Wine and Spirits Travel

My friend Joan and I headed a few hours away to Itasca, Illinois, for a short girls’ getaway at Eaglewood Resort & Spa . You could see the golf course from the balcony in our room. The Deluxe Room is quite large and suitable for a small family. The spa and fitness center are located in a building across the parking lot from the rooms and other common areas.  The pool center at  Eaglewood  is set up to be enjoyed year-round. It’s totally enclosed in the winter and one side opens up in the summer so you can sit around a patio and enjoy the Olympic-sized pool with accompanying whirlpool. During the warmer months, they also serve cocktails and snacks out there. Three separate rooms were in the fitness center, all with all new equipment. One room had state-of-the art machines.  The second was all about weights, and the third was for classes. We saw someone in there stretching. Within the fitness and spa area  Eaglewood Resort  also has its own bowling

My friend Jaimee and I had arrived in Lafayette, Indiana , the previous day for a quick getaway. It had been a few years since I was here and I had no idea how much there was to see – and eat. We woke up in our spacious two-bedroom accommodation at the TownePlace Suites by Marriott Lafayette . Although the hotel offers a big complimentary breakfast, we already had plans for brunch at Town & Gown Bistro. Town & Gown is much bigger than it looks on the outside. It has two floors and they were both full of patrons. Matt O’Neill, former innkeeper and chef at Walden Inn, and author of “Seasons at the Walden Inn,” has made a name for himself in this city. It was easy to figure out why after we finished eating.  Chef O’Neill uses fresh and local ingredients and puts his touch on common brunch items.  Jaimee raved about her eggs benedict, and I thought the house-made corned beef hash was fantastic, as were my latte and eggs. After we f

When I was approached by Dosh a year ago to be an influencer for them I really had no idea what the app was going to be about and whether it would even be around a year later. I was certainly wrong. The Dosh app has been extremely successful and my year of helping it grow has come to an end. It’s certainly not going to be the end of my relationship with Dosh.  Like all of you can, I’ll continue to get cash back through the easy to use application, as well as referral fees (right now they are giving $15 for each friend you recommend). I look at the application often because I never know what deals are running in addition to the referral bonuses. This weekend, for example, you can get 10% cash back on everything you purchase at Sam’s Club through Dosh. I know a lot of people already have a bunch of cash back applications on their computers and phones. I definitely do. There are a lot of other good ones, such as Mr. Rebates and Ebates, but the fact is that you don’t

It had been a few years since I had been to Lafayette,Indiana . I visited a few times when I was covering tennis. I was looking to make a quick trip not too far away, and Lafayette kept coming up.  Once I contacted the tourism board at Home of Purdue , I could easily see why. This little college town had a lot to offer. My friend Jaimee was visiting and we headed out for the two-hour drive with a full itinerary.  Our first stop was at Wolf Park . Anything to do with animals is always fun for me and I was surprised to hear this place had been here for 46 years. Wolf Park was opened by a former Purdue professor.  He not only wanted a refuge for these animals, but he wanted to promote the conservation of wolves and help people understand more about them. Thanks to generous donations, the park now has its own medical center and they don’t need to go back to Purdue every time an animal needs treatment. While the wolves are the primary focus, t