30 Things to Do in November
Hello November! The stores are flooded with holiday decor, and I am still over here wondering what happened to summer. You know I am a huge fan of lists and decided to change up my monthly bucket list and do a little something different. Each month I am bringing you a bucket list that is jam-packed with plenty of ideas to get the most out of your month. Since November has 30 days in it, I am bringing you 30 tips and ideas to get you through the month. If you’d like more ideas check out 30 Ways to Celebrate September, 31 Ways to Celebrate October, A-Z Fall Date Ideas or my 2019 Fall Activities List. So let\’s get started…
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1. Head to the zoo, with the cooler temperatures the animals are sure to be active.
2. Create a fall wreath to hang on your door.
3. Make a cute doormat for your front porch. I am thinking of watching one that says “Did You Turn Your Straightener Off?” or “Shhh…Watching Hallmark Movies.”
4. Visit a local arts and crafts fair. They’re a great place to shop for gifts.
5. Build a chili and soup board on Pinterest. I have been trying out vegan soups and chilis lately.
6. Temperatures are dropping it’s time to do some sock shopping. My favorite brands are Darn Tough, Smartwool and Wigwam.
7. Send notes to friends, family, and others to express your thanks and gratitude.
8. Host a Friendsgiving – think potluck, build your own pizzas, chili bar and more.
9. Go play fowling or do some ax throwing with friends.
10. Leave goodies outside for USPS, FedEx, UPS and Amazon workers to lift their spirits during the busiest time of the year.
11. There’s no better time to clear out your refrigerator then today! Plus, you definitely want to make sure you have room for all the holiday goodies.
12. Crochet or knit a scarf? Don’t know how to crochet or knit, no big deal! Right now is the perfect opportunity to learn.
13. Celebrate World Kindness Day by doing something nice for someone else – even something as little as putting money in a parking meter.
14. Volunteer at a soup kitchen.
15. Make a Pinterest board of holiday goodies you want to make.
16. Make some appetizers to enjoy while watching Michigan crush Michigan State.
17. It’s Take a Hike Day! Bundle up and head outside for an adventure.
18. With Thanksgiving right around it’s the perfect opportunity to donate to a local food bank.
19. Brrrrr, treat yourself to a new winter jacket or pair of boots.
20. Pick up a new candle scent. I love Bath and Body Works Twisted Peppermint, Peach Bellini, Peppermint Marshmallow and Cranberry Peach.
21. Buy or make Christmas cards to mail out to friends or family.
22. Donate clothing that you didn’t wear this year to the Salvation Army, Purple Heart or Goodwill.
23. Warm-up from shoveling with a bubble bath.
24. Have a fall bonfire.
25. Head downtown to explore the sights and sounds of the city during the holidays. Detroit has little pop-up markets that I cannot wait to shop.
26. Pay it forward today and buy the person\’s drink behind you in line.
27. Don’t forget to bake a pumpkin pie for tomorrow…yum!
28. Happy Thanksgiving! Make a list of all the things you are grateful for.
29. It’s Black Friday! Have fun shopping, and don’t forget to treat yourself to something as well. Pro tip from a marketer: you can find better deals in July than you will find Black Friday.
30. Happy small business Saturday! Shop your favorite local shops and companies to show your support this holiday season.
Travel Diaries: Tillson Street at Night – Romeo, Michigan
If you know me, you know that I dislike clowns and scary things – which of course makes me dislike Halloween and all things that go bump in the night. Despite my dislike for the spookier things in life, every year I find myself roaming Tillson Street in Romeo, Michigan. Tillson Street also is known as Terror on Tillson, is a street that is famous for its elaborate Halloween decorations during the month of October. Let me tell you, Tillson street is filled with a dedicated group of homeowners that come together each year to put together a spooktacular display like none you have ever seen. In most recent years neighboring streets have decided to join in on the fun, making for a fun evening roaming the streets of Romeo, Michigan. Tillson Street draws people from all over the metro Detroit area, therefore you\’ll want to go knowing that you will probably be stuck in mass crowds of people as you maneuver your way through the spooky street. Here is a peek at Tillson Street after the sun goes down. You can see Tillson Street during the day here.
Coming to Detroit: A BRONX TALE
{this is a sponsored post}
Detroiters, get excited! A BRONX TALE is coming to the Fisher Theatre January 21 – February 2, 2020. This new musical featuring a book by Academy Award nominee Chazz Palminteri, music by Oscar, Grammy, and Tony Award winner Alan Menken, and lyrics by Grammy Award winner and Oscar and Tony Award nominee Glenn Slater.
