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It turned out that in addition to selling games and karaoke stuff, the shop is also a novelty shop. They sell a lot of gag items perfect for any prankster, as well as costume jewelry. Browsing through their selection my boyfriend and I cracked up over many of the things they had on display. They were relatively cheap items, but could be priceless if you were to actually trick someone with them.

They had a nice selection of gaming items, including items for all of the systems out there: the Wii, Playstation, XBOX and XBOX 360, etc. My boyfriend eyed their wireless XBOX controllers (which were relatively brand new and being sold for $29 each) which would have been regularly priced at $60 at a regular store. They had a wall covered with games for sale, all priced lower than what you would get them at the regular store. This is a definite stop for any gamer looking for a good bargain.

I was impressed by the karaoke system they had out for sale. It included everything necessary and wasn’t too high priced. I’m not in need of any kind of system like that at the moment, but I will be sure to recommend the place to anyone who asks me about it.

The shop is currently half-way closed off because of a leak. So unfortunately we weren’t able to browse through everything. We’ll be sure to stop in again as soon as they get it fixed, which they said shouldn’t bee too much longer, so we can check out all of the rest of the items they are selling. Tune Times is open from 12:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Monday through Friday and from 10:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. on Saturday.

As a beading lover, of course I shopped their selection of beads. They have them out in dishes to be browsed through, so you can buy as many as you want (even just one bead if that’s all you’re looking for!) They also had sacks of seed beads and bugle beads, the kinds that I tend to use more, and they were at great prices. I bought a bag of orange seed beads for only $1.50, and a bag of purple bugle beads that were only a dollar. At any other bead store these packages would have been at least $3 each. I had to take up on such a good deal

But besides what they sell in beads and beading supplies, there are lots of “treasures” that fill the store. These mostly consist of delicate antiques. I was struck by the lovely porcelain dolls, which stood prettily and in great shape. The prices on everything were very inexpensive. Although the size of the shop was very small, they had a lot of items crammed inside. It would take awhile to browse though everything.

Beads and Treasures didn’t have the necessary selection on beads that I was looking for, but what they do carry turned out to be a bargain I couldn’t pass up. And if you’re an antique collector, they are definitely worth checking out. They are open from Tuesday through Sunday, 10:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. (Grab a business card when you stop in, and then the next time you come in you can get an additional 5% off your purchase just by bringing the card in and showing it.)

After walking around and seeing what all there was to do we decided to let our son jump in the jump castle. The charge was $2, but the allowed both my husban and my son to jump and there was no time limit, as long as you stayed in the jump castle. Our two year old loved it. He jumped and rolled and ran around the castle like the energizer bunny. He was so bummed when after 20 minutes I made him leave. We definetely got our money’s worth.

After the jump castle we went to check out the bumper cars for my husband. However, there was a line and we decided not to wait. We headed into the arcade to check out the video games. They had the old stand-by video games and some newer video games. There were quite a few people enjoying themselves. We were going to let our son ride the train, but a ride cost $3, which I thought was too much for the small ride.

Bumper’s Family Fun Center also serves pizza and other fun food and has plenty of areas to sit and eat. Bumper’s is open during mall hours and you can reserve seating areas for birthday parties.

For more information call Bumper’s at 509-489-4000. We will be visiting Bumper’s again the next time we are at Northtown Mall.

After we arrived at the Davenport Hotel or our 10:00 reservations we were seated in a beautful ballroom surrounded by tables of fabulous lookng food. As we were escorted to our table, the host pointed out the crepe, omlet and waffle bar, meat station, hot food (fish, chicken, bacon, sausage, potato) table, seafood area and of course the most improtant the dessert and chocolate fountain.

After being seated an having our champagne glasses filled immediately we waited for our fresh squeezed orange juice and developed a plan. We headed first to the crepe and omelet bar. I was a little disappointed that the crepes them selves were already made and they just reheated them and added your fruit choice, but they were good nonetheless. However, my omelet was very good. They had about 12 different toppings to choose from and I had a ham, tomato and feta cheese omelet with a tiny bit of salsa added on top. It hit the spot.

Shortly after finishing my omlet I decided to check out the Lamb Wellington and a little fish and chicken along with some fresh fruit. The lamb was perfectly cooked and the fruit was amazingly fresh for this time of year. After another trip through the food it was time to hit the chocolate fountain and dessert bar.

