Blog Posts

Summer Treats in Gilbert, AZ

Celebrate the end of summer with five delicious summer desserts. We are featuring our favorite sweets for the summer, including cheesecakes, s’mores, shortbread, and ice cream cakes. We hope that you get the chance to gather up your friends, head to your favorite park here in Gilbert, AZ, and enjoy a treat or two before the month is through. Mini Blueberry Cheesecakes from Six Sisters’ Stuff Mini blueberry cheesecakes are the perfect summer snack. The creamy cheesecake and sweet blueberry filling blend for one of our favorite summer sweets. Hot S’more Dip from Spend with Pennies Hot s’more dip is the perfect addition to any summer party. All you need to make this decadent dip is milk chocolate chips (you can use semi-sweet or dark chocolate chips instead, if you’d like), milk, marshmallows, and graham crackers. Make a lot — it’ll go fast, especially if you make it for guests. Strawberry Shortbread Ice Cream from Domestically Speaking All you need to make this dessert is heavy whipping cream, sweetened condensed milk, shortbread cookies, and sliced strawberries. We recommend going to your local farmers’ market for the strawberries you need to make this treat. You can also top this ice cream treat with blueberries, raspberries, and bananas, if you’d like. Caramel Toffee Ice Cream Cake from Carlsbad Cravings Make the cookie crumble with brown sugar, flour, old fashioned oats, salt, butter, and pecans. Finish it off with your favorite ice cream, candy bar, and caramel sauce. You’ll love the crunchy-sweet taste of this delicious summer treat. Frozen Caramel-Apple Crunch Cake from Tbsp. This dessert is perfect for the transition from summer to fall. We recommend making it at the end of the month, just as it begins to feel a little more like fall. Use Nature Valley™ Crunchy Granola Bars to add some crunch to this amazing summer-fall recipe and sweeten it up with cinnamon and brown sugar. What’s your favorite summer recipe? Let us know in the comments. Thanks for reading our post!

Manage Your Time

In this post, the Liv Northgate Blog has a few tips to help you make the most out of your days in August. It can be difficult to know how to balance everything you have to do—work commitments, projects, errands—without sacrificing anything you want to do. This month we have a few tips on how to work through your to-do list with time left over for friends and fun. Tip One: Take Inventory of Your Schedule Before you reinvent your schedule, you have to know where you spend your time. Keep a “time diary” for a couple of weeks. Write down when you surf the internet, go to work, eat, sleep, wake up, shop, and hang out with friends. Make a thorough record of your days and see where you’re wasting time. Spending hours a day watching Netflix? Cut back so you can take that cooking class or learn how to fix your car. Whatever your goals are, we’re sure you’ll be able to find the time somewhere in your busy schedule. Tip Two: Make a List There’s nothing more satisfying than checking something off your to-do list. Write down everything you have to do during the day and check things off as you accomplish them. Writing down the things you have to do each day ensures that you don’t forget anything you have to accomplish. Tip Three: Have Fun Sometimes you’ll slip up. Instead of doing your laundry or working, you’ll go out for dinner with friends in Gilbert, AZ or binge watch that new series on Netflix or Hulu. Don’t sweat it. Everyone needs time to relax and your to-do list shouldn’t get in the way of the time you need to unwind and relax. Remember to schedule some time for fun each day. Do you have any time management tips for us? Let us know in the comments. Thanks for reading our post!

Podcasts

The Liv Northgate Blog is featuring our favorite podcasts in this post. Liven up your daily commute with a good podcast. There are podcasts on every topic imaginable; if you don’t like our picks, there’s probably a podcast that fits your interests, you just have to search for it. We hope that you find one that suits your tastes this August! The New Yorker: Fiction Ever wanted to hear one of your favorite authors read and discuss a short story by one of your other favorite authors? Well, your dreams are about to come true. The New Yorker: Fiction invites famous writers like Colm Toibin, Junot Diaz, Jonathan Franzen, George Saunders, and Miranda July to read their favorite New Yorker stories. Click the link to hear more. Modern Love Love is complicated. Modern Love gives listeners a glimpse into other people’s most important relationships with heartfelt stories submitted to the Modern Love column in the New York Times . The Modern Love podcasts features famous actors reading these heartwarming tales. Chances are, your favorite actor has read one of these stories on the air. Search their archive to find out. Stuff You Missed in History Class Stuff You Missed in History Class explores the events, people, and histories you probably didn’t learn about when you were in school. Learn about obscure (but deeply interesting) topics and people by listening to this astounding podcast. 10 Minute Writer’s Workshop The 10 Minute Writer’s Workshop features famous writers and authors giving listeners their best writing advice. Need advice on how to finish that short story? They’ve got it. Their advice can be applied to more than just writing. Use their tips on how to keep going with a project (even when times get tough) to help you accomplish your goals. What’s your favorite podcast? Let us know in the comments, and we’ll check it out. Thanks for reading our post and have a great month here in Gilbert, AZ!

