Did You Know? There Are More Holidays in July than Just the 4th!

July Holidays

July 4^th- Independence Day

We all know what this one is, and many of us look forward to it all year! Independence Day is a day to commemorate the adoption of the Declaration of Independence.  The Declaration was signed on July 4, 1776, which declared the United States of America’s independence form the Kingdom of Great Britain.  Throughout the USA, there are many celebrations held in most cities which typically include fireworks, parades, armed forces ceremonies and carnivals. How did you celebrate?

July 15- Tapioca Pudding Day

No questions about what you are supposed to do this day, EAT TAPIOCA PUDDING!  Tapioca pudding is a great treat for a hot summer day.  If you haven’t tried tapioca pudding, go ahead and try it today, the most common flavors are vanilla and chocolate.  Fun Fact: Tapioca is made from the starch of a cassava root; the starch forms tiny soft balls in the pudding which gives the pudding a unique texture. 

July 19- Flitch Day

Flitch Day is a holiday that is rooted in an old English custom.  Since the year 1104, any married couple that could prove via a trial that they had been faithful and loving to each other for one year would win a prize of sorts.  The prize was a half of a pig which at the time was called a flitch of bacon.  Supposedly this is where the term “bring home the bacon” originated.  Even to this day they hold flitch “trials” but now they only hold the trials once every four years. 

July 20- First Day of Ramadan

Ramadan is noted as an Islamic tradition.  It is known as one of the 5 pillars of Islam and is a mandatory fasting period.  Muslims believe this month is a month of revelations of God to mankind because the first verses of the Qur’an were written by the Islamic prophet, Muhammad during this time.

July 22- Parent’s Day

Founded in 1994 by Former President Bill Clinton; Parent’s Day was established for "recognizing, uplifting and supporting the role of parents in the rearing of children." So celebrate, parents!

Important Days in History for the Month of July:

Disneyland opened in Anaheim, California, 1955

Amelia Earhart and her airplane were lost in Pacific Ocean, 1937

The first All-Star baseball game was played in Chicago, 1933

The first man (Astronaut Neil Armstrong) to set foot on the moon, 1969

Bank robber John Dillinger was shot and killed by F.B.I. agents outside a Chicago theatre, 1934

Benjamin Franklin became Post-Master General and the Postal Service was established, 1775

Where To Get Your July 4th Ooohs & Aaahs

The weather is shaping up to be a warm and delightful Independence Day this coming July 4th. So just where can you find some fantastic fireworks to fill your yearly quota of ooh and aah exclamations? Glad you asked, we've put together a list of quite a few communities around Salem Green where you could go to enjoy bright, multicolored explosions.

COTTAGE GROVE:
Celebrations kick off at 6:00PM at Kingston Park with a family style picnic, games and food on Wednesday, July 4th. The Cottage Grove Lions will be selling Cold Stone ice cream, candy, hotdogs, brats, plus pop and water. Fireworks will begin at dusk.

EAGAN:
Celebrate the Fourth of July with Eagan's FunFest which starts Tuesday, July 3rd at 8:00AM. The celebration features a carnival, poker tournament, two different parades and concerts every night at the Eagan Community Center festival grounds located at 1501 Central Parkway. Watch for Fireworks at 10:00 PM on July 4th.

MINNEAPOLIS:
The Minneapolis "Red, White & Boom" celebration on the Minneapolis Downtown Riverfront begins Tuesday, July 3rd with a 5K Fun Run at 6:30PM at Father Hennepin Bluffs Park. You can listen to live music and watch movies in the Nicollet Island Pavillion starting at 7:00PM with the band "Romantica" and a showing of "Captain America" at 9:00PM.

On July 4th, the day begins with the TC Half Marathon at 6:30AM on Historic Main Street. Then four stages featuring live music kick off at 3:30PM, family activities and entertainment start at 6:00PM at Father Hennepin Bluffs Park, and finally, fireworks at 10:00PM.

There are also celebrations at Powderhorn Park which start at noon with live music, food vendors and a fireworks display at 10:00PM. The park is located at 3400 15th Avenue South.

More information about the Minneapolis events can be found at this website.

MENDOTA HEIGHTS:
The Mendota Heights City Council is partnering with Mendakota Country Club to sponsor a fireworks display for the community. The fireworks will be launched from the Mendakota Country Club beginning about 10:00PM.

ST. PAUL: Harriet Island
Watch fireworks at dusk on the 4th of July launched from Harriet Island, which begins at dusk.

STILLWATER:
Fireworks will be displayed on July Fourth. The celebration will be held at 10:00PM at Pioneer Park.