The chocolate fountain was surrounded by pineapple, strawberries, marshmallows, shortbread cookies and some pastries to dip in. I had some chocolate covered strawberries marshmallows and a croisant with chocolate drizzled over it.

After two hours of great conversation, good food and a little champagne, it was time to head home, but I cannot wait to visit the Davenport again for the Sunday brunch.

Brunch is held every Sunday at the Davenport Hotel. Reservations are recommended. The cost for adult is about $35 and children 5-12 are $29 and children 5 and under are free. Cal (509) 455-888 for more information.

Signs on Gym Walls to Boost Spirit

I’m not much of a sports fanatic. Growing up a theatre geek, I generally prefer to go see a play than a basketball game any time I have a choice between the two options. This has frustrated my younger sister, a cheerleader for Liberty High School in Spangle (about 20 minutes south of Spokane on hwy 195‚Äîthe school is located at 6404 E. Spangle-Waverly Rd.) She finally convinced me to come to one of her home games to watch her cheer. It turned out to be way more exciting for me than I had predicted.

Winning shot

There’s something prideful in watching a small-town, small school basketball game. Sure, the gyms is small and the bleachers can’t hold that many people (but not that many people come), but everyone who comes to watch the game is completely involved. I got caught up in all of the excitement as the audience screamed right along with the cheerleaders, calling out actions to the refs and players. The people that come to the basketball games are more than just teachers and parents, but a lot of locals. There’s not as much “to do” in the small town of Spangle as there is in a bigger city like Spokane, so the home sports games are a bright spot of entertainment.

My cute sister cheering

The girls’ games ended up being a loss with about 10 points behind. They worked hard, but were generally a few points behind throughout the game. The boy’s game, however, was neck-to-neck the entire time. With each new basket Liberty and their opposing team (Ritzville) took turns taking the lead. With only 13 seconds to go, Liberty was behind by one point in the fourth quarter. The entire audience rose from their seats as our home team used every bit of those thirteen seconds to nail a final basket, and steal the game as a win. Without realizing it at first, I was screaming with shouts of joy along with everyone else that was jumping up and down and hugging one another. It was a good game, with a great finish.

Now, when my sister invites me to attend her home games, I’ll be more inclined to go. I never thought I could get into sports, but I genuinely had a good time. Liberty’s upcoming home games are January 26th against Davenport, January 30th against Odessa, January 31st against Reardan, and February 7th against Valley Christian. If they make it to districts I’ll be able to watch them play here in Spokane against Mead and Mt. Spokane Schools, and if they make it to state then they will get to play at the Spokane Arena. But even then, I’m not sure it will have the same small-town feel that I liked so much about watching them play in their little school’s small gym.

Image courtesy of "Burn the Floor"

Some of the girls I work with and I decided we had been working too hard and needed to reward ourselves with an upscale, girl’s night out. I opted for seeing “Burn the Floor” at the INB, and someone else inputted going out to dinner at the Shogun. Together, they ended up being the perfect dinner-show combination for our night on the town.

I’ve gone to the INB Performing Arts Center for several theatrical plays, but never for a “dance show.” And come to think of it, I don’t believe I had ever gone to a strictly dance performance before seeing this one. None of us knew quite hat to expect. Would there be a dolling, dull tinkering piano as elderly seniors in conservative gowns waltzed across the stage? Turns out, this performance was exactly the opposite. Every number was sexier than the one before, and dancers strutted around the stage in a face-paced, mind-blowing spectacle. Dancers around the world, who were competition tested, displayed their talents on the INB stage in their full-extent. The dances were so intense that we were constantly gasping and holding our breath in awe as these dancers from Russia, Britain, Sweden, and Slovakia stretched the physical limitations of the human body in dazzling costumes‚Äîto familiar songs such as Shania Twain’s “Natural Woman.” As a tour this performance originally performed in Europe. We felt very honored that they decided to come and visit Spokane, and very cultured because of it. Hopefully similar performances will be making their way to the INB‚Äîwe will make a point of attending each one.

Before “Burn the Floor” at the INB, we had met up at the Shogun restaurant (located at 821 E. 3rd Avenue). We had made the mistake of showing up without reservations, which had completely slipped our minds. I blamed my girlfriend that had been there before (she should have known better). But we ended up lucky, we barely had to wait 15 minutes and they were able to get us seated at a table. This was my first experience at the place, and I loved every minute of it.

