Oakpointe Communities Celebrates the Return of Black Diamond Community Events this September with Labor Days Festival and Hometown Harvest

Ten Trails is excited to invite residents and others in the Black Diamond area to two special events in September. These events include Black Diamond’s long-standing Labor Days festival, taking place September 4-6, and Oakpointe’s third-annual Hometown Harvest Carnival event on September 18. “When it comes to creating exceptional places to live, work and play, each neighborhood is only as good as the community it’s comprised of,” said Brian Ross, CEO of Oakpointe. “What makes a place great is a sense of camaraderie and togetherness, which is exactly why we’ve decided to become a sponsor of Black Diamond’s Labor Days and bring back our Hometown Harvest Carnival. After more than a year of staying home and staying healthy, we’re excited to get back to safely supporting these outdoor gatherings as a way to help bring the entire Black Diamond community together.” More information on both events can be found below:

Black Diamond Labor Days – September 4-6, 2021

The city of Black Diamond, Washington prides itself on its deep historical roots and time-honored traditions. Its Labor Days festival is one that residents look forward to year after year – for over 100 years now. This year’s theme is “Welcome Back,” and each day will include a variety of ways to celebrate, such as a parade, live music, food vendors, and more. For the first time ever, Oakpointe’s Ten Trails community will be kicking off the event on September 4 with a Bike and Scooter Rodeo next to the Ten Trails Welcome Center from 2-4 p.m. This family-friendly event is geared toward helping children learn the rules of the road while practicing important bike-safety skills, and Oakpointe will give away 200 helmets to any child who needs one. Families are invited to stick around Ten Trails that evening for an outdoor movie night beginning at 8:15 p.m. in Civic Park, where they’ll be showing “Toy Story 4.” For more updates and details on Black Diamond Labor Days, visit: http://www.blackdiamondlabordays.org/.

Hometown Harvest Carnival – September 18, 2021

Oakpointe’s third-annual Hometown Harvest Carnival takes place on Saturday, September 18 from 12-6 p.m. in the heart of Ten Trails. After a year away, Oakpointe anticipates this year’s celebration could be the grandest one yet, so the event will span both Civic Park and Village Green. Community members are invited to come and enjoy a variety of food trucks, a beer and wine garden, games, 40+ local arts and crafts vendors, live music courtesy of local country singer Aaron Crawford, and plenty more. Oakpointe is also offering a tasting tour that stops by many of its Ten Trails model homes. Participants will be given a “tour passport” that can be stamped at each destination for a chance to win prizes along the way. Oakpointe is excited to be partnering with Lill Family Wines to share a special Ten Trails-branded wine, which will be available for purchase and consumption in the Beer and Wine Garden located at Civic Park. For more updates and details on the Hometown Harvest Carnival, visit Ten Trails on Facebook at www.facebook.com/TenTrails and click on ‘Events’. www.TenTrails.com 360.469.4043

Fun Ways to Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day This Year 

Finding ways to celebrate the holidays to make them special for kids can be challenging during Covid restrictions, but there are plenty of ways you can make St. Patrick’s Day fun at your new Ten Trails home!

Scavenger Hunt to Find a “Pot of Gold”

Everyone loves a scavenger hunt! Create a series of clues for kids to search in your home and backyard, all leading to a “pot of gold” prize that can be actual money, coins, or chocolate coin candies.

Buy Shamrock Plants 

Shamrocks are very hardy indoor plants and will bloom throughout the year under the right conditions. These make a great starter plant for kids as they are low maintenance and easy to care for. Buy shamrocks at nearby Four Corners Maple Valley or a local nursery for a pretty, holiday-themed plant the whole family can enjoy.

Dress up in Green 

Make sure everyone in the family has something green to wear on St. Patrick’s Day for their in-person, zoom learning, or day at work. Tradition says if you forget to wear something green, you may get pinched by the leprechaun!

