The Honeybark Bakery

2011-06-17T07:05:00.000-07:00

Runaway home...

Today, Katie ran away. It was an eye opening, heart breaking, gut wrenching moment but she somehow managed to get out of the house in the morning en route to her daily newspaper pick-up and just took off.

It's been years since she's done anything like that. The first time she ran was when she was a mere 4 month old puppy and she had her leash on and she bolted for the street. At the time I was still an apartment dweller and lived right off of a major busy road with constant FAST traffic speeding along. My heart sank as I watched her, running after her as she got closer and closer to that busy venue. Luckily, a neighbor was able to scoop her up and save me from sure sudden death from the massive coronary I was about to suffer if my little one had been injured in any way.

Back to today...

So Katie managed to make her way halfway down the block when my father, or rather Katie's grandfather managed to coax her into coming home. She returned.

I realize now that the truth is that we never know when or where our time will end with one another. We must value each day, each moment and treasure that time. It's like when I'm baking. If I maintain my attention on the project at hand, I will successfully complete the endeavor and accomplish something. If I do not follow through and keep directed, it will not work out and become something, a semblance of what I intended.

Today, be mindful, be aware, love those who deserve your full attention and count your blessings.

Each day, each moment...this is your life.

2009-01-12T09:18:00.000-08:00

Firsts for the President's First Dog

Well it looks like the Obama family is in for a big surprise with the new member of their family. They have narrowed down their selection of breeds to two contenders: The Portuguese Waterdog and the Labradoodle.

I've seen both dogs in shows before and in person at various events but I wonder what they were thinking in terms of a first dog. These are unusual choices for a firsttime dog owner. The hypoallergenic part is clear but the activity level of both dogs is pretty darned high and so if you have a dog that is going to be that energetic, you better be ready to have a whole team of dogsitters while you are off performing your presidential duties. Plus, having Sasha and Malia already getting accustomed to a new environment, new school, new friends, that's a lot of stimulus for kids. Well, good luck with that.

I tend to agree and support shelter adoptions. One can get a dog at a shelter and the best sources to look at are local animal shelters and town or county shelters. Here's a few for Long Island, NY that you can check out:

http://longisland.about.com/cs/pets/a/pet_adoption.htm

I found this article to be very helpful. Our donations have gone to a few of these shelters including Little Shelter and NSALA. The staff are friendly and helpful in making your decisions and caring for your dog or cat. If you ever have any questions, many are long time pet owners who can advise on activities for your dog in the area and places to find toys, food or events.

2009-01-06T09:32:00.001-08:00

Responsible dog ownership classes on Long Island

There are some free classes on Long Island for dog owners only, it's a 'people only' event, but I hear there might be some goodie bags for the guests attending.

Here's the link:

http://www.lidog.org/jan_meet_09.htm

Honeybark might very well be going in a whole new direction this year. The website will be under construction for a bit but everything is fully functional. Hoping to really push forward with some new ideas, treats and activities.

We will be hosting a party in the Spring of 2009 so keep your eyes out for that event!

2008-12-26T09:23:00.000-08:00

Share some love

I'm in the mood to share some love. My gift for all those baking dog lovers out there is our special cranberry treat recipe.

My Cranbeary treats, so called because I do them in little teddy bear shapes (Adorable!) and the recipe is up for grabs because I think it's awesome for not only our health but for our dogs. These are cranberry dog biscuits that come out with a really cute purplish hue. They are very cute all by themselves and when they are decorated with royal icing buttons. It makes an extra special treat that stays really well in the freezer. Katie loves them straight from the freezer but they can also be thawed if your dog has gum issues or issues with cold.

Cranbeary Biscuits

This recipe was created by me, The Honeybark Bakery Baker

Makes about 4 dozen mini treats

3 1/2 cups Organic Whole Wheat Flour

1 cup Pureed cranberries

1 tbsp Honey

1 tbsp Vegetable or Canola Oil

1 tsp Cinnamon

1 large Whole egg

*As needed water cold to room temp.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Line sheet pans with silpats for the oven.

Lightly spray cookie cutters with canola oil.

Sift dry ingredients into mixing bowl.

Using dough hook, combine dry ingredients with fruit puree, honey, oil, then egg last.

Mix until evenly distributed and add water as needed until dough texture of moist clay.

Do not add too much water because it will become too sticky to work with, but if this happens you can fix this by adding a tbsp of flour to the dough and mix until the water is absorbed.

Working on a silpat, roll dough out to 1/4" thickness and cut out shapes.

Keep pieces at least 1/2 inch apart for even baking.

Bake for 30 minutes or until done.

*Depending on humidity, the biscuits may need to be flipped and baked for another 10 minutes to be completely done.

Cool on racks or on the trays.

Happy Holidays from Katie and all of us at The Honeybark Bakery!

Enjoy:))

2008-12-19T11:17:00.000-08:00

Questions

I've been doing a lot of holiday baking lately. Cookies primarily. Actually, ONLY cookies. Treats and cookies. It's been a monotony of holiday proportions. Yep, I KNOW the bakery is really for treats anyhow and biscuits are cookies in disguise. But still...sometimes I long for cake when it's cold outside. Nobody ever buys birthday cake in the winter. I've NO idea why. It's just funny. Because I'm always baking cake in the Spring and Summer and Fall months and always baking cookies/biscuits/treats, whatever...in the Winter. Just an observation of sorts but I wonder what other barkeries do.

So the real question is about baking soda and baking powder and what is the deal with cake flour that has it in there already? I guess this does not pertain to the treats themselves but to my cookies for people. I've been baking with bread flour, cake flour, whole wheat flour and AP flour and that cake flour with the baking powder and baking soda in it makes my cookies really round and perfectly shaped but it's a little bit odd how perfect they look. If you've ever seen Pleasantville, or The Stepford Wives, well, that's how perfect they are. I've never really seen such a perfect cookie. It bothered me. Not that I'm offended or appalled by perfection but these cookies were just way too perfect in an almost alien way. It made me a little turned off by it. Even though I used this really awesome stuff in them and expensive ingredients, I was excited to eat the cookie but when they came out of the oven, I kinda said, "Hunh." It made me raise an eyebrow and examine them. Like...I am not a machine and I use a scooper to make my cookies even sized but holy cow, these were exactly the same size, perfectly round and weirdly identical. It looked rather manufactured. I hate that. If you've seen my photos, of my cakes and treats, it's the very fact that they vary a little bit here and there and really look homemade and homebaked that makes me and I believe my customer base really just happy. It's the comfort of knowing that it's been made in a kind of homestyle way. Like a granny.

Well, after eating one of those cookies, it was really really good and the recipe I will give credit to a famous pastry chef in NYC, that cookie rocks. I've shared this recipe with many bakers and it's available online. It is strictly for humans because of the chocolate content, but Katie still came sniffing around for one and managed to get me to give her a Nuts About Bananas treat. She's happy and on a snowy day like today, I am happy to be indoors and with nice warm cookies as well.

Happy baking makes for happy tummies. Did I say that? Really? You bet.

2008-10-28T13:10:00.000-07:00

Itty Bitty Blue Bears?

Yes, the mini treats are getting all dressed up for Howloween. Oh it's a fun time all around. I love this time of year. Everybody gets into the spirit of dressing up and just having fun. Trick or treat or rather just treats? Got treat? Check out our new holiday festivities with the howliday iced treats. I decided to give in to the sweet side and just dress up the treats a little. Cute! I love it and now I'm thinking that maybe it may very well be a year round dress up. I mean, who doesn't like getting dressed up? The little bit of sugar makes the treats even better and I don't know anyone who wants anything less than something sweet and good. I may do different flavors using natural extracts in the icing but that takes experimentation...

Happy Howloween again!!

Hahaha...(evil scientist laugh)

Experimentation time with royal icing. So here I added the royal icing finishing to some of the treats for the Paws for Parkinson's Dogs Walk and my treats rejected the icing?! What?! Yes. Indeed, the icing came right off the treats. Fell off. Literally pushed off by the treat. It was almost like it was saying...blah! No sugar! Weird but true. I mean, I wanted it to look festive so without going too into it, I made up a batch of royal icing, colored it orange with a really nice gel food coloring and corneted away. But alas! Foiled again! The treats just pushed that icing right off some of the treats. Not all of them were able to fight the sugar touches so I was able to salvage some of them for the festivities.

Cute pumpkin treats. But the thing that got me confused was the fact that I could not find my little pumpkin cutters and my mini treat cutters. Weird...I used them last year for a howloween party and then they were nowhere to be seen when I wanted to make some like now.

Why did the buttons stay on and the orange pumpkin stripes fell off? Not sure. I think it may have been the treats itself, perhaps not completely cooled before being iced. Oopsy. Well, we live and learn. Right? I'm looking into it.

2008-10-14T12:37:00.000-07:00

Octoberfest

It's October already? How time flies...well, we are ready. Or at least I'm ready to bake the fun little critters for the trick or treat or trick and treat situation that cometh upon us at the end of this glorious month. I love it. Pumpkin is so yummy in pie so yes, we are highlighting the pumpkin pies but they come in mini fun howl-o-ween shapes for your little dog or as little bites for big dogs. Just enough to make your dog enjoy a little sweetness.

The mini treats are available in apple pie, pumpkin pie and of course, gingerbread is also great for the Fall season!

The pumpkin pie treats are being served at the upcoming Paws for Parkinson's event! Come and support the endeavors to manage and treat this condition. It's at the Marjorie Post park on Long Island.

http://liapda.org/yahoo_site_admin/assets/docs/PAWS_TWO_08.269212827.pdf

That's the link. It's a fun event and lots of goodies for your dog!

Being safe around the holiday, Halloween is a lot of fun for children and adults but the candy can be dangerous for your dog so watch out what's lying around in the grass or on the sidewalk that your dog might try to gobble up, like hard candy, chocolate is especially dangerous and any fruit that may have fallen on the wayside could pose a danger to your pet. Also, those cans of silly string or any plastic favors on the ground could be swallowed or a choking hazard.

Keep Howl-o-ween fun and safe for your pet and just keep a careful eye out for what's lying around on the ground!

Happy Howl-iday everyone:))

2008-09-14T09:49:00.000-07:00

The Zen of Dog

Oftentimes, I catch myself glancing at Katie looking over whatever it is I'm reading to check on her, and see what she's up to. She is a good dog so it's really just a quick look and then back to what I'm reading. Usually, she's lying around either on her part of the couch, her chair, the floor in the hallway or the middle of the living room floor. It's nothing particularly exciting to look at but really for me, it's soothing to see her peacefully, blissfully asleep. I envy her. I really do envy the fact that she can just lie there and dream without being disturbed for however long she wishes. Sometimes, I want to sleep too. Sometimes I want to really doze and not wake up startled or worried that I am late for something. Like this morning for example, I woke up thinking I had to run off and be somewhere, whether it is out to brunch at school or at my internship, I'm always feeling like I am panicky when I wake up. That's just such a disturbing feeling. So for me, just being able to look at Katie, to feel that calm as she breathes in and out, watching the rise and fall of her little furry body sleeping is somehow just enough to make me relax.

Then, I came across this article in the NYT about the Hamptons and how these dogs have free run of the beach at certain hours of the day. How I would love to take Katie to a beach and see what she'd do but she was none too thrilled about the pool. Period, end of story, she really did not like the pool experience and that was a kiddie pool. She nosed up and walked away from that ASAP. I don't know if the ocean would be different but I've walked her around the water when we lived in Edgewater, NJ and it was just uneventful for her. Perhaps because it was the Hudson River and maybe she is way...smarter than me such that she knows not to wade into such filth. The other portion of the article mentions the Yappy Hours and mingling with other dog owners. Nice. I remember those days of wine and whine. Katie liked to mingle but she was good with just hanging out with maybe one or two other dogs and then it was, "I gotta go." I'm that way too so I guess dog owners are very much like their pets. The article is here:

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/14/nyregion/nyregionspecial2/14dogsli.html?_r=1&st=cse&oref=slogin

Plus, there is a pretty good article in Newsdays's magazine about antidepressants for dogs. I'm not really into that because I read, "Marley and Me" and I think that drugging up your dog with a low dose tranquilizer is not necessarily the best idea. I believe in behavior modification. Just the idea of putting your dog in a situation that is stressful and then drugging them up just to be convenient for you for me seems like a big no no. Granted, there are exceptions and what if your dog cannot ever be left alone at home without tearing up the place? Well, then there is an issue there and sadly you really need to get down to basics about what the real problem is. Like does your dog have an area that makes them feel safe? Most dogs need an area that is all their own, their safe zone where they can feel totally safe and if it is enclosed, why not? Dogs used to have dog houses. Remember Tiger from The Brady Bunch and Dino from The Flintstones? These although fictional characters, had little homes all to their own that had their names on it and they could go in their little house and be safe. A cushion on the floor is not a den. It's a cushion on the floor. Katie has a few spots that she can hang out or sleep without being disturbed by the tv or by outside noises. Dogs have extremely sensitive hearing and even the subtle noise of your neighbor can be disturbing if there is nowhere else to go but listen to mindless prattle of your neighbor talking on the phone all day on Sunday. (Yeah, my neighbor used to talk ALL DAY on the phone on Sunday. Katie and I used to have to be out for most of the day to escape that. One of the reasons why I had to move out of that apartment.) I think getting down to the basics, making a den for your dog, figuring out if there are any noises that may be very disturbing for your dog while you are out and even keeping your dog in the car alone is just a bad idea. You really never know how long you are going to be gone. Seriously. If you have ever timed a "quick trip to the grocery store," you'd find out exactly how long you spend browsing at stuff that is not on your list, getting home to realize that the 5 items that you had on your list took an hour to get? Yeah, that's time being swallowed up into that black hole of browsing.

I ramble. I've got stuff to do. Chilling out with Katie is number one on my list. Brioche is number two:)

Don't forget to load up on Halloween treats this year. Dogs love pumpkin!

2008-09-08T23:38:00.000-07:00

Catching up

I have a lot of paperwork to do. I don't want to do it but it is seriously piling up on the corner of my office desk. My desk has become this horrible forest of stuff. It's hideous. It's like the black forest in fairy tales, the one that little children get scared about. Yeah, I'm scared too.

One corner has the gadzillions of dog-mags, those that are for the avid pet owner, the pet related business owner, or for those who are just curious enough to buy this and then show it to a friend exclaiming, "Isn't this CRAZY that people actually do this for their PETS?!" Meanwhile, this person has just PURCHASED a magazine to mock and laugh about. These magazines aren't cheap by far. In fact, many of them are published a few times a year only. Like some are published every two months or quarterly even. I've resigned myself to just being the recipient of complementary magazines and trade journals related to the dog/pet snack industry. I get everything you could imagine, including those journals related to pet grooming. I am stuck with this stuff so since it piles up, I took to reading through a few of those previously mentioned pieces of literature. I learned many things. Like for example, there are tons of shampoos out there for your dog. I actually don't wash Katie a lot because I brush her almost daily so this was just useless for me. The next thing I learned is that there are a lot of doggy bakeries out there. I myself am just a stay-at-home, easy bake dog treat baker. I do not consider myself as upscale as those that advertise in magazines, but my cakes are good. Dogs don't always eat everything and I think that my cakes are really pretty good.

Pile 2 consists of miscellaneous "stuff." I do not say 'stuff' a lot. I DO say the four letter word that has the same letters as "carp." a lot when I refer to my desk. Sometimes I just want to torch everything on that desk because it freaks me out how much stuff accumulates if you don't pay attention. It's like sugar. I say this because we are actually studying sugar shaping in class and well, sugar is great because you can do so...much with it but if you burn it, there is no going back.

Moving centrally, I have a few non-doggy related magazines on my desk too. Like FOOD by Martha Stewart is good for really quick and easy recipes and some basic information about herbs or whatnot.

My collection of decorative tools for Marzipan, brushes for painting on cakes, all types of colors for cake decorating, cookie cutters (billions), ribbon samples, paper samples, my huge bucket of pens that ranges from fine to big fat highlighters...ah, gotta love the smell of fresh ink:) Not really.

I've got my favorite flowers, ranunculus in a glass vase in the middle of the desk. It isn't the most convenient spot for this decorative piece, but I love this fake plant because it is so bright and colorful. It's gorgeous.

Much to do...

2008-08-23T11:03:00.001-07:00

I found another dog almost as cute as mine. This dog, Harley the English Bulldog was just plain amazing. If ever I get the chance to get another dog, this would be it. Katie doesn't know it but this is my ultimately favorite breed next to Shelties...LOVE EM!

I was just cleaning up after finishing Harley's birthday cake and I caught a glimpse of this big 1 year old baby romping across our lawn to greet my dad. Dad is the ultimate employee. He is like the face of Honeybark lately. He's been delivering the cake, presenting the cakes, really representing the company. It's cool. I'm really like the baker anyhow. I don't enjoy PR but it's fun to do on occasion. The cake was really cute...photos to come...and Katie loved the frosting. She spent a good ten minutes licking frosting off the roof of her mouth. My fault really, I gave her a piece of cake with the frosting on top and she womped it and then got the cake stuck to the roof of her mouth, like how peanut butter does that to your mouth? So she was trying to get the stuff off by licking and was making these really hysterical lopping noises. Gotta love that.

I am excited to try out some new colors for Fall. I really really want to change the B day cake writing to something a little more natural for the fall, like brown? orange? Yellow would be great but it does not show up on camera and most dog owners like to photograph the dog with their birthday cake.

I gotta go finish some changes to the website. Ugh...I hate these crazy details but my treat menu will be changing for the Fall season. I am again trying to put that pumpkin treat out there and also I'm thinking of doing some other new flavors but apple pie, pearlicious and pumpkin pie are my top 3. Oh, and everything nice, my gingerbread treat is going to be featured at some upcoming events so keep your eyes out for them!

The top sellers of recent fame are beef snaps, ruffy road, and well of course, cake. Every dog loves the cake. I'd post the recipe but I really don't know if anyone would want to make it at home. It's really so much easier for me to do it. You tell me.

I'm on a break coming Labor Day weekend so nobody better be asking for any treats. Katie is in charge...no, NOT really. She would definitely eat all the profits. She's such a lurker. She lurks outside the bakery area, she stalks me when I'm putting cakes together and she's really very belligerent whenever I give away a cake to the customer. She's NOT a good PR dog. Only when we are at parties, she's social to some extent but really, no...she's JUST the taste tester.

But that cinnamon cream cheese frosting is amazing. I am NOT changing that.

I AM adding a cake flavor soon. More to come...

Guess the new flavor?

2008-08-23T11:03:00.000-07:00

2008-08-19T16:57:00.000-07:00

Strange coincidences

I was just looking at New York Magazine's website and I noticed that both of my bosses have been listed in New York Magazine as being the best at something. My previous boss, Saud A. Sadiq, M.D., specialist in neuroimmunologic diseases and specifically Multiple Sclerosis and my current internship mentor/boss is Pastry Chef at Jean-Georges, chef Johnny Iuzzini. It's interesting to note the parallels between the two fields and being aware of the fact that though it seems they are not similar at all, they have many similarities...art, science...treating people with medical care versus treating people with an experience like none other in a dessert. Both extremely rigorous, physically demanding, mentally challenging, not for the faint of heart type careers. Both professions are extremely taxing on the mind and body. Both require creative and intelligent individuals to push their minds to the limits and create a solution to a problem or solve a puzzle really, whether it is with flavors or finding a treatment pathway.

I loved my career before and I love my current profession. It's not easy but I do it because I have to because I cannot see myself doing anything else but this.

A humbling experience

I realize that the hierarchy of the kitchen exists and I've been through this militaristic peckdown order from my medical career. I don't condone it, I just live through it because it is necessary. I don't believe in being disrespectful to people who have much more experience in the field BUT I do believe that everyone should be allowed to voice their opinion at the appropriate time. I also believe that everyone should be allowed to defend their position if it is not a time crunching situation. I don't believe in face to face combat but I do believe that a healthy argument, voicing each person's concerns is the right way to address a problem or conflict. I also believe that American Gladiator is an excellent way to let out one's aggressions and I strongly believe that if everyone were allowed to take their company retreat to a hand to hand combat situation like paintball or an American Gladiator arena or even a padded boxing ring, well...we might all get all of our aggressions and harbored resentments out in a much healthier or health promoting manner.

Katie's cake

She loves it. She has been getting a slice every day after dinner. I'm so happy that she loves it. I also love my new decorations for the birthday cakes. It's adorable!

2008-08-17T09:53:00.000-07:00

It's getting hot in here

This morning I discovered that my new carob ganache recipe was not going to work out. It actually took me 3 hours to keep working with this stuff. It's definitely not chocolate. It melts in a strange way and it smells better when it is warm than when it is just in the container. Personally, I like chocolate a lot better than carob but since dogs cannot eat chocolate, I'm stuck with this to work with and it is not fun. It's a little bit cleaner than chocolate and the color is a gorgeous almost black brown color. I love that. I hate that I couldn't make a carob ganache this morning. I was really hoping to make a carob ganache cake for Katie so I could add it to the menu. I guess I have to hit the books and figure it out.

Back in the saddle again

I baked a gorgeous Barkday cake for a little dog named Cujo. So excited. I loved it. It came out great! I had help today for the very first time. My family pitched in because I had worked late last night. It was one of the best cakes I've made. I think that my pastry education is really paying off because I did something a little different from the past cakes in terms of the recipe procedure and this cake came out NICE. I mean really really nice. Yah! Katie is staring at the counter where the other cakes are cooling. I actually made three since the batter was so...nice. I have to make some baking notes but the cake was perfect. More perfect than before, it had a nice texture, dense and heavy but dry inside. The carrots were perfectly throughout, and the peanut butter was really creamed in good. Yup. I'm really happy with this cake. I hope the pawty goes well! I also did my usual barkday presents because I just like throwing in stuff as comps. I am such a sucker for pawties. Presents are my favorite part about celebrating barkdays for dogs.

Playtime

I am really trying to find a nice organic toy line to go with my treats so I can really push it up a notch. But, I have to fix my website first and then I have to graduate from pastry school and I have my other life-stuffs going on...whew. I went to the doggie fashion week convention last year and found a great stuffed toy line made with organic cotton. So...soft and so...nice. I loved it. I think that they are selling those in the maternity stores and for babies. It's really a cute line of fluffy lambs and it's a great all natural color, not bleached white but closer to the natural color of wool. I liked it a lot. Now, it's just a matter of finding that company...filing system needs updating...check.

Coloring

I decided to try to change up my decorating techniques and discovered that I make a cute bone. My little squirt bottle works great for brief stints of writing. I love it. But it's a really hard bottle to fill because the opening is so...narrow. Now that I know how to make cornets, it makes life so...much easier BUT I need to get parchment. Get parchment...check.

Uh oh...Katie's barking again...gotta go;)

Plus I gotta make the cake for her that I promised. Such a spoiled little dog:))

2008-06-23T14:51:00.000-07:00

It's been a while but here goes nuthin'

No, not really nothing. I've been really busy with my education lately so I've been really delinquent. I will apologize to all the customers who have been calling for cakes and I've been turning them down. I just cannot do it all. I will be restarting birthday and barkday cakes really soon. I promise that. I just cannot do it and do my studying at the same time. I am NOT a superhero. Yeah right! Seriously though, I did some major baking yesterday to make up for all the weeks that have gone by without touching the bakery worklist. I'm the best and the worst boss ever.

Yeah, I exist but see...

I don't actually have a bakery. Oh no! The truth comes out! I don't actually have a storefront is what I mean. People are still calling to ask me where I am located and well, I'm everywhere and nowhere at the same time. How oddly true is that? I can send treats anywhere via fed ex or priority or overnight mail and even by local delivery or pick-up but I don't have a storefront so you really cannot stop by and browse. You can browse my menu online and see what is available and have the treats specially made for your dogs but they aren't lying around waiting to be purchased. It's a whole freshness thing for me. I like baking on order even though it is difficult, it gives me a little peace of mind and it's what Honeybark is really all about. I like to know that I am baking the right treat for your dog's size, preferences and something that they will really enjoy.

Just a reminder, if your dog has allergies, please tell me about them. I might have a treat that I can create for you using gluten free flours or corn-free or egg-free. Just ask me.

What have I been doing?!

Anyhow, so yesterday was a bigtime Ruffy Road kind of treat day. I baked over 12 dozen original sized treats and about 3 lbs of the mini treats. Plus, I did some special heart shaped treats for a friend of mine. They were super cute! I might add that shape to the Ruffy Road shape. I really wanted to do the sweet potato treats but I didn't. I was too tired. I am really glad that I got those extra sheet pans though. What a time saver THAT was. Thanks to Paul, my buddy in business school who brought that bright light to the tunnel. Silly things but whenever someone makes a suggestion to me, I'm all over listening because objective viewpoints really bring something to the table sometimes. Yes, yes, I know...a while back I got pretty mad that everyone and their brother wanted to tell me something that I should do with my business and I wanted to tell THEM what to do with THEIR business...yeppers, I was pretty arrogant at that time. But now I realize that for the most part, people do mean well and want to be helpful. That's sweet...especially since a lot of these people have not started a business of their own, nor have they ever gone to business school. Whatever...I'm all ears now. So if you have an idea...BRING IT!

