Lolly The Trolley, Cleveland

A wonderful ride through downtown Cleveland on a beautiful day with Lolly the Trolley by Trolley Tours of Cleveland. This local company provides informative and educational tours through Cleveland for anyone interested in learning about this great city.

I am generally not a city girl, but I love visiting the city. The lights, sounds, tall buildings and even better, exquisite architecture always inspire feelings of awe and wonder. We were able to ride in beautiful trolley cars while our guide explained the history of Cleveland, and how the city planners were responsible for its wide, open streets and sunny sidewalks. Most large cities crowd the streets with tall buildings. Cleveland's founders wanted to keep the sunshine available and it shows as you tour its streets.

Buildings I hear about on the news were pointed out as we spent quite a bit of time circling Public Square, noting the artwork, the sculptures, monuments and more. I learned more about Cleveland on this one hour tour than I have ever learned before. My daughter was thrilled to see her first official skyscraper, the Key Bank building. (This is not it.)

As a bonus, the Blue Angels were rehearsing overhead for the upcoming Air Show while we were on our tour, so whenever it got a bit noisy, we would all look to the sky and say "Do you see them?" "Where are they?"
Our particular trolley was being hosted/guided by the company's founder, who was very kind and allowed us all to leave the trolley for a minute at Burke Lakefront Airport in order to watch a group of Blue Angels take off. Inside the airport, we were able to see one of their airplanes up close.

We had a wonderful time, and I plan to go again. I'd like to take a tour of the different ethnic neighborhoods and the West Side Market, which is a tour they offer. Considering the large group that attended, I'll expect to have quite a bit of company with me again, which is wonderful.

Trolley Tours of Cleveland has a wonderful program for your group of any age and size. They are very accomodating. You'll need to pay a deposit when you reserve the trolley, and you can contact them for more info at phone# 1-800-848-0173.
*Baby tip: There are no seat belts if you were wondering, and therefore, no way to attach a car seat. This may affect whether or not you want to bring your little one, since you will actually be driving on regular roads at the usual speeds. I don't believe they've had any accidents, though, so you may just go and have a good time as we did.
All photos taken and provided by one of our youngest trolley riders, Emily S. Great job, Emily!

Krasco Basket Factory, Coshocton

On February 23, we toured the production facility for Krasco Baskets in Coshocton. This is a very nice little factory, still operated by the original family who began building these baskets. I'm sure you've heard of Longaberger Baskets. Well, these baskets are very similar in style, but with one major difference: all of the baskets are made of recycled materials which do not break down the way most wooden baskets do. Plastic baskets can handle outdoor weather and retain their beauty year after year.

You might think that plastic baskets look cheaper or less beautiful than the wood, but if you think so, you haven't seen Krasco's baskets. It took some time, but the founder of the company developed with a partner a plastic strip that resembles wood in texture and added some beautiful colors that don't fade in the sun or turn black in the rain. They are often referred to as "basket sleeves" because the outdoor ones are bottomless so that your plant can sit on the ground. They do offer other models of baskets as well as basket mailboxes and birdhouses (my personal favorites).

We were treated fabulously on our tour. The founder of the company actually gave the tour because his son, who usually gives the tours, was sick. After a brief history of the factory and seeing some early examples, we were shown through the warehouse and factory, where workers were busily creating big beautiful baskets. The children got up close and personal with the workers, and were able to take home scraps of the baskets as samples along with an official sample that had 5 basket colors clamped together. As a special bonus, they had a drawing among all of the tour attendees for 4 of their baskets to take home free! I was not expecting such a nice surprise.

You can find more info about the products and where to purchase them by checking out this website Krasco Basket Sleeves. If you're interested in a tour, which was free, call them at 740-623-2953 to schedule.

The Wilderness Center, Stark County

On February 17, we enjoyed a fun field trip/full day of education at The Wilderness Center in Wilmot, Stark County. We split our group into 2 age groups: 9 years and up and under 9 years old to help make the program appropriate for each age group. Our program was called Winter Extravaganza.
Each group spent time in a classroom working on pine cone bird feeders and viewing birds (and deer) at the feeders outside the viewing room, in the planetarium learning about the winter night sky, and on the trail through the woods learning about and viewing the wildlife in the area. We also had time for lunch together.

We spent about 3 hours there learning together. Although the little ones didn't all like the planetarium, and I think some of the older students may have already created pine cone birdfeeders before, we all learned something and had a wonderful time. The hike was also a bit chilly (expected for February) and difficult with a stroller, but worthwhile. My older daughter especially enjoyed the planetarium show and the fossil wall. She came home pointing out constellations that night. She made some new friends and had a great time. My younger daughter was thrilled to make a birdfeeder and also had a lot of fun.

If you are interested in any of their programs, look at their website for more info. The Wilderness Center
They offer numerous programs open to the public as well as the educational programs for groups.

