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I love hearing from my family. I am proud of the family that I have, and wish we all lived closer like when I was younger.  I always have enjoyed my Aunt Helen very much, and was thrilled when she called me today out of the blue.

Today I also had a little bit of a tear, because she told me she is proud of me and the person I have become. Okay, so she also mentioned that had I been at home while my Uncle was being put onto a DNR, she and I would have probably both said things we shouldn't...LOL. I think I learned to speak up from Aunt Helen; she has never been afraid to speak up for the underdog.

My Aunt Helen has always bluntly told me whatever I have needed to hear, even when I didn't want to hear it, and I respect that very much. The conversation was amazing, and just keeps reminding me of why I enjoy and love her so very much.

After asking about how I was doing, and telling her that I have my first holiday bazaar coming up so am baking up a storm...and Grizzly is drooling in the kitchen constantly while I bake the yummy treats...

My wonderful Aunt Helen told me a story about a woman that lives near her and Uncle Bob, who found a recipe for dog treats and made some for their dog Daisy (this was a while back, as Daisy has passed over the rainbow bridge). And apparently this woman left them on the counter to cool and left to run errands.

What made me laugh was that her son and his friend came home from school, saw the treats, and proceeded to eat them thinking they were for them. Oh how I cracked up!

The treats I taste test for Bear Bones Bakery are made with human grade ingredients. Yes, I do taste test them prior to practicing the baking method to harden them to be nice and crunchy. We both found humor in the fact that not only did the boys eat dog treats, but I do too!

There are many things I have learned from my cousin's beautiful Maggie. And it is with a very sad heart that I say she passed over the rainbow bridge.

Maggie was an amazing dog, full of love and life. She absolutely adored her humans, and made that very clear. She let my Grizzly into her home, and did so with dignity. Although, for a few minutes his size intimidated her... however, not for long!

With a long history of having food allergies, a special dog food, a special diet, Maggie was one of the first thoughts I had when trying new flavors. She was so sweet, I wanted to share love in the Bear Bones Bakery style with her, in a way that she could enjoy. I was excited to send her some and know that she could eat them with no issues!

What I was very surprised about, was my cousin telling me that she softened the treats for Maggie to be able to eat them easier. Coming from me, who is trying to make the treats harder with my new baking process, GASP!!!

However, it makes sense that while some canines have issues with diets, others might have issues with eating due to age or other reasons. For that reason, I am sharing something else I learned because of Maggie...

If you have a canine who loves the Bear Bones Bakery treats, but is in need of something to soften them up, here's what my cousin did for Maggie:

Get a cool whip container.

Break up the treats into smaller pieces if you want (she did for Maggie).

Put a piece of bread into the cool whip container.

Close it up tight, and it will soften the treats.

Now, I personally have not tried this, but if it worked for Maggie, I'm sure it will work!

You will ALWAYS be part of Bear Bones Bakery's taste testing team in our hearts. And as an end comment, Maggie, you left a lasting impression on me, and I love you! 

I often wonder  if dogs dream. 

Have you ever woken up at night to your dog running all 4 paws top speed, while sound asleep? Last night not only was Grizzly doing that, he also sounded the way he does when chasing rabbits.

Since the Easter bunny isn't currently in season, and yes, he did catch one before Easter a couple years ago...and now the bunny that taunts Grizzly almost every time we walk the street my parents live on in NC (he got eyes on it yesterday and would have tried for it if I hadn't told him no), was almost Grizzly kibble. 

I turned on the light, to see him chasing something in his sleep. And hope that bunny got chased away...good Grizzly. Crazy rabbit! Now go back to sleep! 

If you dream, sweet dreams!

I have been thrilled with the playmates at the park in NC, as has Grizzly. They manage to cheer him up quickly! He hasn't been feeling very well this trip, and just like with us when we dont feel good, friends help.

This visit, Maddie wasnt along, but Grizzly had fun playing with Daisy, Dylan, and Connery.

Thanks from Grizzly to his friends for playing with him!

Grizzly and I love to visit my parents, and go to the park to play with friends. We went today, and his friend Dillon was there.

His Maddie was there too, and after giving Grizzly tons of kisses, proceeded with her case of the "zoomies".

It is good to have friends at the park!

When I was younger, the first thing that I learned to do was bake. It was at my Grandma W's house, and on an extremely old Kitchen Aid mixer. It was a stand mixer, with only a glass bowl, because back then they didn't make the metal bowls (and now my metal bowls with handles).

That old kitchen aid in Grandma's kitchen taught me many things through the years. It was one that I hoped to inherit one day...sadly, the bowl broke in the stand, and back then you couldn't replace the bowl, so Grandma threw the stand away.

These days, I would have happily added Grandma's old mixer to my kitchen aid collection. With starting the bakery, I have been given a second mixer by my dear friend (yes, made me cry), gotten several other bowls, beaters, and then even found an old glass bowl in honor of Grandma W and to make her part of this process.

You know that I pull out the mixer or the mixer bowls, and Grizzly is right there to aide me in treat development. 

And in some way, I know Grandma W is there with me too. Because every time I pull out a kitchen aid, I think of Grandma and smile. No matter how old I get, it makes me feel like a child again. It makes baking a joyful experience.

