Honest Kitchen Holiday Treat Pack!

There is still time to order your best friend a special gift.  The all natural Honest Kitchen Holiday Treat Pack.  The box contains 3 varieties of hand baked cookies, trial size of Force (that's the food I feed Connor), and a recipe card so you can use the Force to make Holiday Sage and Honey Cakes for your dog.   You can order the Treat Pack here.

Honest Kitchen is always coming out with new ideas.... new food, new boxes, new ways to use their food (like the holiday cakes mentioned above).  They have the very best, human grade, all natural food for our dogs and cats.  It's dehydrated and made with love... please take a look around their website.

Have a happy howl day!

Remembering 9/11

I can't believe it's been 10 years already.  Sometimes it seems like just a few years ago and other days it gets pushed back in my mind because of all the details going on in my life.  I honestly dread this anniversary because I can't bear to watch, yet again, the pictures and video from that day.  I can't look at them again, not even for a second.

In all our lives there are horrific days burned into our memory, I remember President Kennedy, the Challenger, Columbine, and John Lennon (I was/am a huge fan).  9/11 tops them all.

This is where I was when it happened. 

I was married then and we were down in North Carolina on a family vacation.  We were thinking about buying some property down there and maybe making a move.   We were in Atlantic Beach, NC on the morning of 9/11, in a hotel right on the beach, with a pier that had a bar/restaurant on it.  John got up early to go for a run and Cay and I were in the room.  I was taking a shower and Cay was watching TV.  She called me over to see the TV news report and what I saw, or course, stunned me.   I prayed it was an accident but had a funny feeling it wasn't.  Moments later of course, we watched another plane hit the South Tower - live on TV.

We spent the entire day in that little bar on the pier watching TV and trying to get information.  We could see, hear and smell the ocean.  It was so beautiful, a bright blue sky, hot as can be, peaceful.  And here we spent the entire day trying to find out what happened to America.

We were scheduled to fly out of N. Carolina on the very first day that they allowed planes to fly again.  We had an early flight out of Raleigh on USAir.  When we got to the airport it was empty, totally empty other then police with guns and dogs.  There was one single USAir employee behind the check in desk.  We were the only people that showed up for the flight.  Not one other single soul showed for a sold-out flight.  That panicked me and I refused to fly.  I think John was a bit annoyed with me because of that, I guess we'd certainly be safe with no one on the plane but the crew and the 3 of us.  I just couldn't put my family on that plane when not one of the 100+ passengers showed.  

So we called Amtrak and bought tickets home.  We waved a cab at the airport and the driver gets out to get our luggage and he is in Arab dress.  I stopped cold and just stared at him.  He looked at me and said, "I am 10 years in the United States, have a family, and hate what happened."  I'm not a bigot and I of course knew that not all Arab's are bad people because of the acts of a few of them.  But it was hard getting in that cab, I was terrified.  The Amtrak station and train were mobbed.  I guess all those people that were supposed to fly were taking the train just like we were.  We were lucky to get seats.

We had a layover and train change at Union Station in Washington DC and the minute we got off the train there was a bomb scare.  Panic ruled the day and everyone went running out of the station into the streets and I was terrified I'd get separated from my daughter.  Nerves were frayed and there was an undercurrent of fear.  

We finally got our train to Boston.  Just like the previous one it was overcrowded, we got seats again but some people were standing.  In New Jersey, just before you go under the Hudson, you have a very clear view of lower Manhattan.  Everyone in the train stood and watched in silence at the smoke still billowing out from where the Twin Towers use to be.   Many people, myself included, were crying.  It was September 15th.

Penn Station looked like a war zone.  There were police and military every where.  They all had automatic weapons and dogs.  We were not allowed to leave the train or our seats.  The military came on the train with their dogs and walked up and down the entire train with the dogs sniffing all our suitcases and bags.  People were still quietly crying from the ghastly view we saw of the missing World Trade Center.   

We finally got to South Station in Boston and again there were police everywhere.  We quietly drove back to the Cape - quiet, wild, beautiful and unchanged - at least on the surface.  North Carolina is a beautiful state but I'm sorry, after that, I don't think I could ever live there.

I knew our lives had changed forever.   None of us will ever forget that day. I will never forget the sight of Manhattan with smoke rising where those iconic towers once stood.  It still looks wrong to me with out them.  

