Tag Archives: ohio

Treat Day!!

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Treat Day!!

Hello!! This past week, our darling niece turned five years old! Both Johnny and I are SO not okay about Val being the big five, but we had so much fun celebrating it. For Val’s birthday, we took her out for a Treat Day. What is a treat day, you might ask? It basically solidifies my husband and I as the “fun aunt and uncle” lol. On treat day, we take Val out for one major activity as well as lunch, ice cream, shopping or whatever her little heart desires. For her birthday outing, we went to Fun ‘n’ Stuff and Dairy Queen and it was the best, most exhausting day haha. Check it out:

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Fun ‘n’ Stuff is a staple in Northeast Ohio and has been around for as long as I can remember. In fact, I went there for field trips in grade school! It is an indoor/outdoor attraction center, but we were limited to indoor activities because the outdoor ones aren’t open yet. This was fine, though, because there was so much to do inside that I couldn’t imagine doing anything else! The indoor attractions at Fun ‘n’ Stuff include a gigantic playground, a ton of arcade games, roller skating, laser tag, bumper cars, a mini rollercoaster, and so much more. We can’t wait to take Val again in the summer so she can do the outdoor activities too like bumper boats, go karts, and little amusement park rides!

For our Fun ‘n’ Stuff adventure, Val was extremely partial to the playground. It was the first thing that caught her eye and it would have been hard not to – this thing was like a McDonald’s Play Place on steroids! We spent a majority of our time there running after Val as she explored all of the different obstacles and ended up circling back to it at least three times. When we weren’t at the playground, Val loved doing the trampoline bounce and playing games with Johnny and I. We also took adorable photo booth pictures which I’m so happy about because those are my favorite keepsakes. ❤

At the arcade, we went for easy games that Val could catch on to quickly, but still reward us with maximum tickets. Johnny and I were dead set on getting ALL of the tickets for her to pick out prizes with! By the time we were finished with games like ball drop, token toss, and Wheel of Fortune we had fourteen hundred tickets for Val to shop with. We were thrilled that Val was able to get two stuffed animals and some extra candy for her stash with them. After we cashed out our tickets, we went to Dairy Queen for a snack, and dropped Val off at home. Then, we came back to our apartment and literally dropped!

Johnny and I legit couldn’t move after Treat Day, but it was a small price to pay for such a wonderful time. We all had a blast and it was the perfect way to celebrate our sweet niece! ❤

What is your favorite arcade game? Do you have an amusement center like Fun ‘n’ Stuff in your neck of the woods? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Date Night!!!!

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Date Night!!!!

Hello!! This past Friday was simply wonderful! It has been a fat minute since Johnny and I went on a date night and that is exactly what we did. My sweet Johnny suggested a dinner out on Friday and we had both been looking forward to it all week. Rather than go to one of our usual haunts, Johnny had his heart set on Mike’s Place in Kent. This was perfectly fine by me because we haven’t been there since we got married! For our wedding, we spent the weekend in Kent and had breakfast at Mike’s before heading home. It was just as delicious, kitschy, and completely fun as I remember it being almost three years ago! 

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Mike’s Place is a beloved eatery in our neck of the woods and for good reason. The menu (as you can see) is expansive and offers options for any dietary restriction. This is something that is greatly appreciated by my vegetarian self and despite having access to the entire menu with substitutions, I was relieved that they had a “veggie” portion in their menu. There were just too many options! Mike’s Place has literally any dish or drink you can imagine and the roadmap menu is peppered with hilarious names and jokes for each item. You could seriously go there every day for months and not order the same thing twice!

While the food is enough to make you want to keep returning to Mike’s again and again, the restaurant is so much more than that. The atmosphere is so welcoming and accommodating and the service is excellent. And, don’t even get me started on the decor because Mike’s is like a museum! Johnny and I sat in a literal bus for our meal and it was awesome. The walls and ceilings are covered with crazy art and fixtures and each room has a specific theme. It really adds to the excitement of going to Mike’s Place because you never know where you’re going to end up.

For our drinks, Johnny went with the Dragon Slayer and I had a Margarita. I wasn’t overly impressed with my marg, but Johnny definitely loved slaying the dragon! We also shared a Peach Sangria that was simply delightful. I ordered cheese tortellini with white sauce, salad, and garlic bread and enjoyed every bite. Johnny got his classic bacon cheeseburger and French fries and he slayed that too lol. The French fries were SO good – super crispy on the outside and soft as can be inside. We were stuffed by the end of our dinner, both with food and feelings lol. ❤

Johnny and I ended our date night as we normally do… Playing Diablo IV. We had the best time going out and plan on making a night out a more regular occurrence. I think we will both be happy if we go to Mike’s Place again next time!

