My Peace Love Life
  • Blog
  • Shop
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Travel
  • Before I Die
  • Contact
  • Model
  • My Wedding!
  • My Lovely Fans!

What to do in Ohiopyle, Pennsylvania

8/29/2016

1 Comment

 
What to do in Ohiopyle, Pennsylvania
Every year, the husband and his friends go to Ohiopyle, Pennsylvania for a weekend of camping. Since entering the picture, I've gone for five years in a row now. There is a ton to do in this quaint little town of less than a hundred people, and it makes a great vacation, for children and adults alike! If you're wanting to plan a quick weekend getaway, Ohiopyle Pennsylvania is the perfect quick, budget vacation for everyone! Here is what to do in Ohiopyle, Pennsylvania! 

What to do in Ohiopyle, Pennsylvania
The first thing you need to do, is set up a campsite! In town they do have a cute little motel, but we always rough it outdoors at Scarlett Knob Campground, it's really nice there! This is legit camping; no running water, no electric, and no restrooms (although they do have a couple porter potties sitting around)! Scarlett Knob Campground is right outside the town of Ohiopyle, so it's a quick drive down the wind-y mountain roads to get to all the activities I have listed here!
​
What to do in Ohiopyle, Pennsylvania

What to do in Ohiopyle, Pennsylvania
Go white water rafting.
We did this the first year I went along, and it was a complete blast! It's a guided tour, and don't worry if you're not experienced, they have multiple difficulty levels, so you can even take children! We went with the Laurel Highlands rafting company.


What to do in Ohiopyle, Pennsylvania
Picture

What to do in Ohiopyle, Pennsylvania
Visit Laurel Caverns.
Laurel Caverns is Pennsylvania's largest cave, it has over three miles of passages! The guided tour is super neat, and the caves are incredible! They are so beautiful, our friend proposed to his girlfriend in these caves!
What to do in Ohiopyle, Pennsylvania

What to do in Ohiopyle, Pennsylvania
Visit the scenic overlook.
I'm not sure exactly where this is at, but just ask anyone in town, and I'm sure they'll point you in the right direction!
We're always sure to visit this spot, because the view is absolutely stunning! You can see over the entire town of Ohiopyle! This is a great spot to take pictures of the whole family!
​
What to do in Ohiopyle, Pennsylvania
What to do in Ohiopyle, Pennsylvania
What to do in Ohiopyle, Pennsylvania
What to do in Ohiopyle, Pennsylvania

What to do in Ohiopyle, Pennsylvania
Forge the river.
In the town of Ohiopyle, the river that runs through it is the main attraction. This is the river that you go white water rafting on. However, if you start up by where the bridge is, you can walk across the river (this is not for children, the current can get pretty strong!). Us girls walked over the bridge, while the men walked the river. The bridge offers spectacular views! Which brings me to our next one...
​
What to do in Ohiopyle, Pennsylvania

What to do in Ohiopyle, Pennsylvania
Cross the bridge.
Like I said before, this bridge offers spectacular views! The above picture is a photo I took of the bridge from below. But once you get on top of the bridge, you get spectacular photos like these...
What to do in Ohiopyle, Pennsylvania
What to do in Ohiopyle, Pennsylvania
What to do in Ohiopyle, Pennsylvania
What to do in Ohiopyle, Pennsylvania

What to do in Ohiopyle, Pennsylvania
Play by the river.
Once you've crossed the bridge to the other side of the river, there is a biking and hiking trail. There is also a bunch of rocks jutting out into the river, and it's a great spot for taking pictures, exploring and even picnic-ing!
What to do in Ohiopyle, Pennsylvania
What to do in Ohiopyle, Pennsylvania