Make Traditional Irish Fare 

Traditional Irish recipes like Irish stew, corned beef and cabbage, and Irish soda bread are great staples to serve on St. Patrick’s Day. For a fun, easy treat to make with kids, try making Irish “potatoes” which are not made with any potato at all. These no-bake candies consist of cream cheese, coconut, butter, sugar, and cinnamon and resemble small potatoes when rolled together and chilled. www.TenTrails.com 360.469.4043  

Light Up Your Hometown Holiday Lights Contest Builds Community in a Challenging Time

Residents of Ten Trails can count themselves lucky to live in a community where events, activities and amenities are just one part of the lifestyle! The developer of Ten Trails, Oakpointe Communities, created the community with a goal in mind to build a place that is desirable to live, and where residents can feel a connection to their community and to each other. With this goal in mind, we continue to offer fun activities to build community, even during the Covid-19 pandemic. One of these activities is our recent Light Up Your Hometown Holiday Lights Contest.

Hometown Holiday Lights Contest

For the second year in a row, Ten Trails asked residents to take part in a holiday lights competition! Visit the community any evening now through January 1st to see many homes and much of the community lit up – including our 35-foot Christmas tree located at the top of the knoll in the Village Green!

2020 Light Up Your Hometown Winners

A huge congratulations to our winners and honorable mentions this year, and nice work to everyone who participated! As always, we appreciate your enthusiasm for the community and our activities. Not yet a resident of Ten Trails but still want to be part of the fun? Download a map for a suggested route to tour the community and see if you can find the winning homes pictured below. www.TenTrails.com 360.469.4043

Visit Ten Trails this Holiday Season to See our Community Lights Display 

Ten Trails is once again asking residents to take part in a holiday lights competition! Visit the community any evening from December 12^th through January 1^st to see many homes and much of the community lit up – including our huge Christmas tree in the Village Green!

Get a Map to Tour the Community Lights

Click here to access a map of a suggested route to tour our holiday lights or find one on our Facebook page. Want to share in the fun? Take a photo, post it to Facebook or Instagram and tag us, @TenTrails and tell us which house’s lights are your favorite!

Past Holiday Lights Celebrations in the Community

Click here for a link to view a video from last year’s Christmas tree lighting event in the community! We look forward to welcoming everyone back to the community for this fun gathering when it is safe to do so. 360.469.4043 www.TenTrails.com

Enjoy the Holiday Season Close to Home at Ten Trails 

Travel plans may have changed for the holidays but there are plenty of ways to celebrate this wonderful season of giving in your new Ten Trails home!

Give Back to Your Local Community 

The local Black Diamond Community Center is always in need of donations for its food pantry. Give back to others less fortunate this holiday season by donating items like canned goods, diapers, and toothbrushes. For a full list of immediate needs for the food bank, see the Black Diamond Community Center website.  Items for donation can be dropped off in the donation bin outside of the Ten Trails Welcome Center.

Family Holiday Crafts

What better way to celebrate the holidays than to decorate your brand new home for the season? Make decorating a family event by taking part in fun crafts that the whole family can participate in like wreath-decorating, stringing popcorn garland, or ornament making. If you are in need of inspiration, there are a ton of holiday craft ideas on Pinterest.

Take Part in Ten Trails’ Second Annual Light up Your Hometown Event 

Ten Trails is happy to share we are once again hosting a “Light up Your Hometown” competition for residents! Decorate your home with holiday lights by December 10^th and you will be automatically entered to win one of several huge gift card prizes. Check your weekly emails from our HOA for details.

Drive-Through Hometown Holiday Light Display at Ten Trails Dec 12 through New Year’s Day

Residents and the public can also take part in the holiday fun. Beginning December 12^th and all evenings through New Year’s Day, visit our Facebook page to grab a map of a suggested route to navigate you through Ten Trails to see all the amazing community lights including our huge holiday tree on top of the knoll in our Village Green Park. We hope you can make time for this drive-through holiday light showcase this season! www.TenTrails.com 360.469.4043          

Visit Ten Trails this Holiday Season to See our Community Lights Display 

Ten Trails is once again asking residents to take part in a holiday lights competition! Visit the community any evening from December 12^th through January 1^st to see many homes and much of the community lit up – including our huge Christmas tree in the Village Green!

