Blog Posts

Summer Bucket List Activities

Summer is a time for outdoor fun and adventures! The Nantucket Gate Blog invites you to get out of your Tacoma, WA apartment and try some of these summer bucket list activities before the summer ends. Go Camping Get some friends together, grab your hiking boots, a cozy tent, and your camping gear, and set out for an adventure in the great outdoors. Camping offers a great chance to embrace the outdoors and disconnect from technology for a bit. Attend an Outdoor Concert Summer is a season for concerts and great music. Find an outdoor concert in the area, get some friends to go with, and let yourself unwind for a chill evening filled with great music and the contagious energy that concerts are known for. Have a Picnic Enjoy a potluck style meal with some friends at your favorite local park. Make sure you don’t forget anything by using this picnic packing checklist from Real Simple. Get some picnic recipe ideas from Country Living. Picnics are a great chance to enjoy the outdoors, good food, and good company. Watch an Outdoor Movie This can be at a local drive-in movie theater or in a park with an inflatable projector. Either way, you will love being outside under the stars on a warm summer night with friends. Bring a blanket or chairs so you can be as comfortable as possible while you enjoy on-screen entertainment. Go Swimming Swimming may be summer’s most popular activity. Spend some time at our apartment community swimming pool and jacuzzi to work on your summer tan. You could also go on an adventure to a nearby pool, water park, lake, or swimming hole. Just don’t forget to wear sunscreen to protect your skin from a painful sunburn later. What are your favorite summer bucket list activities? Let us know in the comments so we can add them to our own summer bucket list. Thanks for reading our post. We hope you have a fantastic summer filled with new adventures!

Delicious and Healthy Breakfast Recipes

Breakfast has often been referred to as the most important meal of the day. In honor of August being Better Breakfast Month, we are sharing a few healthy breakfast recipes to help you start off your day right at your apartment here in Tacoma, WA. Breakfast Salmon Egg Bake from Draxe Packed with protein and omega-3 fats, this easy-to-make treat is a happy addition to any table. While it does take a little more time to prepare, the flavorful taste and powerful aroma couldn’t be a better reward. The fact that it’s healthy is just a bonus. Fried Honey Bananas from Rachel Schultz Frying bananas is a great and flavorful idea! Eat them on pancakes, with yogurt, or alone. Trust us. You won’t be disappointed. Oatmeal Cottage Cheese Banana Pancakes from Ambitious Kitchen The batter for these is easiest made in a blender. Simply pour in the oats, baking powder, cinnamon, vanilla, cottage cheese, egg whites, and almond milk. Toss in a banana, blueberries, or other fruit for some sweetness, and you’re good to go! After they’re cooked, they almost taste like eating banana bread! Breakfast Apple Nachos from Delish Start your morning off with fresh fruit! This recipe takes 10 minutes or less to prepare and requires zero cooking. Arrange apple slices on a plate as your nachos and top with chopped strawberries, blueberries, peanut butter, honey, raisins, or other healthy toppings. Healthy Breakfast Egg Muffins from Just a Taste Make meal prep easier by whipping up this great recipe. Not only can you make your breakfast in bulk, but you can pop each muffin in a sandwich bag you can refrigerate and then easily grab, warm up in the microwave, and eat on your way out the door for a few days’ worth of breakfasts. With eggs, nonfat milk, fresh spinach, cherry tomatoes, diced onions, avocado, salsa, and crumbled cheese, these are packed with flavor and nutrients that will make it a meal you’ll be excited to eat. What are your go-to healthy breakfast options? Share your ideas and recipes with the rest of our Nantucket Gate apartment community by leaving a comment below this post. Thanks for reading.

