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Photo by Brett Sayles free to use under Pexels Between the ages of 1 and 3, toddlers begin to develop cognitive skills, learn coordination and play, and enjoy exploring the world around them. One of the best ways to help enhance these attributes is to expose your toddler to fun activities such as interacting with animals, climbing on walls and obstacles, and trying age-appropriate hands-on activities. When you're looking for fun things to do with your toddler in the Cleveland, Ohio, area, use this handy guide that our team at Nissan Streetsboro has put together. Cleveland Metroparks Zoo From baby cats to full-size elephants and more, you and your toddler will be spellbound by the diverse range of animals that live at the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo. When your little one gets tired of looking at lions, bears, giraffes, and monkeys, you can stop and have a bite to eat at one of the zoo's cafes, watch a movie about animals, or take the free open-air tram car. The tram is stroller-friendly and passes by the Asian Highlands, Rainforest, Primate, Cats, and Aquatics exhibits to the African Savannah and then heads back to the African Elephant Crossing. Location: 3900 Wildlife Way Telephone: 440-331-5530 Great Lakes Science Center The Great Lakes Science Center is a tremendous place for kids of all ages to enjoy fun activities that help to educate them in science, math, technology, and engineering. When planning your visit to the science center, make sure to stop at the Cleveland Clinic Dome Theater, where you'll be surrounded by sights and sounds of the natural world. Shows that play in the theater include Ancient Caves and Dinosaurs of Antarctica. After the show, head over to the Cleveland Creates Zone so the youngsters can play with the Light Sculpture Pod, explore the Rocket Pod, or create hats or shoes at the Shoe Cobbler/Hat Maker Pod. Every month, the Great Lakes Science Center hosts special events and programs such as Bubblemania or Candy Loves Chemistry Workshop. Location: 601 Erieside Ave. Telephone: 216-694-2000 Cuyahoga Valley National Park Just a short distance from downtown Cleveland, Cuyahoga Valley National Park offers visitors young and old a respite from the city. This beautiful park has thick forests, open farmlands, rolling hills, and the beautiful Cuyahoga River. The Ohio and Erie Canal Towpath Trail can accommodate strollers, including bicycle strollers. As you walk along this popular trail, you'll cross over Beaver Marsh, where you may spot turtles and beavers. If you have older toddlers who are adventurous, take the 1.5-mile trail that includes a boardwalk to the scenic 60-foot Brandywine Falls. A fun way to see Cuyahoga Valley National Park with small children is by taking the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad's National Park Scenic excursion. This train ride runs from Akron to Independence, and you'll have views of the park from the comfort of the train cars. Before heading out to Cuyahoga Valley National Park, you'll want to fuel up on breakfast so everyone has plenty of energy for the day. Location: 6947 Riverview Road in Peninsula Telephone: 440-717-3890 Cleveland Public Library Begin your toddler's love of literature by taking them to the Cleveland Public Library. Sign your child up for their library card so you can help them decide which books to bring home or download titles from the library's digital collection. The Cleveland Public Library offers programs and workshops for young ones like the Wee Read and Play program for toddlers ages 18 months to 3 years. A popular program hosted by the library is the Young Scholars Academy that's part of its Kindergarten Readiness workshop. The free beginner's program for kids 3-4 years old, helps prepare them for kindergarten with fun activities that include reading, writing, singing, and socializing. While your child is at home, they can hear stories read to them by library staff members during virtual story time hours. The library also has a dial-a-story program where kids can hear stories anytime by dialing 216-777-6500. Location: 325 Superior Ave. (main library) Telephone: 216-623-2800 Greater Cleveland Aquarium Watch your toddler's face light up with delight when they get up close to sea life at the Greater Cleveland Aquarium. All nine galleries inside of the aquarium give little ones eye-level 360-degree views of the over 300 species of animals that live there. You'll see freshwater and saltwater animals from Lake Erie as well as from around the world. Young kids get a thrill at the 11,000-gallon touch pool in the Coastal Boardwalk gallery, where they can feel what the skin of a stingray feels like or have their fingertips tingled by cleaner shrimp. Everyone in the family will feel excited as they walk through a 175-foot underwater sea tube surrounded by sharks and other large sea creatures in the Shark Gallery. You'll feel like you're on a scuba diving adventure as you see a variety of sharks and eels swimming above and around you. After your visit to the aquarium, stop by the gift shop to pick up souvenirs to remember your trip to the Greater Cleveland Aquarium. Location: 2000 Sycamore St. Telephone: 216-862-8803 Cleveland Botanical Garden Kids can spend hours exploring the grounds of the Cleveland Botanical Garden with its butterflies and intriguing garden displays. Stop by the Madagascar Glasshouse to see exotic plants and pet the free-roaming chameleon. Little kids enjoy playing in the Hershey Children's Garden, which features a sandbox, a pond where the kids can search for frogs and box turtles, and a place to plant seeds. They'll feel a sense of awe as they watch honeybees at work inside of their hive. After exploring the gardens, head over to the Garden Cafe for sandwiches or grab-and-go snacks to recharge with. Location: 11030 East Blvd. Telephone: 216-721-1600 We hope that you and your family enjoy visiting these six Cleveland locations and attractions that are ideal to take your toddler to. Which one was your favorite? What site or activity did your toddler enjoy the most and why? If you can recommend another Cleveland spot to take your little one to, please let us know and we'll add it to our list.

