Blog Posts

Movie Night

This week the Stonefire Apartments Blog is helping you throw your next movie night with friends. We hope that our tips — on snacks to serve, what to watch, and how to decorate — help you throw a truly epic movie night sometime this month. How to decorate We love this Backyard Movie Night from In Honor of Design . String lights all over your apartment, use a sheet and projector to show your movie, and have a sign with the name of your movie by the front door. Lay out blankets and pillows for your guests to lounge on while you watch your movie. Hang your favorite classic movie posters on the walls. Since your movie night is most likely an indoor event, we recommend using tea lights instead of candles to light your movie night. We also recommend putting your couch in your bedroom and using beanbags for your movie night, instead. Serve snacks A popcorn bar is a great way to serve all of your guests for movie night. Provide a cooler with drinks, a tub of popcorn, paper bags, and a variety of sugary snacks for your guests to enjoy. You can also leave out sauces, spices, and cheese for your guests to add to their popcorn for movie night. Have guests bring a variety of finger foods and desserts if you’d like something a little more substantial. What to watch We recommend watching one of your favorite movies from 2016 for your movie night. Here are a few of our favorite picks from the previous year. La La Land “Sebastian (Ryan Gosling) and Mia (Emma Stone) are drawn together by their common desire to do what they love. But as success mounts they are faced with decisions that begin to fray the fragile fabric of their love affair, and the dreams they worked so hard to maintain in each other threaten to rip them apart.” Moana “An adventurous teenager sails out on a daring mission to save her people. During her journey, Moana meets the once-mighty demigod Maui, who guides her in her quest to become a master way-finder. Together they sail across the open ocean on an action-packed voyage, encountering enormous monsters and impossible odds. Along the way, Moana fulfills the ancient quest of her ancestors and discovers the one thing she always sought: her own identity.” What are your favorite movies from 2016? Are you going to have your own movie night sometime this month? Let us know in the comments. Thanks for reading!

New Years Resolutions

In this post, the Stonefire Apartments Blog is featuring a few tips to help you stick with your New Year’s resolutions this year. New Year’s resolutions are infamous for being abandoned early in the year. Prove the statistics wrong — only 14% to 39% of resolutions are actually reached — by using our tips to stick with your New Year’s resolution all year long. Pick a goal that matters. Dan Pink argues that external motivators don’t work as well as creating an environment that fosters intrinsic motivation. The easiest way to ensure that you will reach your goal is to pick a goal that you really care about. Don’t set a goal because of or for other people; set a goal that you are excited about accomplishing. Record and celebrate your progress. The Harvard Business Review writes that even small victories can do a lot to keep motivation up. Remember to keep your mood up and celebrate the small accomplishments that come as you work towards your goal. Know what you want to accomplish. It’s much easier to accomplish a goal when you know exactly what you want to accomplish. Write down how you think you’ll feel when you reach your goal. Write down what you think reaching your goal will look like and sound like. This will help you keep your motivation up when the going gets tough. Get into the right mindset. The Atlantic says that many successful athletes practice mindfulness. Mindfulness, according to The Atlantic , is “the nonjudgmental focus of attention on an experience as it occurs.” This can help you get into “the zone” and focus on accomplishing your goals. Mindfulness is a great way to get into the right mindset before you begin work on any of your goals this year. Develop grit. The Huffington Post has a great post about developing grit. Grit is the endurance you need to keep going with your goals. The post says, “In order to make anything happen you’ve got to keep at it. Persist. Persevere. Stick to it. There will be days, months even, that you don’t want to. There will be setbacks that make you want to quit — guaranteed. But, by acting gritty, by pushing on even when you feel like throwing in the towel, you’ll actually get stronger.” What are your resolutions? Let us know in the comments section. Thanks for reading our post!