Get a Map to Tour the Community Lights

Click here to access a map  tour our holiday lights or find one on our Facebook page. Want to share in the fun? Take a photo, post it to Facebook or Instagram and tag us, @TenTrails and tell us which house’s lights are your favorite!

Past Holiday Lights Celebrations in the Community

Click here for a link to view a video from last year’s Christmas tree lighting event in the community! We look forward to welcoming everyone back to the community for this fun gathering when it is safe to do so. 360.469.4043 www.TenTrails.com      

Celebrate Cyber Week at Ten Trails by Home Shopping from Home

It is Cyber Week and you can complement your gift shopping this week by doing some home shopping from home! Check out some of our builders’ amazing virtual tours of homes at Ten Trails in the paragraphs below as well as a list of past featured virtual tours here.

JK Monarch 3D Tour

Take a 3D tour of a home by JK Monarch located in Bonney Lake. This builder’s upcoming model home at Ten Trails will be completed soon! Sign up for our email list at info@tentrails.com to be the first to know when it opens for tours.

Toll Brothers Virtual Tour

Take a virtual tour of the Abercrombie floorplan by Toll Brothers. This floorplan is being built currently at Ten Trails at Lot 45 in Toll Brothers’ section of the community with a tentative scheduled completion date of May 2021 . Contact their sales team for details.

Lennar Villages Collection Virtual Tours 

Tour all the available floorplans in the Villages Collection by Lennar at Ten Trails by visiting Lennar’s website. Here you can also find pricing information as well as handy links to schedule your self-guided, in-person tour of these homes.

Ichijo Virtual Tour 

Take a video tour of the Cottonwood single-family detached model home at Ten Trails by Ichijo. This builder will be pre-selling new single-family home lots in the upcoming months. Email us at info@tentrails.com to be added to the interest list for this new release of homes. www.TenTrails.com 360.469.4043

Shop Local this Weekend for Small Business Saturday

The Black Diamond area thrives on the support of local residents, and this year support is needed more than ever! Before shopping from corporate retail chains this holiday season, consider whether you can make your purchase from a local store instead. Make sure to call ahead before heading to local stores to find out their policies for Covid-19 restrictions.

Local Black Diamond Stores 

Shop vintage goods at Black Diamond’s Black Bear Outpost and the Black Diamond Antiques and More store. Looking for a place to grab some sweet treats for the holiday season? Gracene’s Cupcakes has you covered! Head to Lumber House Brewery for local microbrews for your holiday table. For a complete list of local Black Diamond businesses that you can shop this holiday season, check out the Maple Valley – Black Diamond Chamber of Commerce website.

Enumclaw Cole Street Businesses 

Take a short drive to nearby Enumclaw to shop some of the local businesses on Cole Street. Enumclaw has several blocks of local retail stores, restaurants, salons, spas, and bakeries to explore. For a full listing of businesses, check out the Enumclaw Chamber of Commerce website.

Shop Four Corners Maple Valley

Four Corners Maple Valley is only a short drive from Ten Trails and offers everything you need in a retail destination including many small businesses. Shop gift cards or beauty products at local salons like Chocolates Cherries and Blondes or Annastina Beauty Lounge. Grab outdoor equipment and all your biking needs at the Northwest Bicycle Shop.  Whatever item is on your shopping list, chances are you’ll be able to find it at Four Corners!

