Puddle Jumping in DC

On Conference SWAG and Babies: My Take on Two Blogher Controversies

I attended my first Blogher conference over the weekend, something I've been itching to do for about three years. Like many participants, I've been struggling with what to say about it.  

Jen's complete pile of Blogher swag.
More by Flickr user Studiojmm.

Tuesday night, after reading a dozen rants (some of them very good) about selling out, offensive sponsor- and stuff-related behavior, and laudable new reviewer policies, I dug through my backpack and purse and piled up all the stuff I brought home from Blogher 09:

That's it (not including the kiwi and piece of candy that I ate and a couple of missing pens). 

I did bring home a few things (not SWAG) from Blogher that I'm really pleased with:

• a little stack of business cards of bloggers I met,
• I kid-size I-Love-Canada t-shirt and a jar of honey butter (OMG that stuff's good), a gift from my lovely roommate,
• and, a book that will be great fodder for blogging and frugal living which I was given by another blogger after we discussed my new adventure.

There are some interesting definitions of SWAG or schwag over at Urban Dictionary, but however your spell it, it and behavior at Blogher regarding it are all over the twitter-verse and blog-o-sphere this week.

12 Free Things to Do in Washington DC with Kids

Every year, 16 million people visit Washington, DC. While travel and accommodations can sometimes be pricey, once you are in DC, you will find there are find hundreds of free things to do in and around the nation's capitol.

Monuments at night.
More by Flickr user Studiojmm.

All 19 museums that make up the Smithsonian Institution, including the National Zoo, are free for admission. The Lincoln Memorial and Jefferson Memorials are free. The Washington Monument, U.S. Capitol tour, and White house tour are all free, though require tickets or advanced appointments.

This month's About.com Parenting and Family blog carnival theme is Cheap Fun, so I thought we should explore the many free things to do in Washington DC that you may not have thought of. And, many of these free things to do in Washington DC are kid-friendly and easy to get to by public transportation.

1. Take in a free performance at the Kennedy Center

The Millennium Stage at the Kennedy Center offers free performances at 6 p.m. every night of the week. Concerts are held on the river side of the Kennedy Center and are accessible by shuttle bus from the Foggy Bottom metro station.

There are always kids at Millennium Stage performances. School age kids are most common but the setup up of the performance space is conducive to bringing babies and toddlers as well. The lobby is enormous and there is terrace access right by the stage. It would be quite easy for Mom or Dad to take a fussy tot away to run around while the rest of the family finishes the show.

Monthly performance schedules are posted online. Performances are popular for both tourists and local fans of the performing groups so arrive early if you want to be sure of a seat.

How to find a safe and effective sunscreen

Beach Boy by Flickr User chimothy27,
CC BY 2.0.

“We need more sunscreen,” calls my husband as I’m leaving for work the other morning.  “What should I buy?”

Oh, dear, thought this DC Green Living Examiner. I don’t have time to figure out which sunscreen brands are safe, effective, and don’t contain unnecessary ingredients in the two minutes I have left before I must be out the door.

... three out of five sun blocks don’t work or contain hazardous ingredients according to a recent study by the Environmental Working Group.

Read the rest of my latest Green Living 101 post at the Examiner.com.

An Auspicious Plan

Friday, I quit my job.

Sunday, I decided I needed a little structure to contain and energize my personal yoga practice. I also feel my knee is telling me to take a break from my spotty and therefore guilt-inducing running plans while I focus on personal practice.

Baron Baptise, one of this country's more renowned vinyasa yogis, authored a book called 40 Days to Personal Revolution in which he lays out a progressively longer yoga and mediation practice. He recommends eschewing other exercise in the process, to be reintroduced later if desired.

Baptiste also developed a program he calls his "Yoga Bootcamp," a very western title for a weekend intensive yoga and mediation retreat. Since Mac and Maya are staying a few days with his parents in August while I pursue Itsy Bitsy Baby Yoga certification, I thought that would be a good weekend to do the intensive meditation and vinyasa practice and journaling exercises Baptiste recommends (though not on quite the same schedule because of the training).

I didn't consider how the two fit together until this morning when I plugged the 40 days into my Google Calendar (yep, I'm that kind of yogi) and discovered that the 40th day will be the day before the Itsy Bitsy weekend.

Green living 101: How can I make the most of DC's farmers markets?

Market baby (Takoma MD, 2004)
by Jen Mueller

Excerpt: "Shopping at your local farmers market is quite simple. Just go sample the wonderful produce, baked goods, cheeses, and more available from farmers in the region.

If you want to make the most of your trip though, this guide will help.

Know where to go

The Washington DC metro area has dozens of great farmers markets to choose from.  If you’re not sure of your options, there are several good websites to get you started..." 

Read the rest on the my DC Green Living Examiner page.

links for 2009-07-16

• The "Blog" of "Unnecessary" Quotation Marks
  Good fun for grammar geeks.
  (tags: fun blog english humor words grammar quotationmarks punctuation)

Meet your new DC Green Living Examiner

Travel season is upon us, meaning lots of planes, trains, and automobiles to recreation destinations near and far. And since everyone’s eye is drawn to the bottom line in an uncertain economy, it’s no small boon that going green may actually save you green on your vacation . . .

. . . Continued at 5 tips for a greener vacation on the Examiner website where I made my debut this week as the DC Green Living Examiner.

Problems viewing columns in Firefox 3.5?

You may not be alone.  This blog is not appearing correctly in the newest Firefox browser for the Macintosh.  I've got a support request into Typepad.

links for 2009-07-08

• The Inigo Montoya Guide to 27 Commonly Misused Words
  You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means. ~Inigo Montoya, The Princess Bride
  (tags: blog reference tips writing language humor list online useful words english copywriting grammar)