Winter Drinks

This month the Stonefire Blog is featuring a few of our favorite winter drink recipes. We hope that you find the time to try a few of these drinks before the season is through. Whether you love hot chocolate, cider, or eggnog, we have a recipe for you. Hot Chocolate Peppermint White Hot Chocolate from Gimme Some Oven This simple hot chocolate recipe is a great way to start winter off with. Have this hot chocolate with fresh batch of cookies or your favorite peppermint brownies. Use milk, white chocolate, vanilla extract, peppermint extract, and whipped cream to make this delicious treat. S’mores Hot Chocolate from Minimalist Baker S’mores hot chocolate is truly unique. It takes awhile to make, but it’s the perfect special occasion drink to impress guests with. We think you’ll love having a steaming cup of s’mores hot chocolate on a cold winter night. Cider Copycat Starbucks Apple Cider with Caramel Save yourself a trip through the drivethrough. This recipe is surprisingly easy to throw together, but it tastes great and will have anyone who loves the Starbucks apple cider fooled. This is a great drink to have in lieu of a winter dessert. Slow Cooker Apple Cranberry Cider from The Busy Baker Fresh juice, orange slices, cranberries, and cinnamon sticks combine for a deliciously seasonal apple cider. We think that you’ll love having this cider at a gathering of friends or at your next dinner party. This recipe makes a lot of cider — make sure you have someone to share it with! Eggnog Eggnog Milkshakes from Lil’ Luna This is eggnog made easy. Ice cream, organic eggnog, cinnamon, gingersnaps, and whipped cream make this eggnog milkshake a creamy, dreamy treat. We hope that you’ll enjoy this winter dessert in the warm comfort of your Stonefire apartment. Homemade Salted Caramel Eggnog from The Cookie Rookie This winter drink is not for the faint hearted. Use three cups of whole milk, heavy whipping cream, cinnamon sticks, five eggs, nutmeg, vanilla, caramel syrup, sea salt, and egg whites to make this delicious drink. This is definitely a special occasion drink, so save it for a rainy (or snowy) day! What are your favorite winter drinks? Leave us a recipe in the comments. Thanks for reading!

Look on the Brightside

In this post, the Stonefire Apartments Blog is featuring a few tips to help you Look on the Bright Side this month. December 21st is Look on the Bright Side Day. Celebrate with these tips.We hope that you enjoy this post and that you find time to be a little more optimistic this month. Get some sun Winter clouds can give you the blues. Get a little sun by enjoying a short walk during the sunnier part of the day. Use a UV light to get some of the sun you might be missing. Look at pictures of summer sun. Boost your happiness by making December feel like June. Believe you can improve Carol Dweck’s research has been instrumental in showing that having a growth mindset can transform your life for the better. In believing that nothing is fixed, you are free to learn new things, improve your relationships, and change your habits. You can listen to her TED talk here . Believing that you can change your life is an easy way to look on the bright side — no failure is permanent. Think “not yet” the next time something doesn’t go your way. Endure Happiness isn’t just found in the here and now. Angela Lee Duckworth, another TED speaker, talks of the difference between successful and unsuccessful students —grit. Duckworth defines grit this way: “Grit is passion and perseverance for very long-term goals. Grit is having stamina. Grit is sticking with your future, day in, day out, not just for the week, not just for the month, but for years, and working really hard to make that future a reality. Grit is living life like it’s a marathon, not a sprint.” Endure through the hard days, the days when you just want to give up, to reach your end goal. While this might not bring you immediate happiness, it will make you happier in the long run as you achieve your long-held goals. You can listen to Duckworth’s TED talk here . Spend time with someone you care about Invite an old friend out to dinner or thank an old mentor with a visit. Make time for the people you care about this month. Having a long conversation with a friend or reconnecting with someone you haven’t seen in awhile is an easy way to boost your mood. Make time for the people you care about this month. How do you look on the bright side? Leave us a comment and let us know. Thanks for reading!

