Home • Life • Style • March 2013
Goodbye Winter,
Hello Spring!
We’ve almost made it to spring! If the groundhog called it correctly, the white blanket of snow will soon recede into green. Say goodbye to your winter coat, because before we know it we’ll be greeted with lush landscapes and spending more time outdoors. Welcome to the March edition of Home Life Style, where you’ll discover fantastic local resources for restaurants, travel, interior design, spas, home repair, and much more. Be sure to read our features this month! Our friends at Travel and Transport are offering the adventure of a lifetime to the Emerald Isle for the one-time year long celebration ~ The Gathering Ireland 2013. The Gathering has over 1700 local events confirmed and will draw over 325,000 additional visitors over a normal year. If the thought of traveling abroad is a bit premature, why not try a nice get-away for the evening at Dolce, this month’s restaurant feature. Let their kitchen wizards impress you with their array of elegant, organic comfort food. And lastly, if you are looking for ways to improve the value of your home with great curb appeal, be sure to read about some great tips on landscaping.
Have a wonderful March! Stacey Penrod, Managing Partner
Congrats to Last Month’s Big Winners! Congrats to Erin Steinhofel, Kacey Hopper and April McTaggart for being the lucky winners of our prize drawings last month! Home • Life • Style • March 2013
Home • Life • Style • March 2013
Home • Life • Style • March 2013
Home • Life • Style • March 2013
Ireland Invites You to... The Written by Chuck Koster, Travel and Transport
According to the U.S. census of 2008, there are over 36 million Americans who claim Irish ancestry. As part of The Gathering Ireland 2013, Ireland is inviting each and every one of us back to visit the motherland. And of course, those not related to St. Patrick are invited in on the fun as well. The Gathering Ireland 2013 is an equal opportunity event where everyone has the chance to experience the verdant countryside, abundant literary history, friendly pubs, and historic sites that have made the Emerald Isle famous. The Gathering Ireland 2013 is a one-time celebration
“Cliffs of Moher”- Ireland’s Most Visited Tourist Attraction
that runs the course of this year and features hundreds of organized events, including traditional cultural festivals, athletic events, family reunions and artistic performances. Every week of the year there will be dozens of options to select from to accommodate every interest. A Gaelic Sports and Cultural Weekend, The International Pan Celtic Festival, The World Irish Stew Championship, Irish Aerial Dance Fest, and the Galway Bay Golf Resort Gathering make up a minute sampling of the type of occasions that are slated to take place. At the announcement of the event, Director Jim Miley explained, “The Gathering is first and foremost an opportunity for us to celebrate the best of Ireland: our culture, our music, our sport, our heritage and our spirit. Individuals and communities throughout Ireland have taken The Gathering concept to heart and are busy planning their
Gathering
own gatherings and we’ve over 1700 local events confirmed to date.” The Gathering Ireland 2013 is expected to draw over 325,000 more visitors to Ireland over a normal year. The best spot to get information on this unique event is its website at http://www.thegatheringireland.com. Here you can see what events are planned over the course of the year, create your own Gathering event, and read news articles pertaining to The Gathering Ireland 2013. While everyone is invited to attend any of the events, one of the unique aspects of The Gathering Ireland 2013 is its emphasis on the many individually planned family reunions where people with connections to the same surname can meet and share family history information. For example, my great grandmother was a woman named Mary Catherine Moriarty. I typed “Moriarty” in the search engine on The Gathering’s website and found out that The Moriarty Gathering will be held in Kerry the week of October 12th. Similar events are scheduled for nearly every Irish name throughout the year. For anyone with an even passing interest in his or her Irish genealogy, The Gathering Ireland 2013 is a chance of a lifetime. Travel and Transport travel specialists Naomi Sucha and Abby have both had taken recent trips to Ireland and have booked numerous trips to the country for travelers. Both said The Gathering Ireland 2013 is a great opportunity to visit the country. They described Ireland as an excellent destination for “soft adventure” such as exploring ancient castles, fishing, shopping and, of course, golf at one of the countless courses around the country. For visiting the most popular attractions, they recommended reserving a spot within an organized group tour as it will allow you to spend more time seeing the sites and less time waiting in line. When I go on a trip, it’s always nice when I have someone waiting for me to arrive with activities planned for my stay. With The Gathering Ireland 2013, a whole country is anticipating your visit and has more events planned than you will ever be able to attend. What better time could there be to visit Ireland? See Ad Inside Front Cover
