Newsletter & Calendar - December 2004

Deck the Halls...
It's Christmas! Well, almost. So many wonderful things are, or at least should be, part of this time of year. Time with family, wonderful home cooked meals, the smell of special baked goods and trimming the tree!  It's also time to enjoy the special festivities of the season, Christmas lights, programs and Christmas morning with the kids, grandchildren or both! So many wonderful memories can be made at this time of year when the family slows down, gathers together and just enjoys each other and all the simple joys that Christmas can bring. Don't miss the magic of Christmas by getting caught up in the hustle and rush of the season. Maybe this year has not been as profitable as previous years. Maybe you've had to work harder and have less to show for it. But then, maybe you still have a roof overhead and a warm home. Maybe your health is good so you can enjoy another Christmas with your loved ones close by. If Christmas is a time of continued thankfulness for what we do have, we will be less concerned with what we don't have. Enjoy all the special things that Christmas can bring!

Holiday Safety and Crime Prevention Tips
In the midst of this joyous season, don't forget that criminals love the holidays as much as everyone else does-maybe more. Sadly, the holidays can be an opportune time for crime to flourish. Don't let the festivities lull you into giving criminals a prime opportunity to profit at your expense.  Here are some tips to help safeguard your person and property:

• Lock all home/car doors and windows when you will be away, even for a few minutes.
• Leave lights or a radio on at home.
• Don't leave valuables/gifts where they can be seen from outside your home or car.
• Be aware of your surroundings and the people around you at all times.
• Hold your purse in front of you, close to your body and keep it securely closed at all times and carry as little cash as possible.

Christmas Cooks Corner
Glazed Cranberry-Orange Quick Bread

Ingredients:

2 cups all purpose flour

3/4 cup sugar

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

3/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 cup margarine or butter, softened

1 tbsp orange zest

3/4 cup orange juice

1 egg

1 cup cranberries, chopped-fresh, frozen 1/2 cup nuts, chopped

1 tbsp + orange juice for glaze

1 cup sifted powdered sugar

Directions:

Grease the bottom only of 8 x4 or 9 x 5 loaf pan.  Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and baking soda.  Add margarine and mix until crumbly. Add orange zest, 3/4 cup orange juice and egg; stir until moistened. Add cranberries and nuts.  Batter will be thick.  Pour into prepared pan and bake at 350 degrees until a knife inserted into the center comes out clean, 65 to 75 minutes depending on oven and pan size used.  Watch after about 60 minutes. Let cool for about 10 minutes, loosen sides from pan, remove from pan and cool completely on a wire rack.  Prepare glaze by combining powdered sugar and 1 tbsp juice or more as needed to reach consistency to drizzle over top. Drizzle & Enjoy!

Johanna Woods Salutes Our Residents
As a community, Johanna Woods has been around for quite a while now. We have been here for a little over 20 years and we are the only manufactured home community for which zoning has been approved in Broken Arrow for the last 40 years! We have seen major improvements to our community in that time, with the most recent amenity being the completion of our storm shelters. Johanna Woods owes its success to our residents and we have quite a few of them that have been here for a long time, too. Did you know that 25% of our residents have lived here for more than 8 years? And 38% have been here for 5 or more years. This January, we will have our first 20-year resident and we have 19 other families who have been with us for more than 15 years! We appreciate all of you so much. Whether you have been here 20 years or 20 days, we are glad that you decided to make Johanna Woods your home. Our goal is to continue to serve you and provide you with the very best in manufactured home community living. Thanks for choosing Johanna Woods!

Identity Security Tips
Identity theft continues to be the fastest growing crime in the United States. Approximately one in twenty adults have been victims of some form of this crime. To avoid being part of this number here are some tips to keep your personal information:

• Check your credit periodically for unauthorized inquiries or accounts.
• Shred all un-wanted pre-approved credit applications.
• Keep a list or photocopy of all credit cards you carry, front and back, so that you can call the issuers quickly if they become lost or stolen.

Helpful Christmas Tree Hints...
To prolong the life of your Christmas tree and keep the needles on the tree longer, try this homemade potion. When you bring the tree home, cut a couple of inches off the bottom of the tree trunk. Set the trimmed tree immediately into a bucket of cold water that has had one cup of molasses added to it. Let the tree soak for two or three days, then move it to it's regular stand and trim it with all the lights and decorations. And, if you are into old fashioned home made type tree decorations, try this with the kids on a cold day. Use cookie cutters to trace patterns onto cardboard, and then cut them out and attach a string to the top. They can then be colored or wrapped with foil to make them shiny.

Christmas Facts & Trivia

See how many of these you can answer correctly. Do you know?

• What the best-selling Christmas song of all time is?
• Who was the voice of the Grinch in "How the Grinch Stole Christmas"?
• What beloved Christmas movie was originally a box office flop when it was released in December 1946?
• What enduring Christmas literary and film classic took only 6 weeks to write?

Answers:

White Christmas

Boris Karloff

It's A Wonderful Life

Charles Dickens needed just 6 weeks to write"A Christmas Carol" in 1843

Resident Information Updates Needed Again

It's time once again to make sure that the information we have in your resident file is current. Jobs change, phone numbers change and we don't always know it. But we need to. Please take a moment to complete the Resident Information Sheet that is included with this newsletter and return it to the office with your December rent payment. We will only use this information to update our files. It is critical that we have current info for our residents so that we can get in touch with you in the event of an emergency. And filling it out could earn you some Christmas $.

For Johanna Woods Only! and Happy Holidays!!

Could you use some extra holiday cash? Well, just in case you could, we happen to be giving away two, $50.00 Wal-Mart gift certificates. All you need to do to enter is to complete the Resident Information Sheet that is included with this month’s newsletter and return it to the office with your December rent. That's it! So, fill out those forms, get that rent in, sit back, cross your fingers, have a great holiday and maybe we can help with the shopping!