The Gardens at Twin Hickory

If you put up Christmas decorations, you love them, but taking them down is another story. But this week is often the time that we try to turn our apartments in Glen Allen, VA are turned back to normal.

So you may be taking down your tree this week or next, but do you know what you are going to do with it?

There are plenty of opportunities in the Richmond area to recycle your Christmas tree, although it is up to you to deliver them to the recycling location. At The Gardens at Twin Hickory we recommend wrapping your tree in a blanket or a tarp before putting that tree in your car. Just look at the pine needles in your apartment and you’ll know why.

Did you know that there are approximately 28 million real Christmas trees sold in the US every year?  About 93% of those trees are recycled because real trees are a renewable, recyclable resource.

In the Richmond area the recycled trees will be ground into mulch. This is just another way to recycle and go green.

Be sure to remove all tinsel, bulbs, and lights from the tree.
 
On Saturday, January 15, the city of Richmond will hold its second Christmas tree recycling program called “Bring One for the Chipper 2010.” You are invited to recycle their Christmas trees by having the city chip them into mulch for use in landscaping. The event will take place at the Parker Field Annex, 1710 Robin Hood Road, across from the Arthur Ashe Center, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on January 15. Also, Christmas trees can be dropped off from December 26 through January 14 at the East Richmond Road Convenience Center, 3800 East Richmond Road and the Richmond Southside Transfer Station, 3520 N. Hopkins Road.

So much to do around Richmond.  Make some plans with your neighbors and friends from your apartment in Glen Allen, VA.

You can still take advantage of the free horse drawn carriage rides on December 23 in Carytown. They are fun and free. It’s the perfect way to enjoy some time with friends.

Looking for something to do on New Year’s Eve in Richmond? You have a couple of choices.

Get ready to have the New Years Eve experience of a lifetime. Hat Factory and Off the Hooka are hosting a fun event. One ticket will give you entrance into both clubs. Mikey Rukus performs from 9-11pm, hors d'oeuvres served all night, champagne toast at midnight, specials all night, door prizes, giveaways and a Dj.

How about New Year’s eve at Art Works. Dress up and Drop the Ball at Art Works New Years Eve party. You will be able to dance to live music by the Robbin Steel Band! Included with your ticket : 

• Heavy hor d’oeuvres provided by Cub Creek Farms  
• Champagne toast
• New Years Eve noisemakers
• Coffee and Dessert by The Buttercream Bee
• 2 art raffle tickets

At Art Works, there will be a cash bar where you can enjoy fancy cocktails. Do you want new art? The art raffle is perfect. Upon arrival, you get 2 raffle tickets and you can buy as many more as you want. After midnight, the winning tickets will be drawn.  

Living in an apartment in Glen Allen, VA and wanting to get into the holiday spirit? Come to Richmond. Even though the Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden is best known for its beautiful blooming flowers, it is the perfect place to wander and get into the holiday spirit. During the holidays, the garden becomes a "Gardenfest of Lights" with over 500,000 red, green, pink, blue, purple, white and golden lights to get you in the holiday mood.

Beginning with a live band in the welcome center, there are 40 acres of lights for you to enjoy, a winter wonderland. At the Botanical Garden's you walk and enjoy, a better alternative than driving. With indoor and outdoor displays, you can enjoy the outdoors and warm up inside as well.

“The outdoor gardens are filled with unique Christmas lights from the hand-blown glass orbs to lights wrapped to resemble grapes dangling from arbors covering the walkways. As you journey along the paths you never know what you will find from magical fish jumping along the fountains edge to a pink flamingo or a pair of swans swimming in the water. If you are lucky, you just might catch a glimpse of a wolf as he sneaks silently through the forest of lights. If you feel like you are being watched, look a little closer and you may find that some of the trees are actually looking back at you.” (Virginia Wind)

You warm up by going back to springtime in the conservatory, a 63 foot tall room covered in live orchids, tropical flowers and greenery.  The main attraction in the conservatory is the Christmas tree, decorated in the theme “Season of Wonder”.

Of course there is also a model train at the “Gardenfest of Lights”. The unique model train village and village is exceptionally beautiful and made entirely of plants and natural materials gleaned from the gardens!

Don’t forget to bring your kids to the Children’s Garden where there is a kid-friendly tree house. There is also hot chocolate and snacks, or visit the Tea House or the Garden Café which are open for dinner during the festival of lights.

The housing market is stagnating right now and real estate brokers would have potential buyers believe that there is no better time than the present to buy a home. It is true, prices are down and mortgage rates are at all-time lows.

Unfortunately for the real estate brokers, many clients are not persuaded by that logic. Instead, in increasing numbers, they are choosing to rent instead of buy — unconvinced that the housing market has yet hit bottom. Would be buyers also understand that unless you plan to stay in your home for more than 10 years, buying a home may not be the right investment for everyone.

With apartments in Glen Allen, VA, located near downtown Richmond, offering apartment amenities that can’t be found in homes, renting is a great option for many. There is also a broad mix of tenants at The Gardens Apartment homes: young single residents and families and empty-nesters that no longer have homeownership on their wish list.

For information on beautiful one-, two-, and three bedroom apartments in Glen Allen, VA  contact The Gardens.