I have a few new treat ideas that are picketing my brain to be brought out into the spotlight. I'm really psyched to try them but have about zero free time to do any of my usual experimental baking. Poo. I wish I had more time in the day to do some fun stuff but now is not the time I guess.

Katie updates

Katie has decided that she is taking her sheepdog responsibilities very seriously lately and has gotten into a really bad habit of getting very much underfoot. Ook. I mean, she trips me every chance she can get when I am leaving for school in the AM. It's getting a little scary because I usually have so...much stuff that I bring for school that I am like a mini caravan, baglady...you get the picture...and I just teeter here and there trying to get out the door before she runs over and barks at my insolence of trying to actually leave home. I can't wait for her to get over this little overachiever phase in her life.

I love her though. She is still the best dog ever. And she really liked the ciabatta bread I baked today:)

Her treat jar overfloweth with Ruffy Road now. She's set for some time now:)

Let's be safe together

Last but not least, summer is here and we need to review the safety tips:

http://www.nsalamerica.org/articles/healthtips/dog-days-of-summer.html

2008-03-18T15:29:00.001-07:00

Yay, keep it comin'!

This is the fourth cake I'm doing in the past two weeks and it's getting really crazy. I work all day then I get home and frost and decorate each cake. It's a good kind of crazy but crazy nonetheless.

For example, today I came home, broke out the peanut butter and banana recipe and BOOM, done. Nice, eh? Thank you Dad for getting me that super high powered hand mixer that can make the creamiest fluffiest frosting ever. Wowzers. This hand mixer can go really fast so I hold on tight and let it rip. I mean, this baby has POWER. Whew. I was tired and almost let it go flying out of my hand. I mean that's how powerful this thing is. Vroom a zoom zoom, y'know?

So the frosting, the peanut butter and banana is with a cream cheese base and other secret but wholesome goodness is in there that makes it amazingly good. I'm not bragging, it's just true. It's some tasty treat. Ask Katie. The deal with Katie is that since she is the official taste tester, she gets whatever gets cranked outta my little kitchen. Katie knows this and so she waits for me on schedule for any cake, treats, whatever...it's all about Katie.

Everyday is Katie's Birthday!

Katie is getting confused. She thinks that every day is her birthday because every day I do a cake, she gets a little cupcake with frosting on it. Luckily for her, everything is healthy and really lowfat so she isn't getting a pooch. (Ha ha? Sheesh, I must be tired, laughing at my own doggy humor.) Anyhoo, so Katie just got a little heart shaped cupcake with some of that creamy peanut butter and banana frosting and then she proceeded to follow me all over the house to get some more. That's some goood stuff.

This is cute.

http://www.break.com/index/cute-dog-plays-fetch-with-himself.html

It's a clip of a dog whose owner created a catapult that allows the dog to play all day long with tennis balls. It's adorable. I want one for Katie but I don't have a long hallway like his.

I'm really happy for all the cake orders we've been getting.

Katie is really happy too.

Just a reminder for dog's birthday cakes, I need at least a day or two because the cake prep takes time. This is not Duncan Hines or Betty Crocker, this is homemade from scratch with real homemade frosting as well. This is better than the stuff we make for people!

It's all completely human-grade ingredients and you can definitely have a piece of cake if you want to share in your dog's birthday.

New Cakes

I've created mini bundt cakes and heart shaped cakes as well so if you want mini cakes, just call me to special order it.

2008-03-13T07:22:00.000-07:00

Got Milk?

I have to talk about milk and dairy products because unfortunately there is a condition called lactose intolerance that affects both humans and dogs. This conditions subjects the unfortunate creature to a horrible bout of loose stools, gas and malaise after ingesting dairy products including milk, butter, cheese and any products containing the aforementioned items.

Why am I getting into this unspeakable condition? I make a delicious creamy cheese cinnamon vanilla frosting for The Honeybark Bakery Birthday Cakes. I now know that there is one very important ingredient that helps to prevent any nasty reactions from occurring. It's acidophilus.

Yes, a simple cup of yogurt will help to alleviate or prevent any loose stools.

So, if you have noticed that your pet is intolerant to cheese, you could try to include some organic yogurt with live active cultures in their diet. By doing so, you may be able to allow your dog to enjoy some of the same things that you are eating.

Happy treating!

2008-01-06T08:44:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year 2008!

Whew. It's been a great year. Lots of work putting together our little business. It's not really a business. It's the beginning of a possible business. We've made it through with a few regular customers and a lots of wonderful donations to homeless dogs and shelter dogs. It's really been the most wonderful and rewarding experience I've ever had with animal welfare. I'm really glad to have started The Honeybark Bakery.

What's new?

Well, the new treats this year are all about Honeybears. The decision has been made to add little bears or big bears to the bag because this is our new treat. Big bears for the original sized treats and mini bears in the mini treat bags. I'm not steady on giving up on my little heart and flower shaped treats because it makes my job more interesting and fun. The treats that have been added to our selections included the Yammy Bears and the Cranbeary Bears or Berry Beary Good! Still not sure about that name...Plus, they were a bit too purple for my liking, gotta tone down those little purple bears a little bit. I just didn't like the coloring. Nothing was added to the treats, it was the real cranberry but it was just a bit overloaded. So I'm working on that recipe. The pumpkin treats were really pretty. Love those. Plus, I'm trying very hard to go greener with my packaging, like using the brown bags and also using recycled packing material and maybe using recycled paper more often. Plus recycling ink cartridges and lots of other things to try and save our environment. It's not easy being green but we're getting there. Each day is one more step to save the environment. Little things to help.

The website needs fixing so it might be down for a few days to try to add in some great photos, change some things, make it a little bit easier to use and show the world our treats in a new light:)

Katie's sleeping on the floor on my feet while I type on my laptop. She's being very snuggley today, perhaps because I left her for a bit yesterday and missed her nighttime ritual. She's really such a little bioclock for me. At 5-6AM, she's awake and barking at the neighbors or me leaving for work. Not always, just most days. At 7AM, she barks at the garbage men, according to reports. At 11AM, she runs around outside and chases the birds and squirrels and waits to sneak up on the letter carrier. At noon she has lunch. From 1PM-3PM she wanders aimlessly or sleeps soundly. At 4PM she goes out again to run around. At 5PM she wants her pre-dinner snack and then at 6PM she eats, 7PM she plays, 8PM she poos. It's very regular. I could set my watch to her. Her calendar is fuller than mine. Nice.

Alright, I've resolved this year to finish more books and so I must keep to my resolution and go read for an hour. Wish me luck.

Happy new treat year!
2008...whoa...

2007-11-25T08:06:00.000-08:00

Sick Day

Well, Honeybark is closed today because I am couped up in bed. Blech. Getting sick is really not for me. Although, the perks of it is that I actually lie in bed with my laptop and shop online for totally unnecessary items and with the power of the credit card, poof! It's at my doorstep in no time at all! Right, so just a word to the wise, hide your wallet when you are under the influence of a cold remedy. Yup.

Here's something cute that I found at Hallmark.com though. It's adorable and highly recommended for treats.

http://www.hallmark.com/wcsstore/HallmarkStore/images/products/gi fts/dptwopleasetreatjar_xxl.jpg

The cutest little treat jar ever!

By the way, the treat of the month for December is going to be Cran-Beary Bears! Cute little bear shaped cranberry treats for your dog.

2007-11-08T08:41:00.000-08:00

Poo

It's a subject that I have to bring up because it's something that is around day in and day out. For dog owners, it's an issue that needs to be addressed three times a day sometimes. Luckily, not for me and Katie, it's only twice a day for her. Anyhow, I wanted to discuss the options out there for discarding this task of dreaded doodoo. I was picking up after Katie this morning and thought about how these baggies accumulate and perhaps there might be a better option, something biodegradable because the contents are basically fertilizer anyhow. How fantastic would it be to be able to discard your poochie poop so that you could allow it to be used/recycled as fertilizer?

Then the poop mobile would come in. This would be the vehicle to transport the poop to wherever it was needed. Once deposited, there would have to be poop packers or poop plotter who would put the poop on the property where it was needed. Yikes. I sound like a Dr. Seuss book. The poop packages plotted on the property of propagation? Yowza.

So I came across this site that actually sells biodegradable poop bags.

http://www.poopbags.com/index.html

Yup. That's where you can get the 'green' bags.

Not to be outdone, this is unbelieveable. There is actually a website created to discuss #2.

http://www.poopreport.com/

No way...

Enough!

Yes, enough on that topic. I shall move on to another warm mushy topic. Sweet Potato!

Yes, I have created the Yammy Bears:) These are my new mini treat and they are fantastic! Katie loved them. It's pure yammy goodness with golden honey. Not much because the taters are sweet on their own.

November's Treat of the Month is yummy Yammy Bears!

16 oz of Yammy Bears for $12.00.

It's not posted on the website yet because it's THAT new. Right. The recipe is hot outta the oven and it's the best way to celebrate Thanksgiving and all that warm fuzzy stuff with your dog.

Get some of this treat now.

2007-11-06T20:33:00.000-08:00

Yamtastic!

Oh boy. I've been dreaming about Thanksgiving since...oh well, perhaps LAST Thanksgiving?! I love this holiday. It speaks of delicious food, warm hearts, being with family and creating a precious moment of blissful satiety. It's delicious. Yes, Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday of all.

Well, in honor of Thanksgiving and all this meal provideth us...November's Treat of the Month is Yammy Bears! It's a sumptuous sweet potato-licious treat. Made from organic whole wheat flour, yummy yams, golden honey, canola oil and ha, that's it! What a great treat. Katie loved hers. They are adorable little bear shaped Yammy cookies. I gotta show you how cute and golden they are.

I baked a bunch of birthday cakes for dogs this Fall. It's been busy here at The HB. I'm working on new recipes, as promised. The Apple peanut butter treat is yet to come to fruition but I am working on December's Treat of the Month which is Cranberry Bears. My new favorite cookie cutters are my mini and big bear shaped cutters. So you will be seeing a lot of the bears before they go into hibernation! Haha:)

Ok, I gotta get up early so I am off to bed now. Any special requests for doggy treats, send them to me at geri@honeybark.com

Hugs and very special treats to all your furry friends!

G

2007-09-20T11:09:00.000-07:00

Delivery Options

I'm exploring further delivery possibilities because Honeybark is reaching all parts of the U.S. and my cakes are not getting there. Sad. True. Recently I've gotten requests for cake as far as CA! How is this possible? Where are these people coming from or how did they find me? I have no idea. But I must solve this problem because our cakes are so great and dogs love them.

Natural colors

Finally found some really cool natural food coloring for writing on cakes. But, it's EXPENSIVE! I am now searching for a more cost effective food coloring.

Pretty Pretty

Pampering Katie is becoming a regular thing and just as I was brushing my pretty girl, I realized I am in a dire need of a haircut myself. My lovely little lady looks gorgeous, her hair looks amazing and I am looking like a...well, let's not go there...because Katie, the dog looks fabulous. So I am off to the hairstylist to get fixed up.

Katie the "Watch" dog

I woke up really early yesterday to go to work. 5AM is not a normal time to be up and about in my house. Katie rose sleepily and accompanied me to the kitchen and observed me stepping into a freezing cold puddle of water that was seeping from the bottom of my fridge. Lovely. I screeched. She yawned. I hopped around the kitchen on my dry foot trying to pull that awful freezing cold soaked sock off my nice warm, fresh outta the bed footsie. Yowza. Not to mention I had just put on one of my new EXTRA SOFT SUPER CUSHIONED socks. I have to say, if you ever need to double duty your socks, use your super absorbent socks to soak up kitchen spills. It works wonders. Katie is a great watch dog. She watched the whole event, satisfied that I was not actually leaving the house, turned and went back to sleep on the floor.

My new favorites

Celestial Seasonings Wild Berry Zinger tea makes a great iced tea. No sugar needed. It's yummy!

Pretzel Crisps are so crunchy and satisfying.

Haagen Dazs new Dark Chocolate Pomegranate ice cream bars (NOT FOR DOGS!) only for people. It's delish.

Stila Lipglaze in Cinnamon

L'occitane Lemon Verbena L'eau de toilette

iPhone

Activia vanilla yogurt and Bear Naked Heavenly Chocolate granola

That's all for now.

Enjoy your treats!

2007-08-10T19:42:00.001-07:00

Superbaddog!!

Katie had her visit to the vet today. What a doozey of an experience that was. She knew it was coming because I was really buttering her up for it last night. She got a little treat her, a bellyrub, brushed, washed, etc. It was quite the pamperfest. However, this morning she was very wary of all the activity in the house including the gathering of vital documents, records, poop sample collection etc. She knew it was coming along because she was going somewhere and it's been quite some time since Katie has taken a ride in el minivan. Right. So of course I got lost on the way to the vet because it has been a year hasn't it? Longer? I dunno. I tend to block out all those bad experiences and horror flick type moments in my life. Yup.

We finally got to the place and it looked different and not just that, there were cats around and Katie is a fraidy cat of sorts especially around cats so she wanted to leave immediately. This began the horrible wrist wrenching pulling that she so very much loves to do in public. Blah. Especially with the horror-stretch leash she has, I forgot the straight leash this time. Stupid move on my part. She wanted out so we went outside in the drizzling nasty rain and she proceeded to pee on every patch of grass around the vets office. Then she went to investigate other dog's poop. At that point, I put my foot down. Not on the poop, thank goodness but I got her away from that business, or rather some other dog's business, right away. Toot sweet...y'know?

So we get inside and the vet is new. She is one of those super smiley but really not genuinely smiley but kind of psycho, Cunningham Muffins type smiley. This is not boding well at all. Katie wants to get out of the room immediately. The vet proceeds to try to examine Katie and I think that Katie really senses how I'm feeling because I am terribly uneasy with this creepy vet woman who is feeling up my dog. So what does Katie do when she is crabby and wants out? NIP! Yeah, you betcha. She nipped the vet. Ugh. That sucked. The vet then called Katie "a dog with a mind of her OWN huh?" Yeah. She knows she doesn't like you. I guess you might say she knows THAT much huh? Well, then she had to drag Katie out of the room to give her the big old stick in the butt. Yow. I heard her yelp from through the wall. I think they heard her in Kansas. It was loud and frightening. I have not heard Katie yelp like that in a very long time. That made me mad. Then when she came back into the room, she was coughing like she swallowed a giant hairball. I cannot blame the vet but really, Katie never had issues with the other vet.

So what did I do when we got home? I made a cake and I gave Katie a cupcake. Can't show the photos of Katie with the cupcake because she ate that thing so fast it was like her life depended on that little thing. The cake came out great. I will post photos of it soon. The frosting was again delicious and the lettering came out better. I need to practice more though.

Katie is sleeping now. Too much excitement.

2007-08-09T08:17:00.000-07:00

Nutrition and Allergies

I've received quite a few requests for allergen-free products. I do have treats that contain ingredients that are somewhat accessible for those poor allergic dogs such as Beggin for Bananas. It's got oats but no corn, no egg.

I'm trying. Really. I have experimented with some treats to try to create a completely gluten/egg/milk-free treat but it turns out to burn badly or not be palatable to Katie. I would show you the photos of those treats but it's simply not something I want to show and honestly wish I hadn't seen them myself! Blech. Katie just wanders in to check out what I'm doing periodically. Sometimes she lays down on the floor and just watches me mixing and rolling dough. She will oftentimes creep very quietly over to the cooling area and lie under the trays of treats while they are cooling. I know she is waiting for the day that one of those trays miraculously falls off and she gets showered with treats. Dogs do dream too.

Cold Cereal

I had the idea to create a cereal for dogs but then I remembered that their dogfood actually does resemble cereal already. Oops.

Pawps

Then I got the idea to create some big treats that could be like a "big cookie." I haven't got the right cutter for that but it's coming.

Birthday Bash!

Wow. I'm getting cramps from doing the writing on these cakes. I like the decorating part but is there no better way to write on a cake? I've explored the different decorator guns that resemble those crazy rayguns that the alien invaders in those crazy sci-fi movies carried. They actually look like a caulking gun. I might regrout my bathroom this weekend so perhaps I will practice some writing with caulk and see how things go.

2007-08-06T06:15:00.001-07:00

Sometimes there is more to the happy girl at the office.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IMY5fgp_rAE

2007-08-06T06:09:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday! Oops!

Man. I forgot to take a photo of the last cake I did. And, it was probably one of the nicest ones I've done and the writing was in blue. This I wanted to post because it looked really cute. Blah.

The treat bags were a hit. I did a variety of six treats in there and combined large and small sizes with a pretty ribbon and a tag. Cute all around. $3.00 a bag.

Found a nice lady to promote my treats. She is a dog walker and she has so many clients and she is a Long Islander so it's local business as well. Nice.

Treat of the month went out and it was Cinnabark Sweet Blossoms. Adorable.

Working hard at the FT gig. It's taking a bit out of me but no worries. Rainy day today so it looks like I'll be baking instead of going to the driving range and whacking balls into the horizon tonight.

Weird post. Still reading that Starbucks Experience book. I'm seriously 30 pages from done. Fell asleep with it on my head and it fell on the floor which will probably take me back five pages since I forgot what I read last night. Oopsy.

Also enjoyed the hype of Vitamin Water lately. That is my drink of choice to date. Love the XXX and the Focus. Also the Citrus one is yummy as well.

Later!

2007-08-04T20:33:00.000-07:00

The icing on the cake

My passion is clearly in the decorating, though I enjoy very much the creation of the cakes. I love making frosting. Now, I've got it down to a little throw of this and a shake of that and it's done. The cinnamon/vanilla/honey frosting is amazing. It's so yummy. I just did a cake for a birthday party tomorrow and it looks great and the frosting is delicious. yummmmmm-o.

=

2007-08-03T15:24:00.000-07:00

It's getting HOT in HERE!

Oh my. Baking is not supposed to be about slaving over a hot oven. Oh wait, it is. Isn't it? Yes, indeed it has been super hot here out on Long Island. It's hot sweaty humid heat and it ain't fun to work in this type of condition. But there is one wonderful side of it all, my little AC unit is blasting full force today and I am on administrative duties right now. No, I'm still baking but I'm doing comp work right now so I happily bask in AC goodness at this moment. ahhhhhh....

I'm putting together little gift baggies for a party this weekend. Packed away a multitude of orders this week and got supremely nauseous because of the heat and the liver treats. Blah. Normally, the liver doesn't bother me but try baking in a hot area. blech...

I gotta go check the cookies. I've been calling them cookies lately. I don't know why.

Later!

2007-07-19T22:27:00.000-07:00

YouTube Mania!?

Yes, my family posted a video that was done ages ago of me creating treats for Katie. This was way before I even started the business officially. Now it seems so long ago because the treats are made differently now. That was me making an experimental treat for Katie at the time that was made of cheese and liver.

Check it out on YouTube as Katietreat or here:

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

It's really cute so check it out!

2007-07-10T15:04:00.000-07:00

About last night...

I baked a lot. I'm tired. WAH WAH...such a Debbie Downer type of statement but truthfully I am tired. I'm the kind of tired that you get after doing something really fun like biking a long and winding road, hanging out all day with a good friend or shopping in one of those mega outlet centers. Impossibly happily sore and tired. BUT, I am absolutely delighted to announce that Banana Bliss, Granny's Apple Pie and my mini chicken snaps were all perfect. Just wonderfully perfect. I slept well.

I gave in...

Oh wow. I decided finally that I have been a little silly. I decided to listen to my customers and I made a cake that was decorated with a delightfully adorable Robin's Egg blue writing on it. It was absolutely adorable. This cake, a mini, made for a cute little pomeranian's birthday, had "Happy Birthday Chorong 2! on it. In blue. I know, my cakes are all natural but I used just a touch of food coloring and the frosting was still my delicious creamy creamy cheese, cinnamon, vanilla and honey indubitably delicious frosting. It was really cute.

and I cheated one more time...

I made the cake slightly bigger than promised and I hope that it is alright that I made this cake bigger than the customer had asked but I simply could not write very much on the tiny cake, so this cake being slightly, well...1 inch wider than the other cake was able to have the whole shabang written on it. Happy Birthday Chorong, enjoy your cake and your second year of life!

Katie had a little something too...

Yes, I did save some cake from the shaping for Katie. She also ate the rest of the frosting too. As for the rest of the blue frosting? Katie ate that too...she had a little blue tongue for a while and I wish I took a photo of it but alas...no.

Broadway Barks is this weekend so don't forget to go!

2007-07-05T05:51:00.000-07:00

Apples

I changed my mind. I tried to use Macintosh in the apple treats and my treats resisted. The result was a lovely tray of soft treats but not quite the typical fare. I have to stick with Granny Smith apples because of a lower water content. I now know that the softer apples have more water and thus I need to adjust the baking time as well as the additional wet ingredients in my recipes. Too complicated. I will stick with the recipe next time.

4th of July

Happy stars and stripes, it's the new treat of the month time! Treat of the Month for July is Say Cheese Mini Stars. It's our featured treat because July is a patriotic star spangled month and the little stars are made with all natural, American Cheddar Cheese and apples. What better treat could there be?

Little men

My Everything Nice men are looking good these days. I've been noticing more people are getting them. It's a great little spicy treat. It's just got enough spice for Katie to stop and eat it, smell it, eat it, smell it, then eat the rest. She really likes it. Though, the Say Cheese stars recently had her following me everywhere. I have only tripped over her 3 times in the past two days so it's not that bad...well, yes it is! She's either getting shorter or more stealth. I can't hear her little paw nails clicking on the wood floor anymore so I think she is trying to be a little sneakier.

Do I smell bacon?

Yeah, I gotta go...my breakfast is ready!

BROADWAY BARKS!

July 14, 2007 at 3:30PM in Shubert Alley in NYC!

Check it out here:
http://www.broadwaybarks.com/

I absolutely must remind everyone that Broadway Barks is a great cause to help promote adoption of shelter animals. It was a really great success last year as in previous years and I encourage anyone who is looking for a pet to go and check it out. You can find some fabulous dogs and lots of information about animal adoption there.

I will be having a promotion of sorts, for every bag of Say Cheese Stars sold this month, I will donate an equal amount of treats to a shelter in addition to my normal donations.

I wish I could give more sometimes.

2007-05-22T20:53:00.000-07:00

You know you are tired when...

...you think this is funny. It's funny, but I think that I am thinking it is way funnier than it really is.

Tomorrow morning I will look at it again and see.

http://video.yahoo.com/video/play?ei=UTF-8&vid=1290&fr=yfp-t-501&.fdbk=mail:v/0

2007-05-17T22:08:00.000-07:00

Homebodies

http://www.hgtv.com/hgtv/pac_ctnt_988/text/0,,HGTV_22056_50805,00.html

I found this information on pet friendly decorating hints and it helps to guide your taste in furniture and floor coverings too!

I have finally established the best Ruffy Road! Yay!

Why am I awake at this odd hour? I'm still reading Seth Godin and thinking about my first year anniversary specials! Can you believe it has been a year already? Amazing.

I've received email questions about the "biscuit business." Unfortunately, I cannot answer all the emails I get so I will instead post the information that I received from my MBA program friends.

Go to the SBA website. It helps a lot. Read a book like, "The Smart Women's Guide to Entrepreneurship or Running Your Own Business." These are very helpful. I'm not great at emails but I will occasionally post some info that might be useful.

It's a "Ruff" Road or is it "Ruffy Road?" Hardly worth a second thought if you enjoy what you do and have passion. I love what I do and it's been fun even with all the high volume baking and events/parties I've done. Even decorating a cake 3 minutes before a pick-up is scheduled is fun when you like what you do. I do. Do you?

Good luck with it!

2007-05-09T19:03:00.000-07:00

Dogs in Art!

The Locust Valley Dog Festival is this weekend.
Mother's day Sunday, May 13, 2o07 at 12PM -4PM.

Goodie bags will be given out there including The Honeybark Bakery Treats!

I'm going to be there for the festival with Katie in tow. Gotta go briefly because we're taking mom out for some food and fun too.

Who let the dogs out?!

The dog theme gets out of control sometimes. My dad sends me everything "dog" related including the following. It's a cute video but I've seen it before and they are actually singing the Banana Boat song...Enjoy.

http://www.kg51.org/zb/view.php?id=bbs&page=1&sn1=&divpage=5&sn=off&ss=on&sc=on&select_arrange=headnum&desc=asc&no=32867

and here are the words if you want to sing along...

http://www.lyricsondemand.com/onehitwonders/wholetthedogsoutlyrics.html

Wait, this is a funny video...

http://www.metacafe.com/watch/216872/who_let_the_dogs_out/

I gotta go...I'm watching my boys play ball tonight. Go Doug Mienkiewicz!! Go Yankees!

2007-05-06T15:32:00.000-07:00

Time Goes By So Quickly

It's May already! The sun is shining and we are having some seriously great weather out here on Long Island. Wow! Today was basically an inventory day for me and doing research on some new cake pans, new treat ideas and still working on the new recipe. The batch was too soggy and I had to add a ton of flour to compensate for the liquid part so now I have to do it over again tomorrow. Oh well. I'm still thinking about some other treat ideas but for now my most popular by far have been:

Chicken Snaps
Beef Snaps
Nuts about Bananas
Granny's Apple Pie
Peanut Butterflies

Peanut Butter & Carrot Cake is so...yummy

I gotta stop eating the peanut butter cake. It's so good though. Plus, I love the way the whole wheat flour makes the texture of the cake kind of grainier than a normal soft cake made with pastry flour. So...yummy. Oh man, I gotta get more peanut butter because I baked a lot of cakes recently and I'm going through my peanut butter stock like crazy since Spring started.