Support Local Farms for Holiday Meal Produce 

Holiday time shopping is not all about gifts! Shop local for your holiday meal items as well. Ten Trails is conveniently located near many wonderful local farms. Enumclaw’s Meadowwood Farm sells raw milk, cheeses, turkeys, eggs, beef, and more for your holiday feast. Carpinito Brothers Farm in nearby Kent is open year-round and offers both local and imported produce as well as garden center items, pumpkins, gourds, and Christmas trees. The farm stand is closed for Thanksgiving but will be open at 7 am on Black Friday with trees ready for purchase.  Metz Meadows off Green Valley Road in nearby Auburn sells eggs from pasture-raised chickens in addition to seasonal freshly cut flowers and produce. 360.469.4043 www.TenTrails.com      

Ideas for New Holiday Traditions This Season 

While the holiday season may be a little different this year for some families due to the pandemic, that does not mean family traditions have to be abandoned completely! Why not use this year to establish some fun new traditions with your family, or try different twists on longstanding ones? Here are some suggestions for how to connect with loved ones during the holiday season why still maintaining physical distance.

Play Long Distance Games with Family 

Video games have long had the option for players from around the world to connect but there are ways to play popular board and card games virtually as well! Family favorite games like Monopoly, Scattergories and Uno all have online versions you can play with friends and family. You can also hop on Zoom or Facebook Rooms to have a video conference with family members to play fun games like Charades, Who in the Room, or Trivia.

Do a Virtual Watch Party of Your Favorite Christmas Movies 

Does your family have favorite holiday movies that you watch together every year? You still can with new streaming technology and the help of ultra-fast one-gig internet at your Ten Trails home. Many streaming services like Netflix or Sling offer opportunities to create a “watch party” with friends and family members who are also subscribers. Chat on video while the film plays, and you can offer commentary and enjoy all your favorite scenes together.

Zoom Holiday Formal 

Do you miss getting dressed up for a night out? Get decked out in your favorite holiday attire and attend a holiday formal with friends or coworkers via Zoom. Ideas for sharing this event including picking out one or two appetizer recipes ahead of time that you will each make and share together during the party. Select a few special holiday-themed cocktails or mocktails to toast with while showing off your festive outfits.

Take Part in a Remote Baking Competition 

Holiday time is synonymous with baked goods and there is no reason this year should be an exception! Enter a friendly competition with friends, neighbors, or family members by baking up your best sweet treats and shipping or dropping off small batches to your baking competitors. Decide on a rating system beforehand and each member on the competition gets to vote for which treat they like best. Suggestions for voting categories include: “best decoration,” “best taste,” “most creative,” “best texture.” and “best overall.” Plant a New Year Tree Many cultures celebrate the new year by decorating or planting a tree — similar to the common practice in this country of putting up a Christmas tree. To mark the passage of 2020 and transition to 2021, your family could adopt this tradition and plant a tree or purchase a new houseplant to commemorate the holiday and represent a symbol of growth and life for the coming year. www.TenTrails.com 360.469.4043

Get to Know the Ten Trails Village Green Park

Just over an acre in size and located directly adjacent to the popular Civic Park, the Village Green Park at Ten Trails is a great spot for taking in one of our many community events, enjoying views of Mount Rainier, or playing a game of catch with the neighbors.

Mount Rainier Viewpoint at Ten Trails 

The Village Green Park at Ten Trails was designed with a large viewing hill in the center of the park to offer spectacular views of Mount Rainier on a clear day. The hilltop’s boulder landscaping and colorful Adirondack chairs provide a cozy seating area to catch the reflection of the sun setting over Mount Rainier.

Summer Concerts in the Village Green Park at Ten Trails 

The Village Green Park has also been the location for some of Ten Trails’ bigger summer concerts in the park like our concert featuring Aaron Crawford in August 2019 which attracted thousands of visitors to the community.

Location for Holiday Events at Ten Trails 

The Village Green Park serves as one of the main hubs for other large-scale events hosted in the community! Our annual Easter Egg Hunt and Christmas Tree Lighting both take place inside the park. For a list of upcoming events in the community, check out our events page. www.TenTrails.com 360.469.4043