The Official Blog of Bobs & LoLo

Summer is motoring along, and it is the season for family road trips! Whether it’s a weekend away or just a day trip to the city, long hours of travel can be trying for everyone.

We are currently in the final week of a month long tour in Alberta, and since we left Vancouver at the beginning of the July, we’ve logged more than 1500km in the B&L-mobile.  One of the most common FAQ’s we get from families after our shows is, “How do you two stay friends through all the long hours on the road?”

Day 11: Our glamorous life on the road…nothing feels better at the end of a three-show day than a wet wipe & a toothbrush!

This is a pretty fair question given that we typically see each other more in any given month than we do our hubbies and a lot of our time together is spent in a fully-packed van or a small hotel room.

So, how DO we make it work?

Well, the fact that we LOVE our jobs is a big plus. We’re also very lucky that our personalities complement each other so perfectly.  We attribute a lot of this to the older sibling/younger sibling thing!

That all said, it’s not always happy dancing, smiles and bubbles. We’re the first to admit that life on the road isn’t always easy, and we both have our tired and cranky moments. Below are a couple of tricks & tools we practice to help stay sane and keep our friendship strong:

1. Snappy snacks. We always have crackers, trail mix or fruit stashed in the console between the seats. We’re on an anti-low blood sugar program!

2. Share driving. Switching drivers every 2 hours is simple yet effective.

3. Music. It is amazing how the hours fly by when you’ve got good tunes playing!

4. Make time to decompress. When we’re on the road for long periods of time, we make an effort to schedule in personal time. Workouts, movie nights or even sleep-in days all help!

5. Friendship first. We try to manage the ups & downs of the biz with cooperation and compromise and a lot of laughter. Fortunately, in our world we’ve got a lot to laugh about!

Day 18: We got spotted in the hotel pool by a couple of fans! The best part is that they came by in their pj’s to get us to sign their CD!

To see more pics from our recent adventures, please check out our daily photo blog at  www.facebook.com/BobsandLoLo.

Our next stop is the Capital Ex in Edmonton where we’ll be performing 2-3 shows per day in the Family Fun Town from July 28 – August 1. Join us! It’s the perfect excuse for a road trip…

What kind of tricks do you have to keep travel fun?

Bobs & LoLo

We are excited to bring out our red & whites tomorrow for an all-day celebration of our home and native land -  Canada! 

A few short months ago, we joined the rest of Canada as the country came alive with the spirit of patriotism for the 2010 Olympic celebrations.  We can’t wait to relive some of those moments tomorrow!

July 1 is Canada Day, and we have an action packed schedule of musical adventures ahead! What better way to celebrate than with some singing and dancing? Please join us!

Canada Day Langley
McLeod Athletic Park
Show time: 11am

Canada Day Coquitlam
Lafarge Lake Park
Show time: 2:15pm

Canada Day Delta 
Chalmers Park
Show time: 6:30pm

We heart Canada!

Bobs & LoLo

Vancouver based children’s entertainers take their award-winning music on the road for a run of 32 shows at one of Canada’s largest outdoor events!
 
Bobs & LoLo hit the stage daily at this year’s world-renowned Calgary Stampede. With a well- established fan base in their home province of BC and growing national adoration, Robyn Hardy (Bobs) and Lorraine Pond (LoLo) are looking forward to sharing their live programming with families in Alberta next month. Their extensive touring to date and regular spots on the national children’s network, Treehouse TV, is sure to have preschoolers, with parents in tow, lining up to see the live show.

What do the performers have to say?

Bobs: “We’re super excited to perform at the Calgary Stampede! We’ve had such a great year already with our recent JUNO nomination and the whole Treehouse thing…getting such a large contract for the second year in a row with the Stampede really validates how far we’ve come in the last few years.”
 
LoLo: “Yeehaw! I can’t wait to unleash my inner cowgirl! We’re looking forward to all of the fun that goes along with sharing in a big event like this, although I think the main focus for Bobs and I will be staying healthy and rested so that we can survive performing 3+ shows per day for 10 days straight!”

 
Bobs & LoLo will be performing on the Buckaroos Stage at the Calgary Stampede from July 9 – 18 with shows daily at 1:30pm, 4pm & 6pm. Additional shows are scheduled for the Kids’ Days, July 11 & 14 at 11am. All Bobs & Lolo shows are FREE with general admission to Stampede Park.  