WOODBURY:
Fireworks will be held at Ojibway Park at 10:00PM. There will be music and entertainment before hand, starting at 7:00PM with country band Darlene & the Boys. Ojibway Park is adjacent to Woodbury High School, located at 2665 Woodland Drive.

 Have a safe and happy Independence Day!

Timber!

We've had the crew from Vineland Tree Care out working at Salem Green. They've been clearing trees and stumps around the property this past month. Connor and his team have been working hard, it's not an easy job in the heat and we appreciate all their hard work. The view of Lake Schmidt is getting much better with the area they've cleared opening, up a better line of sight to the lake. They will be wrapping up this project in the next day or so. If you see them around the property be sure to say 'Hi' and 'Thanks.' That is, as long as they're not operating a bulldozer or stump grinder!

Check out a few photos that Charity was able to snap:

Connor, in the bulldozer, and his crew have been working hard.

We've witnessed some powerful machinery around Salem Green lately.

We think this is a stump grinder - either way it looks super serious!

He's So Little! Super Cute Baby Takes Up Residence At Salem Green.

We're very excited to introduce you to our newest resident, Isaac. He was born on June 16th and weighed in at 6 pounds and 3 ounces. His mother, Megan, posed for this great photo with her new son. Congratulations Megan!

We have it on good authority that Isaac just LOVES living at Salem Green!

Reminder: Parking Lot Sweeping On Tuesday, June 26

Last week we did a little housekeeping and had the garages swept. Thank you for your co-operation, it was a big help and we were able to give the garages a good cleaning.

The parking lots at Salem Green are next up for sweeping. We'll be sweeping the parking lots on Tuesday, June 26 from 8:00AM to 7:00PM and parking will be unavailable in the parking lots during that time. It is imperative that all vehicles are moved from the areas being swept during this designated day and time so we can get to the entire surface.

We would never intentionally inconvenience any resident by towing a vehicle without attempting to contact the owner first. However, we will be unable to place calls on this day. Vehicles that are not moved during the hours of 8:00 am to 7:00 pm will be towed at the owner’s expense without further warning.

As a reminder, garages and lots are ONLY for parking vehicles (cars, motorcycles, boats, etc.); storage of other items are not permitted, by order of the Fire Marshall. If you have any questions on where you may park, please contact the Rental Office.

We apologize for any inconvenience and we thank you in advance for your co-operation. We're sure you'll agree with us that maintaining Salem Green helps to make it such a wonderful place to live!

Kaposia Days Festival Brings Four Days Of Fun To South St. Paul

Kaposia Days is nearly here! Join in South St. Paul's annual festival, as they celebrate their 125th anniversary as a city. Entering it's 36th year, Kaposia days has lots of fun events and things to do. For four days there will be picnics, music, pool parties, softball, and more. Most of the events will take place around Central Square in South St. Paul.

Here's a brief look at some of the events daily at Kaposia Days. For more events than listed here, information, times, and places visit http://www.kaposiadays.org/home.htm.

Thursday, June 21:

• Climbing Walls
• Hot Dog Picnic
• Live Music
• Disco Bingo

 Friday, June 22:

•  Softball Tournament
• Grande Parade
• Street Dance
• Commemorative Air Force Museum Display
• Barbeque
• Pool Party

Saturday, June 23:

• Family Activities and Games
• Classic Car Show
• Craft & Flea Market
• Children's Parade
• Bingo
• VFW Dance
• And more, visit the Kaposia Day Website for more information.

Sunday, June 24:

• Fury's Pancake Breakfast
• Kite Fly
• Family Funday with a petting zoo, pony rides, miniature golf and much more
• Fireworks
• Softball & Baseball Tournaments
• Commemorative Air Force Open House

Sweeping Announcement From Salem Green

We're always striving to make Salem Green a great place to live, and that means sometimes we have to do some maintenance and cleaning such as sweeping the garages and parking lots. The garages are scheduled for sweeping on Tuesday, June 19 from 8:00 am to 7:00 pm. It is imperative that all vehicles are moved from the areas being swept during this designated day and time so we can reach into all the nooks and crannies.

We would never intentionally inconvenience any resident by towing a vehicle without attempting to contact the owner first. However, we will be unable to place calls on this day. Vehicles that are not moved during the hours of 8:00 am to 7:00 pm will be towed at the owner’s expense without further warning.

As a reminder, garages and lots are ONLY for parking vehicles (cars, motorcycles, boats, etc.); storage of other items are not permitted, by order of the Fire Marshall. If you have any questions on where you may park, please contact the Rental Office.

Additionally we'll be sweeping the parking lots on Tuesday, June 26 from 8:00AM to 7:00PM and parking will be unavailable in the parking lots during that time. We'll post a reminder on this blog as we get closer to that date.

