Memorial Day

Today we take time to remember those who gave their life in defense of our country.

The Pools are Open

Today is Opening Day for all of the Columbia Pools. Columbia has 23 outdoor pools and they are a great way to spend a warm summer day. I have always found that Columbia's pools are some of the best mixing places that Rouse created. They are a great place for kids and parents to play and socialize together.

The Columbia Association provides need based assistance through the Ann Scherr Fund for those in financial need who would like summer pool memberships.

Here is a picture of my dad, sister, and I at a Columbia pools when I was a kid:

Ice Cream and Snow Cones

One of the great Howard County blogs is a HowChow, a local food blog. They had a great post yesterday about ice cream and snow cone stands in the county. Top on their list is my personal favorite: the soft serve ice cream stand on Route 40 next the Forest Diner. If you haven’t been, I highly recommend it as the perfect answer to a summer’s day.

They have a very good list, but two I would add to HowChow’s list are snow cone stands at the intersection of Oakland Mills Road and Montgomery Road in Columbia and I am told there is a good snow cone stand near Kendall’s Hardware Store in Clarkesville.

As for the true ice cream lover, I would recommend ordering Graeter’s Ice Cream from Cincinnati and eating it on your deck or taking it to a summer movie at the lakefront. Graeter’s was originally a confectioner and make great dark chocolate and put giant chunks of dark chocolate in their ice cream. You cannot go wrong with any of their flavors with a chip in it. My personal favorite is one of their seasonal flavors: Strawberry Chocolate Chip. Their signature flavor is Black Raspberry Chocolate Chip, but don’t overlook their Chocolate Chocolate Chip, which it my second favorite.

Consignment Shop Coming to Kings Contrivance

Greenberries Company, a high-end consignment shop of women’s and children’s clothing will be opening soon in the Kings Contrivance Village Center. It is scheduled to open on or about May 16th. It will be taking over the space formerly home to State Farm Insurance.

Happy Mother's Day

I get my activism and my love for exploring nature's beauty from my mom. In honor of Mother's Day here is a picture of me and my mom that ran in the Columbia Flier when they did a story about the parent-child classes my mom taught when she ran Habitats of Columbia. We are looking at some of the animals that live in one of Columbia's many streams. My mom also taught similar courses for the National Audubon Society and the Smithsonian.

Mother's Day in and around Howard County

What are you doing for Mother's Day tomorrow? Do you have any suggestions of good Mother's Day activities in or near Howard County?

I am going over to my mother's to make brunch (apple, cinnamon, whole wheat pancakes with a dash of nutmeg), then my mom has requested we go hiking up at Catoctin National Park (yeah it will be muddy fun), and then dinner at her favorite Mexican restaurant.

This Week's Funny Video

Columbia Council Committee Assignments

The Columbia Council/Columbia Association Board of Directors had their organizational meeting tonight. Here are the new chair, vice chair, and committee assignments:

Chair: Phil Kirsch (Wilde Lake)
Vice Chair: Cindy Coyle (Harpers Choice)

External Relations Committee
Michael Cornell (River Hill)
Suzanne Waller (Town Center)
Shari Zaret (Kings Contrivance)

Planning and Strategy Committee
Cindy Coyle (Harpers Choice)
Russ Swatek (Long Reach)
Gregg Schwind (Hickory Ridge)

Performance Oversight Committee
Alex Hekimian (Oakland Mills)
Pearl Atkinson-Stewart (Owen Brown)
Kathleen Dragovich (Dorsey Search)