What is your perfect date night like? What is one of your favorite restaurants in your neck of the woods? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Dinner At Misnyland

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Dinner At Misnyland

Hello!! One of the coolest things that lifewithlilred has ever done for me is thanks to this OOTD rocking some MisnyMerch. That outfit helped me win a contest to attend a party at Misnyland to meet Ohio’s most famous personal injury lawyer, Tim Misny. At said party, I was able to conduct an interview with Tim, we hit it off, and the rest is history. Since then, we have created tons of content together with me as a MisnyMerch spokesmodel and it has been a dream!

While the work is neat, the best part has been making a new friend. Johnny, Tim, and I get along like three peas in a pod and it is a blast to hang out altogether. This past week, Tim treated Johnny and I to dinner at his place to show off his culinary skills and everything was divine:

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Something Tim and I really bonded over was our shared love of cooking and serving meals for our family and friends. Next time we do dinner, I call dibs on helping Tim in the kitchen, but he prepared everything himself this time and I felt so spoiled. I can’t remember the last time I sat down while someone else cooked! For our meal, Tim made guacamole, breaded eggplant, tomato bisque, and baked perch for him and Johnny. I was very touched that Tim took the time to consult with me on his menu first to make sure he accommodated my vegetarianism. Everything was SO tasty and I was most impressed by the speed that Tim cooked with. This meal was ready within a half hour and that really blew my mind. Cooking is my me time so I like to draw it out lol.

Johnny and I often get asked what Tim is like in real life and I always say he’s just a guy! Then, I proceed to say that he is simply hilarious, smart as all get out, and a genuinely good person. Johnny and I rarely have the opportunity to make new friends and we enjoy our “Tim Time” so very much. When I began this post, note that I said “one” of the coolest things lifewithlilred has done for me. The top coolest thing my blog has given me is the gift of friendship with countless amazing people and, in this case, I got that too! ❤

I am so thankful to my blog and I always have a moment of “yes!” whenever I interact with anyone that it has put in my path. More Tim Misny X Lil Red collaborations are coming soon so keep your eyes peeled!

Do you like to cook? What is one of your favorite dishes to make? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

 

Constellations Call To Action

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Constellations Call To Action

Hi everyone!! My most recent work endeavor has been doing social media management for a local metalcore band called Constellations. It has been an absolute blast and I have had the best time collaborating and getting to know all of the guys. They are, of course, amazingly talented. But, most importantly, they are the sweetest, kindest, goofiest dudes you could ever hope to meet. It makes my job not only easy, but a complete pleasure. I am SO proud to even know them and I can’t wait to see what the future holds for my new besties.

This past Friday, Constellation’s first single called RIP dropped and it was most exciting!! We have all been working so hard for this release for the past month and change and it was a joy to share in the big day all together. It would mean a lot to all of us if you took the time to follow our social media pages and give RIP a listen. Even if metalcore isn’t your thing, it would be doing your favorite Lil Red blogger a huge favor! You can give some love to our pages at the following:

Facebook: ConstellationsBand

Instagram: constellations330

TikTok: constellationsband

YouTube: ConstellationsBand330

X: seeingstars330

You can also stream RIP on Spotify!!!

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Myself and all of the guys from Constellations can’t thank you enough for your support! Let us know what you think about RIP in the comments. 🙂 Much love. -Sarah

Go Sports!

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Go Sports!

Hello!! This past weekend, Ohio’s own Cleveland Browns made it to the playoffs only to get annihilated in typical Browns fashion. Johnny and I have absolutely no interest in watching sports whatsoever, but our bestie Cliff does. So, we were going to hang out at our place, watch the game, and play some board games together. To get into the football spirit, Johnny and I decided to make our very own Cleveland Browns shirts… Well… Sort of lol. I personally think we came up with something infinitely better! Check it out:

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Our “Sport?” T-shirts came directly from mine and Johnny’s silly imagination and I am obsessed with them. We both thought it would be funny if we got Browns gear to wear while we watched the game, but it seemed way funnier if we just made our own. So, Johnny went to Walmart and got plain white V-necks and a fabric marker so we could get our Project Runway on. The shirts turned out terribly, as we 100% expected, and that is exactly what we wanted.

Johnny and I know tons of sports lovers, but it is something that both him and I will never appreciate as much as them. In fact, I don’t think we could name one rule of football! However, now that we know we are excellent T-shirt makers, maybe we will be a bit more excited about Ohio sports. In fact, when I posted the Ts we made on social media, several people commented that they want a “Sport?” shirt too. Lol maybe we can all band together to form a club about sports for people who know nothing about them. It could be fun! 😀

I am very proud of how our shirts turned out and I most definitely plan on wearing it out in public. Hopefully, people will find them as funny as Johnny and I do!