About Bobs & LoLo
Bobs & LoLo use music, movement and make-believe to share stories and experiences that both entertain and educate, while ultimately teaching children to care about themselves, their neighbours and the planet. Their programming places an emphasis on celebrating the values of healthy-living and aims to inspire young audiences with an awareness and appreciation for the world around them. Catch Bobs & LoLo live this summer or watch for their regular appearances on the national children’s television network, Treehouse TV.

For interviews with Bobs & LoLo please contact:
Christy Allan
christy@expandgroup.ca

The last couple months have been uber crazy, so our apologies for falling off the bloggity-blog bandwagon! We can’t even count how many times we’ve bunked down in our hotel rooms with the full intention of writing new blog posts. Unfortunately, the process also seems to trigger our super napping talents – not very productive!

Regardless of our long silence, we have had some fabulous musical adventures these last couple months with performances in Newfoundland, BC, Alberta and Manitoba. Highlights include the Juno Awards (woot!) as well as shows at children’s festivals in Vancouver, Canmore, St. Albert and Winnipeg. Winnipeg happens to be our current temporary abode and our last stop for the 2010 children’s fest season!

We were also excited to have an opportunity to return for a special evening of fun at the Vancouver Aquarium for the 8th annual Dreamnight in May. This amazing event hosts children, families and caregivers from BC Children’s Hospital, Canuck Place, Sunny Hill Health Centre and many other wonderful organizations. We have shared in 7 of the 8 Dreamnights at the Vancouver Aquarium and actually had our very first performance at the first annual event…back then we only had 5 songs that we sang over and over!

Below is a little peek at some of our more recent adventures! Please pardon the amateur photo montage – it’s nearly midnight in Manitoba, and we’ve had over 18 shows in the last week and a half!?

We wrap up our Manitoba trip with two final performances at The Forks in Winnipeg tomorrow and then it’s back to BC for a couple weeks. We’ll be heading to Vancouver Island for a handful of shows in Nanaimo, Comox and Victoria before packing up the van and hitting the road for 5 weeks in Alberta. Please visit our events calendar for all the details!

Be sure to connect with us on Facebook and Twitter if you’re interested in regular updates from the road. Also, if you’ve joined us at recent events and took pics or video, we’d love to see them! Please share your media skills on our FB Page…

Hope to see you soon!

Bobs & LoLo

After a lengthy red-eye flight across the country, we arrived for our first visit to scenic St. John’s, NL!

First impressions:

1. Cold – snow flurries & biting wind all day!
2. Beautiful – love the historic architecture, colourful row houses and coastal views!
3. Tasty – fresh seafood and yummy local eats have been a hit with our entire group!
4. Friendly – the people are AMAZING!

We started the ‘work’ side of our trip with a special performance at Larkhall Academy. Nearly 350 elementary students and staff celebrated a $10,000 MusiCounts instrument grant for the school’s music program, and we were thrilled to be invited to share a few songs as part of the festivities.

MusiCounts, Canada’s music education charity associated with The Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (CARAS) is helping to keep music alive in schools across Canada. Since 1997, over $3 and a half million has been donated impacting 214 post-secondary music program graduates and over 250,000 individual students, their schools and communities, from coast to coast. It was a treat to meet Larkhall music teacher, Susan Lee and some of her students at the event!

Tomorrow we will be taking in a little sightseeing (weather permitting – did we mention it’s snowing here?!) and heading to our first official JUNO reception at The Rooms. We’re also really looking forward to meeting some of the other Children’s Album of the Year nominees on Saturday morning at the Kids’ Jam for Janeway concert. We’ll be sure to continue sharing stories throughout the rest of our trip. Please feel free to also follow us on Twitter or Facebook for regular daily updates!

Please send warm, sunshine-y comments only…:)

Bobs & LoLo

Celebrations beginning in Newfoundland this week will mark the 39th anniversary of the JUNO Awards and a new career milestone for independent children’s entertainers and educators, Bobs & LoLo.

Bobs & LoLo are honoured to be nominated for 2010 Children’s Album of the Year. The award for this category will be presented at a gala dinner event in St. John’s, NL on Saturday, April 17th.

Bobs & LoLo will be travelling across the country from Vancouver, BC to attend the gala and share in a number of the JUNO Award festivities including an opportunity to walk the red carpet prior to the April 18th CTV broadcast event!