Blimping along.....

With Hangar 1 Vodka at Cape Cod Airfield.......

As my regular readers know I often spend some of my down time at Cape Cod Airfield in Marstons Mills.  I love flying and love that airfield more then I can say.  And the motor heads that run the place are really nice guys.  When Chris told me that a blimp was coming in to the airfield for a few days, I told him I was getting a ride in it, somehow, some way.  They told me that when the Hood Milk blimp use to summer at the airfield you couldn't even get near it.  Hmmm.....

So when the blimp landed I ran up to the pilot who flew it, introduced myself, and welcomed him to Cape Cod.  His name is Bret Viets and what a nice guy.  I immediately asked about a ride and he said we could probably arrange it.  So the next day I turned up at the airfield and spoke to the Hangar 1 Vodka people and got on the ride list.  Most of the others on the ride list were news people (tv, newspapers) and a couple that won their ride through a radio call in.

It was a cloudy, hazy day and that effects the lift of the helium in the blimp so they were only taking 2 riders at a time which slowed things down considerably.  But they had the bar and grills going so you could eat and drink while you waited (I didn't do either but I did get a t-shirt).  Finally the crew chief came up to me and said "we can get you on the next ride if you don't mind sitting in the co-pilot seat."  Huh?  Honey I'd fly the thing if you asked me!   So in I go and sitting right next to my New Best Friend, Bret the pilot.  I'm flying with the people that won their trip on the radio call in (nice people, Renee and Tom).

I'm sort of a science nut and I peppered Bret with a bazillion questions about how a blimp works, how they manage the helium, where they get the helium, top altitude, airspeed, engine size, etc.  I also found out (while I was over the ocean) that helium is a smaller molecule then the fabric the blimp is made out of and constantly leaks out (which is why your helium balloons are flat after a day).  And since I do have a fair amount of flying experience I'll tell you, in my opinion, flying a blimp in nice calm sunny weather isn't that difficult.  But you have to constantly manage the helium and that takes experience. And in difficult weather forget about it, I'm staying on the ground.

I found it interesting that the reporter from the Cape Cod Times who got a ride in it and wrote about it on Wednesday was a bit nervous about it (he should try flying upside down or in a huge DC-3 taking off from a short grass runway).  I found the entire ride to be like sitting in my living room.  Bret is a very experienced pilot and such a nice guy.  It is a very slow, relaxing ride and the views are great.   Over the water we came down lower to look for whales (didn't see any but how cool is that).

I did find out I'm in a very elite group, there are only 12 blimps flying world wide right now and the company that owns the Hangar 1 Vodka blimp, Lightship, owns more then half of the blimps flying today. (Hangar 1 leases the blimp from Lightship).  Lightship also owns the Snoopy blimps too. (my readers and friends know how much I LOVE Snoopy).  Most of those blimps in the air don't give rides so I was really lucky (not to mention how charming I was, seriously I charmed my way on this ride).

I would do it again in a heartbeat.  Bret my pilot was so nice and the Hanger 1 Vodka group was delightful and a lot of fun.  What a great experience!  I never would have had it if it wasn't for my association with Cape Cod Airfield, Chris Siderwicz Sr and Chris Siderwicz Jr, so I thank them sincerely.  If you have not been to Cape Cod Airfield and had a biplane ride, you should try it, its equally as fun, has the same views as I had in the blimp - just a little bit faster.

FYI, I found out that the term "blimp" is for laypeople, those of us in the know say airship.  And now I'm an experienced airship flyer!
(ya gotta click on the pictures for a larger view they are fantastic!)
See my Blimping Over Cape Cod video on YouTube.

Human Nature or....

I had a yard sale a few weeks back, it was a resounding success.  My main goal was to get rid of as much "junque" as I possibly could.   By then end of the day I had a few hundred dollars in my pocket and had reduced my clutter pile by 3/4.

All of my items were priced and they were giveaways even at the marked price.  I fully expected that everyone would bargain with me.... they did, it's part of the fun of a yard sale.  However; by 2 pm we wanted more product to leave the driveway (less stuff I have to drag to the swap shop) so we told our customers that everything was free and to make a donation if they felt so moved.  Interestingly, I made more money after 2 pm then before.