As soon as we walked into the building we were immersed in the beautiful set-up they had to offer. I have yet to go out to an Asian-style restaurant as gorgeously decorated. Water streamed under the hallways “bridge” and was decorated with glowing lights. Each table was individually light, with the rest of the area darkened. This made us feel like we were more isolated at our own place. Each table has its own chef, and we got to watch him make everything right in front of us! It was the most exciting and entertaining dining experience I have ever had. We watched in amazement as he tossed an egg around in the air without it cracking or dropping once! He was very talented at preparing every bit of food.

Chef tossing an Egg

And the food was absolutely amazing. I started us off with some rainbow sushi rolls. Best I have ever had. They give you egg flour soup and a small salad to start with besides, so we were never without something in front of us to nibble on while we watched our food being prepared. I ordered Hibachi Scallops with fried rice. They were incredible and packed with flavor. I ended up paying a little over $40 for the sushi roll and the entree, hot tea included. I thought it was all well worth the price.

Next time I'll remember reservations!

I have been bragging to everyone who wasn’t present about what a fabulous night we had, and promising my boyfriend and friends that couldn’t come that I will have to take them to the Shogun so they can see it for themselves. Next time though, I will be sure to make reservations before hand.

Last week we were looking for something new to try on our family night out. My husband picked Davi’s Pizza and he made the right choice. After walking in and finding our seats we looked through the menu to see what sounded good. I chose a salad ($5.50) and bread sticks ($4.50) and my husband and son split a 12″ pizza. David’s has numerous tv so you can watch sports and drink a fabulous beer while waiting for your food.

I had assumed that my salad would be like most pizza place salads, some lettuce a few slices of cucumber and a cherry tomato or two. Boy was I wrong. It was heaped high with fresh vegetables like peppers, mushrooms, olives, tomatoes, onions and more. The bread sticks were delicious and come with a tangy marinara sauce or a pesto ranch that was fabulous. My husband and son devoured their pizza in record time. The service was a little slow,so be prepared to wait, but it was definetely worth the wait.

We will definitely be visiting David’s Pizza again. For more information please visit their website at www.davidspizza.com or call them at (509) 483-7460. David’s also provides catering for parties.

The shop is set up with several tables with a set of matching china dishes laid out on each one. I’m a sucker for pretty teapots, so I loved the fact that they had several different ones set out for me to admire. The different patterns and colors next to each other created a collage similar to what you might find in a beautiful English flower garden. Everything was so quaint.

In addition to what’s on the tables, they have shelves of matching dish sets, and some pieces of furniture set out in the semblance of a room. Their glass cases at the counter are full of beautiful glittering old fashioned jewelry. I was particularly taken at one large “diamond” necklace that sprawled out in a fringe fashion. It was reasonably priced, just as was everything else in the shop, for about $60. I’m still considering going back to buy it sometime later this month.

The shop just opened up on December 8th. They had a rough start during the Christmas season because of all of the snow. For the majority of those rough couple of weeks they didn’t even have a walkway, so it was impossible for anyone to even get into to store. But, they told me, after the snow has started clearing things have been picking up. They should have the rest of their signage up within the next week or so, making it easier for people to be aware that they are open and in operating business. Their hours are from 10:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. on Monday through Saturday, and from 12:00 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. on Sunday.

The Antique Gallery

Going to an antique store is usually like browsing through someone’s attic, or like going on a treasure hunt. It can feel like a hunt because you have to really look at everything to find something that strikes you. The places typically aren’t very organized, and everything is mixed together in a disorderly fashion. This is not the case at The Antique Gallery at 620 N. Monroe St. My first impression upon entering the shop was definitely astonishment at how well-kept the place is. Everything is displayed in an orderly fashion on the walls, in cases and shelves, and on the furniture. The set up is easy to browse through, and makes it very shop-able.

There are over 37 dealers that sell items within the shops space, so there is a variety to pick and choose from. There are glass cases filled with jewelry and other wearable treasures. The walls are filled with beautiful reproduced prints and original works (some dating over a hundred years old).There are complete sets of beautiful porcelain dishes (some that fill an entire china cabinet display!) Also, there are many pieces of lavishing European furniture, which was what was most impressive to me.

If you happen to be on the lookout for the perfect china cabinet, The Antique Gallery is the place to go. They have many cabinets of different sizes, wood colors, and capacities sure to fit what you are looking for. And they are all in such good condition! It was easy for me to fantasize taking several of them home with me and filling them up with pretty dishes and knick knacks to gleam through the windows. And the best part is that they were priced so nicely! Most of those china cabinets could have easily been priced over $2,000 at a regular furniture store, but at The Antique Gallery they average at about $675.

