NW Indiana Archives

Santa’s Candy Cane Express + Donating Some of Our MindWare Favs to Toys for Tots!

December 15, 2018 in NW Indiana - No Comments

We’re well into the holiday season and we’ve been trying to make an effort to enjoy the experiences of the season before the big day.

Beach Day Essentials + Checklist

July 6, 2016 in NW Indiana - No Comments

This post is sponsored by Meijer. Thanks for supporting the brands that support Sophistishe! We are indeed in the dog days of summer. The temps have been rising and I honestly can't even complain. These are the days of summer that I look forward to the most because it makes splashing outside in water totally… Read More »

Stepping Out

May 25, 2016 in Best Of, Fashion, NW Indiana - 16 Comments

Today, I'm teaming up with Zappos and Crocs sharing how we welcome summer break at one of our favorite hangout spots! Spring marks the start of my new year for a few reasons. The weather gets a whole lot nicer, thunderstorms start rolling in, the grass almost glows a vibrant green, and flowers come into bloom. Spring starts the… Read More »

A Day At The Orchard With Juicy

November 18, 2015 in Best Of, Kids, NW Indiana, Travel - 7 Comments

Since the birth of baby Akilah, Jaxon has taken a seat on the sidelines as the baby of the house. He is now the middle child, typically the one who gets lost among the oldest and youngest children.

4K Photography: Park Hop Motion Stop

August 26, 2015 in Best Of, NW Indiana, Photography - No Comments

Now that baby’s here, we’re back on the move. I’m finally able to move freely without doing the struggle waddle, so we are trying to squeeze

Simple Adventure: Picking Strawberries At Johnson’s

July 2, 2015 in NW Indiana - No Comments

This post is sponsored by the National Center for Families Learning. As a Family Trails blogger, I receive financial compensation for my participation. Opinions and experiences expressed on this post are my own. Thank you for supporting the brands that support Sophistishe! I'll admit it. I have high and sometimes unrealistic expectations for summer vacations… Read More »

Our Weekend Stay At Kampgrounds Of America

June 15, 2015 in Best Of, NW Indiana, Travel - 31 Comments

I've always wanted to take my family out to a cabin and this past Memorial Day weekend I finally got to fulfill that wish. Thanks to the folks at Trekaroo and Kampgrounds of America, we had a taste of tiny house living at our local KOA. Unfamiliar with KOA Kampgrounds or camping in general, we… Read More »

Giving Back to the Next Generation of ValPLAYso

May 14, 2014 in NW Indiana, Social Good - 1 Comment

Jayden's school recently had a spirit week celebration to raise funds for ValPLAYso, one of our local parks. It's a unique little park with a lot of medieval quirks. The kids have done fun things like wear hats in class, dress like adults, and crazy hair day which I temporarily dyed Jayden's hair blue for. His friends thought… Read More »

Local Business Spotlight / Valpo Designer Desserts

June 17, 2013 in NW Indiana - 1 Comment

We live in an area where quaint shops and restaurants are bountiful. There are a number of coffee shops, bakeries, and ice cream parlors. They all thrive because they each have their own specialties, but most importantly, they treat their customers like family. On Jayden's 5th birthday, we took him for cupcakes at Designer Desserts. We… Read More »

Summer Memories: Surreal Beach

September 7, 2012 in Life & Quirks, NW Indiana - No Comments

July 26, 2012 It had been a straight up annoying week. I had people who I was trying to give my money to giving me the run around, not returning important emails/calls/texts, not listening at.all. it seemed, and nonchalantly blowing off their mistakes. I had lost all hope for humanity. I was just done. I… Read More »