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Movies Best and Worst of 2017

To finish off the year, we’re sharing a few of the best (and worst) movies of 2017, as reflected by movie reviews found on IMDB and Rotten Tomatoes , as well as our own viewing experience. Grab a friend from Puyallup, WA and compare your lists with ours in your Willow Hill apartment. Which movies will you add to our list? Best Picture Dunkirk “Allied soldiers from Belgium, the British Empire and France are surrounded by the German Army, and evacuated during a fierce battle in World War II.” Best Animation Lego Batman Movie “There are big changes brewing in Gotham, but if Batman (Will Arnett) wants to save the city from the Joker's (Zach Galifianakis) hostile takeover, he may have to drop the lone vigilante thing, try to work with others and maybe, just maybe, learn to lighten up. Maybe his superhero sidekick Robin (Michael Cera) and loyal butler Alfred (Ralph Fiennes) can show him a thing or two.” Honorable Mentions: Captain Underpants and Cars 3 Best Superhero Movie Logan “In the near future, a weary Logan (Hugh Jackman) cares for an ailing Professor X (Patrick Stewart) at a remote outpost on the Mexican border. His plan to hide from the outside world gets upended when he meets a young mutant (Dafne Keen) who is very much like him. Logan must now protect the girl and battle the dark forces that want to capture her.” Honorable Mentions: Spider-Man: Homecoming and Wonder Woman Best Horror Picture Get Out “Now that Chris (Daniel Kaluuya) and his girlfriend, Rose (Allison Williams), have reached the meet-the-parents milestone of dating, she invites him for a weekend getaway upstate with Missy and Dean. At first, Chris reads the family's overly accommodating behavior as nervous attempts to deal with their daughter's interracial relationship, but as the weekend progresses, a series of increasingly disturbing discoveries lead him to a truth that he never could have imagined.” Honorable Mention: IT Best Sequel Blade Runner 2049 “Officer K (Ryan Gosling), a new blade runner for the Los Angeles Police Department, unearths a long-buried secret that has the potential to plunge what's left of society into chaos. His discovery leads him on a quest to find Rick Deckard (Harrison Ford), a former blade runner who's been missing for 30 years.” Honorable Mentions : John Wick: Chapter 2 and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 Most Shocking Raw “Stringent vegetarian Justine (Garance Marillier) encounters a decadent, merciless and dangerously seductive world during her first week at veterinary school. Desperate to fit in, she strays from her principles and eats raw meat for the first time. The young woman soon experiences terrible and unexpected consequences as her true self begins to emerge.” Honorable Mention: Mother! Worst Movies The Emoji Movie “Hidden inside a smartphone, the bustling city of Textopolis is home to all emojis. Each emoji has only one facial expression, except for Gene, an exuberant emoji with multiple expressions. Determined to become "normal" like the other emojis, Gene enlists the help of his best friend Hi-5 and a notorious code breaker called Jailbreak. During their travels through the other apps, the three emojis discover a great danger that could threaten their phone's very existence.” Honorable Mentions: The Snowman , Geostorm , Wish Upon , Tulip Fever , and The Mummy Which movies will you add to this list? Share in the comments below!