Did people feel guilty just taking my bric-a-brac or were they so grateful not to have to haggle?  Either way, I made far more money.  People are generous.  American's are one of the most giving nations on earth.  Give us a sad story or natural disaster and we will donate.  Or a yard sale.  The next yard sale I have I'm going to start the morning off the way I ended my last yard sale.  Everything is there for the taking, make a donation on what you think it's worth.  I'll move more odds and ends and make more money. Clearly a win-win.

On the other hand, I do this blog (occasionally and lord only knows why) and along with the blog I keep a list of gluten free places on Cape Cod.  For years now I've given that list out for free.  I guess because with research, phone calls, and Google the information is out there for everyone.  There is also another list that you can get from someone else; however, it is much smaller then mine.  I not only try and eat/shop at all the places on my list but I also call the owners and speak to the chef's.  When a bad report comes in I research what happened and why.  I've just spent 2 weeks working with one restaurant owner to get as many GF ingredients on their menu as possible.  I'm also in the process of putting clickable links to the individual restaurant websites in the 14 page "Gluten Free on Cape Cod" list.  Did I mention that the restaurants don't pay me either?

Although I send out a form letter with each request, 95% of the time I end up personalizing the form letter because the requester has also asked specific questions along with their request for the list.  At least 75% of the time I end up sending a few emails back and forth with each requester.  At best (meaning the quickest turnaround and follow up) I spend 5 minutes on each request for the list. This week was a slow week with only 35 requests for the GF list.   Which adds up to just under 3 hours of my time spent on just sending out a free list (that does not include my visits and phone calls to the various restaurants or the constant list updates).  The week before 4th of July, I had over 125 requests in a 7 day period.  That's a lot of time on my part... I work a full time job, I'm a single mom of a teenager, and I have a dog that I walk 4 miles a day.  For me, time is of the essence.

So a few weeks ago I decided that I'd add a Pal Pal button and ask for a donation to get the list.  There was no suggested amount to donate, just like at my yard sale, I left it up to the "buyer".  Well, 41 requests later and guess how much I've gotten from my Pay Pal button?  $0.  That's right, not a red cent.  I'm trying to figure out why that is?   Maybe people don't really realize how much time and money this takes me and maybe they don't care.  Perhaps they are just use to this type of list being free because in some larger cities GF lists are kept up by numerous people in the local Celiac group but that isn't the case here.  I'm the only one working on this list.

I'd be interested in your thoughts and ideas on this one, it astounds me that no one has thought of sending me a single dollar thru Pay Pal.  I guess if someone couldn't afford it I'd certainly give it to them for free but quite a few people tell me where they are staying (rented house, Chatham Bars Inn, Daniel Webster Inn, etc.) and surely they can afford a buck.  Right now I'm debating canceling the list completely, it really does take a lot of time or charging for it.  What do you think?'

Well here is the sad news... since I wrote this post I've spent over 5 hours updating the list so that the restaurants have clickable links to their websites.  I've also had numerous people ask for the list and even after they read this post, they didn't donate.  So now I'm charging $3.00 for the list. It's worth it and I spend so much time on it.  I've just sent out over 100 emails to restaurants that are NOT on the list asking how they handle gluten free requests so I expect soon I'll be updating with new additions!

Idgy's is ALL gluten free.

Idgy's opened a couple of months ago and I've tried really hard to like it.  As a matter of fact... I do like it.... but (yes Virginia there is a "but") they still have a few kinks to work out.   It's in Union Station Plaza (Rt. 6 at exit 8) next do Domino's Pizza.  There is always plenty of parking.  The interior is cute.  They use chalkboards for the menu and they are all done in bright colors adding to the decor.  The fabric on the chairs is adorable.  The restaurant is always clean and bright.  The outside has lovely window boxes with herbs and flowers in them and I think there is an outdoor table or two (don't quote me on that one).

Like the title of this post, Idgy's is ALL gluten free so you don't have to worry about cross contamination or "mistakes".  I don't think owners Erika Berg and Deb Collins have gluten issues themselves but they have been in the restaurant business a long time and know good food.  I've spoken to one of them every time I've gone in there and they seem like dedicated professionals.

They have an interesting and varied menu:  breakfast - eggs, french toast, waffle's, quiche, english muffins, sausage, scones, and even a breakfast burrito.  I have to be honest and say I've never had breakfast there.... I get up really early every morning but I don't get going early.  One of these days I'll get up and get moving in time for breakfast.

