We'd like to welcome Sally Hall as the newest member of the Ladybird & Friends family!  Her sauce is officially delicious and has been VERY well recieved by our testers.  We are currently working on her label and as soon as it's ready, we'll make her sauce available online. 

Sally's sauce is going to be different from our normal line for a few reasons.  While Sally is, in a lot of ways, a lot like Ladybird, she is a unique friend.  She's an older pup with mild mannerisms and an occasional burst of energy.  Sally has her own built-in fan base and we know it won't be long before everyone wants a taste. 

Made with FRESH (of course) pineapple and jalapenos, this is our first green sauce!  It's milder than our others, but has an outstanding flavor.  Absolutely delicious with fish tacos, pork tenderloin, pizza and more.  Get ready to have a new favorite!{jcomments on}

Currently, we are working on two new sauces.  One is a jalapeno based hot sauce and the other is (finally!) a BBQ sauce.  We look forward to formally announcing these sauces to you, our online fans, as soon as they are ready. 

In the meantime, join us on facebook for some exciting opportunities coming up.  We will be having contests for fans in the next few weeks to get a custom labeled sauce with their favorite four-legged friend's photo!  You have to "like" us on facebook to get all the info, so join us now!

Click HERE to connect to us on facebook, or go to www.facebook.com/LadybirdHotSauce!

The differences between our products and the others are simple:

1. We make our own sauces.  That means the recipe never leaves our hands.  We don't mass produce, so you're getting a genuine gourmet product.

2. We use ONLY fresh ingredients.  We don't use a pepper mash or any canned foods.  Everything is bought fresh and used in it's prime.  That also means NO preservatives, food colorings, etc...

3. We love to give back.  By giving 5% to the ASPCA, we feel good about our business model and the way our customers see us.  We are not here to make a buck (although it'd be nice!).  We are here to provide you with an alternative to mass produced hot sauce that is made by a company who cares about our four-legged friends.

Here is a list of the awards we've won:

1st Place - Gourmet Product Awards: Sauce (Ladybird)

1st Place - Fiery Food Challenge: Hot Sauce - Hot (Zeus)

2nd Place - Zest Fest People's Choice Award: Hot Sauce (Ladybird)

2nd Place - The Hot Pepper Awards: Hot Sauce - Habanero (Ladybird)

3rd Place - The Hot Pepper Awards: Hot Sauce - Sweet (Greta)

3rd Place - The Hot Pepper Awards: Hot Sauce -Unique (Lola)

We've come up with a lot of fun ways to package our products this year, but this has got to be my favorite.  Our new Santa hats fit perfectly on bottles of Ladybird & Friends Hot Sauce and makes holiday giving so much easier.  You don't even need to wrap these bad boys up; just hand it over and wait for the smiles.  :)

Also, don't forget about our gift packs and baskets.  Our holiday hot box is now available online and all come with a festive bow!  If you're ordering a bakset for a gift, be sure to add 4 Santa hats in your cart to let us know it's a gift, and we'll throw in a free bow as well!

Ho ho ho!!

Ladybird has confiscated our pool float.  Her demands are simple.  Take. Me. Swimming. 

In the summer, I take Ladybird & Greta to the end of our street to run on the little beach there and frolic in the water.  A few weeks ago, I mentioned to them that this was probably the last time we would go, due to the weather getting much colder.  I was terribly wrong.  Yesterday we hit almost 80.  When I looked outside, Ladybird had found herself a cozy spot on the pool float.  And yes, we dressed her up with a life jacket, but only because we couldn't stop laughing at her new sunbathing spot.  We just had to do it.  I am usually not the kind of person to dress my dogs up, but come on.  This is pretty funny.  She didn't like it after a few minutes and tried to hide her face.

{jcomments on}Sorry, Bird. Let's go swimmin.

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We are so very proud to announce that our Ladybird - Everyday Hot Sauce has won a 2011 Gourmet Product Award in the "Sauces" Category!  We thank everyone at the Gourmet Product Awards, especially the judges who all got to try our delicious sauce and make the decision. We sent sauce to chefs and culinary institutes all over the US and Canada.  There were also panels of judges in Los Angeles that had the fun job of tasting all the different gourmet food items that were nominated.

Ladybird Everyday Hot Sauce is our most popular flavor of sauce.  It has a smooth and savory flavor that (obviously) can not be beat!  It's a perfect balance of heat and flavor.  As I like to remind people, habaneros are a delicious, fruity pepper that while, yes, they're very hot, they can add a tremendous amount of flavor to your meal.

