discover
Published by the Hill Country Sun.
Dripping Texas For Springs, advertising, call 512-484-9716
or email julie@hillcountrysun.com
March 2013
LOCAL INFORMATION & ADVERTISING
Loads of fun for everyone at Jump Wild
J
By Laurel Robertson
ump Wild is 10,000 square feet of fun where kids literally bounce off the walls! A kids’ wonderland awaits inside the large new metal building at the cul-de-sac end of Frog Pond Lane. The first and only locally owned trampoline park and bounce house in Dripping Springs, Jump Wild is off to a bounding good start since opening in February. With two rooms of wall-to-wall trampolines and a large main area housing three huge inflatables, each as large as a living room, parents can relax while their kids have a bouncing good time. Parents themselves, owners Jason and Dottie Crow know how to offer a fun time while keeping kids safe. They’ve set aside a dedicated Toddler Area for kids three and under with age-appropriate equipment.
For all ages, there’s a 10-foot climbing wall with thick mats underneath for safe landings. A 35-foot long inflatable obstacle course encourages exercise, coordination, problem-solving skills and just plain fun. An 18-foot inflatable double slide is thrilling, yet safe. And, a large inflated bouncing house takes out any leftover energy. Admission to the two trampoline courts (one for general jumping and one for extreme dodge ball) is available by the hour. Parents can relax on benches and watch kids in the main room while still keeping tabs on kids in the trampoline courts via closed-circuit TV. They can cruise the internet via free Wi-Fi or watch their favorite sports matches on big-screen TVs. Soft drinks and packaged See JUMP WILD, Page 2
The Crow family—LEFT TO RIGHT mom Dottie, Avery, Kendall, dad Jason and Hudson— welcome your family to Jump Wild. Photo courtesy Jump Wild.
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Let’s do everything we can to better our quality of life! THANK YOU for supporting one of Dripping Spring’s locally owned businesses!
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JUMP WILD, from page 1
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Tons of fun on the main trampoline court at Jump Wild. Photo courtesy Jump Wild. snacks are available in the snack area. An outdoor deck offers picnic tables and an enjoyable Hill Country vista. Foosball and air hockey tables mean there’s truly something for everyone. At the back of the main room, three colorful party areas are a great spot to host birthday parties or other special celebrations. All-inclusive party packages include trampoline room and bouncing passes
for all guests, with clean up taken care of so grown-ups can relax and enjoy the fun with the little ones! Before launching Jump Wild, Jason worked for Dell Computers and Dottie was a stay-at-home mom with their five kids (including a set of four-year-old twins). Choosing a business focused on physical activity came naturally to the active family. See JUMP WILD, Page 3
March 2013 JUMP WILD, from page 2
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Translate your vision into a beautiful, functional landscape! Jump Wild offers inviting three colorful party areas sure to be perfect for your next celebration. Photo courtesy Jump Wild. “We are sports people,” says Dottie. That includes team sports for the kids: their 17-year old son plays varsity soccer at Dripping Springs High School; Jason coaches their nine-year-old daughter’s basketball and select soccer teams; and Dottie coaches their twins soccer team. As a family, they also enjoy boating, waterskiing, snow skiing and wakeboarding together. As Dripping Springs residents for the past 17 years, the Crows say they found themselves constantly driving into Austin for birthday parties and other kids’ entertainment activities. “Since our family covers such a wide age range, we were looking for a kid-oriented business that would appeal to them all,” the couple explains. After visiting a trampoline park in Colorado, the two knew they had found the perfect solution. Jump Wild is open ’til midnight Fri-
day and Saturday nights to the delight of Dripping Springs’ middle school and high school crowd. “Last Friday we had close to 40 teenagers,” reports Dottie, and she says she expects more as word spreads. Church youth groups, sports teams and preschool groups are also joining in the fun. In the future, the Crow family plans to add teen lock-ins to the schedule, and adult group activities including corporate events and a Trampoline Boot Camp for women. FYI • Jump Wild is located at 295 Frog Pond Lane just east of Dripping Springs. Days of operation are Tuesday through Sunday and on Monday school holidays. General admission is good for all day in the main inflatables room; a separate rate applies for the trampoline courts. Punch passes good for 10 one-hour trampoline sessions are available at a special discount during the month of March. For more information, call 512-858-2500, visit the web site at www.jumpwild.com (or find them on Facebook).