Ways to Celebrate International Friendship Day

Did you know that July 30th is International Friendship Day? In honor of this special holiday that recognizes the joy of friendship, we are sharing a few different ideas for ways that you can celebrate. Invite a few close friends over to your Nantucket Gate apartment to have some fun and enjoy some time together. Ice Cream Soda Bar and Water Games An ice cream soda bar is the perfect idea for spending a hot afternoon with friends. Buy some plastic 18 oz. cups, canned whipped cream, vanilla ice cream, sodas, maraschino cherries, and utensils. Find a cute bucket and fill it with ice to store the ice cream and sodas. Water games are a great addition to this party idea and a great way to cool off. Have a water balloon relay , play sponge ball dodgeball , or compete in pool volleyball. Go Camping Together Summer is the ideal time to go camping. Schedule a camping trip to celebrate your friendship! Don’t forget the s’mores. Enjoy the beauty of the outdoors in great company as you spend time together and make even more memories. You could even try nontraditional types of camping like hammock camping or glamping . Movie Marathon Party Host a movie night at your apartment and watch some of your favorite old school movies together. Don’t forget the popcorn and movie night snacks ! Tell your friends to bring their favorite snacks to share with the group. Don’t forget to bring out lots of pillows and blankets so that everyone can get cozy. Karaoke Party If you and your friends love to sing, this can be a great idea. Exercise those pipes or make a complete fool of yourself — either way, karaoke is a classic for a fun night in or out! Karaoke parties are always a blast. The only rules are to not take yourself too seriously and to have fun. Sing a duet or form a group if you or your guests are too nervous to go solo. Call or Skype If you happen to be far away from your friends on International Friendship Day you can also give them a call or skype them to catch up. Let your friend know that you were thinking of them and that you appreciate their friendship. You can reminisce about old adventures and plan new ones for the next time you will be together. How do you plan on celebrating International Day of Friendship this year? Let us know in the comments. Thanks for reading our post. Have a fantastic summer filled with all kinds of adventures here in Tacoma, WA or wherever you may be this summer.

New Books to Read this Summer

Have you ever gotten lost in a book? Books have a unique ability to transport us to different worlds and allow us to escape from our own. In support of reading, our Nantucket Gate Blog is sharing a few new books that were just released this summer that we think you should check out. Visit your local Tacoma, WA public library to find a new book to read this month. When the Beat Drops by Anna Hecker Seventeen-year-old Mira has always danced to her own beat. A music prodigy in a family of athletes, she’d rather play trumpet than party—and with her audition to a prestigious jazz conservatory just around the corner (and her two best friends at music camp without her), she plans to spend the summer focused on jazz and nothing else. Girl with a Gun: An Annie Oakley Mystery by Kari Bovee When a series of crimes take place soon after fifteen-year-old Annie Oakley joins Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show, including the mysterious death of her Indian assistant, Annie fears someone is out to get her. With the help of a sassy, blue-blooded reporter, Annie sets out to solve the crimes that threaten her good name. No Ashes in the Fire: Coming of Age Black and Free in America by Darnell L. Moore When Darnell L. Moore was fourteen years old, three boys from his neighborhood tried to set him on fire as he was walking home from school. Darnell was tall and awkward and constantly bullied for being gay. That afternoon, one of the boys doused him with gasoline and tried lighting a match. It was too windy, and luckily Darnell's aunt arrived in time to grab Darnell and pull him to safety. It was not the last time he would face death. Three Days Missing by Kimberly Belle When Kat Jenkins awakens to the police on her doorstep, her greatest fear is realized. Her nine-year-old son, Ethan, is missing—vanished from the cabin where he’d been on an overnight field trip with his class. Shocked and distraught, Kat rushes to the campground where he was last seen. But she’s too late; the authorities have returned from their search empty-handed after losing Ethan’s trail in the mountain forest. Have you read any good books lately? Share your book recommendations in the comments so that everyone in our apartment community can benefit. Have fun reading a new book this summer!