I AM considering grinding my own peanut butter. I've got it here and the peanuts so I might very well do it. I have no problem with doing it but it's the clean-up that makes me hesitate.
Seriously, I would love to bake all day, all night, all day long. I love rolling the dough out and cutting the treats and mixing and measuring. That stuff is all good and the treats and the cake is just fantastic. The clean-up really stinks. It's just boring.

Mother's Day is coming up! I guess I should do a special but my brother is away so the website is just kind of static for now.

Special Mother's Day Cake with mini heart shaped treats, 3" size for $10.00 with an extra special bonus heart shaped treat as a gift of love to celebrate this special day!

What am I doing now?

Looking into all natural food coloring. So far, I've been sticking with the carob icing for decorating the cakes because I love the deep dark brown color that contrasts so nicely with the cinnamon/honey/vanilla cream cheese frosting. It's just a great looking cake.

I also want to announce that Tracie Hotchner is doing a great party for dog lovers in Southampton on Thursday, May 17th at Allison's Restaurant. Check out her website and her book, The Dog Bible. I'm sending treats to her for the party so if you are there, be sure to get some!

Here is the link:

http://www.dogtalktheradioshow.com/poochparties.htm

I hope the North Shore Animal League's Adoptathon went well this weekend. As it always does, I'm sure lots of dogs and cats found loving homes.

Best wishes to all involved in that great event!

2007-04-28T18:58:00.000-07:00

Year of the Dog

I have two complaints, I went to the movie and the movie itself was kind of ruined because:

A. The frame was messed up for the first ten minutes of the movie and the manager was unable to be located by the movieviewers and when it was restarted, most of the beginning had been missed already.

B. A fly or some other bug flew onto the lens and died right in the corner of the movie screen and so for the rest of the movie, about halfway through, there was the shadow of a dead but, legs up and everything in the bottom right corner of the moviescreen. Grosssssssss!

The review

The movie was...so-so. I never say that. I can't bring myself to say it was bad because I love Molly Shannon and I think that the story itself was good but it could have ended sooner than it did, the last scene was useless to the story and there was some editing that could have made it better. There were too many scenes with the same idea. I think in terms of Indie Flicks, this was thought provoking, worth a discussion and had some really funny parts.

I give it a B-though and that's just not normal for me to rate a movie that way.

2007-04-28T18:27:00.000-07:00

The American Cancer Society Dogswalk Treats

Finally, the Yankees win. Not that I was able to watch the game, some of us gotta bring home the bacon right? Especially on Saturdays, I work the weekend and I'm proud to say that I do. Well blah, I am sad that I missed the winning of my favorite baseball team after that heart/gut-wrenching losing streak that was turning my hair even more gray than it already is...(Yes, thank goodness for L'Oreal:)

I digress once more...

So here I present to you, the wonderful treat that I have created for donations now. It looks remarkably like that little doggie for the American Cancer Society's Dogswalk that was...oh yeah, today! What a gorgeous day too. I'm happy that they were able to have such fine weather for this fun event. Sad that I missed it but I was definitely there in spirit and our treats were donated to the cause so they made it there:)

The treat made just for the American Cancer Society's Dogswalk 2007.
(a.k.a.- The bonus treat to be sent to anyone who orders a pound of treats in May as well!)

Alright, so that is pre-wrapping and pretty bow tying and hole punching and card attaching. Yeah, so my little assembly-line, Henry Ford is the greatest inventor, routine was starting to get really OLD by the time I finished the last treat. Oh my aching joints! Thank goodness for Aleve...But boy were they purty:))

One down, 149 to go...when am I going to hire someone to help me?!

Yay! I'm finished!

What more to say except, it's the actual packaging part that is the hard part. I have come to terms with bow tying and pretty package making. It's all part of the drill. Well, at least I can have a good job tying shoelaces someday...

You laugh but...

I kid you not...Happy Barkday is the most common phrase these days...

Seriously though, it's pretty isn't it? I know I showed you this one but I was just going over cake designs and I realized how much I love the Peanut Butterflies border. It's just adorable. Plus, the peanut butterfly cookie is very popular with the little dogs. Especially the Poms and the Pugs. Oh right, yeah, Pugs do eat just about anything but my little pug meetup group did enjoy these little peanut butter treats the best I think.

I lied.

Yes, I know I was supposed to debut the new flavor for this event but I couldn't. I really didn't have time to experiment with it enough and the combination is really kind of tricky. It really isn't that tricky but I do need to tweak the recipe before I expose it to the general public. I realized something though that my Peanut Butter Banana treats can be absolutely perfect if done in just under the time that I was previously baking them. Yup. They come out utterly perfect and beautiful. Unfortunately, that means I was really overbaking the previous batches and that made me a little sad. I hate realizing that something wasn't quite perfect when I thought that they were. I feel like I owe my customers a freebie. In fact, I will offer the free bag of Nuts About Bananas to customers who have purchased it in the past only because I do guarantee satisfaction with all purchases and if your dog ain't happy, neither am I. Truth.

I've blabbed or rather blogged enough.

Ciao bellies:)

2007-04-24T19:43:00.000-07:00

Dogswalk Against Cancer
Saturday, April 28, 2007 at 11AM
in Flushing Meadow Park, NY

The American Cancer Society is having their Dogswalk at Flushing Meadow Park this Saturday, April 28, 2007 from 11AM-3PM.

Here is the link for more information and how to participate.

http://community.acsevents.org/site/TR?fr_id=3180&pg=entry

I was there last year with my cousin and I had donated a huge amount of treats for this amazing event. All of the proceeds go towards the cause. I'm looking forward to our newest treats being enjoyed by all the participants this year.

We hope you will be there to support the cause.

For Driving Directions:

http://www.mapquest.com/maps/map.adp?searchtype=address&country=US&addtohistory=&searchtab=home&formtype=address&popflag=0&latitude=&longitude=&name=&phone=&level=&cat=Flushing+Meadow+Park&address=&city=flushing+meadow&state=NY&zipcode=

2007-04-20T17:57:00.000-07:00

I found it!

Cake cake cake...

Unfortunately, although I love how this cake came out, I still need much practice with my cake writing. But the letters did look nicer here.

Notice the Peanut Butterflies on the edge of the cake. The cakes lately have been getting a lot of treats around the edges, hence the reason for the price increase recently. But they look really great and the dogs love the extra treats!

Mini Mega Cupcakes!

So this is what I'm talking about! The huge cupcakes that I made for a recent party, they were topped with creamy cinnamon vanilla and honey frosting and topped with Granny's Apple Pie Mini Bones. They were adorable! Plus, I found these great platters to put the cupcakes on for the party and those adorable little flowery cupcake papers. I was actually so happy with the presentation of these cupcakes. I heard the party cakes were a huge success and the dogs gobbled them off the table!
So cute and festive on the platters! These mini cupcakes were a huge success.

This is an example of my smallest barkday cake. It's supposed to be a 3" cake for miniature dogs and it is really actually very cute. The treats I used to decorate it were Granny's Apple Pie and Ruffy Road Dots. The cake was 2" high and so it was a tall cake and I managed to write on the cake but I didn't charge extra for it because I wasn't sure how it would look. Now I know I can write on my smallest cakes too!

Yes it has been a busy time since Spring started. It's party cake after party cake. I have even done emergency orders on the same day but that is really hard because I have to let the cake cool before I frost it. Since I work fulltime, I cannot do that all the time. I can only do it on my day off so if you plan on ordering a cake, please please please give me 2-3 days notice or at least 1-2 days notice so I can bake the cake and frost it with enough time and care to make the best cake possible for your dog!

2007-04-20T06:10:00.000-07:00

The Year of the Dog

Ooh. A new movie with Molly Shannon, The Year of the Dog, looks promising but I have yet to find it in my area.

A couple of sites that describe the movie in detail.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0756729/

http://www.suntimes.com/entertainment/movies/349771,WKP-News-dog20.article

Boxes and Bags

My usual issues with packaging have been coming up more and more because of the fact that I simply cannot find a bag that I really like. It's almost like shopping for a purse or a handbag because I need to really know that I love the bag in order to commit to it. So I found some nice ones and ordered them but I had to send them back because they looked like industrial bolt or hardware bags and putting my pretty little dainty gourmet treats in a heavy duty big old boot slugging type bag simply would not do. Goodness do I sound like a pretty prissy or what?! But seriously, I had to send those back and get on the phone with the C.S. operator to order what I really wanted, which I wasn't even quite sure I wanted until she described it AND sent me a link to locate on the website. So now I've got the right bags...yay! It's the little things that make me so happy:)

But back to the boxes now, I've got so many box issues it's ridiculous. I have a lot of varieties of sizes for my cakes and unfortunately only one big old box. I ordered these fantastic boxes and I love them but then realized, duh...that my teeny tiny little bitty cakes for miniature dogs literally SWIM in these boxes. So what do I do? I put tape on the bottom of the cake plate so the cake would survive it's journey home. As of yet, I have not heard a single complaint of destruction of these small wonders of a cake creation. Yes, I haven't posted any recent photos of my cakes because I cannot find the cord to connect my digi camera to my computer. Ugh. It's so...frustrating. Technology is so great yet so annoying all at once.

I created some really great little cakes but I think that I made them a lot bigger than I previously had made them so now the mini cupcakes look like small tennis balls and the top of the cake puffed out like a superdome. Seriously. I came back to take them out of the oven and literally did a Minnie Pearl, "Oh my goodness!" Yep. I'm turning into an old country baker...what the heck. That can't be too bad for the treats but my friends have been laughing at my "Oh my goodness!" and "Oh darn!" exclamations. If I start talking like Ned Flanders, please someone stop me...yikes.

Delivery

I've got an issue with deliveries. My aim to bring gourmet treats to the world has been squelched somewhat by the fact that I don't like to drive a whole lot and I like baking more than driving and yes, I will admit...I am really really bad at directions. I can give directions but when it comes to following someone else's directions I really need a lot of Yahoo Maps or Mapquest assistance in addition to an hour of poring over the satellite images of wherever it is I am going. Yes, it is sad. I know that but I have a terrible fear of getting lost. I've always had it. Ever since I was a child and my mother never let me ride my little red bicycle beyond our Dead End street, I've always had an issue with being a little bit wary of exploring new territories. Is that a real fear? I have heard from many friends and peers that they too have this fear of getting lost. "I'm afraid I will get lost!" Is an extremely common statement amongst my women friends. I hate to categorize or generalize or put a gender label on it but I do find that my men friends do not have this fear or do not vocalize it. Ever. In fact, men seem to be the root of all "getting lost and into big trouble" type situation movies as in the latest movie, "Vacancy?" Yes, Luke Wilson, one of my favorite eye candy actors is in that movie with the lovely Kate Beckinsale and ooh what a doozy of a theme. It's very scary but I might very well go and see this one because it just looks intriguing. Oh, but I digress. I wanted to say that I am so...happy that people are willing to travel from near and far just to get cake from me. It's just heartwarming...brings a little tear to the eye. Makes me think...hey, you know maybe my cakes are making a difference. Cool.

I like that.

2007-04-04T17:38:00.000-07:00

Bubble Cakes

Look at the cutest little box I found! I had a cake to do today, a little one for a cute little dog, a Yorkie. I baked about seven cakes today in advance, to be frozen for the weekend cakes. This cake was a new design as you will see below. I had to limit the lettering to the two letters, "HB" which conveniently stands for both "Happy Birthday" and "Honeybark Bakery" cool marketing ploy eh? I didn't even think of that when I created Honeybark so it was just a wonderful coincidence.

Adorable mini cake box I found.

A mini cake with HB on it.

Notice the paper under the cake to easily get the cake out. Nice touch eh?

The cakes came out "bubble-tacular" today. I don't know why. Maybe it was the weather but they ballooned to the sky with such a magnitude that it was really dome shaped. I was watching them bake as I always do and it was just bizarre. Like a little alumninum Jiffy Pop popper, those little cakes all did a bubble dome thing. Well, the cake itself was marvelously successful as per my little cake tester. Katie came stumbling down the stairs to my little bakery area out of a sleepy nap state and then sat staring at me while these cakes were baking. typically, she will wait patiently for me but this time, she paced, she drooled, and she poked me with her big wet nose until I finished decorating the cake that was ordered for today. I gave her a cake and she took it in her mouth and went all the way to her special spot and ate the entire thing then searched feverishly for the crumbs or even a memory of the cake. Wow. That was impressive. I was cleaning up the kitchen when I turned around to see her waiting for another piece of cake. Yeah...NO. See, I am okay with Katie getting a treat or two but with cake, she gets maybe two pieces of the small mini cakes per day at most. So this was just too much. She sat while I cleaned and then followed me, poked me several times and is still waiting for cake right now as I type my blog. I think this cake was a hit.

Am I breaking the rules?

I normally stick with my guns about the 2-3 days notice rule. I have turned down customers who have called requesting a cake one day before because I just did not have the time. Today I had a day off from work and was doing errands when I received a call from a nice young lady who needed a cake for her dog's first birthday tonight. Luckily, I was almost done doing all my busywork and driving in this horrible downpour and flooded road conditions. I was soaked to the bone and chilled as well but I did manage to crank out the cake. And as you can see, it was a cutie. It was a mini cake, 3" diameter, decorated with Granny's Apple Pie Mini bones and the same delicious creamy cheese, cinnamon, vanilla, honey icing. The "HB" is done in carob/peanut butter frosting. I love the mini cakes but the big ones are more fun to decorate because of the amount of room to write a message on top. I am developing a new script for the cake writing so I can't wait to work on this weekend's cakes.

2007-04-01T18:20:00.000-07:00

My latest cake was really cute, yes, I liked it! HB Abbey!

Note the similarity in style of writing between the cake above and this one.

Nothing like a box waiting to be opened. Look inside!

The Writing on the Cake.

The dilemna now is whether I should be block printing or practicing my calligraphy for the cakes. My birthday cakes have been coming out much better than the original ones lately. Though, the cake recipe itself and the frosting is basically the same, my handwriting or rather cake writing has become much much better. But, lately I've been printing on cakes and I don't know if I just started doing it because I wanted to try to change it up a little or if the icing that I've created for the cake writing is a little more liquid and less of the chunkier thicker frosting that I was originally using that would blob a little bit on output. Plus, I've found a great decorating device that I will share as a tip...squeezeable ketchup bottles that you can find in any kitchen supply store. It's no big secret really, it's been used by decorators and for plating for years but I finally broke down and stopped using my decorator tips to do the cake writing because I kept getting spurts of frosting that would create a blob of frosting in the middle of a letter just like those old Papermate pens that I used to use in school, the kind that would make a really great, medium point type line when you wrote with it but also ended up all over your hands after you had done your homework. Ah, the good old days...when you actually had to write with a pen and looseleaf paper rather than doing it on your laptop. Ah, but I digress...just take a look for yourself at one of my original cakes and then one I did recently and tell me whether you think the writing should be block print or script. I think the pretty script is the way to go. Which means for me, practice, practice, practice....

Script writing back in the day.

Block print is a little bit plain in my opinion though I love this cake style.

Okay. I think I get it. The original cake writing was really much better. I looked at the cake again and although I really loved the cake itself, the mini bones along the sides were just an adorable little touch to the cake. That was extra treats but well worth it because it looked just so cute.

I'm thinking of a new recipe for cake now. It's called, the flourless birthday cake and it is an alternative to a wheat flour cake. It would be essentially the same cake only with soy flour. For those dogs with allergies to wheat, this would be perfect.

Rain

Ugh, my joints are hurting and so are Katie's. The rain is the worst for me because I get really bad joint pain. It used to be just one knee, now it's not my knees, it's my fingers. They get really achey and tight when it rains and my shoulder, the right one will just throb. I can bake and roll out treat dough but it just really slows me down. Ah boy, is it time to hire someone to help me? No, I'm really just a one woman show here. Other than my brother, the PR/web guy, I'm just doing a little bit here and there. I've got another cake to do early this week and one at the end of the week too. It's nice to get regular cake orders because it does keep me busy on my days off from work. Now if it would only just stop raining, I could be a little bit more productive.

Sad about the pet food scare.

I was watching the news and saw that there's more problems with processed foods for pets. Ugh. I could see it coming because we are just relying so much on others to make our lives easier and for what? Why can't you just make your pet something to eat when you cook too? Really, like Christie Shaver is doing with her company, one should really just cook and eat healthy. So what's my problem? I've got a slow metabolism and less time than I'd like to exercise. But I try to eat healthy and keep Katie's snacks healthy. Since I use organic ingredients in the treats, I feel much better that Katie is not being subjected to too many chemicals in her diet. The same goes for my cake recipe. I stick with as many organic ingredients as I possibly can and then the rest of the stuff is either low fat or no fat and all natural.

I just wanted to say that I'm really happy to be able to do what I do. I love baking and I love dogs. Is what I do a little over the top? You bet. I'm happy to be the one to be able to make these celebrations possible for all dogs everywhere.

It's a piece of cake.

The fact is that I like putting treats on top but then I can't write anything on the cake. Oh it is such an artistic dilemna to just want to decorate but also to have that blank canvas to write on. I like them both. I think Katie could care less as long as she can eat her frosting first and the save the cake for last. She still does that. It's cute.

It's like a proud parent or something...

I love this cake so much I wanted to share the edges with you. Notice the flower and leaf border around the edge of the cake? This was made from mini chicken snaps and minty kisses. I also did a dot border around the top of the cake. It was just an added detail but I did like the effect it had of highlighting the writing on the cake. Unfortunately, the "d" and the "a" decided that they should kiss and so the letters ran into each other before I could allow it to set and dry. I always need help with blocking out my letters. I always think I am going to run out of room and then have to start all over when I'm writing the word "birthday." That's why I like writing "barkday" because it's shorter. Not by much, but it's enough to keep the word from causing much angst when I am writing it on the cake.

2007-03-28T14:24:00.000-07:00

Birthday Cakes for Dogs 101

I've finally figured it out. Baking a simple cake is not so simple when it is your own recipe. I've whittled this cake recipe down to the bare necessities and still it is a perfect cake. I love it. The peanut butter was just screaming out to me and I had to take every inch of my being NOT to eat any peanut butter and put it all into the cake. Blah. I mean, YAY for the cake! Haha...no, seriously I am very happy about how the cake came out and I decorated it with bones this time, the Granny's Apple Pie Mini Bones went around the edge of the cake and it looked really good. I haven't done this design so yet so this is a premier cake unveiling for me. I'm waiting for the digital photos to develop because my digital camera is currently MIA. I haven't the foggiest notion where it went. I had to borrow dad's.

I made a major purchase today, cake boxes again. There is a huge selection of cake boxes available and the world wide web makes it easier yet so much harder to choose. I finally went with my old box company. They've been awesome with all my shopping bags and treat bags. I love the fact that they deliver practically in the next day too. There is nothing like great customer service.

More cake PLEASE!!

Yes, the cake orders are rolling in again. It was the summer when I had all those cake orders last year and so again, the warm weather means...bring on da cake! Everybody and their neighbor wants one for their special furry buddies. Katie's owner is no different. Katie has a bag of mini cakes frozen for her on demand basically. She loves her mini PB & C (peanut butter and carrot) cakes. I do too...but shhh, that's between us. Also, the frosting I have concocted is unbelieveably good, but why would I brag? Because it is AWESOME! It's a Cinnamon, honey, vanilla frosting made with cream cheese and yogurt. It's also lowfat and so your dog can consume his cake and enjoy the benefits of a lowfat lifestyle. Hahaha...ahem, but I am serious about that healthy cake thing. I like the idea of indulging once in a while but if you can eat something yummy and healthy too, why not?! I'm doin' it for the dogs. Yup.

The Baker needs a break...

Coffee break that is...I have decided to cut down on my caffeine consumption in the afternoons. I am now down to a nice healthy dose of decaf past 3PM. Alright...it's not that big of a deal but for me, it's a lifestyle change. I love my coffee! So today, I am drinking French Caramel Creme Brulee something or other but DECAF. It's alright. No, it's better than alright but I miss my little jolt of lightening to keep me productive for another 6 hours before bed. Oh well...such is life.

Treat of the Month for April (No foolin'...)

Ooh. It's time to think of the next treat of the month. Wow, April already? Sheesh. It seems like time really does fly. Ok, I shall say that in honor of the beautiful Springtime weather, April's Treat of the Month will be...Peanut Butterflies! Yes, they are so cute and adorable and Katie just loves peanut butter. Watch the drooling begin when you break these little treats out!

One pound for $10.00 and get a free variety bag bonus!

2007-03-23T08:49:00.000-07:00

Spring time means party time at The Honeybark Bakery!

Yes! Spring has finally arrived and it's time for all the great birthday parties to be had. Yes, dog owners all over Long Island will be celebrating special occasions and I'm happily going to oblige by providing cake. Cake is definitely one of my favorite offerings at the bakery. I just love the creation of it. It's a chemical reaction making cake and then the actual icing and decorating to me allows me to bring out a little creativity in design for these fun and special occasions. I put a lot of love into these cakes. I just really am happy to provide a yummy and healthy cake that looks nice too.

So I have some new photos of the recent cake I did for Abbey, a little Yorkie on Long Island. It was a single layer birthday cake, decorated with treats and as you can see, it is cute. I really enjoyed the decorating part and I'm getting better with my writing though, I think I need to create a template of all my letters. My handwriting is nice but I change styles and with a cake, you have to have some semblance of consistency with the writing.

The icing is made with cream cheese, yogurt, honey, vanilla and cinnamon. The writing is a carob icing. The treats are minty kisses and mini chicken snaps.

Check out my website for more birthday options. I did do some treats for a dog out in California recently. Unfortunately, I still haven't figured out how to ship a cake safely from Long Island to anywhere else in the country without having it become a horrible gunky mess. I may try sending a cake out to CA to my friend and her new puppy but I haven't even got the beginning of a notion about how to do that. More to come when my brain figures it out. If you have any ideas or suggestions, send them to me at geri@honeybark.com

Thanks and have a great day!

2007-03-21T08:31:00.000-07:00

Ode to Peanut butter

Alright, I have a special place in my heart for this sticky substance. Baking cake with it is just a fun and fabulous treat for me. Got up early this morning to do a cake for a special dog, grated carrots, mixed up the magic goop that comprises The Honeybark Happy Barkday Cake and voila! It's done.
I wish everything in life could be so easy. For me, baking a cake is much akin to making music. I remember back in the day when I played the violin in the school orchestra. The combination of the cellos and the violins, the violas, the brass altogether was just quite beautiful when everyone knew their place in the music. It was magical to be in the midst of something that came together in such a way to evoke that flutter of happiness inside. I always felt so satisfied after a concert or a good rehearsal. I walked away feeling elated. Now, I mix the cake, bake it, walk away to do some other tasks and 'ding!' Upon opening the door to the oven, my cake is presented to me like a performer taking a bow after the curtains have been pulled aside. I applaud you little cakes. I applaud your aroma, texture, beauty and health benefits. You, little cake, are made from those wonderful ingredients that make you so powerful and yummy. But my reverie is disturbed only momentarily because my little taste tester is here. Uh oh...here comes Katie...and she's sniffing for cake...

2007-03-18T15:32:00.000-07:00

Caution!

This is the update on dangerous dog food. Check your shelves and please avoid feeding your dog any of the contaminated food listed in this article.

http://abcnews.go.com/US/story?id=2961402&page=1

2007-03-11T03:56:00.000-07:00

TREAT OF THE MONTH!

March 2007

Ruffy Road O's
(Buy 2 dozen and get a free bag of mini treats)

In honor of Saint Patrick's Day, O'So Delicious and O'So good and a bonus too!

Check it out http://www.honeybark.com

Where have you gone?

My father has betrayed me. He stole my baking partner, my Kitchenaid mixer. He said it was only for a short time. He needed it to make his special meatballs. "It'll be right back," he said. He lied. It's really not very nice at all. Unfortunately, I cannot say ANYTHING to him because A. He gave me that mixer, and #2. It's his mixer to start out with and he technically loaned me the mixer and C. I love my dad, and I'm glad he has a hobby, cooking, which he does every once in a while, and OH yeah, his special meatballs are really, really good. Oh, but I digress. I'm mad at him because he gave me his industrial Kitchenaid, which is an "industrial mixer" that he had used when he had our store, long long ago. So this old jobby is an antique. It's still functional but it makes a really funky happy kind of humming when it mixes, unlike the newer one. This one definitely has a style of it's own but I like the WHITE one (now I'm getting whiney so I'll stop...).

This goes back to a long playful animosity I have for my father. Is that an oxymoron? My dad and I both like to cook. I think I acquired that gene from him. My mother, not so much a cook at all. She is more along the concept of "...and EVERYTHING tastes better if you didn't have to cook it!" So my father and I scold each other for stealing equipment from each other. "Where did the wisk go!" or "Did anyone see the BIG BOWL?!" We both know that it's either in one kitchen or the other so it's really just a matter of asking the other person but it's become a formal announcement of "inconsiderate behavior," to the rest of the household. Which consists of my mother, and Katie. Katie doesn't care but she pretends to listen to my father, he's the alpha and also a terrible spoiler of Katie as well.

