Working with small business clients, we often are on the road, or meeting people in places other than our Bothell office. When working with our Woodinville clients, we tend to head over there to Woodinville to do work and hang out. We found a cool little place (thanks Carmin) to work and enjoy everything from French pressed coffee to great local wines. Its called Village Wines. What we like about is is the laid back, wine crowd kind of feel that it has. We came in the morning and there were only a hand full of people there.. most of them having 1:1 meetings and the others on their laptops doing work. I could tell that the people on their laptops were all Microsoft employees, how? All of their laptops have similar features... anyhow, that is besides the point. 

The WiFi network and password is: RelentlessPublic Password: thevillage. If it has changed, just ask the Village Wines barista and they will be willing to tell you what it is.

What is really cool is their Tuscan Room. This meeting room can hold 50 people and has some great meeting room features: 58" Samsung Plasma monitor for vibrant presentations, complimentary wired or wi-fi FIOS internet (25MB/second), 25 concurrent laptop power connections and full 7.1 surround sound system. It is available to rent,Awesome.

Overall we loved the experience, and I think we have now found our new place in Bothell to hang out, work, eat, drink and BS, Village Wines.

We can't believe it. It has been 4 years since Dave Hayward opened Carolina Smoke BBQ and Catering up in Country Village. Dave and his crew are celebrating this 4 year with a huge party including live blues from local blues player and cornerstone of the Bothell Blues Festival, the Chester Dennis Jones Band as well as a ton of food specials.

Perhaps I have just have had my head in the clouds, but when does a tall drip cost $2.54? Most of the time I come into Cafe Ladro in Bothell to get my double short Americano and do some early morning web work, blogs, SEO and other marketing stuff. I usually spend about $4 with tip for my Americano, which is a bit high I think, especially since it is just hot water and coffee grounds. Today I thought I would got the economy route and order a tall drip (with no room).

One of our Bothell Blog readers lost their cat who's name is Freedom. Freedom is a snowshoe type Siamese cat that is about 5 to 6 years old. He has medium to long hair. No collar, not sure if she is microchipped or not.  She is spayed.

Freedom was lost 12/30/2012 from 18916 36th Dr SE, Bothell Wa, 98021. Her owner Kriss misses Freedom very much and hopes one of her Bothell neighbors might have found her. 

If you have any information, please contact Kriss Erickson at:

Phone: (425) 265-9921
Email: slvrkriss@aol.com

***UPDATE:We have heard from the Knights they are NOT leaving, just replacing some signage. ***

Today one of our readers mentioned that they heard that the Knights of Columbus were leaving Bothell and that their signs have been taken down. Has anyone heard any news on this? It would be to bad, the Knights of Columbus have been a part of Bothell for over 30 years. Wondering if there was a developer that had bought up that land or something.. there are so many developments that are popping up along the hill down on Bothell Everett Highway to downtown Bothell. Send us an email or use our CONTACT FORM.

Today is Saturday November 24th, Small Business Saturday. Small Business Saturday was a movement started by American Express to help encourage small business shopping. Many of the small business owners in Bothell, Woodinville, Kirkland and Kenmore are hoping that we (the local consumer) make this day a great day of shopping. So whether you shop in Downtown Bothell, Canyon Park, Thrashers Corner or the Country Village, please make sure to dedicate at least a some of your shopping dollars to local businesses.

Supporting local business means supporting local communities.

Thanksgiving is Thursday. Black Friday is... well, Friday and Saturday, is Small Business Saturday! Small business is one of the reasons why we love Bothell so much. Local business promotes local communities. Local communities support local families and local families are the CORE of our civilization and without civilization, we have no Xbox.

The Country Village Shops is offering COMPLIMENTARY GIFT WRAPPING on Saturday for those who shop at Country Village! Nice little perk, right?