Hiking Snacks

Welcome back to the Nantucket Gate Blog. In our last post, we shared a few summer hiking tips, and in this post we are sharing some portable snacks to bring along on your hike. As we mentioned in our last post, it is important to continue to fuel your body during your hike to keep up your energy. Prep these snacks at your apartment before heading out on your next hike in the Tacoma, WA area. Spicy Oven Roasted Chickpeas from Chowhound Canned chickpeas are coated with chili powder, cumin, and cayenne and baked until crispy for a simple, quick, healthy, and portable snack. You will love the satisfying crunch of this savory snack. Chocolate Protein Rice Crispy Treats from The Big Man’s World Make your own rice crispy treats that are naturally sweet and loaded with protein. For this recipe, you will need the following ingredients: crispy rice cereal, puffed kamut/millet cereal, brown rice syrup, nut butter of choice, protein powder, cocoa powder, salt, and almond milk. Fruit & Nut Bars from Gettin’ My Healthy On Simple and easy to make, these homemade fruit & nut bars are also much less expensive than similar store bought products. To make them, you will need pitted dates, raw almonds, peanuts, dried cranberries, unsweetened coconut, and water. Cherry Power Cookies from Running to the Kitchen These power cookies are packed full of antioxidant rich tart cherries, oats, nuts, and seeds. They also make the perfect healthy, on-the-go snack. To make them, you will need the following ingredients: rolled oats, ripe banana, chopped walnuts, dried tart cherries, raw pumpkin seeds (pepitas), cacao nibs, sesame seeds, chia seeds, creamy almond butter, melted coconut oil, maple syrup, vanilla extract, and kosher salt. Coconut Almond Granola from Diary of an ExSloth Granola is a classic hiking snack because it is packed full of protein. You will love the flavors in this coconut almond granola as well as the satisfying crunch that granola is known for. Ingredients include rolled oats, ground flax, ground cinnamon, slivered almonds, whole almonds, dried coconut, coconut oil, applesauce, maple syrup, almond extract, and coconut extract. If you don’t have almond or coconut extract, you can substitute vanilla extract. What are your favorite hiking snacks? Share your recipes with the rest of our apartment community in the comments of this post. We hope you get a chance to go on a fun summer hike this month!

Summer Hiking Tips

Summer is an ideal time to be outdoors enjoying the beauty of nature here in Tacoma, Washington. A fun and popular outdoor activity is to go on a hike! There are plenty of great hiking trails and spots here in Tacoma and the surrounding area, so take your pick. In today’s Nantucket Blog post, we are sharing a few hiking tips to help you have the best possible experience while you are out and about enjoying the beauty of nature. Proper Clothing and Footwear What you wear can have a huge effect on how much you enjoy your hike, so invest in high-quality items. The American Hiking Society suggests trail shoes for short, simpler day hikes and hiking boots for rougher terrain and heavier loads. They also suggest wearing several light layers of clothing so you can adjust what you wear, especially if the weather turns bad. Water and Snacks Even if you think you’re hydrated and satisfied with a meal you’ve eaten before a hike, you need to continue to fuel your body while you’re on the hike! Bring a few water bottles in your backpack and some healthy, portable hiking snacks so you can have the energy you need to finish your hike. Safety Items Be prepared for an injury or emergency by bringing along essential safety items. A first-aid kit, a flashlight or headlamp, matches and kindling, mylar blankets, and a knife or multi-purpose tool are all important to keep with you on hike, especially a long one. Having these items in your pack will help you feel confident and capable. Bring a friend along for company and extra help, and always let someone know where you will be hiking and when you expect to be back. Protection from the Sun Even if you don’t burn easily, or if you want a bit of a tan, you should still protect your skin and your eyes from the sun. Apply a good coat of sunscreen on exposed skin before you leave, and bring it with you so you can re-apply, especially if you’re going to be hiking for a long time. Don’t forget to get your ears, neck, and hairlines! Extra protection with sunglasses and a hat is important, too. What are your best hiking tips? Where are your favorite hiking spots? Share your wisdom with the rest of our apartment community in the comments. Thanks for reading our post. We wish you a fun and safe summer filled with new adventures!