Top 5 Gingerbread Dessert Recipes

No December Willow Hill Blog would be complete without a post containing delicious recipes. This year, we decided to pick our top 5 favorite gingerbread dessert recipes. Bring back the magical flavors of gingerbread, molasses, chocolate, pumpkin, and more with these awesome winter bakes this holiday season. Winter never tasted so good in your Puyallup, Washington apartment, until now. Chewy Chocolate Gingerbread Cookies These ultra chewy cookies are infused with the festive flavors of the holidays. Enjoy sinking your teeth into winter’s favorite cookie, only this time it has been upgraded with a generous amount of chocolate. Who knew that chocolate and gingerbread pair so well together, making this the first recipe on our list for top 5 gingerbread desserts. Gingerbread & Pumpkin Cream Trifle Stack layers of gingerbread, vanilla pudding, pumpkin, and other great flavors! Not only does this make our top 5 list for favorite gingerbread recipes of the season, it’s also featured in Taste of Home’s “5-Ingredient Fall Recipes” list . Want to make something that doesn’t take a lot of time to put together and requires only 5 ingredients? This one is definitely worth looking at! Chocolate Gingerbread Cupcakes Of the recipe, Patricia Harmon from Baden, Pennsylvania said, “These luscious cupcakes have a touch of semisweet chocolate in the batter and white chocolate in the filling. They melt away fast at our house.” You’ll need cream cheese, white baking chips, vanilla extract, salt, confectioners’ sugar, and marshmallow cream. Sounds delicious! Gingerbread Surprise Beignets with Spiced Mocha Hot Chocolate “If you plan on making these (which of course you really should), may I suggest you make them on the snowiest day possible? I know not all of you live in snowy locations, but if you do, wait for the snow. Snow makes desserts like this just magical. You can eat a beignet (or two or three) and slowly enjoy a giant mug of hot chocolate all while sitting by the fire with the tree lit up and music playing.” Soft and Chewy Gingerbread Molasses Chocolate Chip Bars As the year reaches its end, it’s time to say goodbye to pumpkin and hello to the perfect pairing of gingerbread and molasses. These Instagram-worthy bars are dense like molasses fudge with the addition of melty chocolate chips. We’re almost drooling just thinking about them. And for breakfast… try this delicious looking Overnight Gingerbread French Toast Breakfast Bake . Do you have a favorite gingerbread recipe that you think could top our list? Share it in the comments below. Thanks for reading and happy holidays!

Top 3 Board Games of 2017

In today’s post, we’re sharing the top 3 board games of 2017. Based on statistics that can be found on one of the most popular databases for trending board games of all time, Board Game Geek , we’ve compiled what we think are the hot-ticket items in board gaming this holiday season. If you know a resident in our Willow Hill apartment community in Puyallup, WA that loves board games, share this list with them today. Pandemic Legacy: Season 2 “The world almost ended seventy-one years ago. A virulent plague came out of nowhere and ravaged the world. For three generations, small groups of survivors have struggled to keep the world alive. Operating from floating stations known as “havens,” they have maintained a loose network of the largest cities by delivering supplies to the mainland. But their efforts are no longer enough. Cities are falling off the grid and supplies are running low. The world needs a group of heroes to emerge and lead it through this crisis. In Pandemic Legacy: Season 2, this task has fallen to you.” 2 to 4 Players, 13 and up Century Spice Road “Discover the beauties of the spice trading road and its colorful markets with the amazing artwork by [internationally] renowned artist Fernanda Suárez.” 2 to 5 Players, 8 and up Charterstone “The prosperous Kingdom of Greengully, ruled for centuries by the Forever King, has issued a decree to its citizens to colonize the vast lands beyond its borders. In an effort to start a new village, the Forever King has selected 6 citizens for the task, each of whom has a unique set of skills they use to build their charter.” Anticipated release date: December 12, 2017 1 to 6 Players, 10 and up Near and Far “Search for a lost city in a strange and wonderful world of ruins; manage and recruit adventurers, each with a unique identity; read from a book of stories, building an amazing and memorable tale each time you play!” 2 to 4 Players, 13 and up Would you like to add a game to our list? Share in the comments below. Thanks for reading and happy holidays!

Holiday Gifts to Keep You Warm

Welcome back to the Willow Hill Blog. To kick-off December, we thought it’d be a great idea to help any residents of our Puyallup, WA apartment community by offering a few gift recommendations. The gifts in today’s blog are great suggestions for anyone looking for that perfect gift to keep them warm this winter. Heated Socks We know that $40 for a pair of socks is a lot of money, but these sound like they’re worth every penny. “The ActionHeat™ battery heated socks are the perfect blend of quality and comfort. ActionHeat™ battery heated apparel utilizes innovative technology designed to warm the core body temperature. These revolutionary garments feature built-in heating panels and are made with ActionFlex™ material that provides lightweight warmth, comfort and versatility.” Heated Computer Mouse “The ValueRays heated mouse is the original warming mouse with enhanced functions and heat. Enjoy deep heating infrared warmth with improved construction, a smooth finish, easy improved on/off switch located on the bottom of the mouse, an improved scroll wheel, a longer cord, and when used with other ValueRays products improved warmth for the mouse hand.” The Pajamas Warming Pouch “This is the heated pouch that warms pajamas for cozy comfort. The pouch has integrated heating elements that reach 118º F and a thermal satin interior that retains heat, resulting in toasty warm pajamas in 10 minutes. The heating elements automatically maintain the temperature regardless of what's inside and the unit only draws 50 watts-less than most light bulbs. The 19" x 15 1/2" pouch also accommodates towels, hats, or gloves and it folds to half its size for convenient storage or travel. With a plush fleece exterior.” Bluetooth Beanie “It’s a hat with an integrated headset. It is functional, stylish and interesting. The idea is straightforward: it is often uncomfortable to use your smart phone in the cold or in a snowstorm, considering that you will have to remove your hand from a warm glove to experience a wide range of sensations. A hat with built-in speakers, a microphone and a pair of handy control buttons will solve the problem of frostbitten fingers once and for all.” What are your top holiday gifts for staying warm this winter? Share your thoughts in the comments below. Thanks for reading and happy holidays!