Tickets start at $39 and can now be purchased online http://www.broadwayindetroit.com or www.ticketmaster.com Tickets may also be purchased by phone by calling 800-982-2787, and at the Fisher Theatre box office.
Hear directly from the creative team about the North American Tour!
Click here: https://youtu.be/wAKZhLNx-wM
A BRONX TALE premiered at the Tony Award–winning Paper Mill Playhouse to critical and popular acclaim in Spring 2016. A BRONX TALE opened on Broadway at the Longacre Theatre on December 1, 2016, following previews from November 3. The show ended its Broadway run on August 5, 2018, having played 700 performances and as the second longest running show in the history of the Longacre Theatre.
Based on the one-man show that inspired the now classic film, this streetwise musical takes audiences to the stoops of the Bronx in the 1960s—where a young man is caught between the father he loves and the mob boss he’d love to be. Featuring an original doo-wop score, this is a tale about respect, loyalty, love, and above all else: family.
A BRONX TALE, based on the original direction by two-time Oscar winner Robert De Niro and four-time Tony Award winner Jerry Zaks, will feature tour direction by Stephen Edlund with choreography by Tony Award winner Sergio Trujillo. The creative team also includes: Beowulf Boritt, Scenic Design; William Ivey Long, Costume Design; Howell Binkley, Lighting Design; Gareth Owen, Sound Design; Paul Huntley, Hair & Wig Design; Anne Ford-Coates, Makeup Design; Stewart/Whitley, Casting; and Robert Westley, Fight Coordinator. Music Supervision and Arrangements are by Ron Melrose and Orchestrations are by Doug Besterman.
A BRONX TALE evolved from the one-man Off-Broadway play, A Bronx Tale, written and performed by Chazz Palminteri in 1989. During the original Off Broadway and subsequent Los Angeles engagements, Robert De Niro came to see the show, and brought the story and star Palminteri to the screen in 1993, making his film directorial debut in the process. Following the success of the film, Palminteri performed the one-man show A Bronx Tale on Broadway in the 2007-2008 Season.
A BRONX TALE’s Original Broadway Cast Album is now available on Ghostlight Records in digital formats, with CDs in stores and online.
For tour dates and more, please visit BronxTaleMusical.com. Follow A Bronx Tale on Twitter: @BXTaleMusical, Instagram: @BronxTaleMusical, or on Facebook (BXTMusical).
CHAZZ PALMINTERI (Book) wrote and performed his one-man show A Bronx Tale for the first time in 1989 before moving it off-Broadway. Mr. Palminteri went on to write the screenplay and co-star in the screen adaptation of A Bronx Tale alongside Robert De Niro. Mr. Palminteri has more than 55 movies to his credit as an actor, writer, and director, including The Usual Suspects, Bullets Over Broadway (Academy Award nomination), Analyze This, Hurlyburly, Mullholland Falls, Faithful (also written by Mr. Palminteri), A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints, Yonkers Joe, Jolene and most recently Legend starring Tom Hardy. Mr. Palminteri had a recurring role on the hit show Modern Family and has starred in Blue Bloods. Mr. Palminteri directed the HBO series Oz (episode “Unnatural Disasters”), Showtime’s Women vs Men, and the feature film Noel starring Susan Sarandon, Paul Walker, and Robin Williams.
ALAN MENKEN (Music) composed the stage and film musicals Little Shop of Horrors, Beauty and the Beast, The Little Mermaid, Newsies, Aladdin and The Hunchback of Notre Dame. Mr. Menken’s other stage musicals include God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater; The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz; A Christmas Carol; Sister Act and Leap of Faith. Mr. Menken’s film musicals also include Life With Mikey, Pocahontas, Hercules, The Shaggy Dog, Enchanted, Tangled and Mirror, Mirror. Some of Mr. Menken’s television credits include Galavant, The Neighbors, Lincoln, Sesame Street and more. Mr. Menken won eight Oscar Awards, 11 Grammy Awards (including Song of the Year), seven Golden Globe Awards, a Tony Award, an Olivier Award, a New York Drama Critics Award, a London Evening Standard Theatre Award, induction into the Songwriters Hall of Fame and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. He has performed internationally, live in concert at Budokan, Hollywood Bowl, Tuacahn, the Segerstrom Center, Osaka-Jo, Anaheim Convention Center, Brigham Young University, Chicago Auditorium, etc. Some of Mr. Menken’s other awards and honors include Billboard’s #1 single and album, Disney Legend, and honorary doctorates from NYU and the North Carolina School of the Arts.