What is your favorite sport? What is your favorite sports team? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Seeing Stars

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Seeing Stars

Hello darlings!! Starting at the beginning of December, I began a very fun project that I am stoked about. I became the social media manager for a local metalcore band called Constellations. The guys welcomed me into their circle with open arms to kick start strategizing for a content schedule to build up to the release of their debut single RIP. It has been an absolute blast getting to know all of my new besties, spitballing ideas, and enjoying their music. My favorite thing is our group chat, which one of the members created for all of us for social media chatter. It makes me feel so legit and like a real part of the team. ❤

It would mean so much to all of us if you gave Constellations a follow and like on their Facebook page: ConstellationsBand. We will also be releasing their other social media pages soon! Even if metalcore isn’t your thing, this band has a fantastic array of additional content including their “hot takes”, a band game, and clips talking about all things music. They are SO endearing and funny and I just know all of you will love them too. 🙂 Thanks in advance for helping support Lil Red on her latest work adventure!

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Who is your favorite local band? What is your preferred genre of music? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Hats Off: Misny Merch Edition

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Hats Off: Misny Merch Edition

Hi darlings!! It has been forever since we’ve had a new edition of Hats Off because I haven’t bought a new hat in… Well, forever. That changes today, though, because we have a few hats from the Misny Merch collection to check out! Ohio’s favorite local celebrity, Tim Misny, is the man and it was such a joy to create content with him. We had so much fun showing off the Misny Merch line in its entirety and shining a light on the Cleveland City Mission. All proceeds from merch purchases directly benefit this amazing charity that helps battle homelessness in Cleveland. Tim is a huge supporter of the Cleveland City Mission and I tip my new Misny Merch hats to all of those who give their time and love to those who need it at the CCM. Let’s take a look at this swag!

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During the fall and winter, I feel like I am constantly rocking a beanie. They are such a classic cold weather staple and it’s just too easy to throw one on in the morning and call it a day. My go to beanie features the phrase “bad hair day” and, yes, it does cover up my crazy hair from first waking up but also assists in my pure laziness lol. During the work week, I am either up at three or four thirty AM and the last thing I am concerned about is the state of my hair in the wee hours of the morn! I am LOVING my new Misny Merch beanies because they are really similar in style to my bad hair day one and offer an infinitely cooler tagline: A variation of Tim’s signature catchphrase, “I’ll make them pay”.

Another fun item from the Misny Merch line are the baseball caps that say “Misny To The Max”. I think the slogan is absolutely hilarious and I also have this cap in black too. In fact, I wore it in the OOTD I styled to win the contest that put me into Tim’s orbit. Everything that Tim does, trust and believe he does it to the max. Whether that be helping the Cleveland City Mission, taking on a personal injury case, or even decorating Misnyland – he’d rather go big or go home. These hats are a fabulous reminder to do everything to the max and see what happens. It applies to me firsthand. If I didn’t have a “to the max” attitude, then I never would have secured the interview that made me and Tim instant besties!!

Live your life to the max and good things will come your way. Live your life in a “Misny To The Max” baseball cap and you’ll look cool while doing it. Buy yours today at Misny Merch and support the Cleveland City Mission!!

How do you live your life to the max? What is your favorite style of hat? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Misny Merch Reveal

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Misny Merch Reveal

Hello!!! Way back in May, I won a contest to hang out with one of Ohio’s biggest local celebrities thanks to this OOTD. His name is Tim Misny and he is our premiere personal injury lawyer best known for his billboards that are literally everywhere and signature catchphrase of “I’ll make them pay”. Fast forward to November and I got to spend time at his estate called Misnyland with Johnny and other contest winners. During the party, I was able to snag an interview with Tim and we became fast friends. So much so that we are collaborating together to create content!

This experience has been a whirlwind and Tim and I had an absolute blast making a video to showcase his Misny Merch collection. You can peep the video on his Facebook page or mine at Sarah Mushenheim! The coolest thing about Misny Merch is that all proceeds from each purchase benefits the Cleveland City Mission, which is a charity very close to Tim’s heart. You can shop the merch line here and I’ll be doing my own reveal on lifewithlilred with all of my Misny swag. Check it out:

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When I say that Tim is iconic in my neck of the woods, I mean he is iconic. The image featured on these products can be seen on billboards all throughout Ohio and everyone would know that eyebrow arch anywhere! In the video we made together, we got to show off the entire merch collection with a special feature about the holiday line that includes goodies like the Tim Misny ornament, stocking, puzzle, and apparel that you will see later on my page. These make for a perfect gift for yourself or a friend and is a gift that keeps on giving because it helps the Cleveland City Mission. Talk about putting your money to good use!

