Get Your Wheels Ready for Some Fun

With the expected warm-up this weekend, everyone is feeling the itch to get outside and get active! A popular way to get outside is to ride something with wheels - so go get your bike or skateboard out of storage and get ready to have some fun!

Awesome Bike Trails

For people who love biking or boarding, Promenade Oaks is a great place to live. Paved city trails run right along the entrances to our community and they connect to an excellent network of local and regional trails.

Or if you prefer mountain biking, we're close to one of the best local places to go: Lebanon Hills. (Although be forewarned; their trails will be closed until about mid-May during the spring thaw.)

Here are some links to more information about the trails near us:

Dakota County trail maps: http://www.co.dakota.mn.us/parks/activities/bicycling/pages/default.aspx

Lebanon Hills Regional Park: http://www.lebanonhills.com/

MN Bike Trail Navigator: If you're looking for some great routes in the metro area, check out this independent blogger's favorite routes page. http://mnbiketrailnavigator.blogspot.com/p/favorite-routes.html

Time to Tune-Up or Upgrade

It's always a good idea to get your bike or board checked for safety. Often you can do this yourself, if you know what to look for; but if not, there are some great bike and board shops near Promenade Oaks that do tune-ups. A good bike shop will check the frame, steering system, wheels, brakes, cranks and bottom brackets, derailleurs, and the chain. 

Local Bike & Board Shops

Here are some great bike and board shops near Promenade Oaks. Ride safe!

Erik's Bike and Board Shop
1296 Town Centre Drive
Eagan, MN 55123
(651) 209-6046
eriksbikeshop.com‎

Boehms
1040 Dakota Drive
Mendota Heights, MN 55120
(651) 454-2066
boehmscycle.com‎

Penn Cycle & Fitness
2290 Cliff Road
Eagan, MN 55122
(651) 882-1241
penncycle.com‎

Happy First Day of Spring!

Happy first day of spring!

Did you know that spring fever is not just a myth? Here's some amazing facts about Spring:

• The human body may experience physiological changes due to changes in diet, hormone production and temperature
• Melting snow and additional rain may cause more flooding in spring
• Children grow faster in spring
• Spring is also when birds return home after migrating in winter. About 1800 bird species migrate. 

We are looking forward to spring at Promenade Oaks. We’ll be planting flowers, cleaning up the playground, and soon we'll be watching all of the beautiful trees fill out their leaves on our 30-acre woodland preserve. Happy Spring!

Melting Snow + Freezing Nights = Slippery Sidewalks

This winter just doesn't know how to quit! The forecast is calling for three to six more inches of snow tonight for the Twin Cities metro area. This is a good time to remind everyone to continue to walk carefully outside - this winter isn't giving us any breaks from the snow and ice.

Please use caution when walking on the sidewalks and in the parking lots around Promenade Oaks. As the temperatures fluctuate this time of year we often see snow and ice melting during the day, only to freeze again at night - which can make for some slippery conditions on the pavement. We will do our best to have these areas salted and sanded in a timely manner, but your caution is always necessary. 

Thank you for cooperation in this important safety matter.

Celebrating St. Paddy's Day

Happy St. Patrick's Day! This holiday is a big deal in the St. Paul metro area, because of the city's historical Irish heritage. Here's a quick guide for celebrating St. Patrick's day.

St. Patrick’s Day is celebrated worldwide and is a national holiday in Ireland. In Chicago, on St. Patrick’s Day, the river is dyed green; and in Seattle there is a ceremony where a green stripe is painted down the roads. Some people even go so far as to dye their hair green, and many more people will wear green, purportedly to avoid being pinched. Many bars in the United States and other countries serve green beer to celebrate St. Paddy’s Day. 

If you’re looking to celebrate your Irish heritage, or even if you’re not Irish, here are some ways to celebrate:

Parade in Minneapolis

In Minneapolis there is a St. Patrick’s Day parade on Monday, March 17 at 6:30 pm on the Nicollet Mall. The parade route will start at Nicollet and 13th Street until it reaches 5th Street.

Parade in St. Paul

The Annual St. Paul St. Patrick’s Day parade will be held at 12:00 pm on Monday, March 17. The parade travels east to west along 5th Street beginning at Broadway.

Irish Pubs

If you are into green beer, you can head to The Liffey Irish Pub on 175 7th St. W in St. Paul. There is also Cork’s Irish Pub located at 175 10th St. E in St. Paul as well.

