Super exciting news: Construction begins today on Columbia’s new Skateboard Park!  City of Columbia, in conjunction with Pour It Now, will host a groundbreaking ceremony today at 4:30pm at Owens Field near the Richland One Track.  The new skate park will be 15,000 square feet of concrete awesomeness for your budding (or experienced) skateboarder to enjoy!

Now would be a good time to check out Salty’s or Bluetile in Five Points for a new board!  They have a great selection.  My two-year old grew very attached to a particular board on our last visit…so attached that we actually bought it for him.  For now, it is wall art for his bedroom, but someday in the not too distant future, he will be giving it a real work out at the new Columbia Skate Park.

Sidebar for all those parents who think skateboarding is strange and for losers (and I know there are some people out there that think that…):  Do not fear the skateboarder!   Skateboarders are not rebellious street punks with no direction.  Those kids are having a lot of fun and actually channeling their energy into something they love.  It takes a lot of energy to pump that skateboard, and a lot of skill to do those tricks and jumps and such. My husband skateboarded when he was a kid (and still does on occasion) and he is a totally responsible, loving, fun dad with a job and all that jazz.  If your kid is interested, give it a try!!  The folks at Blue Tile Skate Shop or Salty’s would love to talk to you about getting started.

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Straight from the Free Times:  Saturdays are for peanuts! George Washington Carver discovered more than 300 uses for the peanut, but ‘round these parts, we like Arachis hypogaea one way in particular: boiled. The Cock N Bull Pub hosts the second annual Palmetto Peanut Boil today, which features all manner and flavor of boiled peanuts; the all-day event also features music from Tom Hall and the Plowboys and Haley Guyton and distractions for the wee ones. Mmm … peanuts. Proceeds from bagged boiled peanuts benefit The Special Olympics; the event runs from 2 to 8 p.m. Call 251-4474 for more information.

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On another food-related note, I made my own hummus Monday using the recipe on weelicious.  I will never buy hummus again.  It was so much better homemade, and it was super easy to make.  Here is the recipe:

Weelicious Hummus

• 1 15-0z. can Garbanzo Beans
• 2 Tbsp. tahini (you can usually find this next to the nut butters at the grocery.  I found it at Earth Fare.)
• 4 Tbsp lemon juice (recipe called for 3, but I put 4)
• 1 tsp. minced garlic
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1/3 cup olive oil

Combine all ingredients except oil in a food processor and puree.  Slowly add the olive oil and continue to puree until hummus is creamy.  Eat!

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We are on day 3 of using the Laptop Lunchbox.  I love it!  I think my daughter is pretty into it, as well.

• Monday’s lunch: two pimento cheese sandwiches on pumpernickel bread (the small, party size), cucumber slices, watermelon, pretzel sticks, and a whole grain fig newton bar.
• Tuesday’s lunch: stone ground wheat crackers, red-fat cheese cubes, vegetarian pepperoni slices, carrot chips, dried apple rings, Annie’s Organics Bunny graham crackers.
• Today’s lunch: Cheese pizza, broccoli florets, cantaloupe, whole grain fig newton bar

I won’t bore you with the details of all our lunches, but the point of this post is that I actually enjoy packing her lunch.  It looks pretty to see all the colorful food in the cute containers, and I love that she has small amounts of a variety of foods.  She has yet to eat all the food, but it appears that she has at least eaten some of everything.  Makes me feel good.

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the consignment sale today at 61 Churchill Circle.  Great brands at reduced prices!  Awesome stationery!  Very nice ladies.  Check it out.  9:00 am - 1:00 pm.

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This just in: Cupcake is officially open for business!!!  Today is the first day, so who knows what that means as far as variety, quantity, etc.  Regardless, I am going.  Today!  To quote The Shop Tart, “SQUEEEEEE!”  I am very very excited.  Can you tell?  They are open until 7pm.  In the Vista.  On Lincoln Street a few shops down from Starbucks.  Go get yours!!

