We will be at the Baby the Planet Expo, part of Columbus Parents Expo, this Saturday and Sunday, 11 AM - 5 PM. We are working in the Sprout Soup booth to help with sales of our water bottles and yoga mat bags. The Expo is held at the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium. You can get admission tickets to the zoo and expo for $3 (save 75%) by ordering online in advance at ColumbusParent.com/EXPO with coupon code CPME2009.
Voting ends in 24 hours!
This is the last time we will ask you to vote for Baying Hound in the Intuit Contest preliminaries. The voting ends in 24 hours! We want to be the online source for the finest eco-friendly outdoor gear. Here's how we plan to grow should we advance in the contest:
-finish our web redesign with the help of a programmer to make it more user friendly -add a dog gear category to our store -invest in biodegradable shipping materials where we currently use lightweight recyclable plastic
If you already voted, thank you so very much. If not, please take 60 seconds to show your support of our earth friendly business today. You can vote for us in all three categories, 'inspiring', 'fun', and 'useful' by clicking on the matching blue icons on our entry page. We appreciate it so much.
Bike to Work Week 2009 is coming!
The League of American Bicyclists promotes May as National Bike Month. Bike to Work Week is May 11 - 15. Bike to Work Day is Friday May 15. There are special events held in many communities to promote the healthy habit that is cycling. Bike to Work Week is active in Columbus OH. There is a challenge to see who can rack up the most rides in work teams from May 4 - 15. We are hosting a team for those of us who work and/or parent from home in Central Ohio. Please join us! We might even give away prizes!
If you aren't in Columbus, find happenings in your town through the League of American Bicyclists events listing.
Cycling to work can be a difficult routine to establish. One has to have the right equipment and feel safe on the road. Bike to Work Week gives riders a chance to experiment with this healthy, environmentally friendly form of transportation.
Now is the time to tune up your bike, adjust your helmet, map your routes and work up to the big ride! Alex and I are fairly experienced cylists ready and willing to help you get on the road. Are you ready?
Playhouse in the Garden
Our yard is tiny but we have long wanted a playspace for Lil. A few weeks ago we started seeing playhouses available for sale. We knew better than to look at swing sets - they would shade our garden. We researched options online and found a cedar playhouse that fit our size specifications at Sam's Club for $300. A friend picked one up for us.
We finally had a good weather day with plenty of free time, so we put the house together.
The house assembled in about 5 hours with two adults, two neighborhood preteen girls, and Lil. Lil and the girls mostly played, but they worked too.
Note the mailbox and curtains created by the neighborhood girls.
The house is adorably cute. The materials and design are solid. Plus it is Forest Stewardship Council certified to ensure the materials are sustainably harvested. We purchased 100% recycled rubber mulch as flooring which we will install tomorrow. I hope that with the quality of materials and our craftsmanship Lil can enjoy this house for many years to come.
Please Vote for Baying Hound
Our business (you know, the income that finances our happy garden) is entered in a small business contest. We could win money and prizes to grow our business. If you have a moment, please vote for our story at http://community.intuit.com/contests/dFOX2GyhGqllvkab8P4pmk
Many thanks!
Ravenous Pig in Winter Park FL
Lunch today was our best local (Florida) food for sure. We ate at the Ravenous Pig in Winter Park. They make most everything in house (smoked and cured meats being the specialty) and use local ingredients wherever possible. My lunch was a trio of appetizers from the lunch menu: the smoked paprika deviled eggs, pretzels with divine mustard cheese fondue, and charcuterie plate. Alex and Lil ate the meat off the charcuterie while I enjoyed the pickled fennel, toast points, arugula salad, and oregonzola (a rosemary encrusted gorgonzola style cheese from Oregon).
Alex ate the shrimp and oyster po' boy. He describes it as "Delicious! The shrimp and oyster were perfectly cooked and the apple slaw was a great compliment." The sandwich came with shoestring fries which were also perfectly cooked. I would have loved a side of homemade ketchup.
I had a Gin Mule and Alex had a Shipyard Nitro to drink. The bar included several other enticing drinks and great draft beers.
This is the kind of restaurant I would love to return to again and again. They are hosting a pig roast in mid March which will surely be a fabulous affair.
Winter Park is a suburb of Orlando. The Ravenous Pig is most definitely worth the drive from your hotel near Disney or the convention center if you visit. If you happen to be a local who has never been, get there soon!
Blogging and Local Food Difficult on Vacay
I have tried to carve out time to blog but it just hasn't happened much this week in Orlando. Every time I did have time, the slow internet connection frustrated me so much that I had to stop. As a result, there are 3 or 4 posts drafted but not finished. Next week will be a big one! One of my goals for this trip to Florida was to explore local foods. We haven't done much of that either. In this land of tourism, chain restaurants rule. We did go citrus picking and ate at the fantastic Ravenous Pig, details to come in two of those drafts I mentioned above.
Leaving on a Jet Plane
We are taking off for a week to Orlando, Florida. We would love to hear your restaurant and activity recommendations. Expect plenty of posts while we are gone. We won't have dogs or dishes or orders to pack, so there should be lots of time to write!