Lights! Music! Parades! Sarasota Gets Lively With Holiday Celebrations

Sarasota is always packed with events and this holiday season is no exception! We may not see any snow but these events will make up for it and surely get you into a festive mood. 

December 1: 

The Annual Sarasota Holiday Parade takes place in downtown Sarasota on the first Saturday evening of December. With thousands participating and even more thousands viewing, the parade kicks off at 7:00PM with decorated floats, live marching bands and the guest of honor "rounding" out the parade, Santa Claus. The parade route runs along Main Street. It's a definite "must see" on my December Sarasota Events Calendar! Click here to read more about and see pictures of the Sarasota Holiday Parade.

December 7: 

It's Holiday Night of Lights on St. Armands Circle with the arrival of Santa at 6:00PM and the lighting of the 51 ft., 5 story tall Rocky Mountain Pine Christmas Tree at 6:15PM. Over 18 musical groups will perform throughout the evening, from 6:30PM - 9:00PM, at various locations stationed around the Circle.

December 16: 

Enjoy Music of the Season - The 21st Annual Christmas Concert featuring Christmas Memories and a community carol sing-along. The First Church Singers perform with members of the Sarasota Orchestra along with dancers from the Sarasota Ballet. The concert will be held at First United Methodist Church, 104 S. Pineapple Ave, downtown Sarasota. 7:00PM (parking available in Zenith garage). Free will offering.

This information and many more events can be found on www.escape-to-sarasota.com under events.

Cyber Monday And Package Delivery

For the deal-savvy shopper who didn't get their fill yesterday during Black Friday, or for those who would rather do their shopping online, Cyber Monday is a great opportunity. In just two days retailers will offer special deals for their online customers.

Cyber Monday shopping is a very different experience than Black Friday. There's no lines and you can do your shopping in your pajamas sipping hot cocoa. Heck, you can shop and get your laundry done at the same time! With a few simple clicks you can place your order and have it delivered to your home.

There are some websites that gather the deals from many retailers to make your shopping online even easier. Check out http://www.cybermonday2012.com/ or http://www.cybermonday.com/.

As the holiday season ramps up we see an increase of packages coming in for our residents. Everyone also gets much busier. The office staff is happy to help out by delivering packages to your apartment. If you receive a notice that a package has been dropped off at the office and you would like it delivered to your apartment simply give us a call, email, or use the Ask The Office form on our website to request that your package be delivered to your apartment.

Birds of a Feather

We have some feathery neighbors that have recently been visiting Gulf Gate! Each morning one of our staff members sees a congregation of White Ibis birds strutting about our parking lots. They are interesting and beautiful birds, with curved beaks that help them prod in wetland muck for crabs and crayfish. A large group of White Ibis is referred to as a colony, while a smaller group can be called a congregation, stand, or wedge. That's what we have here at Gulf Gate, a wedge of White Ibis.

In other wildlife sightings, the office staff have noticed a squirrel that has been keeping watch over them. With Thanksgiving just around the corner we can give thanks for the beautiful creatures that visit us at Gulf Gate and remind us that the world is beautiful.

Take-Out Or Dining Out This Thanksgiving

Don't want to cook this holiday season? You're in luck because Publix supermarkets have a full, hot, Thanksgiving feast you can purchase. Publix Turkey Holiday Dinners only require heating before serving and include 4 sides: 2.75 lb Old-Fashioned Cornbread Dressing, 2.75 lb Home-style Mashed Potatoes, 32 oz Gravy, and 16 oz Cranberry-Orange Relish. These delicious dinners are anywhere from $39.99 (7-10 Servings) to $79.99 (14-18 Servings) plus much more you can choose from. Check out their website here.

Looking to go out for Thanksgiving? Here are a several places that are open and offer Thanksgiving Dinners:

Trader Vic’s 

378-3900

351 N. Cattlemen Rd., Sarasota

Offering a traditional Thanksgiving menu featuring roast turkey and prime rib from 11:30AM to 8:30PM. Tradervics.com. 