Irish Food

And if you are craving some traditional Irish food to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day, check out Kieran’s Irish Pub located at 85 6th Street North in Minneapolis. They offer traditional Irish food, drinks and have live music on Friday and Saturday nights.

An old Irish quote: “May you always walk in sunshine, may you never want for more, may Irish angels rest their wings, right beside your door!” Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

Como Conservatory Flower Show - Bask In Sun, Warmth, and Flowers

Flowers - and lots of them! Head over to the Marjorie McNeely Conservatory at Como Park this weekend to see the special Winter Flower Show. This is the last weekend for the display; so if you are craving a taste of spring, this is a great place to visit. Soon the trees, bushes, and flowers around Promenade Oaks will be blooming as spring finally arrives - but for now you can go bask in sun, warmth, and take in the sight of hundreds of beautiful flowers at the Conservatory.

Sunken Garden at the Marjorie McNeely Conservatory. Source: http://www.comozooconservatory.org/attractions/gardens/sunken-gardens/#/info

Seasonal Shows

The Sunken Garden is a special room at the Como Park Marjorie McNeely Conservatory that features changing displays throughout the year - so you can keep visiting and see something new! Here's a description of the Winter Flower Show from the website:

The Winter Show will have a mixture of the purple, red, pink and yellow.  Plants highlighted will be various Cyclamen, Pansies, Viola, Cineraria, Amaryllis, Primula from the Touch me Midi series, Azaleas, Camellias, and Velthemia with their pink flower spikes.  Fragrance to the show will be supplies by various Oriental lilies and Paperwhite Narcissus. 

The Spring Flower Show begins on March 22. You could visit this weekend and the next and see how the Sunken Garden is transformed from one theme to the next.

For more information visit the Como Park Conservatory website here:

http://www.comozooconservatory.org/attractions/gardens/sunken-gardens/#/info

Sunken Garden at the Marjorie McNeely Conservatory. Source: http://www.comozooconservatory.org/attractions/gardens/sunken-gardens/#/info

Four Tips For Getting Your Car Unstuck

With all the snow we have been getting (and it looks like we'll get another shot of snow tomorrow) it's good to have some ideas about how to get your car out when it's stuck in the snow. We've pulled together our four best tips for getting unstuck. (But we hope you don't end up there in the first place!)

1. Don’t spin your tires. That will only dig your car in deeper and possibly damage the tires.
2. Put the car in the lowest possible gear and try to back up slowly. Stop. Then move forward, slowly. Ideally, that rocking will help the car gain traction.
3. If that fails, turn the steering wheel and again, try to back up slowly, and then move ahead slowly.
4. Still stuck? Get out of the car (make sure it’s in park with the safety brake on) and try to dig out any excess snow around the tires. If you have sand, kitty litter or even an old piece of cardboard, put it under your rear tires before you try to pull out again.

We hope you are one of the lucky ones who manages to avoid getting stuck in the snow, but if not, we hope these tips will help you get unstuck and on your way!

Six Awesome Tips to Make Your Apartment Super Spacious

We often hear from our residents that they love the spaciousness of our floorplans. Our apartments here at Promenade Oaks range from 783 to 1,595 square feet. Even with all that room, you can still follow some tried and true methods for maximizing your space.

Here are six great ideas for expanding the space in your apartment.

Mirrors: The use of mirrors can really open up a room. They reflect the lighting in the room and add depth. Strategically placing a mirror will make your space seem expansive.

Lights: Dim lights can fill the apartment with shadows. Use lights that are bright to open the room up. The best way to increase light? Natural light is the best for this - so open up the blinds and let the sunshine in!

Colors: With Leasing Office approval, you can select light colors such as yellows or cream colors on the wall to enhance the room. Painting one or two walls in your apartment as "accent" walls will help create contrast and a sense of depth and make the room feel bigger. Remember, all painting should be done by our staff of painters, so check with the office before you decide to go with this option.

Walls: Make sure to not clutter the walls. It is nice to hang a few pictures, but too many things on the wall can make it seem like it is closing in on you.

Furniture: Make sure the furniture and other large items aren't overbearing to the space. Take a look at your living area and rearrange the furniture, or even get rid of some things that take up too much space.

Air: Once it is nice out, but not quite yet of course, open the windows and let the air flow through. If the weather is an issue, maybe think about buying some houseplants to liven the room up a bit. There are many indoor plants that help improve air quality.