So this Saturday, we suggest getting out there and supporting local business, or else the world will end. :)

Support Local Businesses

It is that time again, SHOPPING SEASON! In Bothell, the official kick-off to shopping season is at the Country Village Shops and their "A Taste of the Holiday's" celebration. There will be many different activities throughout the day including:

• Demos, Gift & Decorating ideas from all of your favorite Country Village Shops.
• Local ice carving artist, Dave Westberg in action at 2pm
• Luminary lighting at 4pm
• Complimentary Hot Roasted Chestnuts from 4pm-6pm
• Thousands of beautiful Christmas lights!

Also, the Country Village Shops is hosting a Wine Walk runs from 5pm-8pm and benefits the Northshore Performing Arts Center Foundation. Advance tickets are $20 or $25 at the door.Purchase Wine Walk tickets online at www.npacf.org

Below is a list of the Shops and the Wineries they are hosting!

• Antique Garden Hosts Knipprath Cellars
• Chapters Photography Hosts Amelia Bleu & Patterson Cellars
• Country Blend Hosts Convergence Zone Cellars
• Cranberry Cottage Hosts Northwest Cellars
• Eclectic Haven Hosts Lodmell Cellars
• Heartland Interiors Hosts Stottle Winery
• JJ Books Hosts Matthews Estate Winery
• Life Solutions Healing Center Hosts Kaella Winery
• O'Malley & Potter Hosts Chocolate Shop
• Quite the Find Hosts Dubindil Winery
• Rust N Roses Antiques Hosts Redmond Ridge Winery
• Sankara Imports Hosts Naches Heights Vineyards
• Stampin' in the Rain Hosts Piccola Cellars
• The Mercantile Wine and Goods - Open Road Cellars and Cedar River
• Tiffany Ann Home hosts Icon Cellars
• Town Hall Antique Mall hosts Gecko/Michael Florentino Cellars
• Toys that Teach hosts Davenport Cellars
• Village Eatery hosts Elevation Cellars

Come out and support your community and local business!

The head of security at Country Village Shops posted an interesting blog post this evening that makes us wonder if he is actually capable of doing his job. Apparently, there have been numerous incidents recently of someone shopping after hours in the Country Village. We say "shopping" because this individual leaves some sort of payment at every shop... gold coins and candy canes.. hmmm. Wonder who that could be?

We received word from Dawn McCravey that tonight Dawn and Rosemary McAuliffe will be attending the Lockwood PTA forum at the Lockwood Elementary School. 

Mrs. McCravey urges every parent who is truly concerned with our children's education come out to show support.

What: Public Forum with Dawn McCravey and Rosemary McAuliffe hosted by the Lockwood PTA.

Where: Lockwood Elementary

When: Tonight, September 18th, 8pm

Why: To speak about education and the future of education in our local area

Who: Dawn McCravey and Rosemary McAuliffe

Hi everyone, Hannah has lost her dog and we are looking to you to help us find Lily!

Here are the specifics:

Female Papillon 8 lbs, 2 years old. 

Fluffy white and red dog with black markings on her face (almost look like she is wearing a mask)

Lost 9/6 in Bothell near Northshore senior center.

Beloved family pet, has heart condition and requires daily medication

PLEASE CALL 425-770-4997 or 206-226-3590

$500 REWARD - no questions asked we just want our dog back!

UPDATE *** BBF organizers are still looking for a few more local sponsors for the event ***

Try driving ANYWHERE on Labor Day weekend, let alone to Seattle for Bumbershoot is nothing but headaches. Having a local, eastside alternative to Bumbershoot is refreshing. Enter, the Bothell Blues Festival on September 1, 2012 from 11am-8pm at Country Village Shops. If you are around Mill Creek, Lynnwood, Kenmore, Woodinville or Kirkland, you NEED to check out this show.

With this years slogan: "BBQ, Blues, Beer  and Bothell", people can be assured of a great blues festival experience. This year the guys running the Bothell Blues Festival somehow landed one of the area's premier blues bands, The Wired! Band. The Wired! Band recently (Feb 2012) won the 2012  INTERNATIONAL BLUES CHALLENGE on Beale Street in Memphis, Tennessee! These guys put on a show EVERYONE talks about. 