Let's talk about loyalty now...

I have come to realize that being the O.P. (original purchaser) of Katie, I still have absolutely no allegiance from her except the fact that I also have the title of being the official T.M. (Treat Maker) or G.G (Goodie Giver) to her. My father is the A.D. (Alpha Dog) as well as P.F.G.G. (People Food Goodie Giver), which of course takes all precidence over the mere G.G., which is me. I hate saying it but, "What-ever..."

Bakery Hand

I've got to do something about my hand. As you may not already know, each and every one of The Honeybark Bakery treats are rolled and hand cut by me. My beloved Kitchenaid mixer and I made a lot of treats today, three huge batches and then it happened again. My hand looks like it has been pummeled by a mallet or run over by a car. Yeah, it's bad. It is sore too. It's only my right hand. The left is fine. But that does me no good because I can't really do much with my left hand. I've tried to cut treats with my left hand but it takes longer, less coordinated, I don't know why. So my father wants to invent some device to help avoid "bakery hand" and increase my productivity. He has yet to produce this incredible device but I know it's on his "To Do" list that is a zillion miles long, like mine.

Bite me

Check this out. In Bangalore, the people are suffering from a serious crisis of dog bites. Apparently, they have a special dog catching team specifically to address this problem. Stray dogs are biting people and they don't have the rabies vaccine to give although they do have tetanus vaccines. According to Dr. Devaki, a member of the expert dog catching team, "We have overcome the crisis period now and the number of complaints have come down from 600 a day to 60 a day." Yowch...

Here's the article if you want to see it:
http://www.hindu.com/2007/03/10/stories/2007031024050500.htm

The Ultimate Poop Scoop?

England says that they are nowhere near the dog fanatics that Americans are however, they are quite fastidious in their ability to clean up after their pooches. Having a device called the ultimate poop scoop, the K92 (Get it? K9=dog and #2=poop, cute catchy name), among other things available at this event makes them really look like they are catching up with us. The testimonials page is something you should check out. It's really amazing how happy dog owners get when a device like this comes out. Truly, the only disgusting thing about having a dog is the poop. It's a natural bodily function but still...it's poop and really, nobody likes to deal with, nor think about it for very long. If anyone knows what a Dogue de Bordeaux is, you would definitely understand that comment about how that owner would be "lost" in poop without the ultimate pooper scooper. But wait, why will Lock Keepers, Bank Staff and Customer Service Operatives find this especially useful? That part needs some explaining to me.

Just take a look. It's hysterical.
http://www.thek92.com/testimonials.php

Here's the article about the event at Crufts:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/frontpage/story/0,,2030784,00.html#article_continue

2007-02-21T11:03:00.000-08:00

Being thankful

I am so happy today. After going through a period of being really under the weather, (Whew!) I am all better now. I've been thinking about a few new treat ideas and shapes. As well, our new packaging will be coming out this Spring. It's all good stuff.

So excited to be working hard again and will be getting out to more dog events when the weather gets more temperate. Gotta love New York though...for all it's worth, our streets were neat and tidy, our walkways were cleared and today everything just looks like a really nice wintery day outside. It's not too cold and walking is perfect in this kinda New York day.

Today is the first day of Lent, February 21, 2007 starts Lent and it ends on April 5, Holy Thursday in the evening. I'm not a religious person in the sense that I do not go to church every Sunday, but I do have a special place in my heart reserved for these rituals that I believe are quite important in our everyday life. The very concept of Lent is what draws me to it. It is the discipline and self-sacrifice which brings about a greater awareness in general. It is a time for reflection. I like that. Take the time to reflect on yourself, your life, how you treat others and how you treat yourself. It's meditation and heightened awareness which we should practice each day. I also get to thinking about those dogs that need a home. See, it all comes together now...because I really was just looking at Katie today and thinking how lucky I am that she came into my life and how I wish that other dogs, shelter dogs, will be so lucky as to find a loving home and bring joy into the lives of their families. That is what I reflected on today.

I'm giving up ice cream for lent. Yikes. Can I do it? I think so...wish me luck!

2007-02-15T07:25:00.000-08:00

Prayers for Bob

Katie and I are both very sad to have learned that Boston Bob met an unfortunate end after what appears to have been electrocution. The article is here:

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/local/story/497690p-419529c.html

Con Ed is investigating the situation. As you may recall, last year a woman was electrocuted and died while walking her dogs on a city street. The dangers of walking the city streets are limitless...Seriously though, I've seen boots that perhaps could protect both you and your dog from electrocution. Rubber soles for your dog and for yourself, so fashionistas out there...just wear those ugly boots or a pair of Uggs with rubber soles and protect your pooch as well.

The sad story about Jodie Lane is here:
http://www.thevillager.com/villager_38/couldpolicehave.html

The salt that we spread to help melt the ice on our sidewalks and streets actually will conduct electricity better and therefore the exposed or corroded wires will pose an increased risk of electrocution for this reason.

Here is the safety information from Con Ed regarding "Street Safety"

http://www.coned.com/customercentral/streetsafety.asp

The hotline to call for any sort of dangerous electrical condition in NYC is:

1-800-75-CONED (1-800-752-6633)

I would put this number in my cellphone along with 911 emergency because you never know when you need to just hit it and get help.

Stay warm and safe.

2007-02-10T12:07:00.000-08:00

It's all about location

I just stumbled across this article today about locating devices on shoes. GPS for people. I've had this idea for a long time but well, as technology always does, it found it's way to a market.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070209/ap_on_hi_te/gps_sneaker

We have microchipping for dogs so why not microchip kids? They could have it removed when they are adults but we could consider this for safety considering the number of children who are abducted or attacked year after year. I'm not saying that we must know where our children are at all times but I do believe that this may be the answer to a problem that has long existed in a society that has enough knowledge to stop such heinous crimes against children.

As well, there are many of us who don't care who knows where we are and have no secrets to hide. Why not microchip yourself? Maybe this might hold up in court that perhaps someone was somewhere at sometime and not at a crime scene? Have you ever been somewhere remote, driving along thinking, "If I got stuck here...I'd have to walk miles to find help. Nobody would know where to find me..." That's a scary thought. But if you have a microchip that conveys a signal and let's "People Finder!" know where to find you, you have an emergency service that will save the day. Well sure, for you skeptics the thought is...well why not just put some locator on your car? Well no. Because then the car and you are two separate entities right? You walk to find help and poof, you're off the radar.

Ok, this is getting outta hand

I just got my copy of a little dog supply catalog, Doctors Foster and Smith and came across this little ditty, doggie slippers.

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=15350&Ntt=dog%20slippers&Ntk=All&Ntx=mode+matchallpartial&Np=1&pc=1&N=0&Nty=1

I think there is cute and then there is "too cute." By "too cute" I don't mean, "Oh that itty bitty teensy weensy cutey pootie has adorable slippers on!" No. I mean, "That's just over the top man." Whoa. I mean, what are slippers for? Aren't they to keep your feet warm? Well, let's get this clear. Dogs have paws. They already have their slippers on. This is just a way to provoke laughter, embarassment or just make a dog look cute waddling along in his ducky slippers.

Oh boy.

Katie bit me today. It didn't break the skin or anything but she meant business. What happened? She's a great dog. Still is. I love her but this was weird. We were just sitting on her chair and I reached around her to scratch her chest, she normally lets me do this but today, she let out a growl and then whomp! She just closed her mouth on my right hand! Whoa. That was freaky. So I pulled my hand out and jumped up. She didn't bite to break skin but she definitely meant that she wanted to show me some dominance. That scared me a little so I did yell at her. I let her know who was boss. Then she looked sad and remorseful. Sheesh. Talk about a real Long Island dog. Well, then she followed me around with her tail between her legs and then wagging in little friendly wags. I don't know what that was about. I checked her for lumps or something that might cause her pain but nothing showed up. She might be mad at me because I yelled at her this morning because she was just barking and howling at the garbage men. My yelling is not yelling yelling though. It's just me being as stern as I can with her and telling her not to bark. I guess I gotta go consult The Dog Bible now...be back later with the info.

2007-02-09T14:10:00.000-08:00

Mail Call!

I have to remind my wonderful customers to provide the correct shipping address when placing an order. I just had a terrible time trying to gets treats to one of my customers because she had supplied her home address and is virtually never at home.

All of my other customers have supplied a shipping address if different from the billing address by emailing me or calling. I love to hear from customers and I will oftentimes get emails just specifically to make sure the treats are going to a certain mailing address. Oh well...I've been an online buyer for years so I know exactly what must be done to make sure a package gets to me. I am therefore stressing that the MAILING ADDRESS be clearly stated on all orders.

I thank you...Katie thanks you and your dog will thank you when your treats arrive promptly and safely.

2007-02-07T14:55:00.000-08:00

It's been a while but I'm back!

Yes, the cold weather has got me back into the baking swing. It's been a slow couple of months despite the holidays. I guess people have been spending on themselves more than their dogs? How sad. But anyhow, I have been working on new recipes that should be ready for the Spring line up. Yay! Today was a beef treat kind of day and Katie really enjoyed it. My improved beef treat is crunchier and Katie loves it.

Funny way to incorporate a dog in a video

I just found this on You Tube as suggested by a funny guy...check this out.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KybdTGD6v3U&mode=related&search=

I think the dog is a Sheltie...actually from the speed and the cuteness factor, I'm certain that the dog is a Sheltie. I loved this. Laughed so hard.

2006-12-09T14:09:00.000-08:00

The Holidays are here!

We've been gearing up for the holidays, Katie and I are creating the holiday treat collection including the gingerbread men that we call, "Everything Nice." These are big sized treats for the large dogs and small treats or mini treats for the little dogs. I've packed them in a cute little bag with a bright red holiday bow or a sky blue bow for those little Hanukkah dogs!

My other treats include mini Christmas trees, Noah's ark animals (it's a biblical theme), angels, bells and stars. I've got an idea for cranberry treats but haven't had the time to work on the recipe yet. I'm too busy packing holiday treats for my current customers and sending out holiday gifts to my friends and their dogs.

I'm also packing to take my first vacation, much needed and this will be at the height of the season but what can I do? So sadly, I will have a lot to do when I come home from my trip.

The treats will be ready but it will be me that will be working 24/7 to get these gifts to their recipients on time for the holidays.

I also have big candy cane shaped treats too, it's actually an upside down "J" but isn't that what a cane IS?

Katie's Day of Beauty

Normally Katie is really a very sweet smelling dog. Most people think she smells really good and that her hair is fabulously soft. Kids love to stroke her back and grab her tail and Katie basically lets them do this to her with little to no reaction at all. She tolerates the attention but I don't know if it is the attention or the admiration that she enjoys. She is definitely a dog that loves her family though. I digress. So I found that Katie had a funky air about her one morning after we had been outside and her normal "eau de outdoor dog" was permeating with a pungent aroma coming from her hindquarters. "Blech!" I thought as I sniffed the air above her little quizzical expressioned face. I ran the bath and took down the massaging showerhead and in she went. I bathed her with a lovely shampoo given to me by an all organic products company and it was a jojoba shampoo with an incredibly great aroma. I love it. Katie loved it too. She didn't make her normal escape from the tub attempts. Plus, she lingered a bit in the warm soapy water after I had finished rinsing her coat. She looks amazing and her hair is incredibly soft and lustrous.
I want that shampoo for myself now! I also gave her a spritz of "Sexy Beast." She smells and looks like a million bucks now! Plus, she got to have a holiday treat and so she slept like a pup for the day.

2006-10-18T19:04:00.000-07:00

Oh my goodness...

Well, apparently we didn't miss the Dogcatemy awards...it's coming up. Geez. That's ridiculous. Nobody told me.

I have some new pumpkin shaped treats for Halloween. My new treat lines for the holidays are out, pumpkin pie treats, chicken snap ghosts, beef snap bones and skulls and Granny's Apple Pie bones. The treat bags are cute. Halloween is a treat for everyone. So the next event coming up is the Stray from the Heart party with Witches in Bikinis tomorrow night. Then there is the Paw for Parkinson's event this Sunday and I will be donating cake and treats to the cause. It should be a lot of fun. I was lucky enough to get a table and now I can't go because of work but I am happy that I can donate to a good cause.

I love the Halloween dog treats because they are really adorable. I'm baking some bat shaped treats too and those are going to be awesome. The pumpkin pie treats came out really cute. I'm also baking pumpkin cakes for the dogs with my special frosting. This should be really neat.

Dogs love...pumpkin!

2006-10-14T12:57:00.000-07:00

We messed up.

Well, The Dogcatemy awards was recently and I was so sick and in bed that I just completely could not do it. I'm sad for that because I so like NSALA but what can you do when you have fever and absolutely no strength?

On the up side.

We are sharing our great treats with the bulldogs of Brooklyn tomorrow. Yay! It will be a good time all around and although I won't be there myself, a little bit of my passion goes into every treat. Handmade and lovingly conceived. They look great and the goodies will be enjoyed.

Haven't been baking any cakes lately but I'm still hopeful. The cold weather tends to detract from outdoor party venues so I think the winter will be slow for us except for the individual party cakes which seem to be a steady thing.

2006-10-04T14:13:00.000-07:00

I hate to be the pupper pooper but...

Nope, I do not make puppy lollipops. I had received many requests to make my treats into Pup pops with a rawhide stick but I will repeat myself and say "no." I cannot really morally feel comfortable with making a rawhide stick a part of my treat menu because I just don't like the idea of rawhide potentially causing a dog to choke should they bite off too big a piece and then swallow it or aspirate it. Nuh uh. I do not encourage rawhide at all. My treats are unique and really great on their own. I just baked up a huge batch of treats last night and was really enjoyed watching them bake. It's so...cool how they rise up, puff and then become a really great treat for dogs. It's healthy and there are no chemicals added. Everything is naturally delicious.

I know there are other bakeries that call themselves the "original" dog treat but what does that mean? Yes, there are people who think they started the concept of making natural treats for dogs and perhaps they did but let's get serious. After your dog tries my treats, I will let you decide. Just pick a flavor, any flavor and order some. Your dog will show you just how great my treats or party cakes are. They are incredible. I've worked very hard to develop my recipes to be the greatest treats and dog cakes that a dog could enjoy. I stand by my treats, my wide variety, my special customer service and the special donations that I make to support animal welfare and dog adoptions from shelters. That is what makes me happy and it shows in my treats.

2006-10-03T15:30:00.000-07:00

I've been a little slow lately. I am working a lot on trying to get the treats out and also on trying to keep up with all the requests for treats. I may have to cut back on the number of places that I am donating treats to because I just cannot keep up without help. I am currently working practically full days and then baking at night and also working on advertising. It's rough. I love the baking part but the rest of the administrative stuff is hard. Also, I can't get out to HHBacker this year. Too much to do at home and for the business. I am working on new treats for the holidays, my gift baskets, and also my new packaging design. We've practically sold out at Uncle Giuseppe's and at Zoomies so it's really great. I'm tired but really happy!

Also, I am looking into finding a home for Honeybark. I am looking on Long Island because well, that's where Katie and I live. We love it here and it's just where I feel makes the most sense to be. Katie's been really patient with me. I spend a quality amount of time with her every day, we do girl grooming and playtime at regular hours and her dinner is always the same amount of time but lately I feel like I want to spend more time with her, take her out to the dogrun and all but I haven't got the time. So in all guilt, I've taken to giving her more time in the yard which is okay but not the same as letting her socialize with other dogs. I wish I didn't have so much guilt but I do. Maybe it's a Long Island thing...

I haven't had much time to socialize myself. I've been so busy. I do get to an occasional movie and I have been out to dinner but not much else. I did take some time to go shopping last week, which was fun. Plus I always do girl pampering like manicures and pedicures. That is a necessary indulgence. Oh, that and "Grey's Anatomy" for sure. I LOVE "Grey's Anatomy!" The other day, someone said that I remind her of Sandra Oh, which is pretty cool though I wish I had her hair. She has that awesome head of hair and mine is wavy and straight. I once tried to perm my hair and it was such a huge brillo head disaster that I've vowed never to do it again. I got my hair cut at Lemon Tree by an amazing stylist named Ashley. She rocks! She did such a great job with my layers that I'm definitely going back in a month for a trim.

I've realized that all this good working Karma is helping me to age backwards. I've been guessed at being in the early 20's by most people so far and I guess it helps that I do drink a lot of water, exercise, eat in moderation and I love what I do. And Katie helps a lot. She's my furball stressball. I spend time with Katie and she takes all my worries away. She's a virtual living Calgon for me. Speaking of whom, I gotta go do some hairbrushing...see y'all later!

2006-09-24T18:47:00.000-07:00

The Long Island Guide Dog Canine Festival

We were lucky to find the place! Happily able to donate a whole lot of treats to the festival even though we came late. Sent off a delivery to a happy dog today too. Got to watch the frisbee competition and Annabelle, the German Shepherd was great! She was a real trooper. Katie got to meet a lot of other dogs including a bunch of Australian Shepherd dogs and a few chocolate labs.

I got to meet the Labrador Retrievers rescue group and it was nice to see that there was a really great turn-out at this festival.

Happy to say that we passed along Ruffy Road O's, Granny's Apple Pie and Banana Bliss today. All of them are my top picks for active dogs so I hope that they were much enjoyed by all. Katie enjoyed a nice big piece of my peanut butter & carrot cake because she has been such a patient girl while I was baking cakes all weekend. Whew. Tired. But it's really fun to make these cakes because it's just fun for me to get to decorate them. Plus, I just find cake baking to be one of the most relaxing things to do next to meditation. I always get a nice rhythm going with my cake mixing, then my decorating. I always take a photo of my cakes. I've got a virtual album now. Very nice stuff.

I'm looking forward to next weekends activity which will be the Basset Hound Olympics! So cute. I love seeing those dogs because they have those really long ears and they just look like such sweet lovable dogs. Katie actually fell asleep in the car on the way home, which means she must have enjoyed herself and now she is tolerating car trips much better.

Howl-o-ween is around the corner!
I still don't know what I want to be for Halloween. I've been looking through the costumes and finding less that I like as I go along. I may actually dress like a doll or something silly like that because I've been a witch twice before, a vampire last year and a clown so many times. I did the princess thing too. I've done the harlequin clown thing too. Though I have to say I like doing the black and white make-up. That's always fun. I was thinking of getting the clown outfit too but Party City seems to only have these scary costumes this year. It's like Stephen King went and bought out all the Party Cities and now they are all in the macabre, bloody, gory themes. I hate looking at sharp teeth and sunken eyes. It makes me think of a junkie gerbil or something. Blah.

I read a great article in the New York Times today about Day Care and Hotels/Spas for dogs. The annual spending this year seems to be $38 billion in the pet industry. Cool. That means more people are seeing that their pets are a very important member of the family. I like that concept, not just for my business but for bringing the sense of community into great popularity for dog/pet owners. That's cool.

I also donated a huge amount of magazines to the LI Guide Dog Organization. I had a lot of New York Dog magazines somehow from all the events we have done and also Animal Fair. So I hope they went to some good homes to be enjoyed.

Mail Call

I got a delivery returned to me! I emailed customer service at the post office to inquire about this. The customer told me she never got a claim ticket. This stinks because the package is actually a month old now. I would never send out a pack of treats this old now. So now I'm rebaking them. I just have a freshness guarantee that I stand by and this made me mad. So I emailed customer service at the USPS and told them they owe me postage for this. I mean, they actually owe me for the entire order because they basically bleeped it up pretty badly. I'm curious what happened here. I hate having to be firm about this but this is just unacceptable and makes my company look bad as well as the delivery service of the USPS.

I may very well switch to Fed-Ex then.

2006-09-23T16:53:00.000-07:00

The Video

Wow. Check out the awesome video that my brother did on the Canine Cruise. Our treats were a huge hit and this video shows how much fun people had on the cruise.

Very cool stuff. Great fashion show by Shawn Michael. Puppe Couture did a great job.

http://www.zshare.net/video/cc01_pc-wmv.html

The Pawty Cake Press

So I tried to pass my photos along to a cake photo brag book and the book organizer said NO?! She said they were really cute but that the website was for cakes for people. That made me laugh because these cakes COULD be eaten by people but they are made for dogs. What difference does it make that the cake is meant for dogs? This is a brag book on great cake photos. Well. I shared my photos. I just really want people to see the different types of cake available.

2006-09-19T17:05:00.000-07:00

Happy Howl-o-ween

Here's a great article about safe costumes for your dog for Halloween. I'm planning a lot of parties for our dog friends so keep checking back to see where we will be next!

http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art5617.asp

Speakin' of Howllllling

The LI Basset Olympics is this weekend in Wantagh. It will be a really fun time and if you want to check it out, it's here at

http://tristatebassets.org/events.html#lipicnic

We're also helping out the Long Island Guide Dog Association with some bakery treats too.

We made it!

I got my treats into Uncle Giuseppe's in Smithtown today. Really cool stuff. I guess I got a little carried away but I was just so...happy to actually get my treats out there. It's so public and so amazing. Wow!

Also found a really cute selection of cookie jars and Halloween kitchenware at Target in Garden City. Very cute! They don't show their treat/cookie jars online so you better get over to that store and check them out. I have not seen a treat jar as cute as the ones they have. There were only two and I should have gotten one for Katie but I had more important things to do...like finding that elusive 5" cake pan! Ugh. No luck at all. Oh well. But I did get some really fun platters for the Howl-o-ween parties coming up. I love Halloween!

Gotta comment on this article from Long Island Press, "Responsible Dog Ownership Day."
Okay, so we need this to be like every day right?

This is the article link:
http://www.longislandpress.com/index.php?cp=167&show=article&a_id=9652

AKC RESPONSIBLE DOG OWNER PET PROMISE

As a dog owner, I promise:

• I will never overlook my responsibilities for this
living being and recognize that my dog's welfare is totally dependent on me.

• I will always provide fresh water and quality food for my dog.

• I will socialize my dog via exposure to new people, places and other dogs.

• I will take pride in my dog's appearance with regular grooming.

• I will recognize the necessity of basic training by teaching my dog to reliably sit, stay and come when called.

• I will take my dog to the vet regularly and keep all vaccinations current.

• I will pick up and properly dispose of my dog's waste.

• I will make sure my dog is regarded as an AKC Canine Good Citizen® by being aware of my responsibilities to my neighbors and to the community.

• I will ensure that the proper amount of exercise and mental stimulation appropriate for my dog's age, breed and energy level is provided.

• I will make certain that my dog is identified with both a collar tag and a microchip and I will adhere to local leash laws.

TV or not to see?

Well, we did cater both of those Leashes and Lovers events with treats for the cocktail muttini party at Sweet and Vicious as well as the party in Washington Square Park for Jim's friends on the Queer Eye show that aired tonight at 10PM EST on BRAVO. That was the nicest show I've ever seen them do. What they did for that guy was phenomenal and I hope he is out in the dating world, or at least socializing again. The kids were so cute and that mother-in-law is a saint! Wow. I'm glad we were able to contribute to helping get this guy out into the world. He seems to have gone through a major makeover so good for him! I wish that we got some airtime but contributing to helping this guy out I think the cosmic balance will be enough for now. Even though we got no credit, hey, that happens. We did a good deal and comp'ed all the treats for the Leashes and Lovers group. We encourage people to get out and socialize and if it's easier to do it with your dog at your side, go for it! We think dogs need to get out and meet other dogs just like the AKC guidelines states it.

2006-09-18T13:46:00.000-07:00

Got birthday? Get pawty Cakes!

Yeah, I just had to add these photos to my blog because I haven't before and as I was cleaning up my archives, I knew I should share. These are some of the cakes I've done for birthdays and for the shelters.

I need to get the word out and these custom designed cakes are so cool it's really fun for me. I love decorating. It's really like designing a great sculpture and speaking of which, I really have got to get that cake model done! Ack!
This was a sheet cake done for Little Shelter's Adoptathon.

This was a sheet cake done for a big birthday bash.

This cake truly rocked! I loved it. I actually hated to give it away!

Two tiered cake that came out really nice but huge! I practiced the lettering for hours before I got it exactly how I wanted it to look. The thing that I figured out was that my pan was not a 5" pan like it said on the label but a 6" pan and it actually made the top tier look like a slightly smaller layer cake. Still looked really nice though and the customers were very pleased!

2006-09-18T09:33:00.000-07:00

Dog Bite Facts

This is a good article about dog bites. I wanted to add it to my previous posting but figured it might get more attention on its own. I particularly found useful the last part that shows what to do to prevent a dog attack, some things that are very important to teach your children about dogs.

http://www.doglaw.com/Dog_Bite_Law/dog-bite-attorneys.html

2006-09-18T09:06:00.000-07:00

Oh...POOP!