We apologize for any inconvenience and we thank you in advance for your co-operation. We're sure you'll agree with us that maintaining Salem Green helps to make it such a wonderful place to live!

No Such Thing As Too Much Fun: Playground Improvements Underway At Salem Green

Many of you asked for more for the children to do here at Salem Green. We heard your voice and are making it happen. Our team is working hard to make some great improvements to the playground. They are currently getting areas cleared and leveled so they can lay concrete. Once the concrete is laid there will be areas for four-square, hop scotch, side walk chalk, and tether ball. All a kid could want in one place! Charity, one of our leasing agents, reports that quite a few kids are very excited about the improvements to the playground.

Our playground is located down by the lake between the 1445 and 1455 buildings. There is great shade for the adults to supervise from a distance. With so many things to do in one area we are encouraging children to play in this safe area, away from the cars and traffic in the parking lots. Remember, all children under the age of 16 must have a parent/adult present. We hope to have this completed within the next two weeks. Have a fun and safe summer!

Fresh And Local Produce At Area Farmer's Markets

Farmer's Market season is in full swing. Even this early part of the summer there is fresh and local produce to be found. Produce that you'll find at our local farmer's markets during the early season include: asparagus, green onions, radishes, rhubarb, spinach, broccoli, cabbage, peas, and strawberries, to name just some of their offerings.

Here's some area farmer's markets that you could check out:
St. Paul Farmer's Market at 290 5th Street East, St. Paul, MN.
(651) 227-8101 http://stpaulfarmersmarket.com/
St. Paul Farmer's Market also sets up a site nearby in West St. Paul at the Signal Hills Shopping Center on Fridays from 8:00AM to Noon. The contact for the West Saint Paul Market can be reached at (651) 227-8101.

Minneapolis Farmer's Market at 312 Lyndale Avenue, Minneapolis, MN.
(651) 333-1718 http://www.mplsfarmersmarket.com/

With all this fresh produce the next question naturally is "What do I do with it all?" Not to fear, our staff here at Salem Green has put together a sampling of some of our favorite recipes using the in-season fresh produce you'll find at farmer's markets.

Janelle's Favorite Rhubarb Crumble
Rhubarb is tangy and wonderful and very much in season now. Janelle likes to use this recipe from the Food Network Magazine to make a tasty Rhubarb Crumble.

Charity's Chicken Wrapped Asparagus
Asparagus has such a unique taste, and it can easily served on it's own or used to accent a wonderful dish. Charity suggests wrapping chicken around it and baking it. She gives us this recipe:
Ingredients:
12-16 Asparagus spears
4 small Chicken Breasts pounded out to thin
½ cup zesty Italian dressing
4 triangle wedges of Herb Laughing Cow Cheese
Salt, pepper, and garlic powder

Directions
Place 4 asparagus pears on each chicken breast
Cut the cheese wedge into 3 large chunks place on top of spears
Roll into bundle and secure with tooth picks
Place bundles on non stick & spayed casserole pan
Sprinkle each bundle with salt, pepper and garlic powder to taste
Pour even amount of Italian dressing over each bundle
Tent aluminum foil over dish and bake covered at 350 for 20mins
Remove foil and bake for additional 10-20 mins until cooked through

Resident Highlight: J.R. Sets His Sights On Hollywood

We're going to miss J.R.!

For this installment of a Salem Green Resident Highlight we'd like to introduce you to J.R. He's an amazing resident who has lived at Salem Green for a couple years, and we're sad to say that he will be leaving us in July. The happy part of the story is that he's leaving to further his acting career. J.R. will be moving to Studio city, California where he will continue working with his agent to land acting roles. Not everyone gets to do what they love and are passionate about, but J.R. is doing just that! He recently finished his season with Climb Theater, which is a Children's traveling theater company that performs plays at area schools all around the Twin Cities. Climb Theater promotes a positive message and it is a job that J.R. will truly miss.

"Making an impact on one kid's life is a reward in itself," stated J.R. Currently he is working on two films right here in Minneapolis. One is called Body of Real Things, which is a dramatic comedy. J.R. is also filming a movie called My Senior Year. In this Comedic Drama he plays that funny guy everyone wants to be around, which is a role he can relate to, we think! Every time  J.R. enters the Salem Office he yells "Taa-Daa! It's your favorite resident!" When he's not in the Salem office making us laugh you'll likely find him watching a movie or sports, or playing sports or video games, or reading, and often having a good time with family and friends.

We asked J.R. what he will miss most about Salem Green. He replied, "The awesome office staff and my spacious apartment." We wish J.R. lots of luck in California and we just know we'll see him on the big screen soon!