On the lunch/dinner menu: Panini's, regular sandwiches, salads, appetizers, pizza, entrees, sides, a kids menu, a few vegan dishes, and even desserts.  They have a lot of healthy drinks, juice, coconut water, Holistic Herbal Elixirs, and smoothies.  So they cover all the bases.

I've had a couple of Panini's and they were good.  Certainly it is the first time I've had a Panini in 9 years.  The bread they use (I'm not sure if they make it but I'm guessing they do) is thin and doesn't taste or feel like a GF bread product.  I've had the Chicken Parm and the Roasted Portabella panini's and both were tasty but I'd like the Chicken Parm one a bit wetter (more red sauce and more cheese).   Both plates came with roasted beets which I ate but my daughter turned her nose up at.  I've asked about the beets, it is an unusual side dish, and they said people love them.  I happen to love beets but honestly I don't know anyone else who does.  I've had the Terriyaki Chicken Wings too and they were excellent.  On my next trip I'm going to try the Quesidilla appetizer.

On another visit I had a regular turkey and cheese sandwich which was excellent.  I asked for all the stuff that can go on it, mustard, mayo, lettuce -  the works.  It was big, hearty, and juicy - exactly the way I order it and the way I like it.   An excellent sandwich I've ordered a few times and it's been perfect each time.

The other evening my daughter and I had an early dinner there.  She loves spaghetti and meatballs and was anxious to try them.  I had trouble deciding what to order but finally settled on Chicken Marsala which came with mashed potatoes.  The spaghetti and meatballs were excellent, Cay loved them (she loves meatballs and I don't cook as much as I use too).  My meal looked a little pale... beige chicken, beige potatoes and although the flavor of marsala wasn't as strong as I would have liked, it tasted great, the chicken was done perfectly - tender and flavorful.  We really enjoyed our meals.

On to desserts.... they do them very well.  We've had brownies, cheesecake, cookies, and carrot cake. All have been excellent, the chocolate chip cookies are the best GF cookies I've ever had, really they are just great cookies, gluten free or not.  Lots of chips, nice big cookies, great flavor, crispy on the outside softer on the inside.  I think their desserts are responsible for the few pounds I've gained because I've never gone to Idgy's and NOT gotten a dessert.

So what are the kinks you might be asking?  Some of them are personal and may not be an issue to you... the tables are too small for 2 people, 2 dinners and 2 drinks.  When we had an appetizer we had to use the table next to us.   Slightly larger tables would make it feel more like a restaurant and less like a take out place.

The two owners have their act totally together but the rest of the help are in need of more training.  One time it took the woman behind the counter 10 minutes to figure out how to run my credit card (and this was a month after they opened), I stood there while she played with it and she didn't turn in the order while she was having trouble.  So we had a long wait to pay and get our food.

This last time the girl behind the counter was cleaning up (we got there about 30 minutes before they officially closed) and had on big blue rubber gloves to clean with.  Sadly she delivered dinners with the gloves still on!!!  A huge ewwwwww.

I find the menu board a bit difficult to read.  There are arrows all over which I find hard to figure out and all the item headings are called xxxxIdgy.  Appetizers are appetidgy's, panini's are panidgys, sandwich's are samidgys.  It's a little too cutesy and hard to read for me but as I said some of this is just my personal taste.

Let me say upfront I like a lot of flavor, spice, and even heat in my food.  Some of Idgy's food is just a shade not flavored enough for me.  For example I put salt on virtually every entree I order there.  I'd like them to punch it up a tiny bit more.  Lastly, I've emailed them with a GF suggestion... french fries.  It is very difficult for us GF people to get french fries (or fried anything) anywhere because in most restaurants they use the same fryolator for gluten items (like flour battered fish) to fry the french fries in.  So the french fries end up containing gluten.   I think a lot of Idgy's menu is "healthy food" so maybe they don't want to add something "unhealthy" like french fries (it's a veggie, right?) but I'd love them and I'd go there more often if they had them.

All in all, I like Idgy's a lot and I recommend it on my Gluten Free on Cape Cod list, which you can get, free of charge, just by emailing me.  I think they are off to a good start, I certainly hope if you are GF you will try it, it is SO nice not to have to worry at all about getting "glutened".  And your friends that don't have to be gluten free will enjoy it too.  Be sure to try their excellent desserts!

