December 2014

Saint Paul is a busy and beautiful city full of families and professionals. With the hustle and bustle of the city life, it’s hard to find a romantic spot where you can take your spouse or date. Whether you’re looking for some time to enjoy your significant other or perhaps need a great spot for a proposal, here are the top spots in St. Paul to find pure romance.

The Saint Paul Hotel – 350 Market Street

The Saint Paul Hotel is a Minnesota Landmark Hotel. It was built in 1910 and is a member of the Historic Hotels of America list. It’s the premier hotel of Saint Paul and is just nine miles away from the Mall of America and the airport. With its modern convenience and turn-of-the century charm, it’s a beautiful, romantic spot in St. Paul when you

Since 1981 Minnesota Children’s Museum provides a stimulating, hands-on environment for children to learn hands-on skills to be used in their future as adults.

Also part of the Museums mission is believing children’s first teachers are their families, lifelong learning is created with early learning, you enrich children with a wide perspective, children need to be allowed to be children and you learn through play.

Minnesota Children’s Museum History

Originating in downtown Minneapolis, Marialice Harwood, Kate Donaldson and Suzanne Payne opened the Minnesota wareHouse.  They held to their philosophy that there be no “Do Not Touch” signs.  They quickly out grew the location.

They moved to Bandana Square where attendance grew from 80,000 to

Christmas is now officially behind us so we can look forward to the biggest celebration of the year, New Year’s Eve. If you’re itching for something different this year, check out the following list. We’ve rounded up some winners.

Afton Alps

New Year’s Eve isn’t typically considered a “family” celebration – it’s for grownups. That doesn’t mean there aren’t family-friendly events here in Minnesota, because Afton Alps has put together what should be fun for all.

Afton Alps comprises 250 acres on which to ski, 37 runs and a vertical drop of 350 feet. They also offer snowboarding and lessons for beginners are free. In fact, the entire New Year’s Eve celebration is free. There will be music, torchlight skiing, contests and, of course, fireworks at

If you’re in the St. Paul area and you’re looking for something fun and interesting to do, you should head over to Como Park and visit the Cafesjian’s Carousel. You can take the whole family on a relaxing carousel ride. Tickets are only $2 each, so even families on the tightest budgets could afford to take a ride.

The Carousel was first built by Philadelphia Toboggan Company in 1914. The carvings and original paintwork on the Carousel was done by German immigrants that were employed by the company. Back in 1990, restoration work began on the Cafesjian’s Carousel in an effort to return it to its original beauty. The restoration was successfully completed in 2000.

Much effort was put into making sure that the Carousel maintained as much of its

For a little fun and excitement in the St. Paul area, there are many establishments where you can go to enjoy the nightlife. While there are pros to all of the types of establishments in the area, there are a few that are known as being the best in the area.

Minnesota Music Café

This establishment is well-known to locals as it’s one of the hippest bars in the area. You’ll find a host of banners and other items all around the Minnesota Music Café that are a tribute to many famous musicians from Minnesota, such as Bob Dylan and Prince.

Every week there is a new act that ranges from blues to rock ‘n roll to jazz. And you may see some nationally recognized recording artists playing in there on your next visit.

The Liffey Irish Pub

This is

The James J. Hill House is an awesome attraction in St. Paul. James J. Hill was the builder of the Great Northern Railway and his home is now a National Historic Landmark. You’ll see rugged stone, massive scale and ingenious mechanical systems.

Take a guided tour with your family through the James J. Hill House where you’ll see what life was like in the servant life in the Gilded Age mansion. The house shares the public and privates lives of the Hills family in a 75-minute tour. Here is a look at what you’ll experience at the James J. Hill House.

Visiting

The 75-minute guided tour is truly the best way to experience this attraction. You’ll be guided through four floors around the home and see the short video on James J. Hill. They recommend

The reason you’re selling your home is none of the buyer’s business, and my job, as your agent, is to protect that reason from being known. Your job is to assist me by removing anything from the home that may be a dead giveaway as to your motivation for selling.

For instance, suppose you need to sell your home to take a job offer in another state. This is information that can, should the buyer have knowledge of it, diminish your negotiating power. The buyer will understand that you need to move quickly and may use that as a negotiating chip to knock down the price.

There is also the issue of identity theft to be aware of while strangers are parading through your home.

Read on for ways to protect your privacy while your St. Paul home is on the

Everybody loves takeout. You get the delicious flavors of your favorite restaurant, you don’t have to cook and you can enjoy it in your sweatpants. You can enjoy it in the comfort of your own living room without having to get dressed up, pay for expensive cocktails and leave a nice tip. Takeout is a great way to enjoy food with your loved ones in the intimate setting of your own home over great conversation or a movie. Which places in St. Paul offer good takeout options?

Keys Café & Bakery – 767 Raymond Avenue

Open all week, Keys Café & Bakery offers American cuisine. They are a family-owned and operated restaurant offering your favorite comfort food. You’ll find huge pancake, delicious cinnamon rolls for breakfast served all day. They also have

The entertainment center of Minnesota is downtown St. Paul.  Even in the cold winter months the Saint Paul skyway will keep you warm.  There is never a lack of things to do any time of year.

Approximately 8,000 people reside in downtown neighborhoods.  This meca creates St. Paul’s magnet for entertainment. Whether you are coming as a tourist or meeting for business or hosting an event or function, you will have many choices. Here are some of the things to do in downtown St. Paul.

Mears Park

Mears Park is located in Lowertown.  It is bustling in the summer with a concert series, beautiful landscape and a gorgeous stream flowing through the park.  Festivals are held throughout with optional close attractions as well.

Rice Park

In the

I remember years ago how Las Vegas went through this entire transformation of its Strip skyline. Some of the oldest and most historic hotel-casinos were imploded to make way for the likes of the Bellagio -- which was erected on land that used to hold The Dunes. A spectacular implosion of the Sands made way for the Venetian and Wynn Las Vegas sits on land that used to hold the world-famous Desert Inn.

While it won’t be happening to make way for glittery resorts and casinos, implosion fever is coming to Saint Paul. And, who knows? They may just use a wrecking ball instead of explosive materials.

Whatever they decide to use to accomplish it, a bunch of buildings overlooking the Mississippi River are coming down next summer, according to