• Full landscape design and installation • Flagstone patios and walkways • Outdoor kitchens • Water features • Landscape lighting • Arbors and Pergolas
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10% off any repair* Kids love the double slide at Jump Wild. Photo courtesy Jump Wild.
*excluding engine or transmission replacements. Must bring in this coupon for 10% off. 3
Volunteers continue improvements at Charro Ranch Park
M
ore than 60 area residents recently participated in a ribbon-cutting at Charro Ranch Park, held to showcase improvements at the park, including the completion of a bird-viewing station and installation of a rainwater collection tank. Joe Volpe, former Dripping Springs City Council Member, Parks and Recreation Commissioner, and Charro Ranch Park Partners Committee member, welcomed honored guests. Volpe praised philanthropic land donor Lucy Reed Hibberd, who was not in attendance, for her generous donation of the parkland and initial improvements. He applauded Hays County Master Naturalists, Charro Ranch Park Partners, City Council and others. Rob Hayden, Parks & Recreation Commissioner and Chair of Charro Ranch Park Partners Committee spoke and commended the Hays County Master Naturalists, including project leader M.Lee Brown, construction leader Jim Donohoe, Connie Boltz, Anne Child, Garry Child, Jonathan Clarkson, Mark Hammond, Tom Hausler, Alex Hewes, Paul Johnson, Helen Marsh, Beth Ramey and Leigh Sebera for participating in planning and development. “The Hays County Master Naturalists have worked more than 1,200 hours at the park. They hold monthly workdays that are participated in by the many park patrons who want to help,” Rob says. “I have seen for myself at workdays how loyal and committed these volunteers
are. They have worked in 100+ degree weather and in very cold weather. They have provided tough manual labor, shedding sweat and some shedding blood doing it,” Rob emphasizes. Special recognition was given to M. Lee Brown, Hays County Master Naturalist and Project Leader. City Administrator Michelle Fischer said “M. Lee has been a tireless visionary and dedicated leader. Without her, there would not be a birdviewing station.” Also acknowledged was Jim Donohoe, the construction leader who led the team through the entire project using local materials to maintain the natural and cultural heritage of Dripping Springs. “Hays County Master Naturalists’ most ambitious project to date is the birdviewing station, which is the culmination of a two-year project. After identifying more than 100 bird species in the park, the Hays County Master Naturalists led the effort to fundraise, design, and build the bird-viewing station,” Michelle says. Hays County Master Naturalist M. Lee Brown explained the importance of maintaining the park’s natural habitat for birds and wildlife as the area population increases and land becomes fragmented. Support from the community allowed the projects to move forward. The Hays County Master Naturalists were awarded grant funding of $1,500 from the Dripping Springs Community Foundation and $1,000 from Pedernales Electric Co-
operative–Community Grants Program for the project. Michael McGown gave a $500 donation in memory of Charles O’Dell. The Rich Moore family donated limestone, McCoy’s Building Supply provided discounted materials, and Martins Rock Work discounted masonry labor. Grapevine Volunteers in the new bird blind at Charro Ranch Park. Signs and De- Photo courtesy City of Dripping Springs. signs also donated sponsorship signage for the project. station also marks the beginning of Hays In addition, local Girl Scouts Rachel County Master Naturalists’ next phase of Kadlecek and Jacqueline Six of Troop 2302 the project, which is to provide the volcreated a bird guide for the blind that will unteer labor to design, acquire material, be utilized to help people identify specific plant, and maintain a trail-head demonbird species. The Girl Scouts provided bird stration garden with a water tank. feeders and a directional trail sign. The Master Naturalists also are enA rainwater collection system was also thusiastic to begin bird watching classes, installed with a 305-gallon tank funded by wildlife habitat education, and educathe City of Dripping Springs. The system tional outreach to local schools and the will supply a water feature for the birds community. throughout the year and will be replenFYI • Please call City Hall at 512-858-4725 if you ished with each rain. or your organization would like to donate labor, supplies or The completion of the bird-viewing money to continue improvements at Charro Ranch Park.