If you are a retailer who is interested in carrying our delicious line of sauces, you've come to the right place!  Contact us at stephana@ladybirdandfriends.com or call 904-923-1463.

Thanks to all our fans for making us confident that our product could win such a prestigious award!

Now you can order a stylish bandana for your pet or a tote bag for yourself on our website!  We're happy to offer these new products to our customers and their pets.  The bandanas are suitable for most pet sizes, but will be large on very small dogs.  As you can see from our model, Boone, it fits medium to large sized dogs best!  Remember that we give 5% of profits to the ASPCA, so your pet will be proud to wear our logo!

The tote bags are made with a durable canvas material.  The bags are natural color and have our bright Ladybird logo.  We hope you enjoy our new items and look forward to seeing the pics of your pets wearing the bandanas and you carrying the bag!

{jcomments on}With all of the options out there for hot sauce and gift packs, we decided to come up with a unique basket that could not be found anywhere else.  Our new gift baskets are finally here!  Now you can get all 4 of our declicious hot sauces in one package.  If you order now, you will save $2.49 by ordering all 4 at once, plus you get the basket for free.  This makes a wonderful gift and is also a great way to serve hot sauce at a party, catered event or restaurant. 

We started Ladybird & Friends with 3 signature sauces.  We have since graduated to 4 by offering our Summer Seasonal, the Lola Hot Pink Grapefruit.  If you haven't tried this sauce yet (or if you have and you love it) order now.  It is most definnitely a SEASONAL sauce, so it won't be available forever.  We will hold off on production at the end of the summer and bring it back next year.  We are currently working on our fall seasonal and it is definitely unique and tasty!  We can't wait to introduce it, when the time is right.  We guarantee that you've never tasted anything like it!  Stay tuned for the announcement, coming soon.

We are happy to announce that our hot sauce is now available at Latitude 25 in Islamorada, FL!

Click here to visit their website to learn about all the products they carry as well as how to find Ladybird & Friends Hot Sauce!

If you own a store and are interested in carrying our products, please contact us at info@ladybirdandfriends.com or call Stephana @ 904-923-1463.{jcomments on}

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A company of US soldiers in Afghanistan are flying home 2 stray dogs that have become a part of their group over the past year.  They have lost 10 soldiers since thier deployment.  These two dogs have become like family to them.  The troops are about ready to come home and couldn't stand the thought of leaving these two dogs, who follow them everywhere they go, behind.  So far they have raised $6000 (via facebook) to fly these two pups to the US. 

To read this remarkable story, click here. 

We are happy to announce that our Greta Sweet Vidalia Habanero sauce has been featured in the July issue of Coastal Living in their grilling guide.  You can find it under Z for Zest! 

If you have found us today because of the feature, we thank you for taking the time to check out our site!  We are happy to offer all natural hot sauce that is made with only fresh ingredients.  We make everything in small batches, by hand.  A lot of love goes into every bottle; from chopping each pepper to hand labeling each flavor. 

We are also proud to donate 5% of all profits to the ASPCA.  Speak up for our four-legged friends who can not speak for themselves.  They deserve to live a peaceful life without abuse or neglect.  Greta's mama had 8 puppies in her belly when she was abandoned and picked up by animal control.  Her days were numbered when a miracle happened.  A local shelter walked the stalls, looking for dogs to save.  Greta was born in this shelter (PAWS Atlanta) and that's where we met.  Without groups like PAWS and ASPCA, Greta and I would have never found each other.  On top of that, there would be no Sweet Vidalia Habanero!  So thank the ASPCA today by buying a bottle of hot sauce.  The more you buy, the more we give. :)

Have a wonderful weekend!  If you're in the panhandle area, come see us at the Palafox Farmer's Market downtown on Saturdays (8am-2pm).

good day all. this will be a quick post, but amazing none the less. probably the greatest blog entry in the history of blogging. i will do for this blog what Ocean's Twelve did for film. so....

1. GO BRAVOS! love this mini-streak we got goin here. 

2. Ladybird smells like....nope, i should not finish that. she smells very bad. like a dirty dog...

3. HUGE congrats to Jeff and Annette on their recent nuptuals. it was a great time!

4. did anyone hear about that guy who did that thing over there during that?! CRAZY!!

 and now the good stuff....

funny clip of the week

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lKYMhiWpP-M

choice nug of the week

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hm_aD51tevw

(best song ever written about dog crap, and the name of my blog!!!)