I was thinking about a conversation I had recently about converting poop into fuel or energy. As I was doing the respectable bag and scoop this AM, I was reminded of this conversation. The thought did occur to me that bagging doggie poop and then disposing of it in the way that is regulated by NY State law is actually containing the poop but really you cannot do anything with it because it is in a non-biodegradable bag and so it stays, forever and ever. It is basically preserved for all eternity in its plastic chamber. That's gross. I laughed when I read this article because it described the very thoughts that I had had. Someday, when we are all gone and some alien species is investigating our remains, they will find these bags of poop and wonder what makes it so precious that we saved them, each and every one of them. Perhaps they will use it to cure a fatal illness or as an energy source to save their world. For whatever purpose, I'm sure there must be one otherwise, why else would we choose to save our dog poop in the manner that we do? Why not use biodegradable bags? It makes more sense for us to find a biodegradable yet safe way to dispose of dog poop.

http://abcnews.go.com/US/story?id=1813414&page=1

I found this article, although amusing, to be sad and disturbing as well.

http://www.gothamist.com/archives/2006/02/01/pooo.php

I remember well that my neighbor across the street had an adorable mutt named Snoopy. Snoopy was famous for her...well, poopie. She would be let out and allowed to trot happily across the street to make her famous drop on the strip of lawn lining our sidewalk. She would happily and fairly deposit her deeds on almost everyone's strip of lawn, you know, that useless strip of lawn that divides the sidewalk with your car? That's the part of the lawn that basically serves as a doggie toilet for most suburban dogs. Well, Snoopy would happily do her deed and then trot back home to get a kind pat on the head from her owner, Bruno. Well, this went on for many many years and never do I remember her owner ever coming to scoop da poop. It would remain on our lawn to be scooped by us or our neighbors and not once did we ever get together to form a lynch mob or community arrest on this neighbor, we just scooped the poop. I guess it's a different, less tolerant world we live in now or maybe we just find ways to be mean to each other. Who knows? All I know is Katie does her deed in the backyard, we scoop it and dispose of it in the manner of our towns regulations and that's that. What do city people do? I would think they do the same, scoop their poop and then drop it off wherever the city demands it be dropped. Where is that? I caught this article and laughed...a doggie poop DNA bank. Yeah, that'll be a great use of our taxpayers money. Just scoop the darned poop already!

http://www.gothamist.com/archives/2005/10/02/a_modest_dog_pooprosal.php

Oh no...this goes way back even further than I imagined and here lies a huge post on dog poop and the public humiliation of a girl whose dog pooped on the train and she didn't pick it up. The aftermath was a posting of her photo and identification for life as the "dog poop girl!" or in Korean it is gae-ttong-nyue or dog-poop-girl. Whoa. That is a title that could be held top rating as the all time worst nickname anyone could ever have. Yikes.

Wow! Here is the law...

http://www.doglaw.com/New-York-City-Laws/new-york-dog-poop-law.html

And finally, my last word on da poop...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pooper_scooper

So it's $600.00 fine and the ticket can be given to you by any of the park's recreation workers. AND you can be identified through DNA in your dog's poop. Incredible. Well, in our world of microchipping your dog to locate it, now you can do a DNA ID of your dog through poop. And we still cannot find the treatment for cancer...what are we wasting our research money on?

2006-09-17T12:10:00.000-07:00

The Quest for the Perfect Cake

I've been revising my cake recipe since I began creating these pawty cakes. I dream about peanut butter and the perfect cake. Eggs and honey, mixing it all together, how to get it just right. I watch as the cakes rise in the oven and opening the door to a cake that is just right is an experience that I can only compare with possibly hitting a golf ball with just the right lift, and watching it plop with a gentle thud on the fairway exactly where you want it to fall. It's beautiful. The aroma of a fresh baked peanut butter cake is just delicious. For those of us who love peanut butter, it's a sliver of heaven that gently wafts in through your nostrils, tickles your mind with a warm fragrance of peanutty goodness that makes the mouth form a tiny circle of "ohhhh." It's THAT good. I think the satisfaction of baking is truly my relaxation. It's my yoga. It centers me and it keeps me focused on my passion. I adore it. I can sit for hours reading through my cookbooks and searching for tips on baking. I love blogs that are about baking. I'm reading one now that is about cupcakes. There is a following for cupcakes that would astound those who do not share our interests. I welcome you to the world of cupcakes...take a look at these blogs:

http://dontmesswithcupcake.blogspot.com/

http://cupcakestakethecake.blogspot.com/

This site lists a whole lot of cupcake blogs:

http://www.squidoo.com/cupcakes/

What do you do on a beautiful day?
I've got a billion things to do including bills...oh what fun. But truly I have a list of fun fabulous things to get done including:
1. bills
2. change my watch battery
3. design my new promotion cards
4. bake apple cupcakes
5. devil's food cupcakes (none for Katie)
6. haircut
7. go through mail from this past week
8. read Sunday papers (Newsday and NYT)
9. blog
10. catch up with friends
11. write press release
12. get new cake pans
13. work on new recipes
14. clean out one dresser drawer (Martha Stewart made me feel guilty!)
15. read four magazines
16. Plan Howl-o-ween parties for October
17. design gift baskets
18. finish cake models for displays
19. Read a chapter of Cesar Millan's book.
20. Finish business advice book.

Okay. Now you know that this list is absolutely impossible to do in one day. Yes, but I do that. I plan way more things to do than I could possibly do and then it overflows to the next day.

I did run 2 1/2 miles yesterday and that was really cool.

Imperfections

I made a cake this week that was perfect except for one thing. The top tier was just too big. It looks like a mesa more than a two tiered cake. I now realize that the people really like these two tiered birthday cakes. They look really cool but since the tier on top is too big, I now need one size smaller cake pan and I cannot find one. It seems like there are no cake pans that are smaller than the size I've got and big enough to write a friendly "Happy Birthday [Your dog's name here]." So I'm cake pan hunting today amongst the other 20 odd things to do today.

Controversies

Last Sunday, there was an article in NYT about Pit Bull Laws in certain towns. I remember how difficult it was to find a dog friendly apartment but imagine what it would be like to buy a home and then be told that you cannot keep your dog? As well, there are places in the U.S. that have euthanized dogs of the pit bull breed due to a ban that was started in May 2005. The CDC has statistics on the pit bull that state the breed was responsible for 66 of the 238 dog bite fatalities during the period of 1979-98. Rottweilers were next with 39 deaths. There are other communities that require leashes to have a minimum of 300lbs of strength and be kept at most 3 feet in length. As well, the requirement of $100,000.00 liability insurance sounds fairly reasonable. I think that any dog can be considered vicious if not taught appropriate social behavior or not being socialized with other dogs or people. Being a responsible dog owner takes effort. Bringing a dog into the community means understanding that we all must be considerate of everyone that lives in our community and I strongly encourage people to socialize their dogs, read about appropriate behavior, follow dog park rules and enlist the help of a trainer like Andrea Arden to help make your dog a good citizen.

Thank you!
I wanted to thank Tracie Hotchner, author of The Dog Bible for that wonderful message she put in my book. It was a present to me and I really loved it. I cannot wait to read through and learn more. I've heard so many wonderful things about this book and it has come highly recommended by many including a whole bunch of people I met at the last AKC dog show I attended.

Special thanks to Arden Moore for sending me a copy of her wonderful book "Dog Parties" I'm so excited and want to say it has some really funny illustrations so if you don't already have a copy, go get one because it's really a fun read!

http://blubandoo.com/product_info.php?cPath=20&products_id=42&osCsid=45f093123a11d40abd9414e6193a74a2

I gotta get going...so much to do and already the day is passing by!

2006-09-14T14:49:00.001-07:00

Electrocuted dogs

I was just watching the evening news, channel 4 featured a small dog that got electrocuted by a manhole cover that had been touching an electrical wire. The dog got zapped then fell over, luckily off the manhole cover. The owner was safely able to get the dog to medical care and the dog was happily munching on a treat on the camera during the interview. I found this article online that is a useful little guide to what procedure should follow if this should ever happen to your dog. Dogs get into things like wiring in the home and might chew on it so this comes in handy for those dog owners who have that kind of pet at home.

http://www.somervilledog.com/archives/000379.php

Cake!

I love my new cake recipe. I baked a cake and last night I was actually thinking that if anyone could possibly be in love with a cake, I was in love with this cake. It was a two tiered cake and I had not even frosted it yet and it was simply beautiful. Perfect in every way, rose exactly so, texture was perfect, color was perfect, it was just gorgeous. I frosted it today with my very special cream cheese, cinnamon, vanilla and honey recipe and it was just so pretty. Then I added the message on top. I've gotten better at writing so it looked legible and yummy. I've been using a carob frosting for the writing and it makes a tasty and yet rich appearance to the cake. Topped off with my Banana Bliss bones and Ruffy Road Cruisers and this cake was well, wow. Birthday cakes for dogs is a fantastic concept. I was thinking about it in the shower how dogs aren't humans. I am not one of those people that tries to humanize their dog. I think Katie is simply a member of the family and she deserves to be treated like one of the pack. She's got her place in the pecking order of the family and she knows it. She also gets special treats to tell her we love her. Dog birthday cakes are really just a celebration that we are happy you are a part of our family and you make our lives special. We celebrate that.

I will be posting photos of my cakes soon but this is a photo of the cakes I did for a party last night, the Barkin' by the Bay party with NSALA's Party Animals. It was a lot of fun! There were so many dogs there and Katie made a couple of new friends. A whole bunch of labs were in the corner, Katie's buddy Emma was there with her owner, Heather. Maggie the Basset Hound, and Jilli the trick dog was there with her owner Rick. I love going to these parties and seeing the same crowd and new faces each time. Peanut, a French bulldog was the cutest of all. His smile stretched from ear to ear and he was the cutest little thing, all of thirty pounds but the sweetest face I've ever seen. We also met a gorgeous little Corgi named Duke who just made you smile whenever you looked at his little face. I love short dogs. Katie's slightly taller than most Shelties but I still call her shorty because she is like a little table running around. The photos will be up on our website of the party. Everyone had a good time and there was good cake so definitely a good party.

What did we serve? We served our little boat treats because it seemed to go with the theme of the party and mini peanut butter & carrot cakes with our special frosting, topped with a little boat. Here's the photo.

The Honeybark Bakery's very special mini cakes with creamy cinnamon/vanilla & honey cream cheese frosting. So...tasty.

We served about 2 dozen dogs at the party. It was really a great time and I look forward to the next party!

Paws for Parkinson's

Our next event is going to be the Paws for Parkinson's event, info will be listed on our website.

I had a dream about a new treat that is in development. I dreamed of Italy so I guess you can imagine what I am thinking of. The other thing I dreamed about was hot steaming cinnamon rolls. I used to make the flakiest most delicious rugelach with cinnamon/brown sugar and walnut, chocolate chip and walnut and I also made one with apricot jam. I tell you they were eaten before they were even done being rolled up. So I'm thinking up more treats.

The return of...the veggie roll?
I took the veggie rolls off the menu because basically they were too hard to make. I've been working on the recipe and it's just a hard treat to do. There is a whole long process to make these things and it takes way longer than any of the other treats. So I said, well it's going to have to be a party platter item only. Now I'm starting to rethink this because I love making it. You're probably saying, "But you just said..." Yeah, I know. It's a labor of love really. All of the stuff that I make that is more labor intensive ends up being something I really enjoy. For example, the dessert cups or Sweet Blossoms. Those are really labor intensive but I love making them. I actually do a little dessert cup dance while I'm putting them together. But I didn't tell you that. It's just that I keep the Food Network on my tv while I'm baking and it is a fun time. My bakery has become inspired by Willy Wonka. I've got my own little Oompa Loompa action going on. I wear bright orange crocs whenever I'm in baking mode and sometimes I forget that I've got them on and go out in them. That always gets attention. I've been pointed at by kids who say, "Mommy! Orange feet!" Yeah, it's the crocs! I got the crocs because Martha Stewart had suggested that they are so comfortable and wonderful. She is totally right because these things are to live in. Seriously, they just allow you to walk miles and miles, up and down stairs hundreds of times. My feet and legs feel great. I'm also in love with the colors. I'm going to keep writing to Martha Stewart until she answers my letters. I've been hoping to send her treats for her chows and Francesca, who I adore.

Dirt Dog

iRobot has developed a new robot called "Dirt Dog" I found it on HSN and it was a fantastic little device that I hope to see in action one day. It sweeps and has some sort of cool little barrier so that you can limit it's area of cleanup. Very cool. I love the concept of robots but then I think of Terminator and get scared. Then I think of cleaning my closets and I get even more scared. One day I hope that iRobot invents an "i-hate clutter-bot" that just takes a laser and eliminates your clutter by completely obliterating it like on those old time science fiction movies where the laser beam would disintegrate anything in it's path. I need that. I'm a clutter freak and I keep almost everything until there is absolutely no room on my desk then it all goes into the circular file. Usually that parting of the desk piles happens on Sundays because that is the day of being closer to you know who. And cleanliness is next to you know who-liness. Of course, there should be a setting that says, closet to be cleaned every...whatever number of days, say a month or three months. That way, you could go a season without any issues. And, if that "i-hate clutter bot" destroys all your stuff, you can just go out and get new stuff. Just like George Carlin said. Simple. It's the Honeybark way.
http://news.com.com/iRobot+launches+Dirt+Dog+shop+vac+and+military+PackBot/2100-1041_3-6115360.html

2006-09-14T14:49:00.000-07:00

2006-09-13T09:13:00.000-07:00

The Canine Cruise

I was unable to go to the canine cruise because I had personal obligations, a friend had a bridal shower and because it was a surprise I didn't want to mention it here until after the event just in case she were to come over and read my blog. My friends do that on occasion and they read stuff then call me about it. That would have been a surprise spoiler for sure.

I did hear from my brother, Geoff, the official cruise videographer, that it was a fun time all around, lots of dogs got to enjoy our treats and it was a huge success. Congratulations to Rece Reid, the cruise organizer for doing something spectacular. Dogs from as far as North Carolina were here just to attend this event. It was the first NYC canine cruise and I think it will be one of many to come.

What did we serve? Here's our sign:

Get treats here!

Compliments of

The Honeybark Bakery

Gourmet Dog Treats & Pawty Cakes!

“The Canine Cruise Collection!”

A delectable collection of our treasured treats!

Ruffy Road “Riverboats”

Peanut butter & carob, two flavors that rock the boat!

Banana Bliss “Dreamboats”

It’s simply banana nirvana.

Peanut Butterfly “Powerboats”

No peanut butter lover can resist it’s power!

Granny’s Apple Pie Mini Bones

Our bestselling treat and a huge hit at Zoomies!

So all around, I think it was a big hit because I've gotten some great response from people who were on the cruise and said they really liked the treats we served.

I also am happy to say that we are busting out all over Long Island. We are now going to be having our treats at a big gourmet supermarket on Long Island and this is something we have been waiting for patiently and now we can share treats with people who aren't as computer savvy. I've gotten lots of calls from people who order stuff just by calling me. It's interesting to see that there are so many people who don't know about computers. I thought with our generation of iPod/MP3 users and online chat, forums and email, text messaging, etc, people would easily be able to order treats online. No. Definitely not true. There are so many people who just check email and that's the end. Wow. I'm so amazed by that and hopefully I will be able to change that in the near future.

PARTY!
Yes, there are a lot of party dogs out there. Birthday cakes are so cool and I'm actually doing a party tonight out in Freeport, NY. It's called Barkin' by the Bay and it's a little gathering of people called "The Party Animals" and we will be socializing and sharing treats. It's all good fun.
I've baked cakes for the party and I put my little cruiser boats on top. It's all very cute. I'm frosting them with my incredibly delicious creamy creamy cheese cinnamon/vanilla/honey frosting. It is absolutely "de-lick-ious!" Ask Katie. She licks all the frosting til it is all gone, then she eats the cake. I gave her one the other day because I did a sweet little individual sized birthday cake and she was waiting for me when I finished boxing the cake. She had the, "Where's MINE?!" look on her face so I gave her a mini one. She doesn't get cake every day. It's just on special occasions. That day was the, "I haven't had cake in a week," day. Ha. I do not kid you. She gets cake once a week at most. I bake cake every week for the weekend parties so she gets whatever is left over from that. Except on her birthday or a holiday. I also donate the cake that is left over from an order to shelters. I've done it a few times and it's a real feel good type thing for me. I've brought two tiered cakes over and it looks really cool for the shelter dogs to get a yummy cake like that. I think they like it. It's peanut butter so why wouldn't they?

I'm developing two new cake flavors but I think that for now peanut butter is the hit. I wish more people would try the carob cake and see that it is pretty yummy. I might bake that for tonight just to give people a taste of carob cake. Hmm...

I've noticed something interesting. People say stuff about being organic. I don't make any huge claims about my product. I tell people that I use organic ingredients. That's it. I don't use any additives or chemicals or preservatives. Why? It's just the fact that I bake the same stuff, the same treats that I developed just for Katie. These are wholesome goodies. It's the truth.

I came across some websites that say they are entirely organic or that they are members of ORGANIC ASSOCIATIONS. Um...sorry to be technical but, ANYONE can be a member of this just by paying dues. You receive newsletters and pay an annual membership fee. Just try it yourself and you will see this is true. I get a little disappointed by these treat makers that make these huge claims about their product. Why don't they just say their stuff is just good and leave it at that? I think that my product is the most amazing treat your dog will ever try. That's my deal. It's simple. Our treats appeal to people because they look good, cute, kind of adorable even. They smell good. There is cinnamon and nutmeg and fresh fruits, apples, bananas and real peanut butter. Real peanuts, carob chips and I use fresh meats, eggs, cheese. It's everything that a person wants to eat for themselves and I bake it all into my treats. It's good stuff. I designed them to look appealing because I think that you just need to feel good about what you eat and what you feed your dog. Some people say, "eh, I just give my dog a ----bone and he's fine." Okay. Let's just think back to the good days of our childhood....school cafeteria lunches. Remember those? Remember how they used to send us home with a calendar for our parents to see what we were eating each day? I remember it well...pizza on Monday, meatloaf on Tuesdays, spaghetti on Wednesdays, chicken cutlets or meatball heros on Thursdays and Fish sticks on Fridays. They would mix it up a little bit each week but basically it was the same, all year. After a while you wonder if there is anything else out there. Kids would have food fights with the food or just dump it. It gets boring. If you remember this, this is why I created Honeybark treats. You need to shake it up once in a while. Giving your dog something different and a real treat, a reward is a nice thing to do. It isn't a meal replacement. It's a treat. Treats are good. You like your occasional box of chocolate right? That's what Honeybark is about. Give your dog some Granny's Apple Pie, Peanut Butterfly treats, Banana Bliss pies or Ruffy Road (that's my carob chip/peanut butter treat) and watch your dog stop and sniff it. They need to investigate it first then they will try it. It's a totally new experience. It's like trying sushi for the first time. Sometimes people are skeptical. They sniff it. They wrinkle their noses. They look at it, examine it and then watch other people eat it. Then they try it, and they love it. They are hooked. But you don't eat sushi every day. Not even in Japan do they eat sushi every day. But it's a treat. Same concept, only your dog deserves a treat. You gotta take some home and let your dog try some on his own terms. Then you will really see how much they enjoy it. That's my two cents.

Junk mail rant
I'm getting a lot of junk mail since I started Honeybark. People find me. I've got a whole bunch of pet products just loading up my junk box. Wow. I know occasionally my email gets directed the wrong way so I check it for occasional customer questions and whatnot. I've found out that there is a guy out there who knows how to virtually rob banks. I don't know why he isn't in jail. Or maybe he IS in jail and he is emailing people telling them how to rob banks. Geez. Isn't THAT ironic. Then there are the people who tell me I've won stuff. Oh boy. I've won a lot of stuff according to these folks. I've won trips, homes, free dinners and all I have to do is answer five zillion questions. Then I get to sign up for a new credit card. Like I need another one of those. Watch out for those emails. I've also been approved for many loans. A multitude of people who want to help me with my business needs. I'd be Bill Gates if this were true. I have free Hoodia samples waiting for me and people in Africa who want me to earn thousands of dollars in a week just by depositing their checks for them and sending them a smaller amount. It's a wonderful service called a BIG LOAD OF SCAM! I cannot believe these people. They tell you how you can earn so much money by sending them a smaller amount after you deposit their check because they cannot exchange their money in the U.S. from their customers. So you send the money to them and then it turns out to be a scam and you actually have sent them your own money AND you have been penalized a huge amount from the bank for sending a bad check to them. Tsk tsk tsk. Shame on these crooks. Oh how I long for the happy days of ignorant bliss where you can trust everyone and doubt few. That reversal of opinion seems to be what growing old is all about. Am I jaded? Yes.

The check is in the mail.

Doing business has taught me that this is such a funny statement. Now, we have direct deposit from our computers and we no longer need to use the USPS for such things. We can send a payment at midnight to someone anywhere. No need for postage. So there is just no excuse anymore. Don't even say it. It's a waste of your breath.

Katie come!

Katie has learned a new trick. She has learned that she can get my parents to say, "Katie COME! about fifty times before she actually has to do it and she STILL will get a treat. This makes me laugh because my mother will hang out the back door calling, "Katie? Come!" like twenty or so odd times until Katie comes jingling around the corner from our yard. It's about 50 feet but she can run it in like 8 seconds if she smells something she wants. I find the peanut butterfly to hold the record of like 7 seconds actually and Granny's apple pie sadly is 8 seconds consistently. So who is teaching who? I picked up Andrea Arden's pamphlet the other day and was reading her tips. I like how she teaches and I am really anxious to meet her one day soon. She seems really knowledgeable and I just want to learn from her.

Food food food!
THPG is another website I've visited recently and I have a packet of her stuff in my freezer for Katie to try this week. I'm happy to say it looks delicious.

Advertising
I've talked with so many advertisers and gotten the same message. What I cannot believe is how slick some of these people are. They try to get you to pay these exorbitant sums to put your ad out there. So if you really want to know the scoop on how much advertising costs, just try it yourself. You will see what I mean. It is expensive. I understand why a lot of people just do not go into business. I've been very lucky to be able to do this for my bakery. Watch for us in the upcoming dog magazines. We will be out there with a modest display but like I said, our treats really do speak for themselves. No pitch needed. It's simple and good. Cute too. Did I forget to say cute?

I feel I've ranted enough. Back to the baking;)

2006-09-02T21:55:00.000-07:00

Great work Andrea!

Barkslope is one of my favorite blogs. You gotta check out this pug in action!

http://site.barkslope.com/blog/

2006-09-02T14:37:00.000-07:00

Smoking the banana? What?!

So, my favorite place, Wikkipedia has never ceased to amaze me. I was looking up information about the banana today to just clarify that whole concept of trytophan "dreaminess" when I found this little blurb about people smoking banana peels. Yikes. That's just weird.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banana#Smoking_banana_peels

Labor Day Pains

I am working this weekend so no rest for the weary. Blah. It's rainy so I feel kind of smug but no, not really. I wish it weren't so glum out. I wanted to BBQ. I've just spent way too long on Dog.com forums. It's just a way to pass the time. Also, spent some time reading about bananas (see first paragraph). I should be working, yes, but I'm procrastinating.

Gift Wrap

The cake orders have calmed down a bit. Whew! I'm working on my Fall line of treats and getting some ideas for the Canine Cruise. Fun stuff. I found some gorgeous treat jars that are plain but very cool looking. Plus I am really excited about the gift giving season. I have always loved wrapping gifts and presents and packing gift baskets. I've done quite a few in my time. I love the idea of putting together a theme basket. I have made picnic themed baskets, housewarming baskets, baby shower baskets and wedding/honeymoon baskets. I am not the basket Queen but yes, I do make a mean basket. Well, it's actually very pretty and sweet, not mean but you know what I'm saying. So now with my little doggy treats, I can do themes too. Okay, I'm getting a little doggy woggy but it's fun. Really! Since I have so many treats, I can really design some funky themes for my gift baskets. So keep your eyes out people...the gifts are on the way!

Dog's got rights man...

Came across this article and just had to comment on it. Well, it's about time somebody stood up for our furry friends. I've been rallying troops about dog owners' rights and apartment living. Why? I mean, yeah, I'm not living in an apartment anymore but I went through so...much trouble finding a pet friendly building before I got Katie and it was a nightmare. I was showed some really awful living spaces that needed some serious renovations. Half the time, I think that when a realtor sees a person in their twenties or thirties, they will think, "Oh good. That one can work on this apartment and do a lot of the fixing up." Yeah right. I was showed an apartment with the kitchen all blown up and the no counter or stove and the realtor was like, "Oh yeah! You could totally redo this kitchen space to your specs." I was thinking...um so that means take-out for months before this gets finished? Nuh uh. I like cooking and that just won't cut it. I also remember seeing an apartment that had a backdoor facing the complex pool and literally it was like 4 feet from the pool. I could imagine the traffic running by my patio every day during the summer. Kids are fun but poolside life was just not the kind of action I wanted to deal with on a daily basis. It's cool when you are actually visiting the pool but living there would be OOTQ. Let's get back to the article...so this lawyer practices animal law, helps to set up trusts, fight for the dog in dogbite issues and basically works to fight for tenant/pet owners rights is one of a group of lawyers that practice animal law. This is taught by about 70 law schools in the country now. I'm fascinated by this because it is and has been a much needed arena. I like the fact that these people are not necessarily animal rights activists but they are people, lawyers, that stand up for the rights of animals such as in cases of animal torture and setting up the pet trusts. That's very cool.