Come see what’s new for Spring!
Farmers’ Market is back but now on Wednesdays
S Jewelry, Gifts and Accessories
To Advertise... Call Julie at 512-484-9716 or email julie@hillcountrysun.com 4
at Rippy Ranch Supply 365 Mercer Street Dripping Springs, Texas Thurs & Fri 10 am-6 pm Sat 10 am-5 pm facebook.com/robinsclosetds
512-571-2616
www.robinsclosetds.com
pring greens and other fresh, locally grown produce will be brimming over at the Dripping Springs Farmers Market beginning Wednesday, March 20. With the switch to a new day and time (Wednesday afternoons from 3 pm to 7 pm), the volunteer Farmers Market Committee hopes to make the city-sponsored market more convenient for everyone—including commuters and school parents. Special events for spring markets include an Easter Eggstravaganza March 27 starting at 5:30 pm with a visit from the Easter Bunny (bring your camera!) and performances by the Dripping Springs High School High Steppers and dancers from Starbella Dance Company. Easter baskets filled with live wheat grass will be available for a limited time. April 3, Fragrance Stinks will detail how “pretty” smelling chemical are making us all sick. Fragrance Stinks is dedicated to educating the public about toxic chemicals in everyday products, while presenting natural solutions to keeping the home clean and fresh and the mind and body healthy. Just about everything needed, they say, is in the kitchen or garden. FYI • Dripping Springs Farmers Markets will continue weekly through December 18 at The Triangle across from the Wells Fargo Bank at Ranch Road 12 and Mercer Street.
March 2013
EVERY SUNDAY • Live Jazz Brunch at the Nutty Brown Cafe. www.nuttybrown.com. SECOND and FOURTH SUNDAY • Drippin’ Dancin’. BYOB and food, tips for band appreciated. Barn at Bell Springs, 4000 Bell Springs Road. 6 pm to 9 pm. Lessons 5 pm to 6 pm. $5 cover. EVERY MONDAY • Rotary Club meets at Creek Road Café. 12 noon. 512-894-3944. • Boy Scout Troop 280. St. Martin de Porres Church Hall. 512-9040444, ckichuk@yahoo.com, drippingsprings280.mytroop.us. SECOND MONDAYS • Group of Dripping Springs (GODS) Moms meets at Dripping Springs Methodist Church 9 am to 11:15 am. austindeli@msn.com, 512-894-0581. FOURTH MONDAYS • Artists of Dripping Springs. Gatherings at area studios. 512-894-0394. • Gen. Ben McCulloch 2435, UDC meets at the Veterans Hall, 27500 Ranch Road 12 at 7 pm. Call Sharon Hudson at 512-858-7177. MONDAY through THURSDAY • Discovery Day School. mmilligan@ discoveryday-school.org. EVERY TUESDAY • Toastmasters Dripping Springs. 6:30 pm. Pioneer Bank Building Conference Room. Call Mike at 214-339-3237. • Dripping Springs Property Tour at Farm Bureau Insurance. Breakfast at 9 am with tour following. 512-579-7711, dshometour@gmail.com. • Kids’ Night at the Nutty Brown Cafe. 99 cent kids’ meals, balloon art and a moonbounce. www.nuttybrown.com. SECOND, THIRD, FOURTH TUESDAYS • Dripping Springs Boy Scout Troop 101 meets. Dripping Springs United Methodist Church. 7 pm. Tom Chenault at 512-707-7488. SECOND TUESDAYS • The Friends of the Dripping Springs Community Library meet at 11 am at the library. Contact Bobbie Hentschel@512-771-3217 or friendsofdslibrary@gmail.com for info/ volunteer opportunities. EVERY WEDNESDAY • Dripping Springs Farmers Market. The Triangle (Highway 290 and Ranch Road 12) 3 pm to 7 pm. Rain or shine. cityofdrippingsprings.com. •Steak Night and Karaoke at the Nutty Brown Cafe. nuttybrown.com. • Awana. Wednesday 6 pm to 7 pm at Henly Baptist Church. 512-858-0043, www.henlybaptistchurch.org. • Open Mic Night at the Nutty Brown Cafe. www.nuttybrown.com. EVERY THURSDAY • Thyme and Dough Bistro Nights with live music, scrumptious dinners