​There are many reasons why this trio is such a crowd favorite, the music is one reason, the other is how they interact with the fans. There has not been a crowd that has not gone home and said "Holy Cow! Those guys ROCKED". Kevin and the band actually come down into the stands and play! Talk about a show! 

And to add  the AWESOME headliner, they were able to bring back Chester Dennis Jones and his band which headlined last year and ROCKED the house. Word on the street is that Jeff Herzog will be joining Chester again this year. Jeff is one of Washington states best harmonica player. With Chester's guitar and vocals, and Jeff's outstanding harp playing, that act is one of the best blues acts around.

​They  are also bringing back Gin Creek. Last year crowds were blown away by the vocals and keyboard of this great blues act and it was awesome having them back in the beer garden hanging out with fans after their set!

​Blues is just one part of this festival. Lets talk about the BBQ. Dave Hayward and his team are smokin' up some goodness for this event. Last year Dave had slow smoke pulled pork and beef brisket sandwiches. This year he is bringing down one of his specialties.. his RIBS! Ask anyone, having Dave around means you are going to EAT WELL!

Last year event organizers were asked by almost everyone to bring the festival back this year as it was a great value for the price. But they just didn't bring back those acts, the also packed a bunch of other values into each ticket price. The $15 not only gets you all day in and out privileges at the event (5 bands), it also gets you a TON OF DISCOUNTS on your ticket purchase. There are over 20 different shops at the Country Village Shops that are offering specials for each wristband wearing festival goer. 

​Last but soooo not least,  let's talk beer garden. Yes, we will be having the well run, well stocked beer garden with Men's Room Original Red we will also be having some wine provided as well! They were asked over and over again to bring wine to the festival and now (Washington State Liquor Board willing) you will have it.

Support local music, support local business and have fun doing it at the Bothell Blues Festival.

We have lost a Schnauzer Doxie mix named Pepper on the 4th of July at 10:30 P.M.

He was wearing a blue fleece coat.

Please contact us if found at:
Home: 425-398-1028
Cell: 760-328-6659

I have attached a flier that we have posted around town where he went missing.

We love promoting Bothell businesses. Heck, WE are a Bothell business. However, every once in a while we come across something that is just not right.

Below is a story from a long time reader of the Bothell Blog. The reason why we are posting this user's experience with Goodyear Auto Service Center in Bothell is so that other Bothell residents are informed on the experience of others. Please read, please share:

"I had my 94' Honda Accord towed to Goodyear Auto Service center. I called the shop and spoke to Tom. I let him know that my car was being towed to this location. He took my name and number and asked what was wrong with the car. I stated that the car failed to start when I tried leaving work that afternoon. Tom said he would take a look at the car the next day and give me a call.

About 10:30 I received a call from Goodyear from another person named Kurt. The diagnostics on the car indicated the distributor unit needed to be replaced. He also suggested a fuel injection cleaning. By not being in the financial position to get all the work done I decided to only have the distributor unit replaced. He quoted me at $55 for diagnostic, $75 for installation and $288 for the part. He said the car would most probably be done by 12:30 to 1:30. I received a phone about an hour later and was told that the incorrect part was quoted due to the car not having a model decal. So Kurt now said the total would be about $100 more because it was a brand new part and because the part still had to be requested I was now told my car wouldn’t be ready till around 3:30. It was 4:00 and hadn’t heard from Goodyear so I gave them a call and was told my car still wasn’t ready because my part hadn’t arrived due to traffic. On the previous conversation I double checked what the total would be and I was told approximately $500. When I arrived shortly after 5:00 my car was ready but.

I was shocked and surprised to find out that the grand total was $611.00. I didn’t get the name of the tech that helped me but I questioned the total and let him know I was told the total would be about $500. He didn’t know why there was a difference and said the person that initially helped me was gone and even if he got a hold of the tech he wouldn’t be able to do anything for me. Frustrated I had no choice but to swipe my card. After doing some research, I found out that the part (if bought from O'Brien's Auto Parts would have cost me around $200)"

We would be happy to post a response from Goodyear in Bothell, if they like.

Northshore School District member and longtime education leader Dawn McCravey filed her official declaration of candidacy for the State Senate from the 1^st Legislative District today.