The Cleveland Plain Dealer Tour

In February, we had 2 full groups tour the production facility for the Cleveland Plain Dealer. The tour was free with tickets sent to us ahead of time. Children under 8 years old are not allowed in the facility. If you're interested in scheduling a tour, call them at 216-999-5000 x5665.
Since I did not attend either tour, one of our members was kind enough to write this review. Thanks, Debbie!

On Friday, Feb 10th, 27 parents and homeschool students were treated
to a tour of The Plain Dealer's Production and Distribution Center.
If you're impressed with the outside of this beautiful building in
Brooklyn, Ohio, you should see the inside! We met in the lobby and
were each given an individual headset so we could hear the tour guide
clearly even when we were walking through the plant. This building
has 10 acres under one roof. We saw a movie that gave us some
background on the facility and how the newspaper is created every day.
Some of our favorite parts were viewing the huge paper rolls (and
signing our names on the outside of them!), the train tracks inside
the building, and the robots who transport the 2,800 lb. rolls of
newsprint. The tour lasted about an hour.

Canton Museum of Art

On February 7, our group was treated to a field trip at the Canton Museum of Art. Their current exhibit was "Art of the Rainforest." We were split into 2 groups to tour the exhibit, each led by a volunteer docent from the museum. These were both very kind older ladies who obviously enjoy what they do.

Our group of children followed the kind, but soft-spoken docent around the exhibit hall, listening and behaving very well as she spoke in great detail about the paintings and the plight of the rainforest. She was very concerned that the children understand why it is important to learn about and try to save the rainforest and the animals who live in it.
Admittedly, she was very quiet and hard to hear and her talk was not engaging in the least, but she was very sweet. Near our lunch time, we were given a little time to explore the artwork on our own, which was greatly appreciated. The art was truly amazing! Some of those paintings seemed more like photographs, and I was impressed at the variety of painting styles and other media involved as well.

We lunched together in an enclosed courtyard in the museum, after which we were shown into a classroom across the hall. The children were given a quick lesson in resistance watercolor painting and then were able to color and paint their own picture of the rainforest. This gave some really fun results! Each student, at any level, was able to make a nice painting according to their own abilities.
All in all, we had a really nice time together. The tour was free, and there was a $3.00 fee for each art project.
The museum is free for all visitors on Tuesdays, if you'd like to go yourself. If you are interested in taking a group to the museum, check out their website for more info. Canton Museum of Art

Akron Fossils & Science Center/Truassic Park

On February 3, two groups of our list members attended a field trip at this new and exciting addition to the Akron area, the Akron Fossils and Science Center in Copley, the home of Truassic Park.
Although I was not able to attend this tour, the families who did were very impressed. Each group was led in approximately a one hour informative tour around the museum.
This facility is dedicated to teaching the creation view of science, centering around fossils and dinosaurs. It is a worthwhile experience for anyone interested in this aspect of science.
Here is some info from their website:
"We have opened an educational and fun-filled experience for all ages. We are devoted to teaching creation science and intelligent design in contrast to evolutionary models. The center features hands-on science as well as many fossils from Ohio and around the world.
Individuals, families and groups will enjoy our unique displays as they journey through a series of questions in search of truth."

Truassic Park is an outdoor adventure park/play area for the kids that is available whenever the weather is amenable to outdoor play. It is themed around dinosaurs as well.

The tour cost us $5.00 per person (group rate). I encourage you to check out their website Akron Fossils & Science Center for more info or call 330-665-DINO (3466) to schedule a visit. They also offer classes, summer camps, birthday parties and monthly lectures.

The Original Mattress Factory

We were able to tour The Original Mattress Factory in Cleveland on January 25. Two of our groups filled up the tours on this date and were rewarded for our drive in the cold weather. Two very nice gentleman led us around the actual factory where the mattresses are made. Although the noise of the machines made it a little difficult to hear everything that was said, we were able to watch the workers and didn't miss much of the information anyway.

The Original Mattress Factory makes their mattresses without compromising the original quality that was built in to their products. Many other mattresses these days are called "no flip" which really means you can't flip them because only one side is padded, but not here. Also, the Original Mattress Factory may be the only factory still using cotton batting in their mattresses. Most other companies have switched to polyester batting. It's details like that that give the Original Mattress their reputation for quality. Their other reputation involves their prices. Since they don't sell through distributors or middlemen, they can keep their prices low.

After the interesting tour, we viewed a short video about the company which included some fun commercials they've made. We were also encouraged to test out the mattresses in the showroom.
The staff were extremely friendly and kind, even making a point of complimenting our children on their good behavior. Apparently, we made an impression all the way up the ladder there with our well-behaved children. This tour was free for all, and I highly recommend it. It was one of my favorites so far.


Their website The Original Mattress Factory has more information about the mattresses, stores or tours, if you are interested.