The holiday season is here which means it’s time to start thinking about and purchasing the necessary items for decorating your Acero Jensen Park home! Give your home a personal touch this holiday season by adding your very own style to your decor. Deciding on your holiday decor style can be made simple by scrolling Pinterest and creating a board that reflects the holiday decor inspiration that you are going for.
Sometimes getting all of the necessary decorations can be overwhelming! That’s why we’ve compiled a list of all the basic decorations you might need for your Acero Jensen Park home.
Lights
Ornaments
Tree topper
Tree skirt or collar
Natural elements - like mistletoe, poinsettias, or pinecones
Garland
Wreath
Stockings
Stocking hooks
Candles
A Christmas tree
Christmas tree stand
Of course, there are plenty more decorations to add to your collection, that’s why you need to explore all of the options at our nearby stores to see what speaks to you and your holiday decor style! You may be wondering where the best places to get holiday decorations for your home are, and we’ve got you covered. Luckily, when you live at Acero Jensen Park you are surrounded by numerous stores that carry plenty of holiday decor! Here are all of our nearby stores that carry holiday decorations:
Kohl’s
Craft Warehouse
Target
Joann Fabric and Crafts
Marshalls
Off Broadway Home & Decor
City Home
TJ Maxx
World Market
Hobby Lobby
Tuesday Morning
HomeGoods
Macy’s
Home Depot
We can’t wait to see all of your Acero Jensen Park homes decorated for the holidays this year. Feel free to decorate your balconies as well so our entire community can be festive from the outside in! Be sure to snap a photo of your Acero Jensen Park home all decorated and share it with us on Instagram and Facebook .
Now that the colder season is upon us here in the greater Southwest Washington area, you may be wondering how you can keep your apartment warm without going over your utility budget. Here are some easy tricks for locking in the warmth in your Acero Jensen Park home.
Invest in a humidifier
Humid air makes your apartment feel warmer without cranking up the heat. As a bonus, you can add plants for more moisture, some of which help to purify the air!
Limit exhaust fan use
Shut fans off as quickly as possible to avoid pulling large amounts of warm air out of your apartment.
Use windows to your advantage
If it is sunny out, open your windows during the day to let the sunlight in so the sun can warm your apartment. There is also the option of investing in thermal curtains, or just thick curtains in general, that you should close at night in order to hold the heat in.
Keeping doors open vs. closed
Keep the bathroom door open when you shower! When you do this, warm, damp air is released into the rest of your apartment. When you aren’t showering though, shut the doors to unused rooms. The less rooms open, the more the heat will remain in the spaces you’re using.
Add some winter-friendly textiles
Load your apartment up with plenty of warm blankets and throw pillows, cover your floors with thick area rugs and change out your usual sheets for flannel sheets or even add an underblanket into your winter bedding mix.
Pop dinner in the oven
Put less stress on your heating and food budgets by skipping dinner out. Keep the oven door open when you finish cooking for a blast of warmth.
Keep drafts at bay
Place draft stoppers on sills! Even in buildings with energy-efficient windows, cold air can sometimes make it’s way in.
If you’re trying to stick to a budget, these tricks will definitely come in handy when trying to keep your Acero Jensen Park home warm and cozy this winter! If you have more suggestions on how to keep your apartment warm while on a budget, let us know in the comments.
We can’t believe that Thanksgiving is only a month away! While the holiday season can be very busy, it’s the perfect season to carve out some time to have Friendsgiving with your closest pals to get together and have a great time while enjoying each other's company. If you’ve never hosted Friendsgiving before, don’t sweat it, below is how to host the perfect Friendsgiving.
Create an invite list
A month or so in advance, create a list of who you will be inviting. It’s important that you are aware of how many people will be attending so you can plan accordingly. Send out your invites at least a week in advance, preferably 2 plus weeks in advance so people have time to coordinate, especially since the holiday season is busy for most.
Make Friendsgiving a potluck style
Have each person that you’ve invited bring a dish! Some of the dishes that you might suggest as options are the classics like turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, salad, cornbread or pumpkin pie. Drinks, whether they are alcoholic, non-alcoholic or both, are also a great thing for guests to bring! Guests can get creative with drinks by making fall festive cocktails like Thanksgiving Sangria, Caramel Apple Cider Mimosas, or even Pumpkin White Russian Cocktails; the options are endless. If you create a list of things for people to bring, each guest can easily claim a dish or drink, that way you don’t have multiple of the same thing.
