Greer's OC

The originator of the cupcake phenom, Sprinkles Cupcakes that launched in Beverly Hills in 2003, is now bringing us a new Sprinkles Ice Cream shop at Corona del Mar Plaza opening Wednesday. Sprinkles Ice Cream will serve handcrafted ice cream made fresh daily using organic California dairy and carefully selected ingredients with classic flavors such as vanilla bean, strawberry and coffee as well as modern choices like salty caramel, cap’n crunch or butter pecan with caramelized pecan dragées.

Sprinkles prides itself on making intensely flavorful ice cream that’s slow churned and densely creamy. To kick off their opening day celebrations, Sprinkles Ice Cream will be randomly placing "Golden Tickets" into 10 select ice cream pints -- each found ticket is worth $100 in Sprinkles Ice Cream. Also, you can meet the brainchild behind Sprinkles, founder Candace Nelson at the celebration from noon to 2 p.m.

Order your ice cream scooped into crisp waffle cones or piled high into sundaes loaded with housemade sauces and toppings, or take a pint home. You can also chose from non-dairy sorbets, shakes, malts and root beer floats.

For those who still have a Sprinkles Cupcakes yearning, there are red velvet waffle cones, crumbled cupcake toppings, cupcake sundaes, cupcake shakes and a decadent Sprinkles Sandwich, two fluffy cupcake tops and a scoop of your favorite ice cream flavor pressed between.

Open noon to 11 p.m. Sunday through Wednesday; noon to midnight Thursday through Saturday. Sprinkles Ice Cream, just a few doors down from Sprinkles Cupcakes, is at 952 Avocado Ave. at Corona del Mar Plaza in Newport Beach.

CHOC Tower Soars

We have even more reasons to be thankful for living in Orange County, our little ones and our world’s future depends on children—our most valuable treasure. And just a few months ago, if needed, children can be treated at the new CHOC Children's South Tower, a state-of-the-art patient care tower, one of the safest, most advanced children’s hospitals in the world.

It’s a big deal for Orange County, and just last week the Tower opened the county’s first pediatric only emergency department, meaning under one roof children will have access to the world’s most advanced medical services. CHOC anticipates more than 200,000 children will be treated there this year and it was specifically designed to meet the unique needs of children. The department houses 31 treatment rooms and three triage suites, and was structured for expedient triage, rapid diagnosis and treatment to streamline each visit.

CHOC Children’s new state-of-the-art patient care tower offers pediatric surgical suites – a first for Orange County; a Heart Institute, including cardiac catheterization labs, and diagnostic imaging services.  The hospital’s advanced technology and standardized processes will improve care and safety for children.

CHOC Children’s Hospital, The Bill Holmes Tower at 1201 W. La Veta Ave. in Orange.
Entrance to Emergency Department is on the first floor.