LIKEaBIKE is designed with child safety in mind. Although lightweight (approx 3.5 kg), quality materials such as birch, beech plywood, aluminum, and the use of high grade steel fasteners ensure that a LIKEaBIKE can withstand any amount of rough and tumble. The saddle can be adjusted for height as your child grows. In addition, the cotton saddle cover is removable and fully washable.

Our son Samuel got a LIKEaBIKE just before his second birthday. The bike performed just as advertised. He was able to instantly maneuver around, and by the time he was three he was weaving in and around people with poise and confidence on the sea wall here in Vancouver. He has clearly loved his LIKEaBIKE from day one, and he’s gotten every bit as much joy out of it, if not more, than any child could have had on a tricycle or traditional pedal bike with training wheels.

The real question, however, is: “Are these two-wheel push bikes more effective at teaching balance than a traditional pedal bike with training wheels?”

Well, today, after two years on the LIKEaBIKE we thought we’d try our son out on a standard pedal bike. We wanted to see if he could pick it up without training wheels.

Let’s let the video do the talking.

Obviously the LIKEaBIKE experiment was a resounding success. This product not only provided years of enjoyment for our child, but it looked cool, and the all-wood design is environmentally friendly (not to mention lighter) than a traditional bike. And, most importantly, this product innovation actually changed the way our son learned balance—this will undoubtedly have an impact on his ability to adapt to other sports and life skills, as good balance is a fundamental skill for so many activities.

LIKEaBIKE has taken something as simple as the bike and reinvented it in a way that has a strong and meaningful impact.

So it’s safe to say that we’re super clever. But we don’t want all the spotlight. Besides, our eyes are sensitive to light.

Hopefully yours aren’t. And hopefully, you’re not against the idea of winning $5,000, Slurpees for a year, and potential TV stardom to go along with that spotlight. If you don’t, well, you’re just lying to yourself and you will go to hell. Oh, there is a hell. We’ve been there. There’s no soap there. And if there’s anything worse than a liar, it’s a stinker. So be true to yourself and get involved. Visit slurpee.ca for the who, what, where, when, how, and sometimes why of our FREEZE THE MOMENT contest. (Like we said, we’re super duper clever — why else would we throw a duper in there?)

In the meantime, watch out for all things Slurpee, as Hot Tomali recently launched the Big Gulp of Slurpee campaigns through TV, three radio spots (Ricardo – Seeeeeeeven, Steven Wright – Priiiizes, and Kip – Mooooooment), CITY-TV IDs, guerrilla stunts, BT Television live stunts, a website and contest, Live 7/11 Remotes, this blog, that blog, and everything in between.

1. The guys at Hot Tomali have very ravenous appetites, and
2. Making two pans of lasagne in one go is a real pain in the ass.

At the end of October, I created a team and convinced the boys of Hot Tomali to grow moustaches in the name of prostate cancer. Movember is a movement started in Australia, challenging men around the globe to start clean-shaven on November 1st and collect donations for their best ‘stache attempts. Considering at the time we were elbows deep in a website launch promoting men’s health, it seemed a no-brainer for Hot Tomali to participate.

I’ve never been one to pound down doors in a fundraising attempt. As a girl in the choir and on sports teams, I hated the inevitable bake sale/bottle drive/chocolate-covered almond push that was required to raise money for our activities. But as an adult, I’ve come to learn that it’s pretty easy to whip up a plate of something tasty and sell it at the office for ten bucks a head. Last month, for the United Way, it was chili. For Movember, a good, hearty lasagne was in order.

My husband laughed at me as he saw me unloading the groceries. “THREE boxes of pasta? Are you kidding!??” He marvelled as he watched me layer not one, but two, casserole dishes with pasta, sauce, spinach, cheese, and more cheese, and questioned again how many I was feeding. Sure, it looked like a lot of lasagne—and maybe it was a bit excessive—but I didn’t want to be the gal who offered to cook for the team and then come up short. Besides, I thought I’d cooked way too much chili last month, and I watched that pot get licked clean.

My Italian creation was a huge success, despite a slightly overcooked crust. And, just as expected, both pans were quickly devoured. Perhaps it wasn’t the best idea to load up our developers on carbs and cheese and then expect them to hit their deadline four hours later—by 3 pm the air in the office was heavy and surprisingly quiet. But in the end, a few hundred dollars raised to further prostate cancer research is always worth a calorie-induced coma.

It’s not too late to donate to Hot Tomali’s Movember cause. If you would like to support our team, please visit our Movember page to make a donation to Prostate Cancer Canada. Any amount—no matter how large or small—is appreciated and has an impact.

For those of you who don’t know, Movember is an annual, month-long campaign that celebrates the moustache, with the goal of raising funds for men’s health—specifically, prostate cancer. Every November 1^st, clean-shaven men grow a moustache all month long, garnering support from friends and family in the form of donations. Read more about Movember here.

In celebration, we’ve decided to host a little competition of our own where you can submit photos of your moustache to win 1 of 3 sweet prizes.

It’s simple:

1. Become a fan of Hot Tomali on Facebook.
2. Post a photo of your moustache on our wall throughout the month of November (the more the merrier).
3. Win 1 of 3 Movember skateboard decks! (see below)

Download This Poster (PDF)

Contest details are as follows:

• Anyone is eligible to participate
• Photoshopped Moustaches will be disqualified
• Moustache shots must be current (e.g. not from last year)
• Moustache shots must be posted on Hot Tomali’s wall before November 30th
• Winners are chosen by a panel of Hot Tomali judges (no, Hot Tomalians are not eligible to win)

Join us on Facebook to participate today, and follow our contest updates throughout the month!