and decadent desserts. 6 pm to 9 pm. 512-894-0001. • Henly Baptist Church JOY (Just Older Youth) Club meets at 9:30 am. www.henlybaptistchurch.org. FIRST THURSDAYS • Dripping Springs American Legion 7 pm. 512-858-5637. FIRST AND THIRD THURSDAY • Lions Club meets at 131 East Mercer Street. 512-858-5159. THIRD THURSDAYS • Dripping Springs VFW meets. 27500 Ranch Road 12. 7 pm. 512-858-5637. EVERY FRIDAY • Men’s Breakfast at Fitzhugh Baptist Church. 6:30 am. 512-913-4808. EVERY SUNDAY • N’awlins Night at the Nutty Brown Cafe. Zydeco Blanco performs, plus moonbounce for kids, all-you-can-eat catfish, shrimp boil, more. Music 7:30 pm to 11 pm. www.nuttybrown.com. FIRST SATURDAY • Low Cost Pet Vaccinations at Tractor Supply. 512-858-7229. SECOND & FOURTH SATURDAY • Pet Adoption Sponsored by Thundering Paws Animal Sanctuary. Tractor Supply. 512-402-9725. MARCH 10 • 9th Annual Brittany Tuck Memorial Benefit and BBQ Cook Off. Raises funds for local graduating seniors and honors life of Coach Keith Tuck and Sandra Tuck’s eldest daughter, Brittany. Music, dancing, auctions, luncheon, barbecue cook off and activities for the family. Music by Honeybrowne, Brandon Jenkins, Texas Renegade, Chad Hudson, Michael Myers, The Jerry Martin Band and Jeff Whitehead. Camp Ben McCullough. www.brittanytuck.com. MARCH 22 • Denim and Diamonds Gala. Dinner, dancing, casino, and silent auction. Proceeds benefit the DS Education Foundation, supporting academic excellence in our school district. Tickets available at dseducationfoundation.org. • Paint the Town Purple. All businesses are encouraged to decorate with purple; staff and townspeople asked to wear purple or the “Givn’ Cancer the Boot” tshirt. for cancer awareness for Dripping Springs Relay for Life. 512-633-0139. MARCH 28 • Dripping Springs Chamber Membership Luncheon. 11:30 am to 1 pm at Hill Country Bible Church. 512-858-7000 or 512-858-4740. APRIL 19-21 • 26th Annual Founders Day Festival. Traditional hometown parade kicks off beloved event April 19 at 6:30 pm. Carnival, cook-off contests, chicken clucking contest and more. Sponsors needed. 512-858-7425, foundersdayfestival.com. FYI • For information, call the Chamber at 512858-4740.
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The busy world of Works! Lady Bug Naturals A
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person begins to feel like a tiny ant in a giant kitchen, watching the monstrous front end loaders measure and scoop ingredients from towering piles of raw materials, mixing the special soil blends and compost recipes created by the master chef of gardening. Decomposed granite, expanded shale, shredded cedar, aged compost and much more go into creating the carefully-balanced formulas that distinguish the high-quality line of Lady Bug Naturals Brand products. From the manufacturing facility on Mc-
Gregor Lane west of Dripping Springs, the finished bags of organic soil blends, fertilizers, composts and mulches will be shipped to independent garden centers across the South. Dumptruck loads of the custom mixes will travel a brief twenty miles to resupply the busy soil yard at The Natural Gardener in Oak Hill, Lady Bug Natural Brand’s parent facility. Inside a small building almost obscured behind the towering piles, a happy crew of 12 keeps the large wholesale and small retail business humming. Eight yard workers opSee LADY BUG, Page 7
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MODERN ORTHODONTICS FROM FRIENDLY PEOPLE.
