Onward!

So I've got a few of my creative geniuses working on logos for our soon to be launched "minnie" site...hehehe:)....

And I'm excited by what I see so far!

I'm thinking it should be up and running by the first week of April or shortly thereafter. Then we can most-likely go ahead with our trademark application with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. I could file an "intent-to-use" app before then, but we'd have to file ANOTHER application after that once the name finally is officially being used in commerce. And at 325 bucks a pop, I think it's wise to hold off. I'm consulting with one of my trademark experts on that one.

So our business meeting ended with Nicole and I sitting on the floor of Barnes & Noble scouring a variety of low-fat cook and baking books. We purchased a few, as well as this book:

How to Open a Financially Successful Bakery, by Sharon L. Fullen and Douglas R. Brown. So Nicole got to take the fun books (the cookbooks) and has been having a ball researching and brainstorming on combinations of a variety of ingredients from alternative oils to flours to flavors and I got to take THAT one. And have been watching my blood pressure creep higher and higher as I read about loans and business plans and "demographic research."

But we haven't been discouraged so far! We're ready to dive head first into the baking experimenting (which should result in a few fights and a few extra pounds) as we need to get our healthier recipes and menus down pat, first and foremost, with the appropriate healthier alternatives. That's a big fat DUH.

We'll be making a visit to Chef Central on Friday night to get the first round of bakeware and ingredients for lab on Saturday. The lab being my mother's kitchen.

We'll also be signing up for a few baking courses at the Institute of Culinary Education come next month, when they post new courses finally.

~AnnMarie