What to do in Ohiopyle, Pennsylvania
Ride the natural waterslide. 
The Meadow Run natural waterslide is a must-visit! Above is my husband going down it! It then empties into a beautiful pool, with a large rock that people were jumping off of.
​ Parking is available adjacent to the SR 381 bridge crossing Meadow Run. Follow the signs to Meadow Run Trail, or follow the path at the back of the parking lot. The address is PA-381, Ohiopyle, PA 15470. 
​
What to do in Ohiopyle, Pennsylvania
What to do in Ohiopyle, Pennsylvania

What to do in Ohiopyle, Pennsylvania
Visit Falls Market.
This adorable little general store/restaurant/ice cream shop, is right across the street from the river, in the center of town. It's the perfect spot if you want to get out of the heat, and eat something other than campfire food!
​

What to do in Ohiopyle, Pennsylvania
Cucumber Falls.
This summer was pretty dry,so Cucumber Falls wasn't as roaring as it usually is, but it was still fun! We even went behind the waterfall!
What to do in Ohiopyle, Pennsylvania
After you get out of the falls, follow the trail down (be careful, the rocks are super slippery!), and watch as it empties into the river, even watch white water rafters go by!
What to do in Ohiopyle, Pennsylvania
Where Cucumber Falls empties into the river. Stunning!
​
What to do in Ohiopyle, Pennsylvania
As you can see, Ohiopyle, Pennsylvania is a perfect vacation spot for families, couples, young people, nature lovers, photographers, and adventure seekers!
​
What to do in Ohiopyle, Pennsylvania
What to do in Ohiopyle, Pennsylvania
What to do in Ohiopyle, Pennsylvania
*Just a quick word of caution! Everything I mentioned in this article has the potential to be dangerous! So be sure to use caution, pay attention to your surroundings (always watch the water levels, and the swiftness of the rapids!), and enjoy at your own risk!*


​Peace Love and Ohiopyle Pennsylvania
Jess <3


More articles you might like;
Picture
Picture
Picture

Don't forget to like us on facebook!
 
1 Comment

How to Make Your Own Organic Vegan Fair Trade Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups

8/22/2016

0 Comments

 
Organic, Vegan, Fair Trade Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups
If you regularly read my blog, you know that I am an advocate for Eden Ministries, as well as the head of social media and volunteer for P.A.T.H.S. Both of these organizations help fight against human trafficking, which is a cause I am very passionate about. I had known a lot about the sex trafficking scope of the spectrum, but I was absolutely horrified to learn of another form of human trafficking, labor trafficking. Labor trafficking can look like a number of different things. Whether it be sweatshop labor, people kept against their will and forced to work long hours for little to no pay, and also, child labor. So when I found out that child labor is rampantly used in the chocolate industry (today's chocolate industry!), I decided to boycott it. Seriously, the everyday chocolate brands we eat in America, use chocolate that comes from child labor slaves in different countries. While these companies are totally aware of this, they continue to use this chocolate. Why? Because it is cheap. And it makes them more money.
So I decided to do my part. No more chocolate peanut butter cups (which are my favorite!). My husband was quite sad when we went to the store and looked at all the candy bars, only to find that they were all manufactured by companies that support child labor. So I made these, and here is how you can make your own!
​
Picture
What you need to make your very own organic, fair trade, non child labor version of chocolate peanut butter cups;
-Cupcake papers
-Organic, fair trade peanut or almond butter.
I use Once Again Almond Butter. Once Again is an American, employee owned, and completely fair trade company, whose products are all completely organic.
and
​-Organic, fair trade melting chocolate.
Some good brands are Mama-Ganache, and Dolci Frutta, You can find more online, or at your local health shop. Just be sure to look for a fair-trade certified kind!


