The Butler County Donut Trail

Posted on February 20, 2019 by Krissyar

Butler County Ohio has a lot to offer – I mean, I should know, I live here. We have all kinds of great things to do, places to see, and of course, food to eat. Butler County is the home to a lot of awesome mom and pop donut shops, that offer an amazing selection of some really delicious donuts!

The donut trail leads you on an epic SWEET adventure, taking you to the top 12 donut spots in the county, so put on your stretchy pants and join in on the fun! When you visit your first stop, you’ll get a Passport and head along the trail to get a stamp at each location -when you are done, send your Passport on over to the Butler County Visitors Bureau and get a sweet Donut Trail t-shirt!

Your first stop on the trail is Central Pastry Shop in Middletown,Ohio. I’ve actually never made it to Central Pastry Shop , but they are definitely a popular spot!

Serving the Mid-Miami Valley for 68 Years

The tradition of Central Pastry Shop began over sixty nine years ago. Today it continues creating and baking the Mid Miami Valley’s favorite pastries. Known for distinctive cakes, from wedding to birthday and specialty cakes, Central Pastry also provides the finest in baked goods made from scratch, including: breads, danish pastries, éclairs, coffee cakes, doughnuts, rolls, buns, pies, cookies and much more.

Your next stop is Holtman’s Donuts in West Chester, Ohio. Holtman’s actually has several locations, however, this is the only Butler County one. They offer your standard flavors, and then they go one step further and offer you many different topping flavors ,like maple and bacon, cereal toppings and more.

Then you come to Jupiter Coffee & Donuts in Fairfield. Never been to this one either, though it’s not far away; I don’t think I’ve ever heard of it, so I am excited to make this stop on our Donut Trail adventure. They offer their homemade donuts, along with cookies, cupcakes, pastries and more.

Next is Kelly’s Bakery in Hamilton, OH. Kelly’s actually isn’t far from my office, and we gave them a try a few months ago for the first time. I am a bit of a donut snob (being spoiled at my favorite place, which is saved for the last stop on the donut trail) but their glazed donuts were *almost* as good as my favorite. Will definitely be stopping by again soon (maybe after my beach trip!) Just make sure you check the hours before you go, they aren’t open daily.

 

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The next stop on the list is Martin’s Donuts in Trenton. Another place I’ve heard of but never have been – but my Trenton buddies rave about it. Their glazed donuts look AMAZING, so I’m excited to try them as well.

Following Martin’s is Milton’s Donuts in Middletown. We used to stop at Milton’s before church when our church was in Middletown; definitely a family favorite and soo good.  They have a ton of traditional favorites which are hard to beat, like their jelly or cream filled. Be sure to not miss this hidden gem!

Mimi’s Donuts & Bakery is next on the list – again in Hamilton (we like our donuts here I guess!) They offer a lot more than donuts; they make special event cupcakes and cakes. Be sure to call ahead for any special requests!

Up next is the Oxford Doughnut Shoppe – located close to Miami University. The Oxford Doughnut Shoppe has been a favorite in the community for over 50 years; Joshua Francis has owned and operated the shoppe since 2003, and he prides himself on the old-fashioned doughnuts he serves – kettle-fried.

Then you can hit up Ross Bakery in Hamilton. I’ve visited Ross Bakery quite a bit since I literally pass it on my way to work (hello temptation!!)

Stan the Donut Man is the next stop, another West Chester donut shop. They sell more than 2,600 donuts every weekend!

The Donut House in West Chester they offer classic donuts like the rest – along with donuts with a twist. Try their jelly filled, peanut butter covered PB&J donut!

Last but not least, The Donut Spot in Fairfield. I am partial (I grew up on these) but Donut Spot donuts are THE BOMB! Most of the time when you go in they are so fresh THEY ARE STILL WARM, which makes them that much better! Be sure to get there early, they sell out quick especially on the weekends! (Don’t be surprised to see me there in sweats and no make up. But there’s no time to get ready – when there’s warm donuts to get!)

Be sure to share your Donut Trail experience on Instagram and Twitter using the hashtag #BCDonutTrail !

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Home to Make Money Working From Home

Posted on February 13, 2019 by Krissyar

Sometimes unfortunately your 9-5 doesn’t quite do it when it comes to paying the bills. Or maybe you are trying to make extra money to pay off debt, save up for a vacation, or send your kid to college.
There are some options out there for those who work and are looking to make some money working from home.

Internet Surveys
Not one of my favorites (as it’s pretty time consuming) and you definitely won’t get rich, but you could score $100 or more a month with sites like Survey Junkie, Swagbucks, Vindale Research, Inbox Dollars, MyPoints, etc. The more you fill out, the more you get – which means, the more money you can make.

Be Your Own Boss – with Your Own Hours
You don’t have to worry about a set schedule for your second job if you work for companies like Uber, Lyft, Postmates, DoorDash, UberEats, Shipt, Instacart,or even Amazon Deliveries. You can select when and how long you work – have a Saturday open? Work as many hours as you want. Need time off for the kids game, or someone got sick? No problem. These jobs are a great alternative to a typical part-time job.

Start a Blog 
Though it will probably take some time, blogging can bring in income – all from the comfort of your couch. Don’t get me wrong; there is a LOT of work going into starting and writing a blog, and I really didn’t start making an income until about 2 years in. But with affiliate links, and ads, you can have a small steady income once you get going. (Be prepared to spend a lot of hours in it though!)

Clean Your Closet 
Get rid of stuff that you don’t use anymore – clean out your closet, your basement, your kids room- and sell your stuff on websites like Poshmark or Mercari. You’d be surprised what someone will pay for that old Coach purse, or maybe someone has been looking to replace that sweater they had JUST like the one you’re selling. Kids clothes sell really well, so don’t forget to list their stuff too!