November Reading

In this post, the Stonefire Apartments Blog is featuring three of our favorite books for you to enjoy this month. It’s getting cold outside, and there’s nothing as relaxing as snuggling up with a good book and a cup of hot chocolate for a cozy afternoon in. Stay in and out of the cold by letting yourself get lost in a good book. We hope you enjoy our picks. A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith From Amazon: “ The beloved American classic about a young girl's coming-of-age at the turn of the century, Betty Smith's A Tree Grows in Brooklyn is a poignant and moving tale filled with compassion and cruelty, laughter and heartache, crowded with life and people and incident. The story of young, sensitive, and idealistic Francie Nolan and her bittersweet formative years in the slums of Williamsburg has enchanted and inspired millions of readers for more than sixty years. By turns overwhelming, sublime, heartbreaking, and uplifting, the daily experiences of the unforgettable Nolans are raw with honesty and tenderly threaded with family connectedness -- in a work of literary art that brilliantly captures a unique time and place as well as incredibly rich moments of universal experience.” Macbeth by William Shakespeare From Amazon: “Macbeth (full title The Tragedy of Macbeth) is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare, and is considered one of his darkest and most powerful works. Set in Scotland, the play illustrates the damaging physical and psychological effects of political ambition on those who seek power for its own sake. The play is believed to have been written between 1599 and 1606, and is most commonly dated 1606. The earliest account of a performance of what was probably Shakespeare's play is the Summer of 1606, when Simon Forman recorded seeing such a play at the Globe Theatre. It was first published in the Folio of 1623, possibly from a prompt book. It was most likely written during the reign of James I, who had been James VI of Scotland before he succeeded to the English throne in 1603. James was a patron of Shakespeare's acting company, and of all the plays Shakespeare wrote during James's reign, Macbeth most clearly reflects the playwright's relationship with the sovereign.” Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen From Amazon: “Marianne Dashwood wears her heart on her sleeve, and when she falls in love with the dashing but unsuitable John Willoughby she ignores her sister Elinor's warning that her impulsive behaviour leaves her open to gossip and innuendo. Meanwhile Elinor, always sensitive to social convention, is struggling to conceal her own romantic disappointment, even from those closest to her. Through their parallel experience of love - and its threatened loss - the sisters learn that sense must mix with sensibility if they are to find personal happiness in a society where status and money govern the rules of love.” If these books aren’t quite for you, visit your local library sometime this month and ask for a recommendation. Do you have any recommendations for us? Leave us a comment and let us know. Thanks for reading!

November Writing

November is National Novel Writing Month, and the Stonefire Apartments Blog is writing about writing! Each year, novelists all around the world commit to writing a 50,000 word novel in just one month. Join their ranks as a novelist this year by signing up to participate on the official National Novel Writing Month (or NaNoWriMo) website . Of course, you don’t have to sign up on their website to write, but signing up gives you access to a community of writers, local writing events, pep talks by famous authors, and a tool that can help you track your progress. One of our favorite programs by NaNoWriMo is “Come Write In.” Come Write In helps writers find other NaNoWriMo writers in their area. You can find out more about the program here . Each year famous authors and writers offer up encouragement and sage advice for tired writers through NaNoWriMo’s pep talks. One of our favorite pep talks from Jonathan Stroud. Here’s an excerpt : “You could write a novel about the act of writing a novel. It’s a heroic act. (Or so I tell myself as I sit here in my garret study, chewing my nails, scratching my nose and staring blankly at my screen. That’s what this is, I say grimly: a heroic act.) Why is it so heroic? Because it fits the mythic pattern of all great legendary heroes’ lives. It’s the story of a mighty quest accepted, of a long journey undertaken, of insuperable obstacles overcome and finally—in your case after 30 painful days—of lasting triumph won. It would make a fine movie, apart from the scratching the nose bit—probably starring Charlton Heston. Full of dramatic highs, dreadful lows and endless tedious bits when the audience goes out to make a cup of tea. It’s an epic, all right, and we’re all in it together.” There are plenty of benefits to writing every day. Even if you don’t plan on participating in NaNoWriMo, you can benefit from National Novel Writing Month by committing to write a little bit every day. Writing every day can help you heal, absorb new information, and become a more grateful person. So pick up a pen and start writing! We hope that you’ve enjoyed learning a little more about National Novel Writing Month! Are you planning on participating? Leave us a comment and let us know. Thanks for reading!