Bobs & LoLo will personally be posting stories and photos from their 2010 JUNO adventures on their blog throughout the week. You can also follow them on Facebook and Twitter for daily updates.

In addition, Bobs & LoLo are looking forward to sharing some of their music and programming during JUNO Week at two special events created specifically for children and families.

April 15, 2010 - MusiCounts Presentation

Over 350 elementary students from Larkhall Academy will celebrate a $10,000 MusiCounts instrument grant for the school’s music program with a performance by 2010 JUNO Award nominated children’s performers, Bobs & LoLo.
 
MusiCounts, Canada’s music education charity associated with The Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (CARAS), is helping to keep music alive in schools across Canada. MusiCounts includes Band Aid musical instrument grants, the MusiCounts Teacher of the Year Award, Scholarships and other initiatives. Since 1997, over $3 and a half million has been donated impacting 214 post-secondary music program graduates and over 250,000 individual students, their schools and communities, from coast to coast.
 
Bobs & LoLo are thrilled to kick-off their visit to St. John’s with a special performance for students who will directly benefit from these funds.

April 17, 2010 - Kids’ Jam for Janeway
 
Bobs & LoLo, Charlie Hope, The Bee’s Knees and The Kerplunks, all 2010 JUNO Award nominees for Children’s Album of the Year, will perform at Kids’ Jam for Janeway, a free concert to benefit the Janeway Children’s Health and Rehabilitation Centre. The concert is sponsored by Kids Music Connection, an initiative to support music and the arts in the lives of children.

The Janeway Children’s Health and Rehabilitation Centre is Newfoundland and Labrador’s only hospital specializing in pediatric health care and serves thousands of children and families each year.

For more information about the event and free advance ticket reservations, please visit www.kidsjam.ca.
 

The month of March blew by in a whirlwind of exciting news (Junos!), memorable shows (yay!) and LOTS of travel prep. We recently returned home from an amazing week-long tour on northern Vancouver Island filled with ferry rides, vocal warm-ups in the van and not nearly as much sleep as needed to remain sane. We started the week with six shows in 72 hours throughout the communities of Sointula, Alert Bay, Port Hardy, Port Alice and Port McNeill. 

 
Check out a student blog post from Mrs. Watson’s class at A.J. Elliot Elementary in Sointula for a peek at some of our musical adventures! http://mrswatson123.edublogs.org/2010/03/22/bobs-and-lolo/ 

Highlights of our trip:
1. A nice visit and home-cooked meal with Lolo’s sister, Katie!
2. Riding on the bridge of the BC Ferry from Alert Bay to Port McNeill. Special thanks to the crew for the warm welcome and kind hospitality! Thanks for buying a few CDs too…we treated ourselves to dinner out that night!
3. Signing autographs at Robert Scott Elementary in Port Hardy – Lolo actually attended Kindergarten and Grade 1 here!
4. The long, winding road out to Port Alice. A beautiful drive!
5. Randomly discovering the world’s largest burl in Port McNeill!

 
We ended our short road trip with a couple of shows at the Errington Memorial Hall. Big hugs to the Errington Co-op Preschool for inviting us to share our music and programming with the community. We enjoyed meeting families from all over the island and even some out of province visitors too!

Now it’s back to reality with a few days of admin catch-up before we dive into more musical adventures over the long weekend.

 
We hope you are enjoying the beginning of Spring and that you have an eggs-ellent long weekend!  Next stops for us:

Science World (Vancouver, BC) – April 4 & 5
Autism Speaks Fundraiser (Abbotsford, BC) – April 10
Coldstream Elementary (Vernon, BC) – April 12
Lavington Elementary (Vernon, BC) – April 12
Kids’ Jam (St. John’s, NL) – April 17 JUNO AWARDS!

Full details available on our events calendar: http://bobsandlolo.com/blog/the-big-calendar/

See you soon!

Bobs & Lolo        

It seems crazy that only one week has passed since we received news of our 2010 Juno nomination. Thank you for all of the congratulatory emails, tweets, blog comments and Facebook messages. Your encouragement and support means a lot to us!

In our last post, we mentioned our excitement about travelling across the country to share in the Juno festivities. Against our rather conservative fiscal judgment, we booked the trip to St. John’s and splurged on guest tickets to the award events for our hubbies. As we started to swallow the price tag of our new Juno nominee status, we also received an email inquiry from a representative with MusiCounts – a non-profit organization dedicated to keeping music alive in schools across Canada - asking if we would consider flying to St. John’s early to do a show for a school-aged audience prior to the Juno weekend. Were we interested? Of course!