Happy Earth Day from Ladybird & Friends!

Ladybird & Greta are thoroughly enjoying their day, basking in the warm Florida sunshine!  Their earth day, so far, has included a nice long walk, laying out, sniffing the tomato and rosemary plants on the porch and watching dad pull weeds in the yard.  If they play their cards right, they might just get another long walk!

Remember to love your mother earth!  Been holding off on starting a garden?  Today is the perfect day to start.

Today is also a great day to remind our customers that Ladybird & Friends hot sauce is 100% natural.  We only use FRESH ingredients in our sauce and are proud of it!  Try some today and notice the difference.

!. Random note about the Zeus "King of Heat" sauce. Zeus proudly averages over SIX whole habanero peppers PER 5oz BOTTLE!!! i would say most hot sauces cant compete with that. it's called FLAVOR people.

2. an Arnold Palmer is the greatest non-beer drink on the face of the earth.

3. this is a great story for anyone who loves dogs

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110414/ap_on_re_as/as_japan_earthquake_dog_rescue

4. I apparently suck at fishing! been skunked my last 3 trips out. when will i learn....but alas, Superfly must ride!

5. Choice Nug of the week

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mKC2A_o2VaI&feature=related

Ladybird & Friends, of course, is deeply sorry for the tragedy that has occured in Japan.  We offer everyone, dogs and human alike, our sympathies.

 Click Here to Watch

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I sat down and was attacked.  Greta was IN my lap, licking my face. Ladybird was rubbing all over me, nibbling at my hands and even licking my face, too. (Very unusual for Ladybird -- she is not a licker!)  I couldn't help but smile and laugh.  It took them less than a minute to completely change my mood.  I stood up (after I pushed them off of me) and took them for a nice long walk.  I figured they deserved a treat for completely turning my day around.  {jcomments on}

One of the most interesting tasting events I've been a part of recently took place at my local gym, Gulf Breeze Aerobics & Fitness.  Odd place to taste hot sauce?  Not really.  In fact, it turned out to be a great chance to talk to people in our community about the health benefits of hot sauce.  Yes, it's HEALTHY!  On top of being an excellent way to spice up boring diet foods, hot sauce has a key ingredient that has an extensive list of healthy attributes - Capsaicin. 

Our hot sauce is very low in sugar, low in calories & fat, and has Vitamin A, C and antioxidents.  Hot sauce is also known to speed up your metabolism, supress your appetite and increase endorphines.  The magic ingredient,Capsaicin, is naturally found in chili peppers, like habaneros.  The benefits include the following:

-Helps lower blood pressure

-Helps lower Cholesterol

-Helps fight cancer

-Fights inflammation

-Relieves joint pain

-Improves digestion

-Burns FAT

-Relieves headaches

So grab a bottle and start enjoying the health benefits of your delicious Ladybird & Friends Hot Sauce!

It's time to update our homepage!  We'd like photos of you, so get together with your friends or family with a bottle of Ladybird & Friends hot sauce and take a photo.  Or maybe you have a Ladybird & Friends Tshirt - we want to see you in it!  Send in your photos to info@ladybirdandfriends.com and we will feature your photo on our homepage.

Photos will change out every few days until we get a final vote via facebook for the BEST photo.  The winner will stay as our homepage photo for at least a month and YOU will get a free bottle of hot sauce -- you choose the flavor!

Contest ends on Friday, February 18th, so get the camera ready and send us your shots!

Are you stuck on ideas for your honey this Valentine's Day?  Does your man love hot sauce?  Well, spice up his night with the Ladybird & Friends Hot Box gift pack!  It's under $20 and will definitely get him nice and  HOT! 

Looking for something for the ladies?  Don't be fooled by hot sauce! Our recipe is a delicious alternative to "hell fire" or "ass burning" sauces.  We focus on the FLAVOR more than the heat!  Trust me, habaneros are hot enough.  We only add ingredients that will enhance the flavor.  If your lady likes to cook, she'll love the compliments she'll get when using Ladybird & Friends to spice up her recipes.

Don't forget that Super Bowl Sunday is this weekend.  Planning on hot wings?  There's nothing better than adding some Zeus to your wing sauce to give it an extra zing!  If you're in Gulf Breeze, stop by Gulf Breeze Aerobics and Fitness on Saturday or Sunday - I'll be there both days selling sauce at a discounted price for members!