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/09/03/fashion/03lawyers.html?pagewanted=1&ref=style

2006-09-01T14:51:00.000-07:00

Animal CPR

This is important. I'm not a vet but I wanted to post a link to the information here because many of us know that our dogs will oftentimes gobble down their food really fast. Yesterday, Katie ate at a recordbreaking speed! I guess too much parade festivities made her a little bit HUNGRY! Whoa.

http://members.aol.com/henryhbk/acpr.html

Charlotte Reed?

I just spoke with Charlotte Reed this morning. She called me and it was like an old friend calling. She launched immediately into conversation in such a way that it made me feel like my friend was calling. How very cool. So we talked about life in the pet business, her speaking schedules and social engagements and it was really fun. It struck me then that I was talking to a genuine pet celebrity at the time but now, I'm a little starstruck. Wowsers! She even invited me to come to her next party...whenever that will be, I'm not sure but she did extend the invitation and well, I'm okay with that:)

The Canine Cruise is coming into the dock for passenger boarding...

I'm still pretty excited about this event. It looks like it is going to be huge. From all the hype and publicity it's getting, this will be a groundbreaking event for NY. Very cool.

Freebies

Samples are cool. I am okay with sending people treats to try out on their dogs. I'm also alright with stores asking me for samples too but it gets a little expensive. A friend of mine was asking me if these people pay for shipping or what? I just shrugged and said, "Um, no. I just send them some treats." Well, then my friend looked at me in shock and horror like my head had exploded and said, "But Geri, you send out how many freebies a day?! You just sent out a ton of packages the other day!" Yes, true but what can I do? The people demand samples and I gotta oblige. Fortunately, I think that almost everyone who has asked me for samples has been really cool and ordered treats. That rocks!

Is anyone out there?

I'm so curious as to if anyone has seen my advertisements in The New York Dog or our Fido Friendly blurb. Part of me feels like it was just tossed into the wind with no real focus and thus brought no traffic back to us. I'm just not sure. So lots of lovely people have been offering me advice about "Focused advertising." I am not a marketer nor do I claim to be. I've been thinking of getting help on this topic but I don't know where. Besides that, all I really want to do is bake some healthy treats and get them out to the dogs. I've got some outstanding recipes and the dogs really love them. I just don't know what else I can do.

2006-08-31T08:06:00.000-07:00

The Dog House

Our pets, companion animals, however we describe them, they are a part of our family. Many new families have "furbabies" or "furkids" and these members of the family have integral parts of our lives. Pet owners on Long Island and in NYC are thinking of their pets when they buy pet furniture such as that described in the Newsday article entitled, Pet Chic by Carol Polsky in today's paper.

Find it here:
http://www.newsday.com/features/printedition/ny-hocov4870351aug31,0,4034708.story

At Pet Fashion Week, I found an amazing array of pet beds out there ranging from the simple plush bed to extravagant pieces of furniture that were finely crafted and would make any interior designer go "Oooooh." I myself allow Katie up on the furniture. She sits wherever she pleases but like the pretty princess that she is, or not, she will most often choose the simple comfort of our beautiful hardwood floor. It's really great to see her lying there sleeping soundly or running in her sleep. She will basically sleep anywhere so long as she is close to one member of the family. She will park herself right below me on the carpet of my office, just to be near me while I'm tappity tapping away at my blog. I will in fact get Katie a pet bed someday but for now, she sleeps on several of my throw rugs that I've piled up in her corner. It's like an elevated bed for her and she likes it just fine.

Nice comment in the article there by Susan Bartholomew from Zoomies.

The truth of the matter is that pet owners are spending more on their dogs, cats, birds, fish, anything that keeps company has become really important. Was this a natural progression? I'm sure. This is an important part of survival. Animals all stick together for the most part in packs or herd or flocks or gaggles. It keeps us alive. We need each other. So why not spend some more on your family member if you can. We all deserve a little pampering once in a while and that's a good thing.

I gotta think bigger

I'm starting to need to rev up my production. With business happily chugging along, the orders piling in slowly but like little soldiers, it's lining up and I will need more help. I've thought about enlisting students from the local trade schools. These are some really bright kids but I think I'm going to just try to revamp my efficiency and work on my little assemblyline for now. I've organized a lot of my packing and the treat making itself is like a finely choreographed dance. For those who have seen me dance, stop laughing. No really. Stop.

The treats look good though. That's what counts right? And Katie is still following me around for one of the "Big Dudes". Give it a rest girl. You'll get one soon. If somebody just read the last three sentences, I don't know what they'd think. No wait, I do.

What are my products?
They are treats, yes, but they are healthy so is that food? My father was just talking about my business and kept saying, "dog food this and dog food that." But really, it's food but it's not food. It isn't essential and it isn't going to be giving the dogs everything they need but there are healthy components to it. So is it a supplement? Not really. But it is healthy. Notice, I keep coming back to that part. I'm not sure. I'm planning on consulting a few vets for their opinions when I have time. Ha! When will THAT be? When my cake orders calm down I guess.

My fake cake

I've been asked by stores to build a fake cake to be placed in the storefront for orders. So, what did I do? I went and looked it up online and built one. Actually I built six but they all look different and are made of different things. Do bakeries do this too? Not the one in my neighborhood. My old time Italian bakery which I adored since childhood has always had fresh cakes baked on premises and they have been my cake for birthdays, graduations, celebrations all my life. How do they do it? I'll have to figure that out when I start my own little bakery someday. Oh, but back to my fake cakes...they are heavy! I built them out of wood and plaster and it's a big old block of fake cake. Unbelievable. I'm so glad I don't have to ship it. That would be a lot. But it does look good enough to eat. That's cool.

I gotta go bake for this afternoon's Love on a Leash Parade. That will be so much fun. I'm bringing my camera. I can't wait. Plus, Katie will get to meet some dogs in the Hamptons.

I'll bring back some photos from it.

2006-08-29T08:48:00.000-07:00

Denise Flaim Article about Katrina Dogs
There was a recent article in Newsday about the dogs that were rescued from Hurricane Katrina's aftermath. This is a sad reality. There is so much controversy here. I can see where the owner would definitely want to reclaim their dog but then the adopters side is that some of these dogs really were sick and not well cared for at all. These adopters took on the responsibility to rescue this dog, pay for these medical bills and help to make the dog healthy again, and now the original owners want to take back their dogs. Maybe we could chock some of it up to ignorance. Not all dog owners are very bright. Some are just loving people but again, not too smart. So they may very well buy a dog or adopt a dog from a shelter and then not realize that they have to take care of the dog with regular medication and physicals each year. We all could be a little more tolerant of each other but also encourage each other to do the right thing. If there were government assistance programs that would allow people some coverage for their pet care should they need it, like a grant that would help people who have lost their jobs or had a death in the family to keep their dog's care costs at a reasonable level, we might have something good to work with. There are free clinics though. There are vets that are so kind and so generous you wonder why medical doctors were not more like them. (I'll tell you why, medical doctors have to deal with malpractice every day. Whereas, I'm not really sure exactly how many lawsuits arise that are related to veterinary malpractice.) But anyhow, I do feel for both parties involved. I won't take a stand on this issue because I believe that each case is different and perhaps it should be decided by a judge if it comes down to it. Yes, it is important to have the finances to be able to care for your pet properly but do we not honor that story about "Tiny Tim?" (Is that totally off the wall as a reference?) Love is worth so very much but well, food is important, heartworm pills are important and being humane is very important. Not every rich guy or family is loving and caring and will provide the attention to a dog. Not every poor or lower middle class family is either. It's a hard decision. I'd hate to be the judge for these types of cases. How can you sleep at night?

Spam has a totally different meaning now

My love for Wikkipedia grows each day. Last night, I had the pleasure of looking up the term "Spam" because I was accused of spamming a dog forum. Ugh. I actually WAS and didn't even know it. I do apologize to all those folks out there who do know and hate SPAM. I even found this interesting site that explains the evil of what I had done. Now I understand the difference and what they mean by the evil "Spam." But I didn't think that mentioning that I had started my business was such a bad thing. I wasn't advertising, I was just saying. It's strange. There are so many rules now and I guess we all have to do the right thing and educate each other huh? I didn't really appreciate that email saying, "WE WILL BAN YOU FROM THIS FORUM IF YOU DON'T STOP SPAMMING!" (What they really wanted to say was, "STOP YOUR &^^%$$&@@! SPAMMING YOU STUPID SPAMMER!" I think that admin people have to consider the fact that if one is a "puppy" to a site and new at this, you don't have to smack them on the nose with a newspaper. Cesar Millan would agree on that, I'm sure. Anyhow, I've learned my lesson. I was bad so I'm off to the corner to sit and think about my bad behavior.
http://spam.abuse.net/marketerhelp/

I always thought of Spam as that funky pink squishy loaf of mystery meat from Hawaii. I grew up on Spam. We had Spam sandwiches, fried Spam for breakfast, Spam and cheese, Spam on toast, Spam and rice, the list goes on...I am a Spam expert. Of course, I don't eat it much anymore if at all because I just cannot handle the salt but I hear they make low sodium Spam now so maybe my childhood memories can be rekindled.

Oh yeah, would be wrong of me not to lead you to the site that so kindly educated me on the various definitions of SPAM.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spam
I love Wikkipedia...I love it;) I read it almost every day and learn something new every day.

Treats and timing of eating
I was watching a morning news show recently, I think it was NBC's Today show and they were standing around cooking something very delicious, fish I think. It was about 9AM and the lady commentator was saying, "I'd love to try some but I just can't eat right now." This made me think about all those people out there who bring their dogs over to try our treats at parties and then when the dog doesn't want to try it, they say, "OH! HE/SHE DOESN'T LIKE IT!" Yeah...Lumberg would agree. Yeah, no. See, it's the same concept. I don't eat a cheeseburger at 5AM because I just don't feel like it. I love cheeseburgers. I would be hard pressed to refuse one if offered to me at say, LUNCHTIME or DINNER. I speak in caps and it's annoying me too so I'll stop...but truly, I've learned to tell people to perhaps consider taking the treat home with them, give it to their dog when their dog is relaxed and perhaps, hungry? I dunno...I mean it might be a good way of eating, "Eat when you are hungry." Snacks also. "Snack when you are hungry." Eat in moderation. If your dog is not eating, he's just not hungry. Dogs eat a lot but they also know when they aren't hungry. Well, most dogs know when they are not hungry. Some dogs, like some people, eat until they're sick. They often say after a huge, gi-normous meal, "ohhhhh...I'm sick!" As if this surprises them that they ate 3 lbs of chicken breast on a salad and now they are sick? "But I ATE a SALAD!" Yeah, a mega salad that could feed a town maybe?! I am just ranting now. It's too early for ranting. My point, bring the treat home if your buddy is not interested because you might see them eating it and enjoying it in the peace of their own home. It's like eating while standing up. Nobody WANTS to eat at a counter but we are forced to eat that way because of time constraints, crowds, whatever...it's not the ideal eating setting at all is what I say.

I love a good puppy photo

I came across this in my email and I love it! Check out this one, the huskie is just so sweet and adorable you just want to cuddle him all day.

http://pets.aol.com/galleries/puppies

Day 4 of frozen pupcake log...doing well. They are still looking good, yummy and Katie is going to get one today. She's sleeping now. I'll treat her later.

Don't forget to vote for the best book for the Quill Awards

You know I picked Marley and Me by John Grogan.

http://www.nbc4.com/thequills/index.html

I never thought I'd see something like this. Again, a Wikkipedia magical tidbit of trivial wonder. I love useless pieces of information to clutter up the mind but did you know that the guy that created E.T. is the same guy that write the "Walter the Farting Dog" series of books? Amazing.

Check out my little Wikki link:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Kotzwinkle

I scour the web for treat jars that might be cool in someone's kitchen and I found this cool site.
They have Betty Boop jars, Beatles Jars, jars that are shaped like a chef or like cars, it's unique and interesting stuff. I like that.

http://cookiejarcollectibles.com/dalmation_cookie_jar.htm

2006-08-28T17:42:00.000-07:00

Lassie come home!

I never saw the original Lassie. I feel like I'm lucky that I scraped by with the "Must see" list of movies and did fortunately see E.T. Otherwise I'd join the ranks of those scorned by all. The look of dismay and disbelief clouding their faces as they say, "You've never seen...yadayada?!" Yes, it's true. I've never seen Lassie's original movie. What kind of dog lover am I?! Yes, goodness I am really a faker. I love dogs but I'm not a real dog movie lover. I like the reality of a dog, the dirty, fun, slobbering, hair shedding everywhere life of being a real live dog owner/companion. Well, I think the whole terminology of being a dog owner is truly alright. I know there are people out there IRL who think that the term "dog owner" is poorly stated and truly, we are companions to our animals. But actually, I purchased Katie. And as sad as it may seem, I do own her. She owns me too though and in my heart I will always know that.

I gotta go stock up on some Kleenex before I see this movie. I know I will love it and I will probably go see it alone. Coming soon, September 1, 2006 opening.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/14559203/

For another review, check out this one:
http://movies2.nytimes.com/gst/movies/movie.html?v_id=316519

Uh oh, this site is something to see.

http://www.lassie.net/

I opened up the site just to see what it was about and that music just came pouring through my laptop. I practically sobbed right there listening to that sad wistful tune. It's haunting I tell you.

Hey wait a minute...

http://movies2.nytimes.com/gst/movies/movie.html?v_id=28268

Alright, I needed to know more about the whole Lassie story. I always did wonder why male dogs had been cast as Lassie. Well, apparently female dogs shed a lot when they are in heat and so the directors could not cast a female dog because of that unsightly truth. Hmpf. I'm sure that Timmy would have loved Lassie anyway despite her mood swings and hairlessness.

I had to quote this guy from a NYT article,
“They’re too smart to jump through hoops the way those dumb dolphins do,” he said. (Dr. Domning of Howard said this in ths article:)

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/08/29/science/29mana.html?hp&ex=1156824000&en=c0eaeb3c6996fa02&ei=5094&partner=homepage

This is a fascinating article about Manatees that brought to mind a few questions. What makes us "smart?" Who is smart and who isn't. Why are some dogs considered smart and others are just dumb. Perhaps these dogs just don't want to do that stupid dog trick for a dried out cracker. What if they were to be bribed with a say...Honeybark treat? Haha...I hate my shameless plugs. But seriously, I have been thinking about the whole concept of smart animals that we consider so brilliant...like dolphins and then this guy goes and says that Manatees don't jump through hoops like dolphins do because perhaps they aren't enticed by fish? Manatees actually are not into fish at all. They like carrots. Sadly, they get killed by motorboats. That stinks. They are like the roadkill of the sea. Another interesting point was that their brains were outgrown by their bodies such that they need a big insulation to keep them warm and their brains just stayed the required size for survival purposes. I mean, they don't hunt so they don't need the brain of say, a 15 year old adolescent male that plays computer games like "Hunt and kill for fun?" I jest. I think it's okay to play video games and the like if that is what you like to do. It supposedly is great for hand eye coordination. It helps you develop survival skills so that you will be an expert at killing things when you really need to. Um yeah...and like WHEN are you going to need THOSE skills? But I digress...the manatee is a beautiful and misunderstood gentle giant of the ocean. And it shares the common vibrissae with our friend, the dog. This is a structure that can convey information to the brain in such a way that it can tell the animal about it's environment in a way much more indepth than our senses can. The rise in blood pressure makes it even more sensitive. Amazing. The dog has vibrissae only on it's face whereas the manatee, this incredible creature is basically hypersensitive and has vibrissae all over it's body, therefore it is highly aware of surroundings. Perhaps the motorboat causes such a disruption that the disturbance of the water causes the manatee to get confused and this might very well be the cause of the death of the innumerable manatee that perish each year due to mankind.

You have to check out the videos on the NYT vows section. These stories are so wonderful and amazing. I love it.

I'm going to go watch a few right now. It's sweet and a great way to put yourself in a good mood.

2006-08-27T07:14:00.000-07:00

The best way to save your dog

With all the news lately about dogs that are ferocious and attacking other dogs and small children, I've found an interesting site that addresses the problem. One solution to offer those dog owners who have a dobie or a pittie that they need to protect from public ridicule.

http://www.users.bigpond.com/daniel1977/kits.htm

Oh man...

I just found out that Katie is one of the top 20 most popular names for a dog. I always thought it was so original. Geez.

To look up your own dog's name, check out this website. It's also very cool for FYI.
http://www.petvr.com/index.php/pages/TopDogNames.html

2006-08-23T16:23:00.000-07:00

More dogs driving!

I really liked this photo because it looks like your typical group of buddies, hanging out with the one guy driving looking all serious.

That guy in the back looks drunk. Maybe a little too much dog beer...

Speaking of dog beer...

Whoa. Whoever thought up this costume must've got a lot of dog beer into their dog before they hoisted 'em into this outfit. Man alive. I never thought I'd ever see something like this. Although, it's cute because the kids has a costume on too but wowsers.

Saw a great movie this weekend.
I won't spoil it for you but just go get outta your house and see "Little Miss Sunshine." It's hysterical and you will enjoy it. I promise you. And if you don't, you can email me and tell me why. I doubt you will hate it but just see it and understand the dynamics. It's great.

I'd have given anything to see this...

All of these great photos were found on http://www.cbsnews.com/sections/strange/main500523.shtml

I really enjoy this website for funny news stories and it's really great stuff. They do a wonderful job with finding the latest and most interesting stories.

2006-08-22T13:52:00.000-07:00

The Star Ledger
We made it into a Sunday newspaper! Amazing! I was so excited I drove all the way out to NJ and made my friend take me around to find the paper and then tore through it until I found our review. It's here:

http://www.nj.com/living/ledger/index.ssf?/base/living-0/1156047935237870.xml&coll=1

Pet Fashion Week
Had a really good time at this event. I have not had the chance to go through the information that I had collected. There were a lot of vendors and many of them had some unique and wonderful products that I would highly recommend as gift items.

The organic toys made by a company in Brooklyn, NY. A great concept and I definitely want to work with them in the future on gift baskets for our customers. The owner/inventor of the product was really friendly and nice. Her product is adorable and would make a fabulous gift for a baby basket as well!

The pet beds that looked like furniture, very nice touch. I gotta go find the company information to share with you. I loved it. In a small NYC apartment or even a small home where you want your dog to be a part of the living area but not be too intrusive, or you have very little space and need to use the area for a table, you can use this small doghouse that looks like an end table and it is perfect for both the dog and keeping your living room looking great! I loved it. Plus, the owners of the business, really nice people;)

I have to add that the vendors who were kind and considerate, friendly, personable were the ones that I would love to work with on future products and I thank them all for their patience and working so hard to make Pet Fashion Week a big success. I am definitely looking forward to next year.

2006-08-18T13:55:00.000-07:00

Sam I Am

This is a great blog. I'm going to check it out further when I have less work to do. But definitely I recommend it to all.

2006-08-18T13:06:00.000-07:00

A very dear friend of mine has been talking about scooters recently and then I saw this.

http://www.gizmag.com/go/4115/

I have always thought that Katie would make a great scooter driver. She has tons of energy and she is great at pulling. Though, I think I'd need two Shelties because she tends to poop out during play and probably would leave me stranded and causing a major dog scooter traffic jam, with my luck in the middle of an intersection.

Oops. Katie is still outside, gotta go get her.

Nope, she is absolutely basking in the sunshine and lying on her back in the yard, rolling in the grass now. She looks like she is in a state of bliss. It's like I gave her catnip or something, and if she were a cat. She's getting high on grass. Wow. That sounds bad...but it's true. Katie eats grass, rolls in it, digs it up and sprays it on herself, runs around in the yard after it's been freshly mowed. She is a yard lovin' dog. She won't come in now til dinner time so I will leave her to her state of bliss. Plus, I gave her some carob cake before we went outside to play and she wanted to do some crazy running around and now I think I can shorten my treadmill time today. Whew! That dog is a bundle of energy!

We have Pet Fashion Week to attend this weekend. Should be fun. I'm hoping to meet a lot of nice folks who are interested in Parties and I've already done two cakes since I started selling cake. Wow. That's really fast considering my treat business took weeks to really get going.

I still love that carob cake.

I built a fake cake for the stores that are selling my dog cakes. It's funny because it looks almost edible all by itself. I am in the process of building three more cakes for the other places. I love arts and crafts. I used to be the kid that stayed late in art class because I wanted to finish my project. Maybe I will have an art class for kids someday. That would be fun! I'll post a photo of my fake cake soon. It is kinda funny looking but hey, I'm not a food stylist...yet:)

2006-08-16T17:56:00.000-07:00

Marley and Me

I finally finished Marley and Me, by John Grogan. I know it took way longer than expected but I kept getting interrupted AND I really did not want to end it. I savored it til the end like a Tootsie Pop. But yes, all good things must come to an end. So sad, so true. I loved that book! I think that for all those folks out there who read animal themed books, like I devoured the James Herriott books when I was younger, then you will love this book. John Grogan, really good writer...I'm going to look for more of his writing. AND, I hope he does another book.

Let 'em eat cake

I got an emergency order for cake today. Bright and early, I got a phone call from a nice man who needed a cake. I whipped up a little one for him and got it all nice and frosted and ready to go. That was the fastest order I've done. I've been timing myself on order preparation. I'm trying to beat my time each time I get an order. I get it off my computer, process it in my little primitive ordering system, gather my ingredients and ready, set, go! I've only burned myself twice so far in my rush to get the treats going. It's been good. Plus, since Katie was such a good girl during her bath today, she got to lick the leftover yogurt icing out of the bowl. It was just like that "Coldwater" joke. She was one happy little cake fed doggy today.

I saw stars?

I walked into my bedpost yesterday and just reflecting on it now, I didn't see stars. I saw nothing. My mind went completely blank, just black, and I heard nothing and saw nothing for a few seconds, then the pain registered and I let out one of those howling screams that could perhaps break a hole in the ozone layer. Yes, that was real pain. Did you ever have one of those? Well, I stopped screaming and then gathered some ice and elevated my knee but ouch. I am still suffering from that horrible mishap today. It stinks to get old and I've got achey joints whenever it rains but I can still run on the treadmill so despite the nasty bruiser I have on my knee, it's still cool.

Who's your baker?

I always said that I wanted to bake cake and my whole intention of becoming a pastry chef, yeah well, now all of a sudden I am actually baking cake but for dogs? What is happening with the crazy road of my life? It makes me so happy though to be able to use my creativity in making these really adorable little cake creations. I'm designing one right now for a big party on Sunday and next weekend is another birthday party. The whole concept of gathering with friends, eating good cake, chilling out with your dog, that is just the fruit of life. It's da bomb. Gosh, did I really say that? ;) Yeah, I did. Cuz truly it IS da bomb.

I once told a chef that one of my specialties was a chocolate/orange brownie that people would practically orgasm over and he laughed and said, "BROWNIES? That's just goop in a pan. That's easy. Geez." Gotta tell you that that comment made me feel like, "Hmpf, well I guess I'm not such a great cook or baker as I thought?" But wait, I've had people drooling over my apple pie (with lattice crust, I must add.), gazing at my blueberry cobblers, and savoring every last crumb of my devil's food cupcakes and I cannot forget my brother hoarding my coconut cupcakes, nor my own hoarding of the peanut butter cupcakes with icing so light and yet so rich it was dubbed, the mousse icing by my mom. So alright, I feel better now. I just love baking and food is so fascinating. I started reading "What Einstein told his Cook." It's awesome.

2006-08-14T19:03:00.000-07:00

It gets better each day

I keep getting more orders each day and I am so amazed by the range of customers. I've got people ordering from all over the place. I guess the word spreads fast when you do parties and that whole six degrees of separation concept means that each person that I've met somehow could potentially reach another six people and this turns into a huge exponential explosion of customers.
That boggles my mind and it also makes me say, "Cool."

I showed off my little cake creations today and people were impressed then I donated them to the North Shore Animal League for the dogs there. I donated three cakes and after explaining what was in them, I am hoping that I could do some parties for the shelter dogs and their adoptathons at the shelter as well as the parties I've been doing for the Party Animals. I do like that organization a lot because the dogs always seem very well cared for and the volunteers are always really nice.

Another good thing, I got word from a few stores that are interested in stocking my treats. That's adding up and it helps a lot that they are in really different and remote places. I'm trying to expand as much as possible outside of the NYC area because it just seems like there are a lot of people out there who have no clue about parties for dog owners and their dogs. I went to a party planner today and told her what I do and asked her if she does anything like dog parties and she looked at me like I had a cactus growing out of my head. Then she cocked her head to the side, much like Katie does when she is listening and perhaps trying to comprehend my nonsensical blatherings, and she said, "You do dog wha?" Then to make things a little more bizarre, she called her colleague into the room and said, "Hey! You know, she does dog parties?!" The man looked at me and said, "You bake for humans too?" Obviously, they are looking for a baker to do their events, so I said, "Yes, I do." I really do bake pretty well actually for people. I've made some sinfully amazing devil's food cupcakes for Valentine's day. "My dog only eats dry stuff." I said, "My treats are really dry." He laughed and walked away. Oh well, so much for my sales pitching. Well, the lady wished me good luck with my "business" and sent me on my way.

I got some nice raves about my treats from two very prominent news type people. You can see it on my website here:

http://www.honeybark.com/speak.html

The newspaper, the Star Ledger also is going to have a little nice word about my treats this Sunday, August 20, 2006. I'm really excited to see that. I wanted to thank Joan Smith for making that happen. She said her Husky really liked the Banana Bliss treats. Those are the little miniature banana pies.