Sam Snead’s 

906-7771

1830 S. Ospery Ave, Sarasota

Presents a three-course menu including roast turkey, salmon or prime rib for $25.95 for adults, $12.95 children under 12, from 11:30AM to 8:00PM Samsneadssarasota.com. 

Rosebud’s

918-8771

2215 S. Tamiami Trail, Osprey

Offering a traditional Thanksgiving dinner from 11:30AM to 9:00PM featuring roast turkey, rack of lamb and prime rib. A children’s menu is available. Rosebudssarasota.com. 

Polo Grill and Bar

782-0899

10670 Boardwalk Loop, Lakewood Ranch 

Offers a buffet from noon to 5:00PM with traditional turkey day standards, along with a variety of cooking stations and dishes from around the world, for $32.95 adults, $14.95 for children aged 5-12, with children 4 and under free. Pologrillandbar.com. 

Pier 22

748-8087

1200 1st Ave. W., Bradenton

Will host a traditional Thanksgiving dinner from 11:00AM to 10:00PM for $24.95 for adults and $12.95 for children 12 and under. The restaurant’s usual menu will also be available. Pier22dining.com. 

Patricks

955-1481

1481 Main St., Sarasota

Will offer special three-course meals including roasted turkey for $18, beginning at noon. Other specially priced entrees and a kids menu are available. Patricks1481.com

Michael’s On East

366-0007

1212 East Ave. S., Sarasota

Will have two Thanksgiving options, from 2:00PM to 8:00PM: a traditional meal with all the fixings for $28.95, or a la carte dining off a special holiday menu. Michaelsoneast.com 

Libby’s Cafe + Bar

487-7300

1917 Osprey Ave., Sarasota

Will offer a special turkey dinner for $30 adults, $13 for children, from 11:00AM to 9:00PM, including a bonus “brown bag” of turkey to go, for day-after turkey sandwiches. A la carte menu also available. Libbyscafebar.com. 

Harry’s Continental Kitchens

383-0777

5600 Gulf of Mexico Drive, Longboat Key

Offers a traditional Thanksgiving three-course dinner from 2:00PM to 8:00PM for $31.95 per person ($43.95 per person with premium wine pairings). Harryskitchen.com. 

Cracker Barrel

480-9200

445 Commercial Court, Venice

or

 624-4994

800 Kings Hwy, Pt. Charlotte

Serving a special Thanksgiving dinner beginning at 11AM that includes dessert and beverage for $8.99 adults and $4.49 for children. 

All this information and more can be found at:
http://exploreyoursarasota.blogs.heraldtribune.com/13954/where-to-dine-on-thanksgiving/

These Two Early Birds Catch Something Better Than Worms!

Congratulations to Nathan and Brandi, our Early Bird Drawing winners! They'll be enjoying $50 off their rent in December because they had their rent paid on or before the first of this month and then were selected in our random Early Bird Drawing from everyone that had their rent in on time.

Nathan and Brandi have been Gulf Gate residents for over a year. Brandi handcrafts bracelets and necklaces and Nathan works on computers. They are a joy to have here at Gulf Gate!

You too can be an early bird drawing winner. Just pay rent on or before the first of every month and come to the office to fill out a slip. We then hold a drawing from all the completed entries and the winner saves $50 on rent. It could be you!

Nathan and Brandi displaying their winning entry form.

Making A Child's Thanksgiving Memorable

Thanksgiving is around the corner and we want to help make this holiday memorable for needy children in our area. That's why we're holding a food drive for the Boys and Girls Club of Manatee County. You can donate non-perishable, unopened and unexpired food items by dropping them off in the clubhouse at Gulf Gate. We'll be collecting donations until Friday, November 16th. Help make a child's Thanksgiving great by donating to the food drive - and thank you!

Gulf Gate Poolside BBQ Photos

We had a great time at our recent picnic for our residents. It was a wonderful opportunity to visit with our residents and share a meal. This year we chose a very 'mooving' theme and had a 'cow party'! There were hamburgers and ice cream on the menu to stick with the 'amoosing' theme. We snapped some pictures of all the fun we had, check them out below.