Picture
Step 1. Melt your organic, fair-trade melting chocolate, following package instructions.
​

Picture
Step 2. Spoon a little of the melted chocolate into the bottom of the cupcake papers. Don't make it too full, there's two more layers about to be added!
​
Picture
Step 3. Melt your organic, fair trade almond (or peanut) butter in the microwave, in a microwave safe bowl. 
​Step 4. Spoon some of the melted nut butter on top of the chocolate.
​

Picture
Step 5. Spoon more chocolate mixture on top of the peanut butter layer.
​

Picture
Step 6. Let sit and cool for a bit before diving in!
​

Organic, Vegan, Fair Trade Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups
Organic, Vegan, Fair Trade Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups
So start reading up on this topic, and find out which companies refuse to help end child labor. Write letters to them. Tell them you are going to boycott them until they make an effort to change! And until then, enjoy your own homemade delicious organic, vegan, fair-trade chocolate peanut butter cups!
​

​Peace Love and Child Labor Free Chocolate
Jess <3


0 Comments

Fourteen Hours in New York City

8/15/2016

5 Comments

 
Fourteen Hours in New York City
Wow, is the Big Apple crazy! But what's even crazier, is taking a whirlwind fourteen hour trip there...So of course that's exactly what we did!
Me, my mom, and my sister hopped on an overnight bus Friday night, and slept the entire eight hours to New York City. The bus dropped us off in the middle of the city Saturday morning, then left! Fourteen hours later the bus came back and picked us up, getting us back to Ohio early Sunday morning! Whew! What a weekend!
Here is what we did in fourteen hours in New York City, spending almost nothing!


Fourteen Hours in New York City
Grand Central Station
Once we hopped off the bus, this was the first place we went. Not only is Grand Central Station absolutely beautiful, and a must-visit, but we wanted to use the restrooms to get dressed and do our hair and makeup!
​
Fourteen Hours in New York City
Gettin' pretty in Grand Central Station's Bathrooms
Fourteen Hours in New York City
Fourteen Hours in New York City
Grand Central Station in the early morning
Fourteen Hours in New York City
Fourteen Hours in New York City
Ground Central
Once leaving Grand Central, we wandered around trying to find a cute, New York City styled coffee shop. There were no shortages of Starbucks that's for sure, but we managed to find a crammed, and adorable little coffee shop by the name of Ground Central (get it?!). It doesn't get much more New York City style than that! And I got a passion fruit flavored donut the size of my head! Yippee!
​
Fourteen Hours in New York City
Fourteen Hours in New York City
Fourteen Hours in New York City
My Mom enjoying her coffee
Fourteen Hours in New York City
Times Square
I figured Times Square was a must see, so once we filled our bellies, we made our way there. Times Square is a great place to visit when you don't have a lot of time, but want to experience a lot! You can find anything (or anyone!) there!
​

Fourteen Hours in New York City
In Times Square, you can find a Naked Cowboy, and a Princess, all at the same time!
Fourteen Hours in New York City
Fourteen Hours in New York City
Crazy-ness!
Fourteen Hours in New York City
Fourteen Hours in New York City
The Mnm Store
I'm not even a big MnM fan, but this store was pretty insane! It had multiple levels inside, all filled to the brim with every shade MnM imaginable, plus MnM shirts, cups, robes, pillows, golf balls, and anything else you could think of! It's located in Times Square, so it's really easy to make a pit stop there while you're making your way through.

​
Fourteen Hours in New York City
Fourteen Hours in New York City
Bryant Park
From Times Square, Bryant Park is just a hop, skip, and a jump (a couple blocks) away.
I could only describe Bryant Park as ethereal. With plants and gardens and fountains, you feel like a sprite, making her way through a magical fairy kingdom!
There's coffee, plenty of places to sit, a carousel, and even a place to sit and play games!


Fourteen Hours in New York City
Fourteen Hours in New York City
Fourteen Hours in New York City
Fourteen Hours in New York City
The New York Public Library
This magnificent house of literature is directly beside Bryant Park, so once you've finished your cup of coffee, head on inside, and prepare to lose yourself in the architecture, bookshelves, and exhibits. Be sure to grab a free map of the city from the information desk, this was a huge help to us the rest of our trip!
 
