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!

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!

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

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!

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!

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.

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.

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!