Raffle winner of gift basket full of cow themed chocolate and Christmas decorations.

BBQ second prize winner. Prize is a "moooooing" bag clip!

Carmen is serving a resident at ice cream bar. We had so many toppings to choose from - Yum!

BBQ buffet is ready and Helen the caretaker is too

Heather and Haley at BBQ

Happy Birthday To Cookie Monster!

November is an exciting month - it is the start of the holiday season and everyone seems to get busier. As stressful as these times can be, in the end it is always worth it because of all the quality time you get to spend with the ones you love.

In chronological order here's Novembers special days, some well known, and a few obscure events.

November 1st All Saints Day: 
All Saints Day is a Christian holiday that celebrates the lives of saints in the Christian church, many of whom were martyred for their faith or lived a particularly holy life.

November 2nd Cookie Monster's Birthday:

The adorable and voracious monster that loves to eat almost anything, but most especially cookies, has his birthday celebrated today. Get into the spirit by reading Happy Birthday, Cookie Monster!

November 4th Daylight Savings Time Ends:

Don’t forget to turn your clocks back on Sunday, November 4, 2012, 2:00AM.

November 6th Election Day: 
This is the day that we as American exercise our right as “We the People”. We will be selecting not only our president for the next 4 years, but also state and local offices as well. Check with your local municipality for polling places.

November 11th Veterans Day:
Originally called Armistice Day, we celebrated the cease fire that ended the “Great War” now known as The First World War (WW1). The war ended on November 11th 1918 at 11:11 (11/11 at 11:11). The first official Armistice Day was marked with the U.S., England, and France each burying an unknown soldier at 11:11 on November 11th 1921. President Eisenhower changed the holiday to Veterans Day in 1954, as a national holiday to honor all of our U.S. soldiers who have valiantly served or died in any wars or conflicts.

November 15th The Great American Smoke Out:
No need to wait another month and a half to start your New Year’s resolutions; since 1977, on the third Thursday of November, The American Cancer Society has been encouraging all smokers to snuff out the cigarettes on this day. With a short term goal of extinguishing the “butts” for one day, their obvious long term goal is to give smokers the boost to kick the habit for good.

November 22nd Thanksgiving Day:
The first Thanksgiving was 1621 between the Pilgrims and the Native Americans. The feast lasted 3 days and was a time to be thankful for a bountiful fall harvest, and to thank the natives for their kindness. Thanksgiving in its current incarnation as a national holiday has evolved quite a bit over the years. The Continental Congress declared the first national Thanksgiving holiday in 1777 following the American Victory at Saratoga. In 1789 George Washington was the first President to proclaim a day of Thanksgiving. He set aside November 26th (a Tuesday not a Thursday) as a day to thank God for our new Constitution.

November 23rd You’re Welcome Day: 
A bit more obscure than Thanksgiving Day, You’re Welcome Day is a newer holiday. Believed to have originated in a blog back in 2002, it always follows the day after Thanksgiving. The day is an attempt to bring manners back to society. After all, after saying “thank you” the day before isn't it only proper to say “you’re welcome”?

November 23rd Black Friday: 
A shoppers dream (or nightmare)! Black Friday seems to be starting earlier and earlier as the years go by. Years ago, sales started between 8:00AM and 11:AM depending on the retailer’s hours of operation. Then they started with “Door Busters” that started as early as 5:00AM, then 3:00AM! As of last year many stores opened at midnight following Thanksgiving dinner. Before we know it, Black “Friday” will be on Wednesday.

The Term “Black” in Black Friday is a financial term, because many retailers operate in the “Red”, or in debt all year long, that is until the Holiday shopping season where there ledgers are finally in the “Black”. If you are not a fan of Black Friday, another, “day after Thanksgiving” holiday may be more to your liking. It is a 24 hour moratorium on holiday shopping that began back in 1992 called “Buy Nothing Day".