She cited the legislature’s failure to enact education reform and fully fund the state’s schools as the primary reason for her candidacy.

“I am running because we have an education crisis in this state and our kids are the ones suffering,” McCravey said. “ Vital reforms are being blocked in the senate and it’s time for a change.”

Washington ranks near the bottom nationally in high school graduation rate, education reforms and per pupil funding.

 “The answer is simple really,” McCravey added. “Education in this state needs both reform and resources and it’s currently not getting enough of either. There is a broad coalition advocating reform of our schools but the effort has stalled in the Senate. Important bills were sometimes not even given a hearing in the Education Committee. We have to change that. We must put our kids ahead of the special interests.”

 “We need to provide accountability measures in our schools to drive performance and demand results. We need to reprioritize state spending to stop the decline in education funding as a percentage of the budget. Further, we need to give parents a voice in the education options for their kids,” explained McCravey. “We’ve got a lot of work to do.”

McCravey also stressed the importance of tax relief for families and reducing the burden on small businesses to help create more jobs. “There’s no reason this state can’t lead the way on education reform and job creation,” she added.

As a two-term school board member and former board president, Dawn has built a strong following of supporters behind her reform agenda. She has support from a broad coalition of Republicans, Democrats and Independents.

“I’m going to run a grassroots-based campaign centered on meeting voters door-to-door,” said McCravey. “My team is ready to go. We’re excited and passionate to win this race.”

The First legislative district spans north King and south Snohomish Counties and includes Bothell, Brier, parts of Mountlake Terrace and Kirkland along with the North Creek and Maltby communities.

First elected to the Northshore School Board in 2007, Dawn served as president of the board from 2009-11. A former special education teacher, she was re-elected to the board last year. Dawn and her husband Lee have six kids, and four grandchildren. They live in Bothell.

Phone: 425-299-1586

http://mccraveyforsenate.com/

Recently one of our staff had to work late and was unable to leave the office. Looking around, besides the random pizza place, there were not many options for getting dinner delivered to the office. After some hunting, he found Dinner Delivery Plus. DDPLUS is located in Kirkland Washington, but they deliver food from a number of Eastside restaurants. Of course we have our favorites here in Bothell, like Carolina Smoke BBQ and Vivendo’s, but we had the hankering for some Claim Jumper’s.

Over a year ago during a Bothell City Council meeting, the Council members engaged in a lively discussion about the value of the parcels known as The Boy Scout Property on the side of Maywood Hill in Bothell. The steep, wet acreage became a point of discussion thanks to the efforts of a local advocacy group known as HOW, Help Our Woods. For over a decade, HOW has fought development of the 63.8 acres consisting of six parcels, and encouraged the city and community to save the forest for future generations and the wildlife living there.

Pictured, left to right are: Pat Ewing -- Bothell City Council, Dawn McCravey -- Northshore School Board, Mark Lamb -- Mayor City of Bothell, Sandi Clement -- President and founder of Help Our Woods

The woods provide multiple benefits to the environment through air and water quality, ensure habitat for animals squeezed by development and give residents and visitors a beautiful Bothell.

Bothell’s City Council strives for fiscal responsibility to their taxpayers. Therefore, the lively discussion going on over a year ago was about the use of taxpayer funds to match grants provided by the County or state. The council felt torn by a desire to preserve and protect a valuable Bothell asset and the need to use increasingly limited funding wisely and representative of it’s citizens.

In an inspired moment, Mayor Mark Lamb stated that if all the 600+ petition signers would follow his lead in donating, this debate would resolve itself. Council member Patrick Ewing was quick to embrace this challenge. Northshore School Board member Dawn McCravey pledged to match Pat Ewing’s donation at the break when an appropriate time for public comment occurred.

Our local representatives on the Bothell City Council and Northshore School Board deserve a hand for their unwavering dedication to a better Bothell.

In the past year, HOW, Help Our Woods has received 501C3 status so matching funds could be donated by our community and the pledges made that night could be optimized.  This status allows donations to be tax deductible and many companies will match the donation to HOW. The funds are dedicated to saving the forest and preserving habitat there. HOW echoes the sentiment of our City Council to provide funding through community outreach and donations.