Thanksgiving Movies

Although Thanksgiving has come and gone, we don’t have to stop celebrating. Here at the Willow Hill Blog we’ve compiled a list of movies that capture the spirit of the Thanksgiving holiday, as well as holidays in general. Enjoy sitting back in your apartment with a bowl of popcorn as you watch these movies in your Puyallup, WA apartment. A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving “Peppermint Patty invites herself and her friends over to Charlie Brown’s for Thanksgiving, and with Linus, Snoopy, and Woodstock, he attempts to throw together a Thanksgiving dinner.” Free Birds “After years of fruitless warning of his farmyard brethren of the coming Thanksgiving doom, Reggie the Turkey finds himself spared as the annual Pardoned Turkey. However, Reggie's easy life is disrupted by Jake, a fanatic turkey who drags him along with the insane idea of going back in time to make sure turkeys are not part of the first Thanksgiving. Through foolhardiness and luck, the pair manage to take an experimental time machine to do just that. Now in 1621 at the Plymouth colony, Reggie and Jake find themselves in the middle of a turkey clan's struggle for survival. In doing so, their preconceptions of the world and themselves are challenged forever in a conflict from which the world will never be the same.” An Old Fashioned Thanksgiving “Inspired by a short story, Isabella Caldwell is a high-society woman in late-1800's New York. When Isabella’s estranged daughter Mary becomes ill and is too proud to ask her mother for assistance, Mary's daughter, Tilly, takes it upon herself to contact her grandmother and plead for help. Isabella's arrival causes an upheaval in many lives, but may also lead to reconciliation within the family.” Planes, Trains & Automobiles “A man must struggle to travel home for Thanksgiving with an obnoxious slob of a shower curtain ring salesman as his only companion.” What’s your favorite movie to watch this time of year? Share the title in the comments so we all can enjoy. Thanks for reading!

Decorating with Leaves

At Willow Hill, we’re excited for all the food associated with Thanksgiving. We’re also excited for decorations! Today we’re highlighting a few leaf crafts to bring the fall season into your Puyallup, WA apartment. Join us in these last few weeks of fall to fill your apartment with some of these stunning and clever crafts. The first craft that we love is this Watercolor Paper Leaf & Branch Mobile by Happiness is Homemade . You’ll need paper, scissors, and watercolor paints. Happiness is Homemade uses a cutting and embossing machine, but this is not necessary for this craft. These DIY Leaf Pillow Cases require paint (black or another color) and leaves. Although the web page is in German, words aren’t needed to explain the process. Are you throwing a party this month? Dress up with these DIY Leaf Crowns and Animal Masks ! To make this work, you’ll need fresh leaves, a brown paper bag, black and white markers, double-sided tape, and scissors. Pressing Autumn Leaves is a fun hobby that creates art perfect for fall. Hang up your mounted pieces today! Or check out these other ideas for decorating with pressed leaves . Of all the decor ideas in today’s post, this Autumn Leaf Mason Jar Candle Holder is our favorite! You’ll need the following items: Mason jars, Mod Podge, autumn faux leaves, a sponge brush, and a tealight candle. Start by cleaning the outside of the jar with rubbing alcohol. Bend the leaves a little to gain a better stick. Then dip your brush in the Mod Podge and paint a thin layer on a section inside the jar. Take a leaf and press the middle of it against the painted surface. You can use your fingers to smooth out the leaf to help it stick better. Add more Mod Podge and repeat until the jar is covered how you want it. After the Mod Podge is dry, place the tealight inside. What are your favorite fall decorations? Share in the comments. Thanks for reading!