Idgy's  (click to see their website)
23 S. White's Path
S. Yarmouth, MA 02664
508-694-7451

The Best Gluten Free Pizza!

Right Here in Mashpee - by Susan


I've written before about my gluten problems... I've been gluten free for 7 years.  With all the gluten free products on the market nowadays I don't feel like I'm missing much sticking to a GF diet.  When I started this journey over 7 years ago there were virtually NO products marked as "gluten-free".  Today there are so many wonderful GF products, however; gluten free pizza has never lived up to it's billing.

Initially my daughter and I discovered the  Risotteria Restaurant in NYC.  It's got fantastic GF products, beer, cupcakes, and pizza.  We'd go to NYC a couple of times a year to shop and eat GF pizza!  (now that's a really expensive pizza!).  We have scouted around our area (Boston to Cape) for great GF pizza and eventually found BZ's pizza in Dennis.  They don't make their crust but it's thin and cooked in a pizza oven.  Their pizza is darn good and the people there are so friendly!  My daughter and I still go there often, it's a great traditional (GF) pizza.


When Wicked Fire Kissed Pizza opened I checked them out and wrote about it in this blog.  It's a great restaurant but they had a very limited GF menu when they first opened up:  salmon salad, salmon dinner, and steak.  But those 3 things were always prepared perfectly so I'd go with my mom now and then for the Organic Salmon and Citrus Salad.

I went there for dinner last week with my daughter and my mom and found out they now have a printed gluten free menu!  And let me tell you, it's wicked good!  There are not only salads but sandwiches, 3 more dinner entrees (for a total of 5 now), they also have Apple Wood Grilled Burgers (on a gluten free bun!!!) and yes, they have pizza.


They make their own pizza dough (it says rice flour slowly fermented) and they are cooked in their 700 degree hearth oven.  There are 12 different kinds of designer pizza's (the exact same ones that are on the regular menu, only made with GF crust) all with a thin and crispy crust, the only type of crust that GF pizza should be made with. They do have a plain cheese and tomato sauce pizza for you purists.  These pizza's are nothing short of amazing.  I had the Wicked Margherita and Cay had the Wicked Sausage and Caramelized Onion.  They were both fantastic... out of this world fantastic!   I am going back this week for another one (I see 10 lbs in my future).

A few things about Wicked... they don't take reservations (you can call 1/2 hour before you arrive and put your name on the wait list) and even in the off season they are busy on weekends, so be prepared to call ahead or wait.   During the summer it's busy all of the time, but if you call head, get your beeper when you check in, there are nice stores to window shop at while you wait.


I emailed Wicked for a comment about this blog post... I was curious what prompted the move from a very limited GF menu to a full GF menu.  I wanted to know if the dishes had to be reworked to add them to add them to the GF menu.  I was going to ask them more about the GF pizza process and most importantly (and a word of warning for all GF people) I really wanted to ask them about the Sicilian Comfort pizza - it contains "Wicked Meatballs" and I have a hard time believing they are gluten free (meatballs usually have bread crumbs in them).  Two of their pizza's have sausage and often sausage is NOT gluten free; however, my daughter had the pizza with hormone/anti-biotic free pork sausage (and I had a piece too) and neither of us reacted to it so I know that sausage is GF.  But meatballs?

Sadly Wicked never answered my email inquiry so I can't tell you their story, which is sad because not only do I have a lot of GF readers, but I keep a GF list of places to eat at for all of Cape Cod (free for the asking).  And I get over 400 requests a year for my list.  So I wish they would have participated in this blog post (if they do comment I'll let you know).  But I can tell you their pizza is excellent.  Really the entire place is great, the food excellent, the service is splendid, and the staff is always helpful and friendly.  I would really like to try their burgers but I can't imagine going in there now and not having pizza!


Best of all the pies are big enough for 2 meals, so I left with my doggie bag and had pizza for lunch the next day.  Thank you, Wicked Pizza! 

Honest Kitchen to the Rescue.