The staff was very nice and helpful. They even will arrange to ship the stuff you buy over to your house. So even if you don’t have the truck to take that new (old) china cabinet home with you, they can arrange for it so it’s still an option. The Antique Gallery is open from 10:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. Monday through Saturday and from noon to 5:00 p.m. on Sunday.

Lillian Conn Antiques & Dinah Carlson Gallery

The sophisticated art and antique collector doesn’t want to bother with shops that sell chipped china dishes and ratty old toy dolls. My Grandfather is one of these collectors. When I told him about some of the antique shops I’ve been exploring lately he recommended that I go to a different one. He told me about Lillian Conn Antiques & Dinah Carlson Gallery (located at 1001 W. Augusta). I took his advice and decided to drop in, and just like he said it would be, the restored Victorian style home with a completely different experience.

Because all of the art and antique items are set up within an actual home, it’s easy to envision what these things could do to your own home. Each room is decorated with unique and original art on the walls, and each shelf and table contains beautiful, polished antique items.

My grandpa is big on collecting silver dishes and trays. Now that I’ve been to Lillian Conn Antiques & Dinah Carlson Gallery I can see why he loves this place so much. There was a wide selection of beautiful silver items. I eyed several things I knew would be good considerations for his next birthday. I fell in love with several of the beautiful paintings they had on their walls‚Ķ each was unique and spoke to the voice of their creating artist.

This location goes farther beyond just being a shop and a studio gallery. They offer services on interior design, including simple advice on what items would be good for your home and how you should display them. They also offer appraisal services. So if you think you have a valuable antique item, but aren’t really quite sure, you can bring it into the Gallery and they will let you know how much it’s really worth. I can only imagine what a valuable service that must be for professional collectors.

Lillian Conn Antiques & Dinah Carlson Gallery is open from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Saturday, or by appointment (call: 509-329-1005).

Time Bomb

My boyfriend and I were headed to Milford’s Restaurant to go out to eat when we decided to stop in the shop across the alley before we headed in. “Time Bomb,” we decided, was not a usual name for any antique store we’d been in before, and as it turned out, that was because it WASN’T like any antique store we’ve ever been in before. We were both very excited that it was still open and we were able to go inside and check it out. Time bomb turned out to be anything but a “tea party” store. They host an array of vintage toys, clothing, records, and more.

The main items they carry are toys. And not just any toys, but the cool ones you remember playing with when you were a kid (and probably your parents too.) I’m talking about all of the Star Wars action figures (and LOTS of them), the Hot Wheels cars, and old-school arcade games. And entire set of miniature Star Wars action figures (unopened!) ranges from only $8 to $12, for a major collector’s item I thought these prices were amazing. The figures range from a quarter of an inch in size, to the 12-inch dolls. The arcade games averaged to be about $300 each, and held such well-known titles as Pac-Man.

In addition to all of the vintage toys, there are boxes and boxes of comic books. Perfect stop for a comic book lover. While we were there we watched as another group of kids was discovering the shop for the first time as well, eagerly grabbing several different comic issues in excitement. There were also several shelves of regular books, covering relative subjects of art and comics. Large boxes of vinyl records were filled with a wide variety of music styles, certain for there to be something in there for everyone with a record player.

The overall experience of Time Bomb is something that has to be enacted. It’s a great little shop, set up so well for its purpose. In addition to the wall being covered with hundreds of fascinating items, the ceiling is covered with plastered images, creating an amazing collage that you notice as soon as you bother to look up. Time bomb is open from 12:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. Take a stop in if you feel like being blown back into the time of your childhood.

I have been going to Northwest Noetic for a few years now. You cannot beat a 1 hour massage for $30. Even tough they are students, I have never been dissapointedin the massages I hae recieved. You have to remember though that they are students, so if you do not like the pressure of your massage, be sure to speak up.

When you walk into Northwest Noetic you are greated by a friendly staff who check you in and help you with the requiste paperwork. After that you wait for your student therapist greets you and takes you back to the massage area. Northwest Noetic’s massage area has some private rooms and a row of massage beds seperated by curtains to maitain privacy. They also play the perect mood music to help you relax and to help block out the other random voices that you hear from time to time.

I thoroughly enjoyed my massage and cannot wait to get another one. To contact Nortwest Noetic you can call them at (509) 835-4000 or check out their website at http://www.nw-noetic-massage.com/hours.html.