I ate the top off Katie's Carob cake and she really gave me a hard time about it. She stepped on my foot and just looked at me. I mean she gave me a long hard stare. Then she ran over to her kibble and ate a whole lot of it as if to say, "You aren't getting ANY of my grub!" Wow. Talk about sharing and caring? Geez. You'd think that if I share my dinner with her, she'd share her dried out little nutritious pellet stuff with me. No way.

Katie go BOOM!
Katie and I were horsing around today with her little ropey toy when she decided to make a break for it and ran into the kitchen with me chasing her. I know. You aren't supposed to play chasing games with your dog but well, I've been playing this with her since she was a puppy and she loves this game. Plus, she is way too old to stop playing it and we have a good old time, I get to run around, she gets to run around and we have a lot of fun. Well, today we were running and she turned around to see where I was in the catching up to her part of the game and she ran right into the seat of a chair. She's short so it whacked her right in the temple. I heard the clunk. It was a sick kinda hollow "thunk." and she dropped the rope toy from her mouth and sorted of sproinged off the chair like a little pinball. She stopped and shook her head then took her paw and swatted at the side of her head that she had hit for a minute, shook her head again then looked at me with her big tongue waggling grin. I looked at her, checked her out, rubbed her head a little then watched her just kind of wander off. She had left the rope toy on the floor where it had dropped out of her mouth. I picked it up and was going to put it away when she saw me out of the corner of her eye and ran right over to grab it and tug. Wow. I wish MY head was that sturdy. Katie is such a trooper. She wanted to play for a little bit longer then we both pooped out and I went back to my emailing and she went to lie down on the floor.

Ugh. I have to report for jury duty tomorrow. Blah. Not that I hate it but it's kind of boring. I guess I will just bring a book with me or work on recipes or something.

2006-08-13T16:50:00.000-07:00

Culinary in the Desert: Edamame Lo Mein

I love this blog! It is full of some delicious recipes to try and I'm dying to try this one especially because I love lo mein and edamame is the best!

AND, the greatest part is that this guy takes these photos himself. That is so cool because I try to take my own photos as well. I'm still learning but this guy makes a food just look absolutely delicious. Well, his recipes probably are delicious from the looks of them.

Yummmmm-o!

2006-08-13T09:11:00.000-07:00

A Delicious Alternative

It's finally happened. I'm eating dog food. I knew it would happen at some point but I just didn't know how soon or in what context. I baked up my newly developed cake recipes and they came out as a delicious healthy alternative to the usual sinfully delicious bakery fare but I've come to realize that the yummy Carob Cake is now an amazing alternative to my favorite devil's food cake. It even LOOKS like a chocolate muffin/cake and it is just amazing! I ate a piece of Katie's trial cake and she looked at me with a furrowed brow as if to say, "What do you think you are doing?!" I looked at her and said, "Well, quite frankly my dear, I BAKED that so I should be able to taste it, right?" Yes, I do talk to Katie as if she is a person. Whether she understands me or not, that's still up in the air but I did know one thing. She didn't like me trying her cake. Nor did she like the fact that I only gave her a tiny slice of cake and saved the rest for a little test run and sampling for a few pet stores I'm trying to woo.

So I took the gorgeous sample cakes and stuck them in the fridge to avoid "the stare" and tripping over Katie constantly as she tried to "herd" me into giving her another piece.
But then I felt bad so I gave her another piece of the carob cake and she wanted to go out and play. We went out to the yard and she ran around like she was trying to make a new Indy record or something. She nipped at my ankles as I chased her around the yard and we had a blast. It was some really great dog play time. Katie and I came inside and she lapped up a bowl of water and then plopped down for a nap.

I went off to one of my closest friend's barbeque that afternoon and there were some adorable little 2 year olds running around the yard. The little boy, a golden headed boy was straight out of a JCrew catalog and the little girl was like those little precious moment angel girls. Absolutely adorable kids and they were talking up a storm, basking in all the attention they were getting form the "ladies." The little boy would walk up to us and passing by would say, "Buh bye lady!" That was cute in a bottle. I gotta tell ya. So there were some fantastic brownies that one of the guests had baked, the little girl's mom actually. These were amazing. Perfectly soft and chewy at the same time, just the right amount of chocolatey goodness. Well, I watched that little fairhaired boy have a small corner of a brownie and he basically did exactly what Katie had done, he went off pacing the entire yard non-stop and then came back for more brownie. His mom obliged since she had divided up a brownie into pieces for him and he would continue his patroling of the yard until he needed to refuel again. This went on through the evening and I just marvelled at how much he had resembled Katie after she had eaten the carob cake.

I did get a great paws up from Chelsea, my friends' dog who ate some of the peanut butter & carrot cake and then lay down on the floor and would not budge until she got another piece. Then after she had a piece of the Carob cake, her tail did not stop wagging! I love the approval paw.

I will admit, decorating is fun but although I consider myself fairly artistic, the actual perfecting of cake icing is hard work! I spent hours just trying to figure out how to use an icing bag and then to smooth out the cake to make it look just right was another couple of hours. But, I did it. Like most tasks, I can set my mind to doing something and it will be done. Now I just have to figure out how to make those little flower thingeys like Ron Ben Israel...hahaha, yeah right. I'll leave that cake expertise up to the real pastry chefs. But Barnes and Noble does have a great cake icing section, and I do love a challenge...stay tuned for more adventures in frosting;)

For a great article on Carob, check out wikipedia here...I now love Wikipedia almost as much as I love Mapquest.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carob

2006-08-10T08:06:00.000-07:00

3 seconds of fame...I'll take it!

While we were at the "Because Your Dog is Worth It Too" event, a nice lady came up to chat with me and said, "I saw you on Animal Planet!" I remember I did some parties for Animal Planet's Maggie Gallant and Party Animals of NSALA, so this was not news but then I hadn't seen myself on the segment so I searched it and found myself on not just one but 3 of her segments. Apparently, Maggie Gallant was nice enough to include me in three of her segments without really knowing it. So you can see me serving treats to the dog owners at this Yappy Hour on THREE segments! I watched myself walking around with a tray of Honeybark treats over and over. Yes, it's fun to see yourself on television.

You can see it for yourself here:
Maggie Gallant's Pet Trends with Dixie her gorgeous Dachschund.
http://animal.discovery.com/beyond/player.html?bctab=original%20webisodes:%20pet%20trends&clik=netmain_feat1
Watch these three and you will see me with a tray of treats walking around serving treats to the guests...
"The Woman Behind the Hour" (a teenie tiny part of me is visible at the end of the segment)
"She's A Party Animal" (I like this one the best because you can see me back there talking to guests.)
"NYC's Yappy Hour" (You can see me chatting with party goers here too.)

2006-08-07T11:45:00.000-07:00

Squeaky Deaky (You cannot make this stuff up!)

I was reading USA Today and came across this cute article about the CD made for dogs. It's really cute. I loved the fact that the song was created with a squeak toy in it. Katie likes some squeakies but not all of them. I got her a sneaker that made her growl and snap at it like it was Mary Hart's voice or something. Another time, a squeak toy we got from a gift bag made her cringe and whimper then she ran away, only to hide behind a rocking chair and peek out to see if that horrible scary squeaker would live to squeak again. I don't know what the deal is but perhaps like people, sometimes sounds can really get on your nerves. Like...nails on chalkboard or forktines on plates, it can shiver yer timbers if that pitch is not to your liking. I personally enjoy a softer squeak. I found a great one at Petco the other day and it was a soft plush little chicken squeaky toy and it was quite soothing actually.

Check out the article here.
http://www.usatoday.com/life/columnist/finalword/2006-08-01-final-word_x.htm

Marley and Me by John Grogan

This is a great book. I'm only halfway through it and already I've been laughing, shocked, surprised and brought to the edge of my seat by these chapters in the life of John, Jenny and Marley. I'm a huge fan of this author's writing now. Well done! I am so tempted to just stop working and finish the book but I'll be good and save it for later. Get your copy here.

http://search.barnesandnoble.com/booksearch/results.asp?WRD=marley+and+me&z=y

2006-08-06T08:00:00.000-07:00

L'oreal's "Because Your Dog is Worth it Too" event in Cranbury, NJ
August 5, 2006

We had a really great time at this huge festival for dogs. There were so many vendors, swimming pools for the dogs, fun contests and face painting for the kids. So many smiling faces on such a beautiful day made for one fantastic Saturday. I got to meet a lot of dogs and dog owners, treats were enjoyed by many dogs and a lot of treats were given a new home.

New treats to our menu

Ruffy Road O's
These big round donut shaped treats are packed with lots of crunchy peanuts and peanut butter and loaded with carob chips. The big dogs absolutely loved the size of it and they basically just grabbed it and gobbled them down. I saw Great Danes, Yellow Labs, German Shepherds and big Rotties just basically go crazy over them! The little dogs loved them too. Because I made them in these great shapes, the owners can break off pieces for the smaller dogs and the medium sized dogs could just chomp on them and break them up themselves. A big success on that treat!

Mini Beef Snap Bones
The little dogs LOVED these little beef snaps! Normally, the original size treat is just too big for these little guys but I watched as Yorkies, Dachshunds and Chihuahuas just enjoyed these treats, sniffing, savoring and then crunching them. Two paws up!

Sweet Blossoms
Okay, these aren't new but I got to introduce this one to a lot of dog lovers and they were just in awe of how cute they were! I'm glad we were able to share this treat with people and I hope that more doggy ice cream parties come of it. Really, the point to a dog party is saying, "I love a good party, getting together with my friends, having some good food and I think my dog is like me and we like to do things together so why not invite some of my friends with dogs." Good food, a little friendly get together, it's all good. That's the Honeybark way. I love a good party!

Fabulous Flavors
I think that in sharing some of our flavors and telling dog owners that we have over 21 flavors was just great because a lot of people were surprised that dogs enjoy what people like. Plus, the best part is that without the added fat, sugar and salt, your dog can enjoy all the flavor and none of the bad stuff. That's also the Honeybark way of life. Maybe someday I can make treats for people exactly like that...I gotta work on that.

I met some fabulous people. Each dog owner had a story about their dog and I am a sucker for dog stories. I could just sit and listen to them from every single dog owner and be just one happy clam. But alas, I was there on a mission, to share our treats with as many people as possible and to introduce a whole new world to dogs full of fun flavors, cool shapes and just our way of life. I met at least a hundred dog owners and more dogs than that because some of the owners had more than one dog. I WISH I could do that! Katie is awesome but I sometimes wish she had a dog buddy too to hang out with at home. Katie's making so many new friends at the parties we've been to together so I'm certain we will be making playdates soon!

1000Licks and The Honeybark Bakery is available to do ice cream parties for dogs. Birthday parties, just fun barbecues, park dates, you tell us where and when, how many dogs will be there and the flavors you'd like to see featured at the party and we are all over it!

Kind words
I just wanted to thank all those people who said such nice things about our treats. I got so many compliments on how the dogs really enjoyed the treats and then when I got home I had phone calls and emails from people who had tried the treats when they got home and their dogs went wild over them! I already got orders before I even arrived home! That was amazing.

Gotta go bake;)

2006-08-04T14:55:00.000-07:00

One more thing

I believe in balance in the universe, the yin and the yang, do unto others and all of that stuff. I have read a lot of philosophy. I believe in a higher being, the power of positive thinking and what goes around, comes around. This makes it more real to me...

This morning, I'm sitting at the breakfast table drinking coffee, reading the newspaper and I see this small black object dangling at an odd angle from a tree in my neighbors yard, it's just hanging slightly beyond our hibiscus flower bushes but it's definitely there. I watch it move around in the wind in an odd erratic manner. It's unidentifiable but truly looks like either a cigar hanging from fishing line or "something else." That "something else" was a horrifying yet amusing thought along the lines of a Beavis and Butthead episode or perhaps even South Park. I go back to reading the newspaper but that dangling thing keeps nagging at me. I get up to look out the window and I think it's very odd and bizarre. It gives me a weird feeling. I don't often get weirded out by things and so this was a red flag. So my brother wanders into the kitchen, "I feel sick. I think I ate something bad last night..." He's a little grayish too. "What is that?" I say to him. Bitterly and irritable, he goes over to the window to check it out. "What?" He looks outside..."There's nothing. No, it's "the owl." My father had hung an owl on our deck to scare away the squirrels that last year had wreaked havoc on several of our lawn chairs and eviscerated an innocent lonely seat cushion but with enough defiance, they had left lots of stuffing all over the deck as if to say, "WE WERE HERE!" "No," I said impatiently. "Not the owl. THAT!" I pointed at the dangling doody that was hanging off our neighbors tree. "It's a fishing lure." He said complacently and then went about munching his cereal. I had to investigate. I couldn't leave that thing hanging outside our kitchen window.

I went out across the yard close to the dangling thing and realized as I got closer, it was moving yet there was no wind. Whoa. That was weird. As I got closer, I noticed the wings, it was flying in circles. It was a cicada. It was trapped on something. My childhood neighbor used to tie cicadas with dental floss or some fishing line and fly them around the neighborhood like a toy. I considered the fact that this might be a poor victim that had managed to escape only to tangle himself in a tree and would soon die a death of starvation and heat exhaustion from the scorching sun. I grabbed a pole and started swatting at it pinata style but I was just too short. I couldn't reach. So I called my poor nauseated brother to come help. "Nothing should die that way," I begged him. He answered, "Aren't those things harmful anyway?" He batted the creature down from what turned out to be a very thick spider web and it flew away. "Hate to see the spider that made THAT web." He grumbled as he ambled off to a world of Pepto Bismol salvation. I later found out that day about the great review we got from Alicyn Leigh of Long Island Press. So I learned what? A "dangling doody" is not always what it seems and this just reinforced my belief that small bit of cosmic Karma, yin yang, do unto others stuff really exists.

2006-08-04T14:29:00.000-07:00

Art Dog Blog: Don't be Cruel

This is hysterical. I haven't seen anything this funny in dog news in a while. Oh wait, that poor woman who got run over by that dog who was driving the car...maybe that. A room full of innocent teddy bears and a guard dog...that's the stuff that Gary Larson's Far Side comics are made of...it's just beautiful.

Good good news!
We just got written up for a product review in Long Island Press! Woohoo! Our very first treat review published in a newspaper! Check it out here...
http://www.longislandpress.com/?cp=167&show=article&a_id=9310

It gets cuter...

I really respect dogs that work because quite frankly, a lot of Americans just sit around collecting unemployment, meanwhile these little furballs are out workin' 9-5pm collecting a paycheck, goin' to Yappy hour after work, complaining about their boss around the water bowls, really regular dogs. Dogs don't have to work. They could just lie on the couch eating Honeybark Treats all day long, watching Animal Planet and that'd be fine. I salute those dogs that get up in the morning and put in their 8 hour days. This one in particular is a real cutie. Check him out.
http://msnbc.msn.com/id/14043725/

2006-08-02T08:31:00.000-07:00

Ahn young hah say what?!

I'm Korean (father's side) and Chinese (mother's side). I was born here and so I consider myself truly American. Katie is American too. I have a sneaking suspicion that Katie is starting to understand "Kor-glish" or maybe "Eng-rean" which is a combination of Korean and English that I grew up with. My dad has been living here for all of over 50 years and he still has an accent. That's normal because all immigrants maintain some semblance of the language of origin. Katie listens to my father with an intent stare. She looks like that dog on the record label that is listening to the phonograph. She will at times tilt her head as well. It's as if she is trying really hard to understand what is being told to her and yet also trying to figure out...is that English? So my dad makes statements like, "Hey Doggy! You don' do that you hear?" Katie knows that she is doing something wrong by the tone in my dad's voice so she'll flatten her ears, look submissive, tuck the tail under and come over looking for some affection or forgiveness. She's very sweet like that but she also has her super rebellious side when she is running around and really living the life, chasing the doves from our garden or greeting the mailman with an abnormally loud barking that seems sort of out of proportion to her small size and sweet demeanor. So my dad will basically yell at her (it's not out of anger, most Koreans yell in a volume that is just a little aggressive in nature but that's just the way the language was created" but I have a problem with it because she thinks she is getting yelled at a lot. She absolutely adores my dad though. She whines when he leaves the house and barks at my mother if my mother leaves the house with my dad as if to say, "Hey! How come she gets to go?!" I think that a lot of our older generation of Korean-Americans learned to speak Korean with loud tones because of noises and sounds related to war torn villages. Unfortunately, my father is of that camp so most of his statements, requests and even affectionate comments come out like he's shouting for his team to score a homerun. I think that this initially confused Katie because the tones that a dog relates with are important to communication. I just got Cesar Millan's book so I will know more about this when I finish it.

Today is a really big prep day so I'm baking all day. We are readying our batches for the Because your dog is worth it too event in Cranbury, NJ. I'm really excited about it because I get to meet some new demographics of dog lovers. I haven't been to too many events out in NJ especially down in the Southern part of NJ so I'm happy that we can spread the Honeybark word.

2006-08-01T14:04:00.000-07:00

The month with no holidays

August is the only month of the year with no major holidays. That seems sad considering it is such an important month for dogs. I was hoping for the National Dog Day event to occur but I believe that there has been a glitch and a postponement considering how huge the interest has become.

However, there are some great things to do this month that are listed on our website including:

Because your dog is worth it too! August 5, 2006 9AM-5PM

We are going to be there with lots of treats for people to sample and you can talk with us in person. Lots of good stuff.

http://www.yourdogisworthittoo.com/

Pet Fashion Week August 19-20, 2006 at the Metropolitan Pavilion in New York, NY. We are offering a great raffle prize there.

September is packed with fun stuff to do including:

Canine Cruise NYC
and much more...details on our website.

I'm happy to say that we are chugging along, baking and getting our treats out to some great parties and events. I am very much looking forward to the upcoming months with all sorts of great parties. I'll keep the big one quiet for now because I just got a great phonecall and I won't say anything until the details are ironed out but for all our Honeybark fans, this is going to be a huge deal!

2006-07-27T19:39:00.001-07:00

Fun times are had by all once again.

Special thanks to Teresa Rotunno for hosting a fun and cozy Yappy Hour at her gorgeous boutique in Port Jefferson, NY. Katie, Geoff and I piled into our car and trekked out from our part of Long Island, to Port Jefferson and it was far but well worth the trip. We met some interesting people and shared some yummy treats with the dogs. They all went crazy for the Nuts About Bananas Sweet Blossoms Dessert cups and they also ate up some Minty Kisses and Cinnabark cups. Granny's Apple Pie was pretty popular as well.

Happy to say that our treats will now be found at Fetch in Port Jefferson, so if you are ever in the neighborhood, go on over and get some fast! Your dogs will certainly thank you for it!

Fetch is located at 301 East Main Street, Port Jefferson, NY.

Cruising with the canines

I spoke with Rece, the organizer for the Canine Cruise around the Hudson and signed on to participate in the Circle Line cruise on September 13, 2006. The information is at http://www.caninecruise.com. We are going to be donating treats for the gift bags and a raffle prize that any dog would love. There will be about 200 dogs on board and about 400 people? Whoa! That's awesome. So we are happy to be a part of this huge event.

We are getting booked up fast for the Fall now. I think September and August are getting filled up each day and there are so...many great parties to go to.

Any ideas, don't forget to send me any input, I always write back and will always appreciate it!

2006-07-25T13:40:00.000-07:00

Endless parties...what's a dog to do?

So we have another fabulous Yappy Hour to attend and serve up some doggy-licious treats to you, the public, our biggest fans! It's this Thursday, July 27, 2006 at 7PM at the gorgeous doggy boutique FETCH at this website:

http://www.fetchdoggies.com/images/logo.gif

We are really excited to be taking part in their very first Yappy Hour.

Party Animals

Woohoo! Another fun time was had by all at this place called On 3 in Glen Head, NY. We met the chef/owner Stewart Brown and all the dogs and dog owners had a great time drinking Smuttynose wine. We loved the setting, like a backyard patio with perfect lighting, just enough space but not too much so that it's just too open. We had a fun time.

Check out some photos from this really great party!

http://www.honeybark.com/playpast.html

We met Sampson, a great big old boy and Katie actually made some new friends. She is getting much better at playing with other dogs or at least tolerating their presence. That's refreshing.

Counting down to Because Your Dog is Worth it Too! at Cranbury, NJ. We are setting up our huge booth loaded with treats and whatnot. I'm not quite sure how much whatnot but there's definitely a lot of treats to be had by all. So if you are interested in avoiding all the hassle of online ordering, which really is not much of a hassle at all, or rather you are into that immediate gratification thing, and who isn't? Well, you can buy a bag right here and there.

We are selling many of our flavors and if you have a special preference, you better let us know quick at geri@honeybark.com. If you want to meet us there at the event, feel free to pay us there for a great big bag o' treats!

2006-07-19T11:51:00.000-07:00

Summer stuff
Happily, I've been reading this book for the past few days and it's outstanding. The Mermaid Chair is another beautifully written book by the author of The Secret Life of Bees. You should read both books if you have the chance. I'm loving this one.

The official website is here:
http://www.suemonkkidd.com/MermaidChair/

Just a little hot weather blues...
I've been a little tired lately because of the weather perhaps. Katie's been really sluggish the past two days then yesterday we had that terrible hailstorm and thunder, lightening, the works. She is totally better now. Bouncing around like a puppy.

Eight Below!
This is a fantastic movie to watch on a hot sweltering summer night. It has this really inspirational feel to it. If you love dogs as much as I do, it is really a tearjerker and it tugs your heartstrings bigtime because you just feel for this guy and his team of dogs. I loved it because the story just moved along nicely, there was no lagging and each dog seemed to have a personality that was brought out much more than I've ever seen in a dog themed movie. Plus, I'll admit that I love that Paul Walker guy. He's adorable in this movie too:) I think Katie was getting into the movie at one point too. She was definitely staring at the screen when the dogs were barking at each other. She's never done that before. So I guess Katie gives it a paws up too!

I wish I had seen it on the big screen but it's out on DVD so I'm goin' to get my copy to watch over again. I loved it. See it if you get the chance. You won't be disappointed.

The official website for Eight Below is here:
http://disney.go.com/disneyvideos/liveaction/eightbelow/

Party on!

There are two big parties coming up next week. North Shore's Party Animals are having a Yappy Hour at ON3 in Glen Head. I've been in that area. It's nice! The party is on July 24th. More details on the NSALA website.

Yay! Our first exclusive Long Island boutique party is going to be at Fetch in Port Jefferson. It's a wine and treats deal. Hope to see you there. More details to come but it's on July 27th. You can call the place or mapquest it for directions...301 East Main Street, Port Jefferson Village, New York 631.331.0965.

All Dogs Aboard!

I just thought these photos were so cute. Recently Katie and I have gotten a lot of invitations to go on board and sail around the harbor with other dogs and people friends. I like the fact that these little dogs had life jackets on. I wonder if all these cruises do that. That's cute.
And safe. Nice to be safe. Katie isn't too crazy about getting wet in general but I think the salt water would be a new experience for her so we may wander over to the beach together when it gets a little bit cooler. She hates when her paws get too hot on the cement. Such a princess;)

Doggie Springs

Not sure if I mentioned that I got the nicest call the other day from the president of Doggie Springs, Michael Esposito. Had a great conversation with him and it was really nice of him to call. I had actually just left a message with one of his really friendly staff and it was about a question about their product. Not only did I get a personal call from Michael himself, but he actually spoke with me about The Honeybark Bakery and gave me some really great tips on starting a business. That was cool. I want to be just like him when I make Honeybark really big:)

This photo is of Michael and his dog, Evo who passed away and then was the reason why Michael started Doggie Springs. His story can be found on their website at: http://www.doggiesprings.com/History.html

2006-07-14T09:22:00.000-07:00

Matching gifts

The ASPCA is going to match gifts for the benefit of saving strays from death row. Here is the article from Newsday today.

http://www.newsday.com/news/local/newyork/ny-nypets144816789jul14,0,1383311.story

The rising price of gasoline is causing a big problem for shelters because of the transport from kill to no-kill of dogs. The program is running until the end of July 2006 so you have to act fast if you are going to help out.

Uh oh...
"Dog Shifts Car and Hits Woman" (Newsday, July 14, 2006)
Another story in the paper today was that of the German Shepherd that shifted a truck into gear and ran over a woman in Utah. The dog had been waiting for his owner in the car with the car on and the A/C running when he apparently knocked the gear shift and allowed the car to propel forward, running over a woman. The woman was unable to get out of the way of the truck in time and suffered some serious injuries including a fractured pelvis. Yikes. And I thought Asians (I'm Asian. I can say that...:0) were the only bad drivers. Ooh, bad taste...I know but the article made me laugh this morning. Do dogs get road rage too? Hard to believe since dogs are just so good natured. It was only a matter of time. Despite the AC, waiting too long for his owner to come back, dinnertime...whatever the issue, he made his point. Don't leave your dog in the car unattended no matter how long you are planning to be. It could be a minute but your dog can do something that you will regret. Sad, but true.

