

This month I finally had the opportunity to visit Ruby’s Pantry. Ruby’s Pantry is a community outreach program based in Minnesota, where basically you pick up food shares for a $20 donation. There are no income or residency requirements. There are many locations here in Minnesota and Wisconsin, though there are currently only a couple in the metro area, including Bloomington, which is where I went to today.

The food is a variety of fresh, nonperishable and frozen food. Some is past expiration, some is not, but it should all be perfectly fine to consume.

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Sensory-Friendly Hair Care for Kids, Teens and Adults in Minneapolis (A Review)

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As many parents know, everyday things can be overwhelming for kids with sensory issues.

I know firsthand, as my son has had sensory issues since he was born. For example, since he was a toddler, he has struggled with many kinds of clothing including socks and many types of pants. Despite efforts like occupational therapy, he has continued to experience many sensory sensitivities, so as a result, accommodations have been made by us and anyone caring for him. It’s been tough, but these accommodations have helped him (and us!).

In addition, my son’s sensitivities have affected other everyday things in his life such as haircuts, so it’s been a journey making sure anyone cutting his hair is understanding and prepared for his special needs.

Charity Mohs

But then thankfully there are hairstylists like Charity Mohs who understand these special needs very well. Charity is a hairstylist in Edina whose daughter has had sensory struggles since she was born, and she has had to learn how to work with those needs in a world not always designed for kids like hers and mine. As a result, she designs appointments to accommodate unique sensitivity needs for kids, teens and adults.

I met Charity through the special needs support community, and I thought it would be great for her to cut my son’s hair. She does hair appointments on Wednesdays to Saturdays. Saturdays are the best day for sensory appointments, as she spaces appointment out and can take as much time as needed with each one. So we scheduled an appointment for a Saturday afternoon.

Charity has been a hair stylist since 2000, and is a stylist at District on 50th in Edina, where many stylists work together. The salon is beautiful and spacious, and there were a few other stylists working with their clients when we arrived.

District on 50th

Charity was ready for us and got to know us, instantly putting my son at ease. Then she took him back to a room with many comfortable hair-washing stations. I think he enjoyed the pampering…

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Twin Cities Fun for Kids! An Interview with Miss Cherice of THE BIG EPIC SHOW (& Discount)

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THE BIG EPIC SHOW

THE BIG EPIC SHOW

I’m excited to introduce you to Miss Cherice Mahal, owner and creator of THE BIG EPIC SHOW!

THE BIG EPIC SHOW is a comedy and hip-hop variety show for children, based right here in the Twin Cities. They are a team of 5 performers, led by Miss Cherice Mahal who are best known for their live comical performances and music, which are “epic” in nature.

I met Cherice a few years ago at one of her local performances. My kids and I loved her show, and we have seen her perform at places like the Minnesota Parent Kid Fest and even the Mall of America. She even joined us for trick-or-treating in our neighborhood one year! She has amazing energy, and brings out such joy and creativity in the kids. Everything she does is positive and uplifting, and she is such a natural with kids and teens of all ages.

She recently released a CD of all original music for kids, and is soon launching a new show, so I wanted to interview her and share her story with local families here. I’m so glad to have her as a friend, and I hope to encourage families to attend one of her shows and even book a birthday party with her!

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Our Sneak Peek inside the Museum of Memories at the Mall of America (Opening March 6th)

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Museum of Memories Mall of America

On Friday, March 6th, 2020, a new pop-up exhibit will open inside the Mall of America, and you’ll definitely want to bring your smartphone!

It’s called the “Museum of Memories” and it’s a fun and interactive walk-through trip down memory lane, inspired by childhood memories and imagination.

We visited this past weekend for a preview of the Museum of Memories, had a blast taking tons of creative photos, and got to meet and chat with the creator, Steffi Lynn!

Steffi and her co-founder Jeremy Tsui opened their first location in Dallas, and now their second location is opening at the Mall of America. It will be open until September and tickets are available now.

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Hot Wheels at the Minnesota Children’s Museum (Review, Ticket Discount & Giveaway)

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Hot Wheels Minnesota Children's Museum

Hot Wheels!

Hot Wheels are at the Minnesota Children’s Museum in St. Paul! My son has loved Hot Wheels for years so we were super excited about this exhibit opening up. We visited shortly after it opened and had a blast, and I have a ticket discount and GIVEAWAY to share!

First, about the exhibit:

Hot Wheels Minnesota Children's Museum

Buckle Up for High-Speed Fun!

The Hot Wheels exhibit is open now through May 24th!

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