By: Kirsten Mann, Marketing and Communications Intern

Cinco De Mayo may only occur one day a year, but that doesn’t mean you can only eat Mexican food on that ONE day. Some of you may have Mexican food once a week, others may have it twice a week, then there are those people that only have it once a month! You’re probably thinking to yourself, “who in their right mind only has Mexican once a month?!” We personally believe that you need to indulge in the deliciousness of Mexican food more often, so we have a list of some of our favorite places in Grand Rapids to get some. 

We know everyone loves tacos (yes, the most basic, original form of Mexican food that exists… but they’re delicious right?!) and if someone doesn’t it’s most likely because they’re loco. Here are some of our favorite restaurants in the Grand Rapids area to get some authentic Mexican tacos.

1. Taqueria San Jose
2. El Granjero Mexican Grill
3. Donkey Taqueria
4. Tacos El Cuando

Each restaurant has their own distinct atmosphere that makes them unique in their own way. Most of them serve a variety of other authentic meals as well!  If you’re in the mood for Mexican now and looking for a new place to try you should definitely hit up one of these destinations. They’re all located within the Grand Rapids area, so finding them isn’t too big of a challenge.

Know of another place that serves authentic Mexican tacos that isn’t on our list? Let us know! We love to try new places especially when they serve up our favorite food! 

By: Danielle Miller, Marketing Manager

Let’s be honest; when you think of spring and summer, what food automatically comes to mind? Now, you might say burgers, or brats, or even s’mores, but I am willing to bet the majority of us think of the cold, creamy, deliciousness we all know as ice cream. And since we are being honest, I’ll let you in on a little secret. I can honestly say that during the summer, I probably go to my local ice cream store at least 1-2 times a week. You too? Okay, glad to know I am not alone.

 So since we all love ice cream, I am going to highlight one of my favorite local shops. Why? Basically, I think you need to try it…and try it soon. I will warn you though; once you go once, you’ll go twice, and then you’ll be there all the time. I’ll be sure to save you a seat.

 Luckily for me, Furniture City Creamery is actually right down the road from American Realty. I love supporting local shops, and Furniture City Creamery is the definition of a “small, local shop.” In fact, the shop itself is less than 500 square feet. But don’t let their size fool you! During the summer, Furniture City Creamery makes over 100 gallons of ice cream a week. Not to mention, they make their ice cream from scratch. Yes, they are that cool. And to top it all off, the ingredients that they use are all from local Michigan businesses.

 You may be wondering, “Since everything is made from scratch, what unique flavors do they create?”

 Some of Today’s Ice Cream Flavors Are:

Van’s Donut

Rowster’s Coffee

Lucky Charms

Salted Caramel

Drumstick

Vegan Brownie Sundae

 Just to name a few…

 According to the owners, “Our flavor selections change daily/hourly depending on demand. This helps keep everything fresh, and gives you an opportunity to try something new every time you visit!”

 The flavors that they create are all developed on site as well.

 “95% of the products you see in the shop are made by the same two women (Denise and Rachel). Both met through GROW and left corporate jobs to make ice cream all day.”

 All I have to say is, Denise and Rachel are my heroes, and total boss babes. I might just take them up on their ice cream making classes so that I too can be awesome.

 All this to say, you should check out Furniture City Creamery at least once this summer. You will not be disappointed! But don’t just take my word for it, visit them at: 958 Cherry St SE, Grand Rapids, Mi 49506.

Stay tuned for a fun project we are currently working on with them as well!

By: Kirsten Mann, Marketing and Communications Intern

One of the biggest struggles a college student faces is finding the time to do everything. When you go off to college and begin your life there, you’re excited about all the freedom you have to choose what you want to do. You get comfortable being able to decide how you want to go about doing things, not having a parent or guardian telling you what to do, such as chores and/or homework. It takes a good couple of weeks to adapt to holding yourself responsible for getting yourself to class since there’s no one there to make you go, except the lingering thought that you’re paying for the opportunity of a better education. Once you finally get comfortable with your schedule, a new semester begins, which means a new schedule and further adjustments.

It wasn’t hard to adjust to going to classes everyday, or getting myself to go. The hardest part was trying to find time to do homework, eat, exercise and have a social life, especially when I got a job my senior year. You’re probably thinking, “it was hard finding time to eat?” Believe it or not, I skipped many meals because I didn’t have the time to make a proper one. I tended to snack more than actually eat a full, nutritious meal. This resulted in my energy levels being lowered, leaving me not wanting to do anything by the end of the day, including exercise.

Part of my daily  routine (now) is going to the gym and getting a workout in before dinner. Before my junior year of college I struggled fitting the gym into my routine because I made the excuse that I didn’t have time due to homework. I was tired all the time because I went to bed late and woke up early; it just wasn’t healthy… I wasn’t healthy. Every year seemed to get busier and I had less and less time to do things. My last year meant that more of my free time would be consumed because of my job, classes and internship; I knew I would have to adjust myself to a busier schedule than what I was used to. It wasn’t an easy adjustment, but I knew I had to do what was best for me, so I made the time to incorporate a healthier lifestyle.

By the end of my senior year I started eating 3 full meals a day and sleeping at least 8 hours a night; I finally started to feel like myself again. I had a better attitude about my classes and about waking up in the morning. I didn’t procrastinate as much and felt like I had more energy to get things done. I still have my lazy days on the weekends, but I make up for it by keeping busy during the week. It took me all four years of my college career to figure out a schedule that worked best for me. I learned to be more flexible and more willing to make time in order to benefit myself as a whole in the end.

College is all about making time to do the things that you think are important and that  need to get done. Your college career isn’t about finding the time; it’s about making the time. It’s about adjusting and finding out what works best for you. It may take you your freshmen year to adjust and become comfortable, or it may take you all four years of college; no one adjusts at the same rate. Make time to figure out what a healthy lifestyle means to you and make it your lifestyle.