Mark A Thompson DDS MS Specialist in Orthodontics 512-858-2916 • www.austinbraces.com corner of Ranch Road 12 @ 290 West
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Travis and Casey stack bags of Hill Country Garden Soil at Lady Bug Naturals. Photo courtesy Lady Bug Naturals.
March 2013 LADY BUG NATURALS, from page 6 erate the heavy equipment that moves, mixes, stirs and bags the multitude of materials that go into Lady Bug Natural Brand’s custom blends. Four office workers run the small garden center in the front that stocks a streamlined version of The Natural Gardener’s line of home gardening supplies; from the offices in back, they manage the large inventory, sales and shipping for the soil supply wholesale business. In 2000, general manager Andy Chidester helped The Natural Gardener’s owner, John Dromgoole, develop and market Lady Bug Natural Brand products to address what the renowned gardening expert saw as a poor and inconsistent quality of gardening products on the market. For 10 years, Lady Bug Natural Brand products were mixed and bagged at The Natural Gardener’s busy garden supply center on Old Bee Caves Road. The operation prospered and eventually outgrew the space available at the Oak Hill location In 2010, Andy oversaw moving the manufacturing end of the Lady Bug Natural Brand line to the new nine-acre facility west of Dripping Springs. A few months later, she added a small gardening supply store for the benefit and convenience of the local community. Customers can purchase the full line of Lady Bug Natural Brand soils, amend-
ments, composts and mulches, available by the bag, bag-your own, or by the truck load. They’ll also deliver bulk amounts. The garden center carries a large selection of garden seeds (heirloom and modern), organic and natural pest control products, organic chicken feed, gardening tools and more. In the fall of 2010, Andy also helped create Lady Bug Natural Brand’s own charity, Harvest for the Hungry, as a way to give back to the community by making sure that every local had enough to eat. The program collects non-perishable food items at every event Lady Bug Natural Brand participates in, and helps build community gardens in cooperation with the state Master Gardener’s Programs. Everyone is encouraged to drop off fresh or non-perishable food items at the store/manufacturing center in Dripping Springs. All items are donated to Helping Hands in Dripping Springs and the Good Samaritan Center in Blanco. The program has been a success, says Andy, “because gardeners are some of the world’s best people.” “Honestly, have you ever met a mean gardener?” she asks. FYI • Lady Bug Natural Brand store and manufacturing facility is located at 160 McGregor Lane, four miles west of Dripping Springs. Hours of operation are Monday through Friday from 8 am to 5 pm, and Saturday from 8 am to 1 pm. For more information, visit the web site at ladybugbrand.com or call 512-858-9090.
Dripping Springs Chamber of Commerce
2012 Suits & Boots Community Awards Winners Business of the Year THE TERRACE CLUB New Business of the Year THE DUDLEY’S WINE BAR & TAP ROOM Non-Profit of the Year THE AUSTIN ZOO Outstanding Customer Service Award HEB Citizen of the Year KATHY CARRIKER Hometown Hero/ Ed Sims Memorial Award CARL WAITS
Ball Brothers Paint & Drywall 30 Years Experience Locally Owned & Operated Quality Workmanship References Available Exterior Painting H Interior Painting H Drywall Repair Carpentry Work H Power Washing H F ence & Deck Painting Fence & Deck Staining H Rental Property Make-Ready
512-360-7062 H www.ballbrotherspainting.com 7
After seven and a half years as Family First Chiropractic here in Dripping Springs, We are now joining a bigger chiropractic family to offer you more services. FFC is now Healthsource of Dripping Springs. Join us on March 28th from 5-8 for food, beverages, live music, a bounce house and prizes. Expanded hours and services to better serve our community. Enter to win a flat screen tv for those in attendance. Open to the community! Dr. Chae Tracy • 512-858-WELL • Dr. Monya Tracy 800 Hwy 290 West • Building C • Suite 100 • Dripping Springs
DERMATOLOGY AND SKIN CANCER CENTERS
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100 Commons Road, Suite 9 (Across HWY 290 from Home Depot) Dripping Springs, TX 78620 512.829.4427 8
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