Help Our Woods recently partnered with the City of Bothell once again to apply for another King County Conservation Futures Fund grant. It has been successfully completed and filed, so the hard work of collecting matching funds begins. HOW needs your donations to help make this dream a reality. It is our pledge to dedicate ALL collected funds to the purchase and revitalization of the forest. Help Our Woods is a non-profit organization that exists solely for this purpose. We are the only non-profit 501C3 organization able to collect donations for saving these woods.

Please send your tax-deductible donations to:
Help Our Woods
19803 108th Ave NE
Bothell, WA 98011

If your company has a matching funds program on employee donations, HOW qualifies for those programs. Learn more about us at:

http://www.helpourwoods.com

Saturday, April  7, 2012 , 11:00-3:00 pm

Hop Around the Village

Come visit the Easter Bunny while he hops around Country Village with candy filled Easter eggs for children from 11:00-3:00pm, Saturday, April 7^th, 2012.   Join him throughout the day for fun & games, story time, and a special craft project. 

Student Presentations, Displays and Speaker featured at annual Light a Fire for Learning Luncheon  - April 26

Bothell, WA - Science, art, music, agriculture...can’t imagine how they’re all connected? Dozens of Northshore School District students will demonstrate how these widely diverse topics and more, affect their education in the classroom and beyond.

The “Light a Fire for Learning” luncheon, presented annually by the Northshore Schools Foundation, showcases student learning through various presentations and displays.

Bothell, Wa -- The Northshore Schools Foundation is serious about providing district-wide financial support for STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) education.

During a special presentation at the February 28 meeting, Foundation co-presidents Karissa Webster and Kristin Austin, presented school board president Julia Lacey a $35,000 grant for STEM Education.

Apparently, a Bothell man named Sherwin Shayegan has traveled to different high schools dressed as a basketball fan and ends up on the bench with the team, giving them massages, even getting piggyback rides.. They have named him the "Piggyback Bandit". National news link below.

Bothell, Wa-- Turning tragedy into a positive. This story was submitted by one of our local readers. Please take a moment and read the following:

We have a ton of technical talent here in Bothell, that goes without saying. It's not often that we hear of technical stories that impact our local wetlands. There was an article in the Gamasutra online magazine about University of Washington Bothell's own Jordan Weisman's work as director of the Center for Serious Play.

What we found great about this story is that Jordan and his class focused on creating a game to raise awareness around a local issue we have in here in Bothell, the preservation of wetlands. They said that 80 percent of the money raised through the release of their "UWB Wetlands Restoration" Facebook game will be donated to help preserve wetlands. Not to shabby, nice work Jordan and UW Bothell!!

More information about the UW of Bothell's Wetlands Restoration Project visit here:
http://www.uwb.edu/admin/wetlands/restoration-project

We received a mail from a reader today mentioning they had found a dog around 01/13/12, by St.Brendans Church. The lost female dog is tan, possibly Havanese and around 1 year old.

Here is the picture that was sent over to us:

If you think this might be your dog, give the Bothell Blog an email at info (at) bothellblog.NET.

New Strip Club in Bothell... Oh Wait, it's a Coffee Stand

According to Sara Osborne from Safeway HQ, the Bothell Community stepped up again. With the assistance of the Bothell Community, the new Bothell Safeway has donated a large sum of money to a local charity. Here is what she sent to the Bothell Blog:

It's that time of year again and Santa is on his way. There will be family events and happenings all afternoon so get to the Country Village early to get parking. This by far is the most cherished event in held in Bothell....perhaps the entire Eastside.

Video Game Creator Contest this Thursday, December 1st at 5:30pm at UW Bothell's Center for Serious Play. 

According to the Snohomish County website, below are the current standings for our Bothell City Council Seats:

You know how to tell if it is getting cold in Bothell? Bothell's own wood and Ice Carver, David Westberg is firing up his electric chainsaw and starts carving up some incredible Ice sculptures.