Happy Movember!

On Friday afternoon, as part of Hot Tomali’s commitment to United Way, we all took a break from work for an hour and converged as a team in the boardroom for some home-cooked chili. This, of course, meant that on Thursday night, while my husband cooked hot dogs for our dinner, I was up to my eyeballs in beans, peppers and sirloin.

The Before Shot

This is what my tiny kitchen counter looked like before I started prepping everything. That’s two cans of red kidney beans and one can of white; garbanzo beans, plum tomatoes and black-eyed peas; two onions and a whole head of garlic; two jalapeños; one poblano pepper and two bell peppers, as well as a can of chipotles; a 2 lb sirloin roast with an extra pound of lean ground; and a plethora of spices. One and a bit of the two bottles of chocolate stout made it into the pot, as did two cups of freshly brewed coffee and two squares of unsweetened baker’s chocolate. There’s a reason the base for this recipe (which I have modified greatly over the years), is known online as “The Best Chili You Will Ever Taste”. (For the record, the glass of wine on the edge of the shot didn’t go into the chili. That was just for me.)

The After Shot

I pulled everything together into the crock pot and started its cycle around 11:30 pm. When I woke in the morning, I had a perfect pot of goodness on my counter. Getting said perfect pot of goodness from the counter to the office across the city… this was going to be fun. MacGyver style, I taped the lid on, wrapped the whole thing in a bath towel, secured it all with heavy duty elastic bands, and away we went.

It didn’t take long for the smell to permeate the whole office. By lunchtime, all of us were tortured by the aroma calling to us from the kitchen. I knew the boys in the office had some mean appetites, but I honestly believed that I’d be packing up “to go” containers to get rid of the leftovers. Not so. I think just about everyone went back for seconds, and all I had to carry home was an empty crock pot.

Adding the $10 bowls to the other fundraising we did during our 2009 campaign, Hot Tomali raised more than $1,600 for United Way of the Lower Mainland. Knowing that such a small effort from me could make such a difference was heartwarming. Wait, maybe that warm feeling was just from the chili. At any rate, I’m currently trying to come up with excuses reasons to feed the team more often. Any ideas?

The dish is categorized as “Central American”. I was married in the small Central American country of Belize. The dish is also categorized as “Caribbean”. Our Account Director, David, was raised in the small Caribbean nation of Dominica. This is a nicey-spicy meatball. Part of Hot Tomali’s name comes from the owners’ (Tom & Ali) love for spicy food. It’s a pork tenderloin recipe. I’m willing to bet that 92% of Hot Tomali’s staff will giggle at the mention of the word “tenderloin”. I’m also fairly certain that 92% of Hot Tomali’s staff would not be able to walk into a vegetable store and knowingly purchase a napa cabbage. Look at the photo and ingredients list. Playful, creative, a little bit edgy and curious, delivered with perfect execution. Sounds familiar.

I’ve long trolled Epicurious.com, among other sites, for new recipes and inspirations. Only once have I ever produced a meal that required a phone call for pizza delivery (sad but true). But about two weeks ago, I stumbled across this recipe for an Island Pork Tenderloin Salad that was out-of-this-world amazing. Even my little sister, who has just begun culinary school yet never cooked with a jalapeno pepper, was blown away.

I recommend that you make the pork and the vinaigrette as written first, and then adjust as you see fit when (because you will!) make it again. Tonight I cut back on the cinnamon because I found it a bit overpowering the first time I made this. The salad itself is pretty versatile and you can mix and match to your heart’s content. I used an herbed spring mix instead of spinach and cabbage because I had a huge bag of it. I skipped avocados because neither my husband nor I really like them, and I tossed in slivered almonds because they’re nutritious and delicious. The vinaigrette is amazing and I’m planning to keep a batch in my fridge always because it’s just that good.

Bottom line: Try this dish. Try it now.

This is pure witchcraft.

http://www.pranavmistry.com/projects/sixthsense/

www.youtube.com/watch?v=jYr0GA22vGE

Doesn’t this warrant a call to the local authorities?!?

Cute? Never. Familiar? Definitely. I mean, isn’t this the plot of Child’s Play? Didn’t we learn a little something from murderous boy-doll Chucky? I continue to be baffled by the supposed appeal. I guess some people just can’t resist the lure of fluffy, scented towels.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=9_UZcbTdivw

When the oral surgeon said, “Out with the wisdom teeth!“, I decided it was as good a time as any to break the habit. I’m currently on Day 8, and it’s been surprisingly easy. A Quit Keeper that tracks my stats—including money saved—makes it that much easier. For the next few months, I will be chronicling how much money I’ve saved by showing you, dear reader, what I can purchase with my new-found savings.

For example, as of today I have saved $71.36. For this amount, I can purchase a pair of Nike Dunk black/grey/white hightops. Pretty sweet kicks, if I do say so myself… assuming I can fit my foot into a men’s size 8.

$71.36 is also the price of this classic Casio watch. Too bad I’m not a fan of the translucent Blue Band Mineral Crystal Quartz Movement. I might be interested if it came in Hot Tomali red.

Maybe I’ll just curl up with a good cup of cocoa and enjoy Rivers, Streams, Lakes and Ponds (Our Living World) – a hardcover book from Barbara Somervill aimed at educating elementary and middle-school readers about the world around us.

The opportunities are endless.

This is so cool. We were on our Twitter account earlier toay (@hottomali in case you want to add us) and noticed a tweet about visiting www.espn.com and punching in the old Konami code (up, up, down, down, left, right, left, right, B, A, Enter). Sounded weird, but enticing enough. The coder behind this probably got fired, but surely the high fives at the pub more than made up for it.