Blog Trip Day 4: Let's go shopping

Today is Day 4 of the blog trip and it's all about shopping. Although I prefer to shop online, there are still some places that I don't mind going to around town. As far as groceries, the two biggest chain stores around here are Dominicks and Jewel/Osco. We prefer Dominicks although it's a bit more expensive and further away (but we get a discount on gas there, see blog trip Day 2). We also shop at Island Foods (which you might have seen in one of the videos from Day 1) especially for vegetables and fruit. I love this mom and pop store so we try to give them our business as often as possible.

Last week on my weight loss blog I asked for input about Whole Foods Market. We went there for the first time last weekend. I'll be posting about my Whole Foods experience over on that blog soon. But I will say that my two favorite 'healthy' grocery stores are The Fresh Market and Trader Joe's, hands down.

If you want to visit a quaint little town when stopping through, you don't want to miss historic Long Grove. There is a wide variety of cute little shops. You'll find everything from clothes, art, gifts to specialty candy and foods. Don't miss the Confectionary Company for your chocolate fix, love those monstrous dipped strawberries and be sure to check out the Popcorn Shoppe where you'll find the most interesting combinations. There are many events that take place here like the Chocolate Fest, Apple Festival and more. Don't miss driving through this town during the Christmas holiday either. Long Grove even has a one lane covered bridge. Learn about the History of Long Grove when you get a chance. Long Grove is about 20 min. or so from where we live.

Lastly, we have the big premium outlet mall, Gurnee Mills Mall in Gurnee, IL. You might have been to a similar one at one time. They have Potomac Mills in Virginia. I used to live in VA and went there all the time. Gurnee Mills has over 200 stores and quite the variety I might add. I was just there this past weekend where I met two of my online work at home mom friends. We went to The Rainforest Cafe for lunch and had a blast. I'll post about that soon with pictures. I got to the mall early on Saturday and walked the whole length of the mall and back before they arrived. It was a long walk that is for sure. When you visit Gurnee Mills, be sure to stop by Serpent Safari, a reptile zoo and YES it's in the mall, right near The Rainforest Cafe. It will be quite an experience.

We have many other places to shop around here and you might also want to head on into the city of Chicago for a more spectacular shopping experience.

Thanks for stopping by on your blog trip. Have a great day.