Step Up for Dress Up

Gosh, I love it when America's youth steps up and does something really cool.

Woodland Hills-based teens Megan and Phoebe Stoeckel just launched an amazing new nonprofit called Operation Dress Up!. They started the organization to collect gently used clothing throughout the school year and find a way to get it to homeless children enrolled in LAUSD schools.

How great is that?

The girls are holding their very first clothing drive from 10 a.m. to noon on Saturday, June 6, at Menchie's Frozen Yogurt (at the Fallbrook Mall, 6731 ½ Fallbrook Avenue in West Hills). Take some stuff to donate, and you'll receive a coupon for a free 10-oz. frozen yogurt. It's a delicious way that you and the kids can do something for children in need.

The clothing collected from this drive will be delivered to Beyond Shelter, an organization that provides aide to L.A.'s homeless families.

Silver Spoons

L.A. Parent's production team, Terresa Burgess and Dean Gojobori, filled in for me recently when they checked out the celebrity gifting event known as the Silver Spoon Dog & Baby Buffet.

Terresa has a toddler, and Dean has a dog, so together they scouted all the cool and trendy products and services that are being offered up to Hollywood's hippest parents and pet lovers. They gathered the intelligence and brought back information for us to follow up on for product reviews with a report on all sorts of great items, from cute hair clips for kids to clothing for dogs. Amid all the goodies, they kept an eye out for Scott Baio, Allison Sweeney, Tori Spelling and others who were rumored to have RSVP'd for the invitation-only event (and they bumped into Jason Priestley!).

And, of course, Terresa took some photos, too.



Dean got a massage from Cure, an aromatherapy and home massage company.



A sweet and poodly treat from Polkatots Cupcakes!



Daisy poses with her luxurious goodies at Daisy Couture.

I've Got Mail: Bundt Cake

This one didn't exactly arrive via the USPS, but it was a sweet way to kick off the Memorial Day Weekend.

The talented folks over at Nothing Bundt Cakes sent over a sampling of their circular treats last week, and they were a hit with our cake-loving crew. The red velvet Bundt cake was not only beautiful, with its fluffy red ribbon filling the "hole" and luscious white streaks of cream cheese frosting, but it was tasty and moist. The deep-red buttermilk batter was speckled with just a dash of chocolate chips, giving the cake a little extra texture.

Hungry yet? The bakeries are part of a Las Vegas-based franchise – one of the closest here is in Thousand Oaks. The good news is that you can order them online, and they can be "themed" for birthdays, Father's Day or any other occasion. Then pick a flavor, such as Pecan Praline or White Chocolate Raspberry, and get your fork ready. You can choose from a variety of sizes and combos, but the 10-inch decorated cake is $39.50 and serves about 18 happy people.

Where in the World ...?

When I was in the seventh grade, our teacher made us learn and memorize all the countries in Africa and their capital cities. Today, I know nothing.

What happened?

It's scary to think about how much we don't know about the cities, countries, rivers, resources and cultures that populate our vast planet. Heck, I'd be willing to bet there are several people right here who couldn't find Malibu on the map.

Here's a resource that can help: Take National Geographic's daily GeoBee Challenge. I failed miserably, but it made me pry open the deepest recesses of my brain to try to stuff in some new material, like the fact that beautiful Barcelona is Spain's second largest city and is cradled between the Mediterranean and the Serra de Collserola hills.

The online portion of the GeoBee is part of the bigger National Geographic Bee, a geography competition for children in grades fourth through eighth. The national finals just wrapped last week in Washington, D.C. (congrats to 13-year-old Texas seventh grader Eric Yang!). Grab the kids and take the quiz. Surf around and learn a new geography fact for the day. Who knows, it might just make you want to travel there some day!

To Know a Dog ...

Poet Elizabeth Barrett's dog was dognapped and held for ransom in London back in 1845. When her father refused to pay the 6 guinea, she turned to family friend Robert Browning, who ultimately helped her recover her dog – and win her heart. She eloped with Robert and become Elizabeth Barrett Browning, eventually moving to Italy with both Robert and the dog.

Two dogs survived the sinking of the Titanic. A Pekinese and a Pomeranian managed to find a tiny spot aboard the lifeboats with their owners.

The Australian expression for water is "dog soup."

In 2007, the average overall cost of owning a dog that lived to the age of 11 in the U.S.: $13,350.

I learned a lot from studying Spott's Canine Miscellany (Abrams, $14.95) by Mike Darton. The title is a play on the fun and fascinating Schott's Original Miscellany almanacs, covering a wide swath of dog facts, quotes, songs, stats and yes, even recipes (for dog biscuits).

If only it could tell me why Olive still insists on escaping our relatively escape-proof yard. Perhaps she's heard this quote, which I found in the Spott's book:

"Dogs feel very strongly that they should always go with you in the car, in case the need should arise for them to bark violently at nothing right in your ear."
– Dave Barry, U.S. author and humorous columnist