Fourteen Hours in New York City
Fourteen Hours in New York City
I found a phone booth!
Fourteen Hours in New York City
Fourteen Hours in New York City
Fourteen Hours in New York City
I highly recommend visiting the map room
Fourteen Hours in New York City
Central Park
This one definitely needs no explanation! From the Library, we walked to Central Park. It was a bit of a walk, but there was no shortage of stuff to look at along the way!


Fourteen Hours in New York City
We passed the NBC Studios on our way to Central Park
Fourteen Hours in New York City
Fourteen Hours in New York City
Strawberry Fields
Strawberry Fields in right on the outskirts of Central Park. I knew that we needed to go there, since we are all huge Beatles, and John Lennon fans. Strawberry Fields is quite a serene and peaceful spot. It's very Hippie-rific, and you can always find someone playing a Lennon song nearby.
​

Fourteen Hours in New York City
Fourteen Hours in New York City
Picture
Tom's Restaurant
Any Seinfeld fans out there?!
From Strawberry Fields we took a cab to Tom's Restaurant (it was pretty far to walk, plus we were hungry!). Tom's Restaurant was a must visit for us, because my entire family is completely obsessed with Seinfeld, and the outside of Tom's Restaurant is famous for appearing in pretty much every single episode of Seinfeld, as Monk's Cafe that they frequent! The inside isn't the same, since they weren't actually on set in New York. But we were still super stoked to stand outside, and marvel at the place we have seen so often in our favorite t.v. show! 
Picture
Picture
Picture
Fourteen Hours in New York City
Chinatown
I wanted to visit Chinatown, so we took the Subway there. It was completely surreal to know that I was still in America, but to look, feel, and even smell(!) like I was in China! 
​From Chinatown we walked through Little Italy, made our way to a Subway, and cruised back up to Grand Central Station where we met our bus to go home.


Fourteen Hours in New York City
Grand Central Station at night
Fourteen Hours in New York City
Holy Moly, can you believe we did all of that in just fourteen hours?!! What a blast! Have you ever visited the Big Apple? Were you there for longer than fourteen hours? What are your must-visits for New York?
​

Peace Love and New York City
​Jess <3
​

5 Comments

The 2008 China Earthquake

8/8/2016

0 Comments

 
The 2008 China Earthquake
As you all know, I love to write about fun things like travel, fashion, weddings, and so on. But I also sometimes like to share with you from my soul. Today I want to share a personal story with you. A true story that happened to me, and something that I feel called to share right now. This is my firsthand story of the 2008 China earthquake...
​I had only been living in China for about four months, when the 2008 China earthquake happened on May 12. I was living in Xi'an, a city about 460 miles from Chengdu, which was the epicenter of the quake. I had decided that I wanted to go out for a walk, maybe stop at some of the adorable roadside stores, and do some shopping. My first stop was a little underwear store, with small cardboard signs, exclaiming in Chinese characters all about their sales, hanging from wires from the ceiling, and a waist high bin in the middle of the store, holding hundreds of pairs of half priced underwear. It was in this bin, that I was digging, hoping to find a pair of cute, cheap underwear, that would actually fit me, when it happened. I suddenly felt very dizzy, so I made a mental note that I needed to drink more water. I then glanced up, and saw the signs on the ceiling swaying back and forth as if some strong breeze had swept quickly through the store. Suddenly, the giant metal bin in front of me was being tossed from side to side. This was about the time when me, the cashier, and the three or four other girls in the store, realized that the ground beneath us was moving. We ran outside onto the street. I looked around, and saw, in all directions, hundreds of people, flooding out of buildings, like a tsunami wave out into the street.