Johnny and I are stoked to put our Tim Misny puzzle together and we plan on gluing the end result to hang up in our apartment. The stocking is hilarious and our ornament is proudly displayed on our knick knack shelf that holds our ornament collection that has been growing since the beginning of our relationship. It just might be my favorite one yet! The travel and coffee mug have already been put to excellent use and as Tim would say, “it’s my mug on a mug” lol. There’s no better part of waking up than with Tim Misny on your cup or whatever that coffee slogan is. 😀

Modeling for the Misny Merch collection has been a dream come true so keep it locked for more reveals and OOTDs coming soon. Be sure to put your merch orders in ASAP before they sell out and help support the Cleveland City Mission!

Who is a local celebrity in your neck of the woods? Can you arch your eyebrows? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Surprise Christmas Trees

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Surprise Christmas Trees

Howdy!!! This past Wednesday, I went on a wonderful walk with my brother at the Overlook hiking trail. At this particular trail, you can stay on a paved loop that takes you to an overlook area that looks down on the Cuyahoga River or you can go rogue on a dirt path that takes you all the way down to the river. We opted to do a few rounds on the half mile loop and I am so glad that we did! During our walk, we saw two Surprise Christmas Trees and I thought it was such a cool and fun idea that I had to share it with all of you. Check it out:

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The Overlook trail is completely laden with deer and it is nothing out of the ordinary to see them running through the woods or grazing in a clearing. I always say that I am on “deer patrol” on this trail and keep a vigilant eye on the wooded areas for my four legged friends. You can only imagine my surprise when we rounded a curve and it wasn’t a deer I saw, but the littlest Christmas tree (second image) tucked back behind the bigger trees. I was simply enamored with this discovery and loved the fact that someone went out of their way so creatively to spark a bit of holiday spirit for their fellow hikers.

I thought that this tiny taste of holiday magic was a one off until we found another tree (first image) with Christmas ornaments on it. I found myself wondering if it was the original tree decorator or someone else who was inspired by it and decided to do more of the same. Either way, it inspired me and my brother and we both agreed that we should bring some ornaments of our own the next time we hit the Overlook trail. Something tells me that we will be seeing a lot more ornaments upon our return because I think a lot of people will be sharing our sentiments too!

These Surprise Christmas Trees really made me smile and I hope they did the same for you. This was such a unique and special idea and maybe you’ll feel the urge to decorate on your favorite hiking trail too!

Do you like decorating for the holidays? What is your favorite holiday decoration (I love the twelve foot skeletons dressed as Santa!)? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

 

The Green Dragon Inn Board Game Bar

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The Green Dragon Inn Board Game Bar

Hello everyone!! This past weekend I checked out a new board game bar in Akron called The Green Dragon Inn with Johnny, my brother, and our friend Ty. I have been itching to go since I saw posts on Facebook about it because it looked so awesome – exactly like a Medieval tavern and it did not disappoint. The space itself was beautiful, our waitress was most helpful and delightful, and the game we played per her suggestion was a hoot. A wonderful time was had by all and we cannot wait to go back! Take a look at some pics and let’s get to it:

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The Green Dragon Inn sits on top of the second floor of a game store called Full Grip that is run by the same people. It is such a fantastic concept because you can go shopping for new games and play them at The Inn when you are done or test it out if they have the game available in their collection. After we browsed at Full Grip for a while, we made our way to The Green Dragon and were simply blown away. It was like walking into a movie set or something! The furnishing and decor instantly transported us to times of old and I was so impressed that this amazing space was in Akron. It felt like somewhere we would go if we were on a vacation!

Before we settled in our booth, our waitress gave us a tour of The Inn. There is a huge book shelf behind the bar filled with games and a moving ladder like in Beauty and The Beast. However, that is by no means their only selection. They have over eight hundred games to pick from and you can look through their website to narrow it down based on number of players, difficulty, and type of game. We all loved the “dungeon room” with the huge chandelier but the “secret room” was the best of all. This room is expertly hidden behind a bookshelf and it was just so neat to see something like that in real life. If I had all of the money in the world, a room like that would be my first order of business in a new house. 😀

After we were done exploring The Inn, we opted for recommendations for games from our waitress. We weren’t aware of the website we could have looked at beforehand to pick games out and didn’t want to spend time scrolling through it. Our waitress knocked it out of the park with the handful of games she returned with and gave us demonstrations of each game too. We decided to play Concept thanks to her guidance and oddly enough, Johnny and I have that game at home and have never played it! Granted, we never had enough people for it and also I think we both forgot about it lol. Concept was like Pictionary in board game form and it was perfect for our group. The rules were easy to understand and it was a game we would happily play again. In fact, we plan on bringing it to play on Christmas with our families!

As soon as we entered The Green Dragon Inn, we all knew that this was a place we would be returning back to. It’s safe to say that we have never seen anything like it before and we had the best time gaming and enjoying the atmosphere that has been so beautifully created!

Do you have a similar place to The Green Dragon Inn in your neck of the woods? What is your favorite game to play? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah