The Ice Ridge

A few weeks ago a few of my friends posted some photos of their family's ice skating in Des Moines at The Ice Ridge.  It looked like they were having a blast and then I noticed they didn't have coats or mittens on!  Whatever they were skating on, wasn't ice, but they were wearing real ice skates and skating around this rink.  I had to find out what this was all about!

So, I took a trip over to the Southridge Mall today to check it out.  What a cool place!  I was greeted by Owner/Operator Burton who so nice and was excited to show me the "ice" which is really a synthetic material much like a cutting board that you skate on.  There are chairs all around the rink for spectators and lots of high chairs to hold on to for learners.  

The Ice Ridge offers classes and well as public open skating times and even birthday parties and special events!  Check out of the offerings and times at their website here.

Admission for public skating will run you $5 and skate rental is $3.50.  You can also purchase punch cards for discounted admission.

Very exciting to have something like this in Des Moines where you can skate year-round!  Take your kiddos out (or your adult friends) and support this cool place!

To the right is the weekly schedule and prices, but you can see this info better on the website as well.  They also have a Facebook page you can follow for special events and announcements.

Cupcake Emporium

You might have heard of this cool little cupcakery named Cupcake Emporium located in Ames in June when they competed on the TV show Cupcake Wars along with Des Moines dessert shop Creme Cupcake.  While they didn't take the trophy, they did give us a glimpse into the shops cool decor and yummy cupcakes and I knew I would have to make the trip to Ames and check it out.  So we did!

I didn't realize that this isn't strictly a cupcake/milkshake shop like Scratch Cupcake in WDM or Carefree Patisserie which is cupcakes and cakes and cookies, in Valley Junction.  Cupcake Emporium actually has a full lunch menu including sandwiches, soups, salads and walking tacos.



They serve their cupcakes and lunch in the cutest retro-soda shop themed diner-type restaurant.  The decor really is a style all their own as is the menu and personalty of the restaurant.




I'm pretty sure you can't go wrong with any of the cupcake flavors, but we really enjoyed the cinnamon "roll" cupcake because the cake actually had cinnamon chunks baked right in to the batter and my son thought the pie-crust star cut-outs on the cherry pie a-la-yum cupcake were ingenious, as did I .  The frosting on the pink champagne was to-die-for and the peanut butter cup was rich and smooth.  The cakes were all moist and the frosting weren't overbearingly sugary.  We liked them them all and had to refrain from trying more.  I see another trip in our near future.



We also enjoyed a chocolate milk-shake on our visit, but have yet to try the lunch options.  I am looking forward to coming back soon to try some of the soups.



You could really plan a Fall day trip to Ames hitting Center Grove Orchard on your way up to play at the Farmyard and hit Cupcake Emporium for lunch and cupcakes.  Sounds like a great day to me!

Hiland Bakery

If you live in a 20 mile radius of the East Side of Des Moines, you have got to get your butt over to the Hiland Bakery.  This place is the real deal.  It's not a huge place as most of the bakery is kitchen with a little store-front area.  But the products make a big impression.  Freshly made donuts for under a buck.  Pecan rolls, for $1.25, Dutch letter for $2. And my favorite item, the Cream Puff (OMG the Cream Puff), for $2.50, look at this fine specimen of a Cream Puff!  It was perfect. Light and fluffy pastry dusted with powdered sugar and a rich filling which was more vanilla-pudding-y than cream-like, but that's exactly how I used to get them from the Italian bakeries in Boston when I was little.  It was perfect.

My son was a fan of the soft and chewy decorated sugar cookies and I was too.  The hubby had some sticky buns and said they were very good.

The bakery is small, but if you come in early, you can catch them fully stocked with some of the most wonderful baked goods in town.
I'm not sure you could go wrong with anything you get here.  I had to contain my self and not try the mini champagne cakes or petite fours that looked so delectable.  Next time...

They also take custom orders for weddings, birthdays and other events.

The staff was friendly, the baked goods were great and the prices were right.  Whether you are looking to make a good impression at the office, have a party coming up and you need a cake, or just need to satisfy a sweet craving, Hiland Bakery is worth the drive from every corner of the suburbs.  Check it out!

Sky Zone-Jumping Fun For Everyone!

Today's guest post is by my super fun friend Sonja.  Sonja is a stay at home mom of two, runner, scrapbooker and always in search of cheap entertainment for her boys.  She visited Sky Zone recently and was kind enough to share! Thanks Sonja!

Sky Zone is a great way to beat the heat (or cold)!

Since Tuesday was the last day that our favorite splash park had water turned on, we had to find a new way to beat the heat on Wednesday.  I had heard that Sky Zone in Grimes, just off of Highway 141, had a special toddler time, so we decided to check it out.

Toddler time is for ages five and under from 11:00 am – 12:00 pm on Wednesday and Thursday mornings.  It costs $6 per toddler, and one parent can jump for free. 

My little guy is only ten months and not walking yet, so he was free and I carried him most of the morning.  My big guy is 2 ½ and had a blast. 

When we first arrived I had to sign a waiver for myself and my two boys, got shoes for myself, and we got ready to bounce.  My big guy’s feet are not big enough for any of their shoes so he went barefoot (the smallest size shoe available  is a toddler size 10).  I had to wear shoes if I wanted to go on the trampolines with him, so bring socks if you want to go out there with your kids.

First we spent time in the main trampoline court area.  It was filled with wall to wall trampolines, including the walls (which were fun to bounce balls on too.)  One area was netted off to play with the balls, and this was my son’s favorite since he was allowed to throw the balls inside.

There was one other part of the building open to the toddlers which included a big foam pit to jump into.  The trampolines were set up to run down and jump into the foam pit, then climb out and do it again.  Of course the foam blocks were as much fun to climb around in as the trampolines were for bouncing.

They have special pricing for large groups and host birthday parties as well.  Check out the pricing here.

We burned off a lot of energy in our one hour and had a lot of fun.  So whether you need to get out of the heat or just burn off some toddler energy check out Sky Zone for Toddler Time, or any other time.