Next topic...The Naked guy and his little dog

Here's the story:
http://www.newsday.com/news/local/longisland/ny-liskin0714,0,6367529.story

You start with one guy with PTSD and the need to be naked on Fire Island, add his little rat terrier and so what is the big deal? Just let the guy bring his dog to the beach. Geez. If he is on a leash, who is he going to harm? End of story. Courts gotta spend more time on bigger issues.
Here's a link to a great article on dogs and beach etiquette.

http://www.dogfriendly.com/server/travel/info/tips/beachetiq.shtml

It's Friday:) Let's all have a great weekend!

Party Party Party!

Oh, Tuesday there is a great party at Sweet and Vicious, check out Leashes and Lovers for the details!

2006-07-12T08:36:00.001-07:00

Yes Master!

Everyone remembers that fun show, "I dream of Jeannie!"

http://www.sonypictures.com/tv/shows/sgn/jeannie/home.html

I was just sipping my coffee this AM, thinking about ideas for the bakery and contemplating the concept of the custom designed treat when suddenly it hit me. I have become "Jeannie." It's come down to the fact that I can and will make any treat for anyone, anytime. People ask me and I just do it. I don't cross my arms or do the ponytail swish but...well, maybe I do the ponytail swish once in awhile...but anyhow, I do make that treat happen.

Weird. I was just thinking that if someone asked me to make them a treat for their dog, any flavor, any shape, I'm all over that. I love doing custom treats. The whole concept of the letters came about because someone had asked me for something special for their dog's birthday party and then someone asked me to do something a little different for their party. Then it hit me and I made the letters to spell out party names and events. THAT was cool. I know it's baker geeky but I liked the fact that I made these treats up all by myself. It was very cool.

Speak and spell, the letters from our SPECIALS section

I also made the dessert blossoms simply by filling a void. The Ice Cream social was coming around and I wanted to do something that would go with the ice cream and I had made dessert tarts for a friend before so I just made little dessert cups for the ice cream and the dogs loved them! Once again, a cool days work for me. I love the fact that I can just sit back, think about treats, read some cookbooks, find ideas and then design the treat to go with it.

The dessert cups were a big hit at the summertime ice cream parties!

Katie loved the 1000licks Peanut butter flavor frozen dessert. She had her nose in that cup until she finished ever drop!
Check out the website at: http://1000licks.com/

Now that I think about it...

I don't think Jeannie had as much fun. Blink blink, cross arms, flick the ponytail? Nah, I'm having way more fun my way. But it IS a "Treat on demand" thing. Sort of like the movies that you get on cable now? You can just order anything through your little remote and no more videostores. I wonder how Blockbuster can stay alive? Actually, there are a lot of people out there who lag in the technology arena. Those folks who try to cling as much as possible to the days of old. They may be in the same camp as the "glory days" people. There are a group of people who wallow in the "what I used to be" thing for as long as possible and tell everyone about it. Yikes. I say, move on. I've gotten a lot of phone calls and email from people who apparently cannot use their computers to order our treats. They want it NOW NOW NOW but they cannot use Pay Pal? And wait, how did they email me if they don't know how to use the internet? That's weird. I got a call the other day from a woman who wanted to send me a money order and order some cookies. I sent her the address but never heard back from her. Then there was the person who emailed me and had a cookie emergency! She needed treats right away! NOW! You remember that scene from "Ghostbusters?" Where the geeky accountant is running away from the scary dog-like creature and runs into the Tavern on the Green restaurant and all the people dining inside ignore him as he is banging on the glass enclosure? All he needed was a treat? Yeah, so that was what I was imagining for this poor lady. Sorry, our delivery is fast but not THAT fast. Although, it did make me think that I might need to do an express delivery service someday. Now I think I'm going to watch Ghostbusters again. I loved that movie. One of my all time favorite comedies. I loved the Staypuff marshmallow man. But then again, I love all those gigantic puffy creatures. Remember Shrek?

Scary Ghostbusters creature

Not so scary Ghostbusters creature.

I'm in the process of making a big treat for big dogs. I've been approached by dog owners all over to make something big for the guys that are really huge. The bigger than the average large dogs like a larger than average treat. So I went out and found myself a HUGE paw shaped treat cutter and now I'm in the process of making these gi-normous treats. Wow. I never imagined that a treat could get this big. It's almost...out of control? It will be up on the website very soon. I imagine that I may start to have nightmares about treats taking over my life soon but well, that's another topic to blog about for another day.

A treat taking revenge...
Giant Gingerbread man from Shrek(2001)

I'm happy to announce the Lenny the Pug party this weekend. Check out Meetup.com for more details The NYC Pug group is celebrating the opening of Lenny the Pug's online exclusive boutique. I'm donating treats for the event and I hope that it's a lot of fun. I actually have plans on Sunday so I won't be able to make it but I think it will be a lot of fun!

2006-07-09T11:32:00.000-07:00

What's Happening to Us?

I got this image straight off of Doogtoons, http://www.doogtoons.com/ep-mv1.php. It's so cute but if you are not the type to enjoy some ridiculous cartoons with a high level of profanity. Off the scale on the profanity factors...then these are not for you so do not even click on it. So I came upon this website, that had a little cartoon about a kid and his thoughts on his mom's Chihuahua. He comments on the fact that this little dog has more clothing than he has and that his mom shops more for the dog now than she does for her son. I too have noticed this as well. There are some dogs at the parties I've been to that are better dressed than me. Now, that isn't exactly hard considering that I have a relatively simple fashion plate. My clothes reflect basically that I will try to dress for the occasion but I will not go all Paris Hilton or Imelda Marcos out to be the highlight of the party. I just like to look nice. These dogs however become the highlight of the party just by wearing these outfits that are absolutely incredible. I think that they could have their own Doggie Vogue or something soon. Very very soon.

Taking play to a whole other level of extreme

I'm referring to http://www.nytimes.com/2006/07/09/fashion/sundaystyles/09sheep.html

I read in today's NYTimes that people out in California are taking their dogs to some pretty serious play action sites. They are letting their dogs actually do some sheep herding. As an owner of a sheepdog, I can totally relate to that as an activity that I might consider doing with Katie. I think she would love it. But we just basically play in our yard. I run around and she tries to herd me. It's fun. It's basic. It costs nothing more than a good pair of running shoes and a bottle of water. We go find a field, even the backyard and I play with her. THAT is a normal dog/human interaction. Now, I might get some criticism from the folks that harbor the idea that we should be master/dog or that dogs don't understand the difference between "play" and "work" and "commands." That is just jibberish. Dogs go into their play stance to let you know, "Hey, I'm ready to play now!" Then they walk away when they are done. Or, at least Katie does. She has a pretty short attention span really. She will play and be having fun, then she'll go into the shade, plop down and happily just watch me as I still run around the yard trying to get her to play some more. She used to be the one that would out run me when she was a mere puppy. I remember it well, the endless fountain of energy that kept on flowing. I had to make sure I made absolutely no noise after she had laid her little head down or else she would bounce up and pick up her ball or something squeaky and ridiculously noisy that would mean MORE PLAY TIME NOW! I think it's great to want to let your dog have an activity like sheepherding but really, shouldn't we be getting off our giant cabooses and running around a little with our dogs? They really are teaching us something about how to lead a healthy life. Eat, drink water, sleep and play. The four step program...I like it.

(Photo taken from The NYT website, The Modern Dog, 1611 Abbot Kinney Boulevard, come-sit-stay.com or (310) 450-2275.)

Okay, now this was cute. I found this on the NYT website also. For some fun style for your home and your dog. I would definitely buy these cute little toys for my home and I think Katie would love those little toys up on the mantle shelf.

Food for thought

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/07/09/nyregion/09homefront.html
I've mentioned before that I heat Katie's dinner for her so that she gets warmed rice and her dog chow. She likes it that way and so dried kibble just does not cut it for her. I like that this woman, Michelle Lewis has the right idea of good ingredients for her dog's meals. That's nice. But then I wonder if she subscribes to her own diet plan there. Does she eat healthy? I wonder if perhaps once again, now I'm sounding like a broken record but...shouldn't we follow the healthy way of life we so desperately are trying to pursue for our four legged friends? I'm not saying I am a nutrition guru or a personal trainer but I think by incorporating just one part of that healthy living plan into your life every day will just make it easier for us all to gradually become healthier. Nobody wants to live forever but we all want to have a better quality of life.

Okay, I gotta go run now and take Katie out for a little leg stretching.

2006-07-08T17:09:00.000-07:00

Broadway Barks 8!
What a fun time. Katie, Geoff (big brother) and I made it to BB8 today. So much fun. Well, at first Katie wanted to turn around and go home with all the noise of the city but she got better. We got there and it was wonderful to see all the shelter dogs outside with all the people around. They were all so well behaved! There were some adorable puppies (Sheltie/Husky mixes) at Bobbi and the Strays booth, and big dogs like from The Great Dane Rescue. The Great Dane rescue was up front and those were some truly magnificent creatures. I've seen the Great Dane breed at dog shows but these guys were really so gorgeous up close and personal. They actually were very well behaved and allowing people to touch them. All of the dogs were on their best behavior and I'm sure part of it had to do with the wonderful and generous people who were volunteering to work this event. These adoptable adorable guys could be found at any of the shelters at:

http://www.broadwaycares.org/events/barks2006.cfm

I was a little in awe of Bernadette Peters. I got within maybe 2 feet of her! A brush with fame! Wow! I remember her from her role in The Jerk with Steve Martin and so many other movies. She is absolutely gorgeous in person! I've seen her on television and just caught her on Regis and Kelly recently. She is one really beautiful lady. She donated $50,000 to this cause. That to me means so much that she is such a caring person. As well, Mary Tyler Moore was looking gorgeous also! Sadly, I only got to catch her on the stage with Bernadette Peters (see photos of Broadway Barks on my website, http://www.honeybark.com. As well, so many actors and actresses were there in Schubert Alley.

I saw our friends from Feron Productions http://www.feronproductions.com/ working at their booth. I always love that portrait of Lenny the Pug. It's just adorable.
There were a couple of pugs around, well technically 1 and 1/2 pugs (one was a puggle). If you get the chance you should definitely check out the Feron website because there is some really interesting art work there.

I missed Patti Lawson but I did see that they were selling copies of her book, The Dog Diet at the event.

I hoped that the treats got to the shelter dogs but seeing that there were so many dogs there, I was sad that I didn't give them more. I think that there were more than 25 dogs at this event but maybe I was not counting correctly. I know 25 shelters were represented but I think there were more dogs there. I spoke with a lot of the people who were there from the individual shelters so I think we will be getting many more events in the upcoming months.

Look at this sweet face! This is Trista and she is a dog at the Animal Haven Shelter. She has the same big nose as Katie! I was just looking at all the dogs today and I just thought I would adopt every single one of them today and just take them home with me if I could. I think that was the consensus among the women I chatted with today. This sweet face deserves a loving home. I'm hoping that she finds someone soon but I know Animal Haven is such a great group. She must be getting really good care there. Check out their website here...http://animalhavenshelter.org/

Check out this great group! The Long Island Greyhound Transfer is a wonderful group that works to find homes for this fabulous breed. I met some really nice ladies from the group today and will be sharing treats with them at their upcoming events.

http://www.ligreyhound.org/events.htm

I think that a lot of the dogs found good families today. Raising the public's awareness to the need to find homes for these shelter dogs is always helpful. A special thank you to Bernadette Peters and Mary Tyler Moore for being so generous with their time and efforts in making this event such a huge success.

2006-07-04T11:29:00.000-07:00

Summer Fun
Yes, the sun, barbecues, ice cream...it is the best of summer. I got some great gift certificates from Frosty Paws in the mail yesterday. Such a cool company. So Katie and I will be testing out their products in our dessert cups. We are hoping to have an ice cream party in August when it is still summer but a little cooler. Taking your dog out for a ride is great but remember to bring that bottle of water for both you and your pup. I found some great resources for cups to carry with you in your car. At target, they are selling some great little portable cups for food storage that you could easily fill with water and freeze, then voila! You have a ready to go cup of water to bring with you to the park. Just don't forget to put the cap on it and you can pop it in a "go-bag" and it's easy to stick in your bag. I also found some really great toys online yesterday. I ordered some for Katie and I'm really excited to see how much she likes them. I found a really fun ball that you can put treats into and then your dog is supposed to play with it to force the treat out the other end. Very interesting. I'm going to time Katie and see what her treat foraging skills are.

I've got a nasty sunburn from being outdoors. Just reminds me to make sure Katie stays in a mostly shaded area when we are outside playing. The dog parks are usually well shaded too so that's great.

I'm packing treats for next Saturday's gift bags. I made a new menu design too. Sometimes I get super productive and so I'm just going with it. Also I've got Z100 playing on the radio so it helps to keep working. They have some great music on today!

I am in the middle of reading Good Grief by Lolly Winston. It is an amazing book. There are so many different types of grief. Like the deepest and saddest of course from death, then there is job loss, moving to a new home, breaking up with a spouse/signficant other and losing or breaking something sentimental. These are all different issues that can be addressed similarly to death but at a different level of sadness and grieving. I just realized that this past year was full of loss for me and yet, I feel like I've grown so much and matured a great deal. This part makes me feel not happy but rather comfort and like a feeling of well-being. I'm happy that I have grown. I still want to keep boosting my business and I want so much to be successful for myself as well as to be able to help the animals/shelters. I feel like I can do this but it is just a matter of getting the right people involved.

Back to work...Happy 4th of July!

2006-06-30T18:13:00.000-07:00

So many good things
I found an article on Alison Pace today in Long Island Press. I had sent treats to Alicyn Leigh who does their pet columns to review my product and hopefully that review will be coming out in August 2006. The link for the article about the lovely Alison Pace is here:

http://www.longislandpress.com/?cp=145&show=article&a_id=8987

I was also happy to find an article on the Pet Pride Pageant that we had sent treats for on June 24, 2006. Liza Minnelli was there and I saw Jen Bristol in the photo behind her so I guess Animal Haven was there with dogs up for adoption.

http://www.animalalliancenyc.org/press/ol2006-07-01.htm

and one more article in The Village Voice here:

http://www.villagevoice.com/nyclife/0627,zappia,73692,15.html

and finally, some photos of Liza Minnelli

http://www.monstersandcritics.com/peoplepop.php?id=85691&index=10

I'm so excited to be participating in Broadway Barks with the Mayor's Alliance for NYC's Animals. The event is Saturday, July 8, 2006 with a raindate scheduled for July 22, 2006. You really never know these days with the weather being so hot, humid and sweltering. It's really bad for the dogs to be out in this kind of heat so I hope it does get better.

I have been getting a lot of input lately on the treats and the packaging and the labelling. I really appreciate everyone's opinion but now it just makes it a little tougher to figure out where to go with all this advice. So once again, I sit with pen and paper and tally up the votes. Which is the most popular flavor, why is it popular, which treats are not selling and why. What can I do to revise a flavor or recipe. I've changed recipes around to make them exactly the right consistency and crunch. Katie loves the Soul Soothers I baked and they were made with much more chicken meat but with that said, it makes the treat itself softer. I personally like the crunchier treats because it is better for the dog but that's just my opinion. Katie likes most of the stuff I bake. I sent the treats off in the mail for an order and then donated the rest to North Shore Animal League. I really like them because they just are always friendly and the animals always seem to be in great shape. I dream about adopting all those dogs and taking them off to a big ranch somewhere where they can hang out, play and get adopted like free range dogs. I love the idea of having a great big property where I can just let the dogs run around and play in a field. That dream goes along with my dream of having a big bakery/cafe but I've got a long long way to go with that dream. It's so nice to think about it though.

Taste testing.
I ate a treat the other day. It just smelled so good and I wanted to test the crunch really. So I ate it. Then I ate another. This concerned me because I wondered what it means. Has my flavor palate changed so that I am able to detect flavors that are so faint as in a dog treat? I will admit it. I ate the chicken treat and it was good! You have to refridgerate them but still it was like a cold chicken bagel or something. Wow. I passed one over to my brother and he looked at it then at me as if to say, "You expect me to eat this?" Then as a good sport he always is, he ate it. He didn't spit it out but he didn't taste what I tasted. Now, when I went out to eat the other day, it seemed like the food was just exploding with flavor. It wasn't MSG. I'm certain of that. But it seemed like the food seemed to have an enormous amount of flavors. Delicious but somewhat overwhelming. I think this is what dogs experience when they eat human food. That got me wondering what is HAPPENING to my taste buds? Have I adopted the palate of my canine friends?! It's not necessarily a bad thing because well, that just means I can eat less and still enjoy that full flavor. Awesome! I can lose weight too? I laugh because I seem ridiculous even to myself sometimes.

Party Animals is having a get together on July 24, 2006 in Glen Head, NY (That's Long Island for all those people out there saying...where?!) finally, some action for us dog owners out here. It's Yappy Hour 2, the second social bar hopping dog gathering for this NSALA group. I'm happy it's close to home although it is still a bit of a drive for me. I'm still going and bringing treats for all.

http://ga4.org/nsalamerica/events/li_yappy_hour/details.tcl

Happy to say we are appreciated as well. Little Shelter sent us a really sweet certificate of thanks for sending treats for their dog walk-a-thon. I'll post it on the website when I get it scanned onto my computer. They are the oldest shelter on Long Island.

We also got a thank you note from Pet Peeves, Inc. for donating treats for their pool party fund raiser that made over $10,000.00 to benefit animal shelters on Long Island. Congratulations to Janine Dion for a wonderful job well done.

I feel good. I think we did a lot of nice things this week for needy/homeless animals.

Found some photos of our dessert cup blossoms at one of the parties we were at. Check out the chihuahua eating the dessert cup! So cute. I was so happy that the dogs loved the dessert blossoms. They make great serving cups for frosty paws, 1000 Licks or you could even put some peanut butter or applesauce in there for your dog. Really cute and fun for your dog!

http://www.leashesandlovers.com/parchive.html

I'll be reviewing Planet Dog soon. So far it's really good stuff.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0618517529/002-3340593-8139252?v=glance&n=283155

2006-06-28T22:04:00.000-07:00

Splish Splash

Today was the Pet Peeves Poolside Party at the Crest Hollow Country Club in Woodbury, LI. We were able to contribute a bunch of treats for the guests to take home to their dogs. The Say Cheese was actually a new recipe and came out delicious! My brother ate some, my mom tried it and I actually really liked it. Katie loved it. She was really having a good food day today! I was really happy to help out. Special thanks to Janine Dion, president and founder of Pet Peeves, Inc. for creating a great group that helps animals on Long Island. The next event will be posted on honeybark.com but FYI it is September 13, 2006.

Quick Picks

At my old job, there was a system of reward and it was a great way to end a long day at work. I miss that a little bit because right now I have no other reward except for patting myself on the back at the end of a long day and saying, "Yeah! Great job!" I mean, there is just so much that a little self-acknowledgement/love can give you versus a nice little happy bonus in your pocket to use as mad money.

I've been negligent of my blog. I actually do very much like writing here but it takes time and I like to think about what I will be writing and not just verbally vomitting all over the screen like some blogs we all know and still read! People actually just empty their brains out onto their laptop and it ends up in cyberspace and then just about anyone around the world can enjoy it or not enjoy it but in any event it is out there for all to see.

I wanted to comment on the really busy past week. It was way too much to do in one week and I am not sure what has come of it. I should be seeing much more orders than I am or perhaps I am just not happy with the progress of mass advertising. Perhaps my expectations are way too high? I just haven't been in this field long enough to really know what is a good day or a bad day yet regarding sales.

Let me recap. Last week was the fabulous Doggy Drool in the Pool, The ASPCA Central Park Dogswalk, and the Pet Pride Pageant. I happened to be away this past weekend otherwise I might have gone to see the goings on at this weekends pride events. I'm actually curious how things went because I heard nothing about it from any of the newspapers or on tv. I was out of town so I missed it entirely.

I am excited because somehow, the trend for puppy parties is growing. I've gotten requests for a few birthday parties this summer. I love that. Why not celebrate your dog's birthday with friends and their dogs? It's a great way to socialize. We all need a little more socialization right? Just a teeny bit off topic, I was talking with an old high school buddy and we were chatting about how it is so hard to get together with friends when you are working, have a family and just barely have enough time to juggle chores to clean up your home. It is really rough. I love the concept of the doggy party because basically it is a bunch of dog owners getting together to share time, tips and brag about your dog or laugh at their foibles/antics. Dog owners tend to bond and it's a really great thing to watch. If you get the chance to attend one of the many parties that we are at, you will definitely see what I mean. It's wonderful. It's great to see the dogs enjoying each others' company as well. Dogs are pack animals. I think humans are pack animals too but we oftentimes try to overcome that need for socialization due to our work schedules. It's really a way we emotionally protect ourselves. It isn't right or wrong, we just do it. I think that more people will realize the need to get out there in the world and enjoy the company of others and then they will see how happy they can be by sharing a little bit of themselves as well.

Okay, I've gone on and on again.
One last thing, I found out that Katie likes salmon. That was strange. I had heard that dogs like tuna but salmon? This was completely accidental. She just happened to be nearby when a little bit of poached salmon hit the floor. No bones but it was a little chunk. She ate it and then sat closer to my chair. Her chin was practically in my lap. Maybe I will see what I can do about it but unless I am living in Alaska, I don't think it will be a part of my flavor list anytime soon!

Very happy to say that I am feeling particularly productive today and I got so much done. Yay. Now I seriously need to snooze.

2006-06-21T20:00:00.000-07:00

Cool in the Pool
The Drool in the Pool Party was actually a fun time for all around. Dog Run NYC is actually a very nice place. Ritzy almost. The pool itself is cozy and small but the atmosphere is really nice like a little spa setting. The staff, very friendly and always attentive. They made sure that the security gates were shut before any dogs were in or out of the pool area. Stacey Alldredge, the owner, was a very nice lady. I was so happy to meet her in person. I've read about her on her website and I really believe in her philosophy. Very cool. So there were a lot of dogs that came to have fun and the staff member in the pool was really nice and he made sure that all the dogs in the pool were having fun or at least safely splashing around. No dog was ever left unattended. There were fresh towels by the poolside at all times. This was better than some vacation resorts I've been to in the Caribbean! The food, our treats of course, as well as Pupcake Studio's gorgeous Pool Themed cake were enjoyed by all. That cake was really a hit! I gotta find out what was in it. The way the dogs just had a little community cake eating session but then I couldn't get in there to grab a slice for Katie so I felt a little bad. Katie loved Pupcake Studio's treat! Ada does a wonderful job of decorating her cakes. It's like a little work of art.

As well, Feron Gallery was present and I enjoyed their company in the dining area. Heather from NSAL was there with her gorgeous dog Emma. Such a well mannered dog, 7 years old and didn't once try to steal a treat off the table. She would wait politely for something to be given to her. What a great gorgeous girl! We were also happy to see Julie Amoroso, our ever gracious event planner and host. We were sad that 1000 Licks was unable to come to the party. I had actually made a batch of Banana Bliss Blossoms for the doggy frozen desserts but alas, no such luck. The dogs had to enjoy the blossoms with no frozen treat. Oh well...these things happen.

The Smuttynose Old Brown Dog Ale was actually really good. I was surprised actually. If I were you, I'd try some. I myself do not like ale all that much but this was pretty good.

I am happy to say that I had the chance to meet some of our customers. I love that. When I see the dogs that are enjoying the treats that I am sending out, it makes me so happy. We definitely have a Peanut Butterfly fan base.

I was also happy to see the great reviews the treats got recently. I had sent out my treats to a lot of people to review and so far all favorable and glowing. I'm really happy.

The party was great fun and a huge hit. I got to meet some customers and enjoyed watching the dogs frolicking in the pool. Katie got to have a banana blossom when I got home. She was such a good patient girl today. She loves her banana bliss. Now she is lying on the floor next to me, dozing. Yep, that's what I'm going to do now too. Nite to all my honeybark people.

2006-06-20T07:24:00.000-07:00

Shelters don't necessarily mean forever...

I read the Daily News article about the number of animals that are euthanized and was horribly saddened. The information in this article was shocking. When I think of shelter, I think oh good, at least that animal has a place to live until they get adopted. But not all animals do get adopted. Some stay at the shelter for months or years. That can get very expensive in terms of feeding and caring for an animal. As responsible pet owners, we oftentimes are just busy with our own lives and taking care of our own loving furry family members. It's easy to just forget about the shelter dogs that are out there because we just don't see them. Out of sight, out of mind. Shelters are sometimes very far away from the rest of the suburban neighborhood and we oftentimes can just drive by without really thining too much about it. But they do exist and need our help. I try to donate as often as possible to shelters to give treats to these dogs who perhaps once lived in a home. They deserve kindness and love too. The dogs and cats over at the North Shore Animal League get fantastic care, they have a park to walk in and really great volunteers and kennel care workers that really do an amazing job. If you know someone who is able and willing to adopt a dog/cat just lead the way to a shelter. You may very well be saving the life of a great dog or cat and saving your friend the trouble of hidden ailments oftentimes found in petstore purchases. Check out the city shelters online or in person. In any event, a kind donation is well worth the effort and appreciated by many. You will feel really good after you make that donation or adopt that dog or cat so just do it.

http://www.nydailynews.com/06-20-2006/news/local/story/428106p-361022c.html

I guess along those lines, the responsibility of pet ownership should be addressed. I really like how Animal Haven works with people and teaches classes on obedience. They are a really great group. If you get the chance, check them out online.