Have decorations and a photo booth
You may already have your Acero Jensen Park home decorated for the holidays, but if you don’t, add some simple fall decor to your home to give it some holiday spirit. Add some streamers or a banner that says ‘Give Thanks’ or ‘Happy Thanksgiving’ and you’ll have the perfect place to take some photos with your closest friends.
Play some games
Games are a great way to bring everyone together! Card games are easy for everyone and there are many game possibilities with a simple deck of cards or two. For example, you could play poker, spoons, or kings cup. Other games that are fun for everyone are charades and Heads Up (download Heads Up as an app on your phone).
Friendsgiving is a great time to remind yourself just how lucky you are to have the amazing friends that you do. Be sure to snap a group photo of your Friendsgiving in your Acero Jensen Park home and share it with us on Instagram and Facebook .
Fall is the perfect time to whip up some caramel apples and your Acero Jensen Park home is the perfect place to do so! Caramel apples are fun to make for everyone and easily customizable to what you want. Below is a caramel apple recipe from Sally’s Baking Addiction !
Ingredients
8-9 cold apples
1 and ¾ cups heavy cream
1 cup light corn syrup
2 cups packed light or dark brown sugar
¼ cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Instructions
Prep the apples: Rinse the apples with water, then wipe completely dry. Removing the slippery wax coating will help the caramel seal to the apple. Remove the apple stem and insert a caramel apple stick about ¾ down into the apple.
Line a large baking sheet with a silicone baking mat or grease the pan with butter. Caramel usually sticks to parchment or wax paper.
Make the caramel: Combine the heavy cream, corn syrup, brown sugar, butter, and salt in a 3-quart heavy-duty saucepan over medium heat. Do not turn the temperature up or down– keep at medium the entire time the caramel cooks. Stir constantly with a wooden spoon until the butter is melted. Once melted, brush down the sides of the pan with a water-moistened pastry brush and attach a candy thermometer to the pan, making sure the bulb is not touching the bottom of the pan (as you’ll get an inaccurate reading).
Without stirring, let the mixture cook and bubble until it reaches 235ºF - 240ºF. Reaching this temperature should take about 15-20 minutes, though don’t use time as your guide because it depends on your stove, use your candy thermometer as your guide. The temperature will heat up slowly, then move quickly, so keep your eye on the pot. Once at 235ºF-240ºF, remove caramel from heat and stir in the vanilla. Avoid over-stirring which can create air bubbles in the caramel. Allow caramel to cool for 10-15 minutes until slightly thickened. If caramel is too thin to coat apples, let it cool and thicken for 5-10 minutes longer.
Dip the apples: Holding the caramel apple stick, dip the apple into the warm caramel, tilting the pot as needed to coat all sides of the apple. Lift the apple up and swirl it around or gently tap it against the side of the pot to let excess caramel drip off. Place coated apple on prepared pan. Repeat with the remaining apples. Enjoy immediately or allow caramel to set, about 45-60 minutes.
If you’d like, you can add toppings. Immediately after coating in caramel and before the caramel sets, roll the caramel dipped apples in the toppings you desire.
Topping Ideas
Finely chopped nuts
Toffee pieces
Mini M&Ms
Sprinkles
Coconut
Chocolate drizzle
Chocolate chips and marshmallows
Crushed Oreos
Crushed pretzels
Crushed Butterfingers
When you’re making your caramel apples at home, you can also slice the apples up before giving them their caramel dunk so you can coat individual slices with even more topping combinations! After you’re done creating your caramel apple masterpieces be sure to snap a picture and share it with us on Instagram and Facebook . We can’t wait to see everyones yummy caramel apples!
Now that the rainy season has returned to the Pacific Northwest, you may be wondering how you can spend your time hunkered down indoors! We’ve gathered a few ideas for how you can spend your days inside when it is raining and cold.
Bake something yummy
There are so many different options when it comes to baking in your Acero Jensen Park home. Not only will you be able to fill your belly with delicious treats, but you will also be able to fill your home with the amazing smell of whatever baked goods you are whipping up. Two of our favorite places to find baking recipes and recipes, in general, are The Modern Proper and Half Baked Harvest .
Games
Board games. Card games. Make up a game. Spice it up and make it a tournament-style game day.
Puzzles
They are inexpensive, educational, and will keep you and your family occupied for hours!
Movie marathon
We are all for vegging out and watching movies all day. Make a bowl of popcorn or snacks and pick out some movies that you’ve been meaning to watch. On top of that, get in some quality time with your significant other, family or furry friends.