GLENN SLATER (Lyrics) is a three-time Tony nominee for the international hit musicals The Little Mermaid, Sister Act, and School of Rock, and a co-creator of Disney’s worldwide smash Tangled (Grammy Winner, Oscar and Golden Globe noms). With frequent collaborator Alan Menken, he wrote the songs for ABC-TV’s cult series Galavant (Emmy nominee) and the Disney Channel’s Tangled: The Series; as well as the animated comedy Sausage Party, Disney’s Home On The Range, and Broadway musicals Leap of Faith and A Bronx Tale. Glenn also provided the book and lyrics for Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Love Never Dies, the sequel to Phantom of the Opera, which is currently touring the globe after its West End premiere. Most recently, Glenn penned the book for Beatsville (with composer/lyricist/wife Wendy Wilf), which debuted at Sarasota’s Asolo Rep. Glenn lives in NYC, and is a member of ASCAP and the Dramatists Guild.
ROBERT DE NIRO (Original Director), considered one of America’s greatest actors, won the 1974 Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for The Godfather: Part II and the 1980 Academy Award for Best Actor for Raging Bull. He received Academy Award nominations for Taxi Driver, The Deer Hunter, Awakenings, Cape Fear and Silver Linings Playbook. De Niro is a four-time New York Film Critics Circle Award winner in addition to winning the 1981 Golden Globe Award for Raging Bull. A recipient of the 2011 Cecil B. DeMille Award and the 2009 Kennedy Center Honors, he was nominated for seven Golden Globe Awards and six BAFTA Awards. De Niro made his film directorial debut in 1993 with A Bronx Tale and in 2006 directed The Good Shepherd.
JERRY ZAKS (Original Director) was most recently represented on Broadway by Hello, Dolly!, A Bronx Tale: the musical, and Steve Martin’s Meteor Shower. Mr. Zaks has directed more than 30 productions in New York. He has received four Tony Awards and been nominated eight times. He\’s also received four Drama Desks, two Outer Critics Circle Awards, and an Obie. His credits include Nantucket Sleigh Ride, Shows For Days, Sister Act, The Addams Family, Guys and Dolls, Six Degrees of Separation, Lend Me a Tenor, House of Blue Leaves, The Front Page, A Funny Thing…Forum, Smokey Joe’s Café, Anything Goes, La Cage aux Folles, Little Shop of Horrors, The Man Who Came to Dinner, The Foreigner, A Bronx Tale, Laughter on the 23rd Floor, and the original production of Assassins. He began his career directing the extraordinary plays of Christopher Durang including Sister Mary Ignatius…, Beyond Therapy, Baby with the Bath Water, and The Marriage of Bette and Boo. He directed the award-winning film Marvin’s Room, starring Meryl Streep and Diane Keaton; and Who Do You Love, which was featured in the Toronto Film Festival. Mr. Zaks is a founding member, and serves on the board, of the Ensemble Studio Theater. He received the SDC’s George Abbott Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Theatre. He graduated from Dartmouth in 1967, received an MFA from Smith College in 1969, and was awarded an honorary Doctorate of Fine Arts from Dartmouth in 1999. He is a 2013 inductee to the Theatre Hall of Fame.
STEPHEN EDLUND (Tour Director). Credits: Hello, Dolly! (Broadway, National Tour), Meteor Shower (Broadway), A Bronx Tale (Broadway, Paper Mill Playhouse), Sister Act (Broadway, National Tour), Shows for Days (Lincoln Center Theater), Randy Newman’s Harps and Angels (Center Theatre Group) and Ain’t Misbehavin’ (Center Theatre Group). Love to Mom, Dad and David.
SERGIO TRUJILLO (Choreographer) is the recipient of a Tony Award for Ain’t Too Proud – The Life and Times of The Temptations and an Olivier award for Memphis the Musical. Broadway: Ain\’t Too Proud (Tony Award/Outer Critics Circle/Chita Rivera nominations), On Your Feet(Tony Award nominee, Outer Critics Circle/Astaire Awards), Memphis (Olivier/OCC Award, Drama Desk/Astaire Award nominations), Jersey Boys (Olivier/Drama Desk/ OCC/Greenroom/Dora nominations), Summer: The Donna Summer Musical(Chita Rivera Award), A Bronx Tale (Chita Rivera Award nomination), The Addams Family, Next to Normal, Hands on a Hardbody (Drama Desk nomination), Leap of Faith(Drama Desk nomination), Guys and Dolls (Astaire Awards nomination), and All Shook Up. Director/ choreographer: Cirque De Soleil’s Paramour (Stage Entertainment), Arrabal (ART—Elliot Norton Award), Gloria Estefan on Broadway (Minskoff Theatre), Flashdance: The Musical (National tour). Other Theatre: Invisible Thread (Second Stage – Astaire Award nomination), Carmen: An Afro-Cuban Musical (Olney Theatre—Helen Hayes Award nomination), Freaky Friday (Signature Theatre), and The Wiz (La Jolla Playhouse). International credits: Disney’s Tarzan (Stage Entertainment), Peggy Sue Got Married (West End), West Side Story (Stratford Festival).