The 2008 China Earthquake
​Thinking back, the large shocks couldn't have lasted more than a minute or two, but as I was clinging to a complete stranger (one of the random girls from the underwear store!), the once solid ground, throwing me violently down, never letting me stand fully to my feet before tossing me to the other side, I had no realization of time, or any other person, place, event, or thought, besides the girl who was clinging to me and I to her, and the thought, "I am going to die." The entire time of the quake, there was a dead, eerie silence. You could hear the ground moving, and the buildings shifting, but there were none of the comforting sounds of normal life. No car engines, beeping horns, laughing children, no birds in the sky. It was like nothing I had ever experienced before. When the ground stood still once again, there was a moment of complete stillness, quiet, and calm, then it was as if the entire city suddenly at the same time, snapped out of some daze, and started rushing around. I slowly made my way back to my apartment, scared and confused, and trying to comprehend what had just happened. It was mass chaos; all cell services were jammed, you couldn't reach anyone on your phone. Once I reached my apartment, I saw that the entire sidewalk in front of it was full of people. I finally found my friends, and my roommate. No one was allowed back in the building until it was cleared. I later learned that my building had earned the nickname "dofu lou" (tofu building), for it was shifting to and fro like a piece of jiggly tofu during the earthquake.

The 2008 China Earthquake
That night most of the city slept outside on the ground, for being inside a tall building with aftershocks happening, was not the safest thing you could do (especially in the dofu lou!). 
Luckily we had a friend that lived in a nice apartment complex, that had grass we could sleep on. I did walk around the city though, and take pictures of the local park, of all the people sleeping on the ground.
​
The 2008 China Earthquake
The 2008 China Earthquake
The 2008 China Earthquake
This was us the morning after. Yes that's me in the glasses.
​
The 2008 China Earthquake
I later found out that the earthquake that hit had a magnitude of 7.9, killing about 70,000 people, and leaving over 18,000 missing. It was the 3rd most deadly earthquake in China since 1990. It was a tragedy, through and through.
The above picture is in the days following the earthquake, people donating money to the victims.

It has been eight years, and I have not forgotten, nor will I ever.
​

​Peace Love and Earthquake
Jess <3


0 Comments
      
    ​
    Picture

    I'm Jessica!

    I am a
    Globe trotting
    Eco-friendly
    Retro loving
    Old fashioned housewife
    Pinup
    & Dog Mom
    Ohio based influencer, lifestyle & travel blogger.

    Love yourself, love others, and have fun. Let this blog help you do all of those!
    Find me on facebook.

    About Me
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
     
    Sponsor a Child in Jesus Name with Compassion


    ​---Popular Posts---

    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture

    Categories

    All
    Beauty
    Blogging
    Changing The World
    Christmas
    Coffee Break Retro Style
    Crafts
    Diy
    Fashion
    Goals
    Guest Bloggers
    Halloween
    Happiness
    Health
    Home Decor
    Inspiration
    Money
    Music
    My Favorite Posts
    My Life
    Ohio
    Parties
    Recipes
    Sponsored Posts
    Support Small Businesses
    Wedding
    World Traveler
    Zero Waste

    Archives

    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012


    Blogs I Love!
    -Well Being Secrets
    -Like a Local Travel
    -Salt Sand and Smoothies
    ​-The Wanderer's Chronicles
    -The Wanderlust Bug
    -Pamela Kurt
    -Stevie on the Move
    -Travlinmad
    -Green Issues
    ​-Travel Alphas
    ​-The Haunted Housewife

    -The Sacred Middle
    ​

    *Disclosure; This blog is a personal blog written by me. This blog accepts forms of cash advertising, sponsorship, paid insertions or other forms of compensation. The compensation received may influence the advertising content, topics or posts made in this blog. That content, advertising space or post will be clearly identified as paid or sponsored content. The owner of this blog is compensated to provide opinion on products, services, websites and other topics. Even though the owner of this blog receives compensation for their posts or advertisements, they always give their honest opinions, findings, beliefs, or experiences on those topics or products. The views and opinions expressed on this blog are purely the bloggers’ own.*
    Picture
Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.