Image by Pixabay from pexels.com When you're looking for a delicious candy treat to satisfy that sugar craving or a unique gift for that special someone, you only need to look around "The Forest City" to find some exceptional chocolate-covered confections. At Nissan of Streetsboro, we are absolutely smitten with all things chocolate and sugar. That's why we've gathered our favorite sugarcoated sweet locales in the Cleveland area for you to visit. Read more about these indulgent bars, brownies, and candies in the guide below. The Cleveland Chocolate Co. Owner and chocolatier, Rebecca Hess, created The Cleveland Chocolate Co. out of her love for fresh cacao. She started making chocolate from cacao pods and truly enjoyed the entire process from start to finish. From there, she studied chocolate production at Melissa Coppel Chocolate & Pastry School in Las Vegas, and The Cleveland Chocolate Co. was born. Rebecca uses single-origin fairly sourced organic cacao beans with varied flavor profiles from countries like Guatemala, Ghana, Belize, and Peru. She creates chocolate bars with an assortment of chocolate such as white chocolate, milk chocolate, dark chocolate, malted milk chocolate, and vegan mylk chocolate. The inclusion bars include flavors like sweet corn lime, dark chocolate with coffee, chili pepper dark chocolate, and blueberry lavender dark chocolate. You can also order specialty items including chocolate hazelnut spread, vanilla bean paste, organic vanilla salt, and salty chocolate caramels. Dietsch Brothers Fine Chocolates and Ice Cream Located in Findlay, Dietsch Brothers Fine Chocolates and Ice Cream began in the late 1920s when Edward Dietsch, with the help of his two younger brothers Chris and Don, opened a candy and ice cream shop sharing their family recipes with the local community. When Edward tragically passed away, Chris and Don opened Dietsch Brothers when they purchased the local Rogge Bakery Shop in 1937. Their younger brother, Roy, began helping out after graduation. Today, this chocolate shop is a Findlay landmark, serving its high-quality fine chocolates and ice cream with a personal level of service that is second-to-none. This confection emporium features a wide range of chocolates from bagged to boxed candy, bulk chocolates to gourmet truffles, and caramels to chocolate-covered pretzels. They also produce Ohio's well-known favorite sweet treat, Buckeyes. Their house-made ice cream and sherbet are flavored with real fruit and made with a few of their choice candy specialties. With over 35 flavors to try, you will have every reason to return and try as many flavors as you can. Fear's Confections What started out as a home-based mail order and catering business in 2010, became an out-of-home handmade chocolate production in 2013. Fear's Confections, located in Lakewood, now makes several sweet treats including caramels, toffees, truffles, and pecan turtles. The owner creates her confections in small batches with fresh ingredients and no additional preservatives. You can order via the website or stop by if you're local. Her candy selections include hot cocoa bombs, chocolate bacon, homemade hot fudge, chocolate-covered espresso beans, and more. Fear's Confections is also known for its homemade brownies, and several varieties and concoctions have been added over the years. While the original brownie is a local favorite, you may want to sample the Cheesecake Swirl Brownie, Cherry Almond Brownie, Bacon Stout Brownie, or the Afterburner Hot Pepper Brownie. Malley's Chocolates Malley's Chocolates is a hometown favorite in Lakewood. As a third-generation family business, Malley's offers quality sweets made with the same chocolate recipe they've built their business on for more than 80 years. At their local candy factory, they create many classic favorites as well as some new confections. They are well-known for their homemade caramel, marshmallow, and hot fudge. Malley's also salts and roasts a choice selection of premium whole nuts. From chocolate bars to truffles, and chocolate wafers to French mints, you will not be disappointed when you visit Malley's Chocolates in the Cleveland area. Mitchell's Fine Chocolates Mitchell's Fine Chocolates started in a small neighborhood soda fountain serving popcorn and other sweet treats in 1939. Today, the popular confectionary is now a third-generation business offering a wide selection of European-style candies, chocolates, and more. A few of their specialties include dark chocolate-covered homemade marshmallows, caramels, and truffles. You can order online or stop by their Cleveland Heights location to choose a few of your favorite selections. Their small bites include Caramel-wrapped Pretzels, Champagne Gummy Bears, and Dark Chocolate Cordials. They also offer a wide selection of fruit and nut varieties like Cashew Clusters or Chocolate-covered Pineapple. Don't forget about their classic favorites such as Dark Chocolate Coconut Bonbons, Raisin Clusters, Fondant Creams, and Raspberry Jellies. Sweet Bean Sweet Bean is run by a husband and wife team, Bob and Kristin Barnes. They focus on producing handmade filled chocolates and creating chocolates that they love to eat. They also specialize in Bean-to-Bar chocolates made with dark and extra-dark varieties of single-origin cacao beans. Their Bon Bons are shiny bright chocolates that are molded and hand-painted, and all of their fillings are made from scratch. Sweet Bean produces additional sweet treats like artisan marshmallows, chocolate-covered jelly beans, and a variety of flavored caramels. Kristin is the artist behind the hand-crafted and formed chocolates, Bon Bons, and other confections. She uses a selection of colors and either swirls them together to make unique candies or keeps it simple with solid vibrant colors. Bob is the chief chocolatier, roasting and grinding the cacao beans, and crafting the decadent and delicious chocolate bars. They also create custom-made chocolates for group or corporate events like party trays, corporate gifts, and boutique platters. Now that you have a good idea of the different confectionary markets in the Cleveland area, are there any that piqued your interest? If so, which one do you plan on visiting first? Perhaps you're a purist and only want to try one of the custom-made chocolate bars. Maybe you love all things sugar and can't wait to order some gourmet truffles, decadent pecan turtles, house-crafted caramels, or freshly made candies. Is there a favorite chocolate shop of yours that you don't see on this list? If so, we'd love to hear about it. Contact us to let us know and we'll be happy to add it to this guide.