December 2014

Brainerd, Minnesota is a city where great dining options are everywhere. You’ll find amazing options near the lakeside area like on North Long Lake and Gull Lake. You can also find several choices in town or close to town with everything from casual dining to upscale places. From fast food to fine dining, here’s a look at the type of dining and entertainment you’ll experience living in Brainerd.

Giovanni’s Pizza – 625 Oak Street, Brainerd

Pizza lovers should check out Giovanni’s Pizza located on Oak Street. It’s been around since 1987 and is popular among Brainerd and Baxter residents. Your entrée will be served hot and fresh including pizza, pasta, appetizers and subs. You’ll love their fresh salads and all of their food is fresh. Try the

The Galleria Shopping Center is a premier shopping destination in Minneapolis-St. Paul. It’s in an easily accessible location that makes it popular with residents and even neighboring states. You’ll find the best luxury shopping and dining at Galleria.

They are open every day with special holiday hours and valet parking on the weekends located at the Gabberts entrance. Find shopping for jewelry, apparel, entertainment, home furnishings as well as restaurants and services. Here is a look at all you can at the Galleria in Edina.

About Galleria

Galleria is the place to go for luxury shopping and amenities. Along with shopping and dining, you’ll find services, special events, nearby attractions and lodging. Along with valet parking, you can

So, what are your plans for New Year’s Eve? The City of Edina is holding the big bash at Edinborough Park. It’s a family celebration with lots of stuff to do for the kids.

A Kidsdance D.J. will be spinning the hottest new music and some very cool oldies so the kids can show their moves.

There will also be contests and face painting. Of course everyone will get noisemakers and hats and there will be full access to Adventure Peak.

If you’re new to Edina, the Peak is a structure to climb on, crawl under and slip slide on. It measures 44-by-44-by-37 feet in height. It holds a 30-foot tall oak tree, four huge tube slides, a climbing wall, the super-fast super slide and a triple wave slide.

There’s a Toddler Area for the tiny ones, age 4 and

Country sensation Carrie Underwood is scheduled to come to the 2015 Minnesota State Fair. It’s going to be a special event this year for country music lovers. The stunning singer will be performing a full concert at the fair’s Grandstand. You won’t want to miss her performance on Saturday, August 29th. Here is a look at what to expect for Carrie Underwood’s appearance at this year’s State Fair.

About Carrie Underwood

Carrie Underwood was the winner of American Idol in 2005 which brought her into the spotlight. She’s had a very successful music career since selling over 64 million records around the world. She’s won six Grammy Awards and has had 18 number-one singles.

Concert Details

The 2015 Minnesota State Fair will feature Carrie on

Don’t you wish you had a dollar for every person that’s asked you this week if you’re “ready for the holidays?” Who is ever completely ready? There are so many last minute details to attend to yet the season is also full of fun stuff to do. It’s rather hard to concentrate on just one aspect.

It’s FRIDAY though so let’s look ahead to a couple things you may want to do this weekend.

Skate with Santa

This one takes place tomorrow at Braemar Arena. Be there by 10:30 a.m. so the little ones can skate with the jolly, chubby guy.

Kids of all ages and skating abilities are invited to attend. They’ll be serving refreshments too.

You’ll need to pre-register for the even and you can do so here.

Admission is $7 and you can rent skates for $2.

The Twin Cities area including St. Paul, Minneapolis and their suburbs are a great area to hang out if you love to eat. There are so many restaurants to choose from and their nationally recognized chefs make them worth checking out.

Brooklyn Park has some of the best places to eat in Minnesota, as well as the nearby Maple Grove, Robbinsdale and Champlin which are home to some of the best dining options.  Here is a look at the top restaurants in Brooklyn Park, MN.

Travail Kitchen – 4124 West Broadway Avenue, Robbinsdale

You have to try the new Travail Kitchen located in downtown Robbinsdale. It was voted one of the new restaurants of the year for 2011 by Bon Appetit Magazine. It’s an American Gastropub where the chefs not only cook but they

It’s been another busy week in Edina real estate. For some reason, most people think the housing market cools during the winter. While there aren’t as many people shopping for homes and selling homes as in other seasons, those that are in the market are motivated and committed, so the Lindahl Team is quite busy.

We also know that your mind is in preparation-for-the-holidays mode – it truly is a hectic time of year. This week we thought we’d take a look at some of what’s been happening in Edina over the past week or so.

Support your Local K-9

Edina police dogs retire too, and they don’t get a pension or Social Security. There’s a newly-created fund, however, that will help support these officers after they leave active duty.

While the Edina

Edina provides plenty of shopping options from malls to boutique store. There are places to find gifts, household items and so much more. Here are some of the top shopping options found throughout Edina, Minnesota.

Galleria Edina - 3510 Galleria

This very accessible location is a great spot for shopping in Edina. The Galleria Edina provides a number of shops including:

• Arafina
• Chico's
• Coach
• H.O.B.O
• lucy
• Trail Mark
• Allen Edmonds
• Pendleton
• Twill by Scott Dayton
• Barnes & Noble
• Oh Baby!
• Art Resource Gallery
• Pottery Barn
• And More!

There are also a number of dining options found throughout the Galleria.

Galleria Edina is open from 10am to 9pm, Monday through Friday, from 10am to 8pm on Saturdays

One of the reasons so many young families move to Edina is for our amazing public school system. So, it should come as no surprise to learn that Edina Public Schools has been named, again, to the 5th Annual Advanced Placement (AP) District Honor Roll.

In case you aren’t familiar with this, it’s a list of 547 school districts across the U.S. and Canada that are honored by the College Board for “increasing access to AP® course work while simultaneously maintaining or increasing the percentage of students earning scores of 3 or higher on AP Exams,” according to the Board.

Having a goal to improve the performance of all of a district’s students keeps our schools competitive.

To make this prestigious list, the College Board looks at three years of

Finding a place for a meal in Rochester, MN isn't hard. However, the best restaurants serve up something you will enjoy much more than just any place serving food. Here's a look at some eateries in Rochester that are worth a try. 

Dinner and Drinks

If you're looking to go out for a nice dinner and drinks, there are a few spots you might want to try including:

• Sontes - 4-3rd Street SW - Open for Lunch and Dinner
• Chester's Kitchen & Bar - 111 South Broadway - Open for Lunch, Dinner and Sunday Brunch
• Michael's Steaks, Chops & Seafood - 15 South Broadway - Open for Lunch and Dinner

Those looking for a more casual dinner and drinks experience may want one of the best pubs in the area, which include:

• Kathy's Pub - 307 South