Detroit Engagement Info
Performance times for A BRONX TALE appearing January 21 – February 2, 2020 at the Fisher Theatre, located at 3011 West Grand Blvd., in Detroit are:
· Tuesday – Saturday evening performances at 8:00 p.m.
· Sunday evening performances at 7:30 p.m.
· Saturday & Sunday matinees at 2:00 p.m.
· Special open captioned and audio described performance on Sunday, Jan. 26 at 7:30 p.m.
Tickets for A BRONX TALE start at $39 (includes facility and parking fees) and are now on sale. Tickets can be purchased online at broadwayindetroit.com or ticketmaster.com, and by phone at 800-982-2787. A limited number of premium seats will be available through Ticketmaster and at the Fisher Theatre box office. For group sales (10 or more) please call 313-871-1132 or email groups@broadwayindetroit.com. Tickets for the open captioned and audio described performance may be purchased in person at the Fisher Theatre box office or by phone at 313-872-1000, ext. 0. Performance schedule, prices and cast are subject to change without notice.
Hallmark Pumpkin Zucchini Muffins
Hallmark Channel is jampacked with all the best movies, and of course, you can’t forget about the hunks of Hallmark. While Hallmark Channel Christmas movies are classic favorites, I am definitely a fan of the Hallmark Channel year-round. Most recently I have been addicted to watching Hallmark Channel fall harvest movies. While I was in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan hanging with my friend Jen we made sure to make time to watch the Hallmark Channel. In one of the shows they made Pumpkin Zucchini Muffins, and from that moment we knew that we would need to mix up our own recipe for pumpkin zucchini muffins. With the cool breeze in the air, and pumpkin everything taking over I thought it was the perfect chance to create the Hallmark Channel pumpkin zucchini muffins. This pumpkin zucchini muffin recipe is quick and easy to make and is sure to be a hit. These pumpkin zucchini muffins are moist and absolutely delicious.
Hallmark Pumpkin Zucchini Muffins
Ingredients
3 cups flour
1.5 tablespoons pumpkin pie spice
2 teaspoons baking soda
1.5 teaspoons salt
3 cups granulated sugar
1 can (15 ounces) 100% Pure Pumpkin
4 large eggs
½ cup canola oil
½ cup water
1 cup shredded zucchini
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Place muffin cups into tin.
3. Combine flour, pumpkin pie spice, baking soda, salt and sugar in a large bowl.
4. Combine pumpkin, eggs, oil and water in a bowl.
5. Mix to combine.
6. Add flour mixture to pumpkin mixture.
7. Stir to combine.
8. Add zucchini.
9. Stir to combine.
10. Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups, filling ¾ full.
11. Bake for 16-20 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in centers comes out clean.
12. Cool in pans on wire racks for 10 minutes.
Ingredients
3 cups flour
1.5 tablespoons pumpkin pie spice
2 teaspoons baking soda
1.5 teaspoons salt
3 cups granulated sugar
1 can (15 ounces) 100% Pure Pumpkin
4 large eggs
½ cup canola oil
½ cup water
1 cup shredded zucchini
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Place muffin cups into tin.
3. Combine flour, pumpkin pie spice, baking soda, salt and sugar in a large bowl.
4. Combine pumpkin, eggs, oil and water in a bowl.
5. Mix to combine.
6. Add flour mixture to pumpkin mixture.
7. Stir to combine.
8. Add zucchini.
9. Stir to combine.
10. Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups, filling ¾ full.
11. Bake for 16-20 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in centers comes out clean.
12. Cool in pans on wire racks for 10 minutes.
Restaurant Review: Donckers – Moose Pancakes
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Looking for a great place to grab breakfast in Marquette, Michigan? Why not give Donckers a try? At Donckers you will not only find their signatures caramels and chocolates, including the Signature Sea Salt Carmel that has been hand-dipped in dark or milk chocolate, but you will also find a restaurant. That’s right, Donckers is more than just a candy shop it’s a restaurant too. Located in the heart of downtown Marquette Donckers is serving up candy, ice cream, breakfast and lunch/dinner. One of the coolest things Donckers offers can be found on the kid’s menu and is called the Micky Moose Pancakes. The Micky Moose Pancakes at Donckers use a from-scratch recipe and are made to look like a moose. Seriously cutest pancakes ever! They might even be too cute to eat.
Fashion meets Food 