Arts and crafts and DIYs
Rainy days are the perfect time to explore your creative side. Whether you just decide to paint or draw, or build and make something for your home, doing arts, crafts and DIYs is the perfect way to spend a day stuck inside and the possibilities are endless! Try searching on Pinterest for some fun ideas if you aren’t sure what to create.
Clean
If you’ve been meaning to get some cleaning done, rainy days are the perfect time to check that off of your to-do list. Whether it’s sweeping, dusting, or folding laundry, make it fun! Play some tunes and dance around the house while you make it spotless.
Visit the local breweries and wineries
Do a tasting at one of the various breweries or wineries that surround our area. There are so many that you could make an entire day of it.
Visit a local library
Head to one of our local libraries to find some new reads while you’re cozied up in your Acero Jensen Park home.
We know that the cloudy and rainy days can be difficult sometimes, but there is still so much to do even when you can’t be outside! Let us know what other things you like to do on rainy days by commenting below.
Fall is finally here and we could not be more excited. Fall in the Pacific Northwest is something special and what better way to celebrate the fall season than by heading to one of the local pumpkin patches in our area! We’ve compiled a list of the pumpkin patches near our community and what they have to offer.
Bi-Zi Farms
Bi-Zi Farms is just 10 minutes from our community and open Wednesday through Friday from 2 pm to 6 pm and Saturday and Sunday from 10 am to 6 pm. For their admission prices, it is $14 per person + $1.50 ticket fee, $12 per senior (62 and above) + $1.50 ticket fee, and 2 and under has no charge but this does not include a free pumpkin, hot drink or two shots at the Pumpkin Launch. Each paid entry to the pumpkin patch includes a wagon ride to and from the Pumpkin Patch to find your pumpkin, one free pumpkin from the Pumpkin Patch of any size that you can carry out, admission to the corn maze, two shots at the pumpkin launches, one free hot drink, admission to the farm animals, several children’s activities, live music (Saturdays and Sundays) and fresh apple cider sampling. Bi-Zi Farms also has a nighttime corn maze every Friday and Saturday night from 6 pm to 10 pm. They also allow pets as long as they are on a 6 ft set length leash.
Vancouver Pumpkin Patch
The Vancouver Pumpkin Patch is 16 minutes away and is open Tuesday through Sunday from 9 am to 6 pm. The $10 admission per person includes entry to the Vancouver Pumpkin Patch, Hayride on weekends and Wednesday and Friday afternoons, 1 pumpkin from the patch, entry to the petting zoo and 1 entry to the corn maze. Additional pumpkins, gourds, and other fall decor are available for purchase as well as a variety of squashes grown on the farm. There is also a u-pick portion of the farm with tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, cucumbers, and beans, all for $1.25 per pound. Make sure to bring cash and leave your pets at home!
Walton Farms
Walton Farms is 26 minutes from our community and opens October 2nd, Wednesday through Friday from 3 pm to 5 pm and Saturday and Sunday from 10 am to 5 pm. Admission is $12 a person and includes the corn maze, train ride, and one pumpkin of any size. 2 and under get in for free, but no pumpkin, and seniors (55+) get in for $10. Pet’s are welcome but must be on a leash.
The Patch
The Patch opens up October 1st just 26 minutes away and will be open Monday through Saturday 9 am to 6 pm and Sundays from 12 pm to 6 pm. Amenities that you will find at The Patch are a 1-acre corn maze, 5-acre corn maze, small hay maze, small hay pyramid, pumpkin bowling for kids, hayrides, and photo-op props; check their website to see what days and times these amenities are available. While they do not charge parking or admission fees, pumpkins, squash, and gourds are sold by size and variety and some of the amenities cost a small fee. Pets are also welcome here but must remain on a leash.
The Pumpkin Patch on Sauvie Island
The Pumpkin Patch, which is 35 minutes away in Oregon, is open daily in October from 9 am to 6 pm and does not have entrance fees, but there are fees for various things once you are in The Pumpkin Patch. When visiting you will find the produce market, animal barn, pumpkin patch giftshop, The Patio Cafe & Coffee Cart, the maize, free pumpkin picking hayrides, beer and cider on tap at The Patio Cafe, u-pick and pre-picked pumpkins, a cow train, and a giant hay pyramid. No dogs are allowed when visiting.
All of these pumpkin patches are great and sure to be a fun fall activity. When you visit, be sure to snap a picture and share it with us on Instagram and Facebook . We can’t wait to see everyone's front doors decorated for the fall season!