Home • Life • Style • March 2013
Home • Life • Style • March 2013
Home • Life • Style • March 2013
Home • Life • Style • March 2013
Dolce Embraces the Art of Eating By Nicholas Kinney
When Dolce opened in August 2011 as DOLCE CAFE, it was intended to be an extension of Owner/Pastry Chef Gina Sterns’ already successful bakery business with a casual lunch menu. Within a month Sterns noticed, “We had a place that wanted to be more of a sit down restaurant for whatever combination of reasons. And so we made that first evolutionary change. And if there’s one thing we do well here it is to evolve.” Early favorites like the authentic Italian panini made on house rosemary focaccia and grass-fed burger on brioche spawned a fanatical following. At the time Sterns’ peers insisted the Dolce concept needed to be executed in Mid-Town or Downtown, which didn’t resonate with her. “I knew a neighborhood eatery with a seasonally driven, locally sourced menu would be embraced in West Omaha, where I live.” Dolce’s next significant evolution involved the addition of Executive Chef Benjamin Maides, whose background includes tutelage at Thomas Keller’s Bouchon in Yountville, CA and most recently a two-year residency in Northern Italy. Maides’ staff is a tight knit troop of culinary commandos who welcome the “painstaking, long-winded, house-made, small diced way”, though he admits the difficulty in sourcing quality ingredients. “Whatever I can do with my hands to the product, it won’t matter at the end of the day if we’re working with subpar ingredients.” Sterns adds, “The braised dishes and house-made pasta dishes coming out of the kitchen now are truly world class. People tell us all the time that this is the food they used to have to go to New York and Chicago to eat.” Dolce’s latest progressions include a full bar build-out and the ongoing cultivation of their sophisticated yet approachable wine menu. “Some of our bottles sell for two or three times our price in other Omaha restaurants,” Sterns explains. “The philosophy behind our wine program is to provide customers with sensibly priced boutique wines. Ultimately our wines are all very food friendly, and compliment Ben’s cuisine at every point.” Dolce serves lunch and dinner Tuesday through Saturday on 123rd & Maple. The weekly menu changes are posted on their website, dolceomaha.com. see ad in publication Home • Life • Style • March 2013
Home • Life • Style • March 2013
Home • Life • Style • March 2013
Home • Life • Style • March 2013
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Home • Life • Style • March 2013
Excellent
Landscaping
Can Increase Your Home Value Everyone dreams of having a beautiful home. But what many don’t know is that a home’s exterior design is just as important as what’s going on between the walls inside. Adding well-designed landscaping can make your home more pleasing to the eye. And just as landscaping is a great way to increase your home’s beauty; what it can do to its value is a pleasant surprise, especially in today’s real estate economy. According to the U.S. Homeowner Landscaping, Lawn Care and Tree Care survey conducted by The Gallup Organization, professional landscaping can add between 7% and 15% to the value of your home. That said, realtors all over the country are suggesting that clients take another look at landscaping. Color: The plants outside a home should have a few splashes of color to make the home more appealing. Trees: If planting trees, don’t go too big. Especially large trees are not always attractive to prospective buyers, who likely won’t want sight lines obstructed. They also may worry about that large tree falling and destroying their home during a storm. Mulch: Mulch is good for plants and adds to a yard’s aesthetic appeal. Mulch made of wood or bark chips is also slow to decay, so constant reapplication isn’t necessary. Pruning: Pruning trees and shrubs is one of the most effective ways to improve a landscape. Stay on top of pruning regardless of what season it is, and be sure to remove any fallen branches from the yard on a regular basis. Weeds: It is helpful to lay mulch around flowerbeds and gardens to reduce weed growth, and pull any weeds from sidewalks and the driveway. Once weeds are pulled, spray areas that were infested with a weed-treatment product to ensure weeds don’t grow back. Power Washing: If plants are in pots that are covered in years-old dirt and grime, a power washer can restore the pot’s luster in a matter of minutes. A well-maintained landscape is a great way for homeowners looking to sell their property to make a strong first impression.
Content provided by AJ’s Landscaping
Home • Life • Style • March 2013
Home • Life • Style • March 2013