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Do any of you have a special back-to-school tradition you would like to share?  I am planning to do something special on Sunday night before my daughter starts her new school on Monday morning.  I’ve invited my in-laws over for dinner, so it will be the 6 of us.  While I would love to be able to tell you the plans include a beautiful outside setting with billowing tablecloths, a rockin’ centerpiece of flowers and greenery from our yard, homemade pizza crust and watermelon sorbet, some terrific jazz filling the air and the children playing in their near-by playhouse, I have to tell you instead that we will probably be having pizza ordered from a chain and maybe a slice of watermelon while the children chase each other around the house fighting over some previously forgotten toy that they have both suddenly decided is the only/best/most awesome toy on earth, and all this will be happening inside due to the terrible mosquitoes that attack my youngest child whenever he dares to step foot outside.  I wish we didn’t have such awful mosquitoes…a girl can dream.

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If you are looking to score some gently-used but very affordable back to school clothes, you might want to check out the upcoming consignment sale being held on Tuesday, August 25 at 61 Churchill Circle (off of Trenholm Road between Beltline Blvd. and Brennen Road).  The sale will include items from MiniBoden, April Cornell, Lilly Pulitzer, Kelly’s Kids, Rags Land, Blessed Be the Name, Hanna Anderson, Orient Expressed, Shrimp & Grits, Vineyard Vines, Hannah Kate, and many others.  Sizes infant - 10. Sale hours are 9:00am - 1:00pm.

Mary Beth Hultstrand will also be on site selling stationery from the Dragonfly Dreams line, which I have mentioned before.  The designs are really cute, affordable, and of great quality.

Also, I was just in K.D.’s Treehouse this morning and they are marking down for a sidewalk sale this weekend.  Make sure you stop by and check it out.  Cute stuff!  You can still get the Laptop Lunchboxes there, as well.  I picked up two lunchboxes this morning, and another shopper behind me was buying two.  They are going fast, so make sure you get yours soon!

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I am sooooo excited about a new children’s art studio opening this weekend on Forest Drive.  Tag it Art is an art studio devoted to inspiring your child to create, imagine, and explore with no worries about the mess!  Owner Jackie Humphries will be offering open studio time, classes, birthday parties, and camps.  Tag It Art should definitely be on your short list of places to visit in the coming weeks, if not for the grand opening on Saturday at 10am!  4517 Forest Drive. Grand opening will take place two store fronts down in the space right next to the former Paulie’s Pizza.  Don’t miss it!

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Summer is almost over.  Over, that is, if you equate the beginning of the school year to the end of summer.  Granted, it will be plenty hot and summery here in SC for another 2 months or so, but that freewheeling feeling we have enjoyed for the last few months will soon come to end as we adapt to our new schedules:  Wake up times, rushed breakfasts, school hours, after-school activities, homework, dinner, baths, and bedtimes.  We are about to embark on a new phase in our lives,  with both of our children being in school.  My son is going to be starting preschool for the first time at Harmony.  You have probably gathered from my blog that I love Harmony School.  I think it is one of the hidden gems of Columbia: a truly unique approach to education, blending elements of Montessori, Waldorf, and Inquiry-based learning philosophies.  If you have children approaching school age, I recommend you check out Harmony.  My daughter is transitioning from Harmony to Brockman Elementary.  We are excited about the opportunities for her there, and we are pleased to have a clear path for her through 5th grade.  If you don’t know about Brockman, check it out.  It is a school of choice for preschool/elementary aged students in the Brennen, Satchel Ford, and Bradley zones.  Brockman is a public Montessori school, another unique learning environment available here in Columbia.  And last but not least, my wonderful Mother-in-law, who has been helping with our kids for the last 4 years, is actually going to get some much-deserved free time again.  I think the coming year will be an exciting one for us all.

If you have had positive experiences with other schools in Columbia, please share!

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