Gluten Free Goat Cheese, Spinach, Basil, Mushroom Pizza

As my husband is not a fan of goat cheese, I usually make this tasty little pizza for lunch.  It is fast and easy to make.  First I buy some already made gluten free pizza crust by Rustic Crust which I purchased at Dierbergs.

I preheat the oven to 450 degrees.  I first take one garlic clove, cut it in half and rub the garlic clove on both sides of the pizza crust.  The package says to spread olive oil on the crust, however I am never able to get it to spread evenly, so I use the I can't believe its not better with oil spray and spray the pizza crust a few times.  I chop up some fresh spinach and fresh basil and place it on the pizza crust.  I then chop up some fresh mushrooms and it it to the pizza.  Then I add the goat cheese!  MMM!  I try to spread it evenly over the pizza, so every bite has a yummy goat cheese.  I add a little fresh pepper.  By this time, I am just waiting on the oven to preheat.

I throw the pizza in the oven (not literally).  The package says to put it directly on the rack, however I usually put my pizza on aluminum foil.  Cook for 12 minutes and voila Pizza!!

Ingredients:
1 gluten free pizza crust
1 clove of garlic
A handful of fresh spinach
About two twigs of fresh basil
3 or 4 small mushrooms
A small package of goat chese

What would you do if a chipmunk was drowning in your pool?

The other day I was talking to my husband on the phone while looking out our back door and saw something swimming in our pool.  I told my husband to hold on while I take a picture of this adorable chipmunk in our pool.  Little did I know, the poor guy just wasn't swimming, he was trying to get out!

I guess when I walked out to take a picture I must of scared him, because a few moments later he began sinking.  I freaked out, put my phone down and grabbed our pool net.  I scooped him out and let him lay on top of the net for a few moments.

This was before the summer heat had greatly intensified and the little chipmunk was just laying there shivering on the pool net.  I covered him up with a hand towel.  I went inside and googled for advice and found that you can feed them some bread or nuts to help them regain their energy, so I took him out some bread.  He ate a few bites.

I would periodically check on the chipmunk and about an hour later, he was sitting on top of the towel, when he saw me he took off running.  I still see him every morning eating the bird seed the birds throw on the ground.  My cat looks at the back door and really wants to play with him.

As I have told this story to many people, they tell me chipmunks can cause some damage around your place and I should have let the chipmunk drown.  What?  I could never do this.  What would you do if there were a chipmunk drowning in your pool?

Way to Go Cardinals! Gluten-Free Beer at Busch Stadium!

Beer, Brats and Baseball! Isn’t this what a St. Louis summer is all about? Not everywhere in the United States can a gluten-intolerant person still enjoy all of these items together, however fortunately for St. Louis the Cardinals now serve gluten-free beer and their brats are also gluten free!
Here is a list of their gluten-free items:

• Beef Brisket (no sauce or bun): section 509
• Bratwurst (no bun)
• Grilled Chicken (no bun): sections 139, 161, 446, 264, 266
• Hamburger/Cheeseburger (no bun)
• Hot Dog, Jumbo Dog (no bun)
• Peanuts
• Polish Sausage (no bun): sections 162, 169, 270, 437
• Popcorn
• Pudding - 4 oz. Vanilla and Chocolate: section 136
• Red Bridge Beer: sections B150, B272.
• Turkey legs: sections 152, 432, 509
• Veggie Burger (No Bun): section 132
• Gluten-Free Ham & Swiss Sandwich: section 136
• Yogurt - 6 oz. Strawberry and Peach: section 136

Do You Know What to Do With an Injured Bird?

I came home from work to find a fledgling blue jay in our front yard. When I approached he slowly hobbled away, but not far. I was not sure if he was just too young to fly or if he was injured. There was an adult bird squawking at me as I approached the little guy, so I originally figured the parent was keeping an eye on the fledgling and he would be okay.
A little later I came out and checked on him again, and he was still in the same place. So I gave him a few bird seeds. I do believe he ate a few. It looked as if he had broken a leg or something. He did not seem okay.
I checked on him several times. As the night went on, he tried less to move away from me, as if he just did not have it in him anymore. I checked on him one last time before we went to bed and the poor guy was lying on his side. I was heartbroken. I had a difficult time sleeping as I feared he would not make it through the night.
The next morning I was happy to see him sitting up again. This time there was no parent in the trees squawking at me. I did some research and figured out this bird was not okay and he needed help. Apparently it is not normal for a bird, even as a fledgling, to allow you come near and they do not sleep on their side. Not to mention it was mid-90’s outside.
I first called the Wildlife Rehabilitation Clinic in High Ridge, however they said they did not handle birds and directed me to the Wild Bird Rehabilitation in Overland. I called them up and asked them a few more questions. They were not able to pick up the bird, since they have limited resources and volunteers. I took a shoebox and went outside and scooped up the bird using the lid. I knew better than to touch the blue jay, as many birds carry diseases. He tried to fight me, but he did not have a lot of energy.
I took him to the Wild Bird Rehabilitation; they immediately grabbed him and filled him with several cc’s of fluid. They said he was not doing very well. He did not have a broken leg, but all of his tail feathers were broken. The fledgling had suffered some type of trauma.
I made a donation to the Wild Bird Rehabilitation (as they are a nonprofit) and picked up a volunteer orientation schedule. I was really impressed with their help and love for birds. I just hope they were able to help my little Blue Jay.