Butterfly Wonderland

The Liv Northgate Blog is featuring one of our favorite places in Scottsdale — Butterfly Wonderland — in this post. Butterfly Wonderland is just thirty minutes away from your Gilbert, AZ apartment and is the perfect place to spend a summer afternoon in late August. Their exhibits showcase some of the most beautiful butterflies we’ve ever seen. We hope that you get the chance to visit sometime this month. Butterfly Wonderland is a great place to spend a summer afternoon, and it hosts some of the best events in the area. Events coming to the Butterfly Wonderland this month include Rainforest Reptile Talks, Concerts in the Conservatory, Bee Talks, and more. You can find their full calendar here . Click the link for the dates and times for their next summer event. The newest exhibit at Butterfly Wonderland is called Rainforest Reptiles. Rainforest Reptiles offers exhibits that highlight the rainforests of the Amazon, Asia, and Madagascar. Walk through their exhibits to see lizards, snakes, frogs, and more. Learn more about this exhibit by following this link . The Butterfly Pavilion is the centerpiece of Butterfly Wonderland. It is described as “the largest indoor rainforest conservatory in the United States. More than 3,000 butterflies from around the world flutter among the lush tropical plants and flowers, landing for just long enough to capture the perfect photograph. The flowers, trees and plants within the atrium have been chosen precisely for the butterfly species within.” We know you’ll love the magic of the Butterfly Pavilion. Follow the Butterfly Wonderland blog for updates and to learn more about the butterflies and events at the Butterfly Wonderland. Have you ever visited the Butterfly Wonderland? What was your favorite exhibit? Let us know in the comments. Thanks for reading our post and have a great month here in Gilbert, AZ!

Stay Safe in the Summer Sun

In this post, the Liv Northgate Blog is featuring a few tips to help you stay safe in the sun this summer. Arizona summers can be merciless. While the weather in Gilbert, AZ is perfect most of the year, summers mean long, hot days and the threat of heat stroke and sunburn if you’re not careful. We have the tips you need to stay safe, cool, and hydrated this summer. Read on to learn more. Summer Skin Protecting your skin during the summer should be a priority. Remember to wear sunscreen to protect yourself from the sun, and wear a hat and sunglasses outdoors. Limit the time you spend soaking up the sun. A little vitamin D is good, but too much time out in the sun can lead to sunburn, irritation, and (at the very worst) skin cancer. Stay safe this summer. Hydrate It’s always important to stay hydrated, but especially during the summer. Keep a water bottle nearby and drink whenever you feel thirsty. WebMD recommends getting your water from foods and drinks like hamburger, chicken breasts, soda, Jell-O, smoothies, and watermelon, as well. You can find their article on ways to stay hydrated here . Need a new water bottle this summer? Check out the 13 Impressive Water Bottle for Workouts and Daily Use from Best Products. Have Fun Indoors There are plenty of ways to have fun and stay healthy indoors during the summer. Summer is an opportunity to read a good book, catch up on your favorite Netflix show, hang out with friends, and explore restaurants around the city. Take advantage of the gaming and pool table in The Hub at the Liv Northgate and enjoy 24/7 access to the Liv Fitness Center. Enjoy lounging in your air-conditioned Gilbert, AZ apartment and turn on the ceiling fans if you want a breeze. There are plenty of ways to enjoy Gilbert, AZ in the summer safely! Do you have any summer sun tips for us? Let us know in the comments. Thanks for reading our post!

Thrifting in Gilbert, AZ

The Liv Northgate Blog is featuring several tips and tricks to help you thrift shop this month. Thrift stores have the reputation of selling items that are old, worn out, and out of date, but that’s not true! Thrift stores are treasure troves of vintage and classic items — you just have to be willing to search. Read on to learn more. Tip One: Budget Many people think that budgeting for a thrift store excursion is unnecessary. Because everything is so cheap, it can be easy to overspend on items that you don’t really want or need. Setting a budget is an easy way to prevent any unwanted purchases. Bring your budget in cash on your thrifting trip. Don’t go over the limit you’ve set for yourself. Most trips should only warrant fifteen to fifty dollars in purchases. If you intend to buy bigger items like furniture or vintage designer items, expand your budget. Tip Two: Alter Items Don’t be afraid to creatively alter the items you find at the thrift store. Turn old sweaters and sweatshirts into quilts, cut the shoulder pads out of a blazer, or refinish an old bookshelf or dining room table. Use old books to create a unique wall decoration or turn old magazines into a collage. There are plenty of ways to use the items you find at your local thrift store to express your style and personality. Tip Three: Have Fun Remember to have fun while you shop! Take a break for lunch at your favorite diner here in Gilbert, AZ or play a game. Bring a friend and see who can find the strangest item in the thrift store. The person who wins gets free lunch or dinner. Try on a crazy outfit or explore the inventory, looking for the oldest item on sale. Bringing a friend thrift store shopping will give you a solid second opinion and help alleviate the tedium of looking through the racks. Do you have any thrifting tips or tricks for us? Let us know in the comments. We hope that you have a great month here in Gilbert, AZ. Thanks for reading our post!