You Are What You Eat - by Susan

I've had a pet or two (or three) more or less since the day I was born.  Mostly dogs, cats, turtles, hamsters, hermit crabs, fish, and of course, a horse.   I've always tried to be a good pet mama:  I start with lots of love, the best vet care, the best food I can find, clicker training, long daily hikes, more love, and because I work at home, tons of time spent together.


I've told the story of my current Airedale, Connor in the blog before.  But a quick recap: he's a rescue of sorts... he was returned to his breeder (thank goodness for that) and a good friend of mine (Thank you Debbie and Koshie) knew I was in need of a dog and she is good friends with Connor''s breeder (Dale, what fabulous dogs you have!). And the rest, as they say, is history.  


After having Connor for a year now, I'm pretty sure he was given up for a variety of reasons but one of them was his "ill health." His previous owners had a veterinary record on him that was 2 inches thick.  And most of the record is about his GI issues.  My vet (the wonderful Dr. Tom Burns of Veterinary Associates of Cape Cod) and I sat down with his vet record and it seemed to us that the first order of business was to change his diet to see if that would change his health.  

I researched dog foods to the extreme, got on dog lists, posted to dog forums.  I spent a lot of time researching a raw diet and participate in an online list that was primarily about feeding your dog a raw diet.  And I think there is a lot to be said for it.  But I was pretty sure I didn't want to be handing all that raw food.  Honestly I eat vegetarian at home most of the time because I hate the look and feel of raw meat.  There are a few good, small, independent dog food makers out there and in my research I found Honest Kitchen.

I was really impressed with their dog food and ingredients... they start with the very best, whole food, human grade ingredients, they can find and gently dehydrate them.  Look into the company - how they find their ingredients, how they make the food, how much they care about our planet and our environment, their refusal to cut any corners, and how every month they support a different charity.  This food is made with love and such good will.  Even the boxes are recycled paper and the plastic they use inside the box to keep the food fresh: it too is post consumer recycled plastic.  To say I was impressed was an understatement.

So I bought Honest Kitchen food and supplements, got Connor on them and almost immediately, voilà, he was no longer suffering from GI problems.  I kept him on the Honest Kitchen regimen for this past year and he has had no GI incidents or any health problems at all.  Perfectly healthy dog.  I always wondered if it could be that easy.  Really, just a diet change and supplements?  The supplement I use for him is called Perfect Form and it is a digestive supplement.  (click here to read Honest Kitchen's description of it)  

So a couple of months ago, Honest Kitchen was changing the packaging on their supplement line (thank you very much I love the new can and it opens far easier then the old style!!), I didn't keep up my "pantry" and I ran out of Perfect Form.  It was a bit hard to come by in the stores due to the packaging change.  

Not a big deal I thought, he's still on Honest Kitchen food so he'll be fine.  At first he was.  And then over the course of a few weeks, he occasionally would spit up a little stuff (like a teaspoon full of breakfast) and then "uh oh" his poop got different.  Not enough that most people would worry but it was clear to me that the Perfect Form really does help his digestion.

I emailed Honest Kitchen in a panic and of course once again they came to my rescue (Thank you Carmen!) and overnighted some Perfect Form for Connor.  And guess what.... in two days he was back to normal again.  And in the months following this, he has not had one incident of an upset tummy.  So inadvertently I got to test if it really is the Honest Kitchen products that have improved his health and I can say unequivocally YES.  

After reading their website (they have a ton of very interesting articles under the "Learn" menu) I found out that a lot of people switch to Honest Kitchen because their dogs have some sort of health issue: skin problems, allergies, GI issues, itching, ear infections.  And I think with all the research that has been done in the field of nutrition over the past few years we all know that good food is the cornerstone of good health (for people too).  And most of the Honest Kitchen customers feel their pets health is far better after switching to Honest Kitchen.  I'm so glad I found them.

This is the kind of company I want to do business with and I wish that every company I buy from could be exactly like this.  Honest Kitchen cares.....  about my dog's health, about their products, about the planet, about me. 

I'm not employed by Honest Kitchen (but I'll tell you I love them so much if they offered me a job I'd take it in a heartbeat!) and they don't ask me to write about them.  I'm really just so smitten with this company!  They do however give me coupons that I can give to you if you'd like to try their food.  You can buy it in many places on Cape Cod and all around the country, go to their store locator and put in your zip code (its also available online too).  And if you'd like a coupon please email me!

Gotta run, its time for Connor and I to go on our hike!