Thank you Kitchen Aid, for your amazing products. Thank you Grandma W for teaching me to love the Kitchen Aid you gave me when I got married. Thank you Grizzly for enjoying those bowls as much as I do. And thank you to my friend, who believes in me too...

Tomorrow, August 1, 2019,  Grizzly turns 5 years old. I know dogs don't know what a birthday is, and that he gets love every day. To him it is nothing special. To me, it is another year of him loving me and taking care of me, and me having the good fortune to love and care for him!

So, from the heart, just like the way we bake...Happy Birthday Grizzly!

Enjoy your Puppy Mint treats! My smart sweet boy!

What are your plans for the summer? Are there things you can do with your dog?

Grizzly being a service dog, gets to go everywhere I go. And I always make sure that wherever I go it is safe to have him along. Let me give you an example...

A few years ago my daughter and I were shopping before Christmas, and she wanted to go into a store that sold very expensive soaps and bath bombs, hoping to find something for me for Christmas. An employee stepped on Grizzly's tail, and broke it. The howl of pain from my dog, who is pretty tough, broke my heart.

Now Grizzly is not a little dog. I had to hand my purse over to my daughter, and lift poor Grizzly off the floor to get out of the store. Not an easy feat, but he protects and takes care of me, so it is only fair for me to do the same for him. I was incredibly surprised when I inadvertently knocked over a single piece of soap on the way out and the employee was more concerned about the soap than her injuring my dog.

SO...

I have learned to be very careful and ask for places to sit where Grizzly is safe. He gets to sit on the floor of the airplane with me, and I am very willing to delay in airports to ensure he gets specific seats on specific size planes. He has travel bowls, I carry food, his blanket from training since he knows where I put it means it is safe for him to lay down.

But it is easy to forget things like keeping hydration available, protect the paws, watch where you park, things that with children it was pretty common.

Now Grizzly and I are planning to schedule events, and he already has his own tote of things like a battery operated fan, extra bowls, and yes, he is even getting his own bandanna for him to be spiffy.

He has something called a Chill Out, which I can get wet, then freeze to make very cold, and it goes around his neck. He gets his Musher's Secret on to protect his pads. And toys, the squeaky variety he LOVES must be included. He also has his Bear Bones Bakery treats to share with fellow friends...

What I would love to do is find a place locally where I could see if Grizzly likes to swim. Take him for a hike in the woods, to outdoor patio type places where other dogs are able to join in the fun Grizzly gets to have when we go out to eat. 

We know he likes going to the pool, and to the park when on vacation at Poppa's house in NC. Where else can he get so much love and attention?

He even enjoyed Mom making treats down south! He waited by the oven just like he does at home while they bake!

So when you think summer fun, don't forget to include your canine, they are the best of companions!

Grizzly goes everywhere with me as my service dog. I am always on the lookout for ways to protect him from the heat, and found an amazing product that Grizzly approves.

We went to North Carolina during the heat of the summer. To say you could fry eggs on the sidewalk is an understatement. With the humidity added into straight heat, it was sweltering hot. This from Megan, who isn't walking around on hot pavement barefoot while wearing a fur coat. There are only so many places you can park right near the store after all, to avoid that hot pavement.

Every time we left the house, I put Musher's Secret on Grizzly's paws.

What is that you might ask? It is a great product that is super easy to apply, and keeps a block on the pads of your dog so that he does have protection against heat. It also does not have a flavor, so that he isn't licking it off...

But heat isn't the only thing we have used our Musher's Secret for...he got a sunburn on his nose, and this applied over it helped it from peeling off painfully.

We applied it to go to the beach, and it kept the sand from scraping his paws.

Back home, in the winter, he wears his Musher's Secret to keep the ice melting chemicals from being absorbed into his pads. I check his paws when he gets back into the van, and if there are any pieces in the fur between his pads, I simply wipe them off  and away we go.

I travel to my parents in NC often, and simply pack my 1 pound jar of Musher's secret in my suitcase. We don't leave home without it!

It has been a great product for us, and highly Grizzly approved!

He picked this out today at Marshall's.  It is a puppy dog toy that he has been named Odie after the dog in Garfield!

Vacation for Grizzly is good. Afterwards he went back to the pool...where everyone came by to see him. 

He got a bowl full of ice cubes, he got to have a few sweet potato fries, he had his blanket and his own fan. The pool umbrella kept him in the shade, eager to meet new friends!

Grizzly likes going to the park (okay, it's also a soccer field, has a playground, a 1/4 mile track, but to him it is the park) where he has made many new friends. Today he saw his friend Daisy and his friend Maddie, who both eagerly awaited samples of the Pina Colada flavor Bear Bones Bakery flavor...

Daisy (the black lab) likes all the flavors she tried while we played, and Maddie did too. Maddie even jumped up on the picnic table to see if she could hug Megan (the treat lady) and licked my ears hoping to get more treats!

The week before, there was a camp that met here at the park, and Grizzly was thrilled to have all of the campers come pet him. He sat right down and waited for them to come visit!

He made loads of friends, had lots of fun, and even got kisses...