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Midwest Girls Getaway Continues in Naperville

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My friend Lynn and I had a wonderful time in Southwest Michigan , but it was coming to an end. We packed up our things at the Inn at Harbor Shores, said goodbye to the beach, and hit the road. Before we left St. Joseph , we stopped at Café Tosi. The breakfast was so good and fresh the day before that we wanted one more for the road.  We had started our Midwest adventure in Chicagoland and we were heading back to check out some more. This time or stop was in Naperville. It was mostly a scenic ride around Lake Michigan to get back to the Chicago area. Naperville is outside of the city and a town I had not yet visited. I was invited by the Hotel Arista , a four-diamond boutique hotel with one of my favorite things – a full service spa. We were immediately impressed with the contemporary design of the hotel, which was the first to be LEED certified in Illinois. The managers at the hotel had gone out of their way to make us feel welcome. Lynn and I each had o

Girls Fun in St. Joseph, Michigan

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When I first saw the schedule the St. Joseph Tourism Board had laid out for my friend Lynn and me,  I have to admit I was a bit overwhelmed. It was a very full day. But, it turned out to be an extremely fun one. After a good night’s sleep at the Inn at Harbor Shores, we headed to downtown St. Joseph. We started off fueled, thanks to Caffe Tosi . Lynn had a plate full of fruit and granola and I went for plain yogurt with a luscious almond horn on the side. The second place on the agenda was actually the home of another bakery, but not one for us. FuzzyButz is actually a pet bakery, where owner Mary Schaut creates treats for her four-legged friends. We were incredibly impressed with Mary’s creativity as we walked around, looking at items such as Sweet Potato Pie flavored treats; ones made to look like burgers, fries, and cannoli; peanut butter squares (peanut butter is actually a base for most of her items); and even squares that taste like lamb stew.