Be an Consultant
Consulting is an incredibly diverse field, and that means that consultant salaries  can vary wildly across various niches, industries, specialties, and locations – but a lot of people do consulting part time, as an additional income.

Try and Free Up Some of Your Budget 
I know it sounds ridiculous, but you’d be surprised how much you can save when you start making some phone calls regarding your current bills/subscriptions, etc. I called our cell phone carrier, and was able to free up over $100 a month there, called our cable/internet provider, and saved $65 there. Do you have subscriptions or services that automatically come out each month? We kept Hulu and cancelled Neftlix, we lowered our cable to basic, we called our insurance company and was able to get a few discounts for automatic payments, and paperless, and saved about $25 a month there. You’d be surprised how much ‘waste’ there is out there.

House Cleaning
I have a friend who cleans local AirBNBs ; she cleans the properties after a guest stays, and prepares it for the next tenant. It’s a pretty regular income, and she has gotten more and more properties by word of mouth – she even has her kids come help her, so they get it done in half the time.

There are a lot of ways to make more money if you are creative, hardworking and willing to make a go of it.

 

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Frozen 2 Trailer – ANYONE ELSA AS EXCITED AS I AM??

Posted on February 13, 2019 by Krissyar

I have been singing “Let it Go” since 2013. My kids sang it, watched it, we bought the toys. Now my 3 year old niece is equally obsessed. So needless to say, we were super excited to see the new Frozen 2 trailer released today!
Anyone ELSA as excited as I am? =)

Frozen 2 will be released in theaters across the U.S. on November 22, 2019!

Check it out:

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Finding A Place For The Things You Can’t Throw Out

Posted on February 12, 2019 by Krissyar

As well as hampering day to day life, clutter can be bad for your health, increasing levels of the stress hormone, cortisol. One solution to an untidy home is to embrace the latest home organization trends that involve brutal and regular decluttering of belongings. However, there are always going to be items that need to be kept, especially in a family with ever-evolving needs, lifestyles and hobbies. Whatever the size of your home, it’ll run much more smoothly if you can find space to store small treasures for safekeeping or keep larger items ready at hand but without cluttering up your home.

Storing Large Items

If you have a backyard, then storage sheds can provide extra space for larger, important items that, although not needed every day, still need to be readily accessible. It can be tempting to cram any new overflow space with stuff from your house, but try to be organized and make good use of every inch. By suspending bicycles from the ceiling or hanging gardening tools on the walls you can free up floor space, making it easier to move around and find what you need.

A Place For Everything

A recent study has revealed that Americans spend two and a half days every year looking for lost items. One of the most common and frustrating items to misplace is a set of house or car keys, and often they get ‘lost’ because we don’t have a regular place to store them. Simply fixing some small hooks in your hallway and practising the habit of hanging up your keys as soon as you come in the house could save you a lot of time, money and anxiety in the future.

Filing Paperwork

With a family, kitchen surfaces and dining tables can very quickly get covered in piles of school reports, invitations and unsolicited mail.  A simple filing system in your hall means that you can deal with paperwork as soon as it comes through the door. Sort it into piles using an in tray, and immediately recycle anything you no longer need. This will avoid paperwork building up and ensure that you keep important receipts and bills safe, never miss out on a party, and stay up to date on your kids’ progress.

Taking a few small steps to organizing your home, can make everyday life much easier and less stressful. As you create good habits, set up new storage space and find a regular place for every important item, your home will soon be running smoothly, and the idea tidying up will be much less daunting.

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Is a Brick Home Better Than Siding?

Posted on February 7, 2019 by Krissyar

When deciding to build a home you will be faced with a number of difficult decisions. One of these will be whether to build the property from brick or whether to opt for the more traditional wood frame house; which is clad in your choice of siding.

Before you make your final decision, it is a good idea to talk to a reputable professional such as Peter Bracey; this will allow you to visualize the final look of your property if you choose the cladding route.

The Benefits Of A Brick Home

You may be interested to know that 34% of people surveyed preferred brick as their exterior choice.

Brick is generally very low maintenance. It doesn’t usually lose color over time or degrade, in fact, brick houses can last for centuries. There is no need to worry about it rotting and, perhaps most importantly in Australia, termites will not be able to eat the supporting shell of your home.

Despite being one of the oldest used building materials, brick remains one of the most environmentally friendly. There is an abundance of clay and shale, which are used to make brick. Of course, some energy is used and there is an environmental impact connected to creating the building brick shape.

It is also good to know that brick is fire resistant and is surprisingly good at withstanding the impact of flying debris, an important consideration in some parts of the country.

In fact, the safety aspects associated with brick means that many insurance companies will actually lower your insurance premiums; that’s an ongoing saving.

Of course, building with brick is more expensive than the traditional timber frame with cladding.

The Benefits Of Siding

If you choose vinyl siding then there is no maintenance, except for the occasional pressure wash. Of course, applying cladding to a wooden framed house is a much cheaper option than building with brick. However, there will be ongoing maintenance issues with the wooden frame that you won’t have with a brick house.

It will be important to have access under your home to check the structural integrity of the building.

But, despite the extra maintenance that will be needed, it is worth noting that cladding allows you to create a unique home, in virtually any style and color.

The options with cladding are virtually unlimited; you can even change the look every ten or twenty years just for the fun of it. It is also possible to build and clad a house sustainably, by using recycled wood and composite cladding. This is an important consideration in an environmentally conscious world.

Is Brick better?

This is a difficult question to answer as the final decision will be personal. If you want low maintenance and live in an area prone to storms then brick could be the best option.

However, if cost is more of an issue and the weather less, a timber frame with cladding is a viable and attractive solution.

The decision will rest on your budget and where you are intending to build

 

 

 

 

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