Then reality set in. As we started looking at flight change fees plus two more nights of accommodation, the total costs of the trip seemed to be getting more and more out of reach. Could we really afford this? Could we afford not to? Friends kept telling us “it’s a once in a lifetime opportunity”…although no one was offering to pick up our VISA bill.

Rather than sit and dwell on it, we went out on a limb and sent a tweet to WestJet.

It read: Just changed flights to arrive at the Junos early to do a kids’ charity event and the travel costs are CRAZY! @westjet we need your help!

Imagine our shock when less than 2 hours later a representative from WestJet contacted us to ask for more information. By the end of that same day, WestJet had officialy offered to subsidize our flight change fees and waive the difference in the fares to fly out early (we got a sweet seat sale on our first booking). Here is a snippet of an email we received from the airline…

“As an organization we are very supportive of children and make flight donations to organizations that are focused on children’s health and wellness. While music isn’t directly related to children’s healthcare, it definitely affects their happiness and is an important part of their wellness. Since you are traveling to St John’s to donate your time for an event that will benefit children and music, we would be happy to reverse the change fees for your new flight.”
 

We heart WestJet. St. John’s here we come!

Bobs & Lolo

We are thrilled to announce that Action Packed, our most recent album release has received a 2010 Juno nomination!

Following on the heels of a 2009 Parents’ Choice Gold Award - essentially the Grammy’s of the kids’ music world – and a 2009 Western Canadian Music Award, we are overwhelmed and absolutely thrilled with the ongoing national and international attention for our third album. Warm thanks and huge cyber hugs to all of our fans, friends and family for the ongoing support of our musical adventures! This latest accolade is truly a mega highlight!

Action Packed features 12 original songs such as The Right Track, Snappy Snacks and Friends. The album is geared at connecting children to behaviours that positively impact the world around them. Using kid-friendly analogies like trains, superheroes, adventure stories and more the songs address themes such as literacy, health, teamwork and friendship.

The album was produced, arranged & recorded by Mario Vaira at Five Fathom Studios, with drums recorded by Ryan Stewart at WineCellar Music Studios and the tracks mastered at Suite Sound Labs - all of whom are located in Vancouver, BC.

For a full listing of 2010 Juno nominees, please click here.

The Juno Awards weekend will be hosted in St. John’s, NL on April 16-18. We’ve decided to fly across the country with our other halves (Mario and Kavie) to fully embrace what is sure to be a memorable and fabulous celebration of Canadian music. This might even give us an opportunity to finally do a show or two on the east coast!?

If any local BC families would like to celebrate with us this weekend, please join us in Burnaby on Saturday, March 6 for a special free family performance. Full details can be found on our events calendar.
 
Woohoo!!

Bobs & Lolo

The 2010 Olympics have officially opened in our home city of Vancouver, BC! With true Canadian pride we watched our city come alive this last week as a sea of red and white now appears to be moving through the streets. Canada has definitely caught the spirit of the 2010 games, and we are excited to be a part of the festivities!

Pre-show with Mayor Richard Stewart at Celebrate Coquitlam

Our thanks to Mark Efford - photographer and proud papa to 3-year-old Austin - for sending us the above photo which was captured at the City of Coquitlam’s torch relay celebrations. Extra thanks to Mark for his creative use of a little digital magic to give our jackets some extra B&L love…can anyone spot the added detailing?

With Friday’s 2010 Opening Ceremonies preceded by the tragic loss of Georgian luge athlete, Nodar Kumaritashvili, we can’t help but be reminded to appreciate all of the special moments we share with our loved ones. Our hearts go out to Nodar’s family, teammates and country.

Lolo and husband, Kavie, share a squeeze before his torch run!

We hope you can join us for some family time at our shows this month. If you’re not around Vancouver or Whistler, please follow us on Twitter or find us on Facebook for ongoing updates about our musical adventures.

February 13 & 14: Experience BC @ Robson Square (Vancouver)

February 20: Whistler Olympic House

February 21: ValleyFest (North Vancouver)

February 26 – 28: Whistler Live! Town Plaza

Full event details can be found on our events calendar at http://bobsandlolo.com/blog/the-big-calendar/.

Go Canada Go!

Bobs & Lolo