The afternoon buzzzzzzz

Gigantic bumble bees have taken over this pretty pink bush in front of our house. They are quite intimidating. Bees always seem to find me on our boat in the middle of the lake. I know you're supposed to sit still, and they won't bother you. Sure. Well, that doesn't work for me. I jump up, scream and wave my arms... and usually end up jumping in the water to escape the darn things. My dad is allergic to bee stings. I don't think I've ever been stung by a bee (only wasps), and I really don't want to find out if the allergy runs in the family. I will say this for the bees... they certainly do sport the black and gold quite nicely. :)

Nap Time

Even the dogs were exhausted on Sunday after the Blessing...

...and they didn't do anything! :)

Where there is one...

...apparently, there are three.

There have been three snake sightings this week in Pontiac, and I am not happy about it. The first one happened on Monday, in the parking area right in front of the main walkway at the marina. Josh found it - it was very small, but a snake nonetheless. Yuck. The second one was on Thursday. I was driving up the hill from the dock, and a GIANT black snake slithered across the road. (You can see pictures of both of these snakes on the PCM blog. I just learned about the third sighting this afternoon - my dad opened the big garage door on the front of the rigging barn that shares a driveway with our house, and a snake literally fell out of the air right in front of him. (He figured it was lying along the tracks on the inside of the door.) That snake is no longer living.

What does this mean? Why are there so many snakes? I don't like it. I don't like it at all.

Random thoughts on a Thursday...

So, I wore shorts to work today (well, ok, bermudas), and I'm not sure my legs have ever been this white. It's ridiculous. It's almost embarrassing. I really need to get some sun. I ordered a new swimsuit, and it arrived a couple days ago... when I tried it on, Matt said, "Looks good... (pause)... you need a tan." Hmm. Thanks, hubby! Take me to the beach, and I'll get one. ;)

I just received notice that my new laptop for work shipped yesterday! I am so pumped. I've just been completely out of sorts since my old Dell went kaput about a month ago. I haven't had access to my photos or my music... it's just been a mess. We did buy a new netbook - an Acer - for home, which has been really nice in the interim.

I am completely obsessed with American Idol this season. We don't typically watch the show - sometimes we'll catch a few episodes of the auditions, just for the ridiculousness of it. But, this year we sort of just kept watching, and kept watching... until finally we were setting the DVR to record it each week. After last night's elimination, it's down to five. They are all so good! I think that's one reason I'm really digging it this season... they're all so talented, I can't wait to see what they'll do next. Well, that and we can't wait to see what Paula will do next. She's hilarious! But, not in the we're-laughing-with-you sort of way, but rather the we're-laughing-at-you. I don't think she's on any "drugs" per se... I think she's on the sauce. I'd be willing to bet there's more than just soda in that red plastic Coca-Cola cup.

good morning

I woke up just a little too early this morning... 5:15... Matt got up early to go turkey hunting before work, and I couldn't fall back to sleep. Oy. Usually I don't wake up when he gets up early, or if I do I always go back to sleep. But, for some reason I couldn't this morning. I would have gotten up at 6:00 anyway, because the dock is opening at 7 a.m. now. So, I suppose it isn't so bad.

For those of you who don't live nearby... I hope your weather forecast looks as fabulous as ours. We have a big event this Saturday for our customers - so I'm extra thankful for the warm weather in store. (For more info on the Blessing, see the PCM blog.)

The dogs (i.e. Oscar) are driving me crazy this morning. Oscar does this thing where he tries to get toys out of the bottom of his toy box, and he just sticks his head in, and in turn he chokes himself on the side of the basket. So, he keeps gagging over and over and over. I've tried to explain to him what causes that, and I showed him how to put his front feet in to prevent the choking, but he doesn't get it...

I just saw on the news that GM announced a new hybrid Hummer that promises 100 miles to the gallon. I wonder how much that costs...

Well, it's 5 minutes 'til 6. I guess my alarm should be going off any minute now.

Hello, my name is Jabet...

...and I'm addicted to Diet Coke.

I'm fighting the urge to drink my third Diet Coke of the day. I usually only allow myself two cans - that's 24 ounces. But, today I'm really jonesin' for another one. I don't drink coffee - I just drink one cup of hot tea every morning when I wake up. What's wrong with drinking excessive amounts of Diet Coke? It has 0 calories, 0 carbs, 0 grams of sugar... I know, I know... aspartame and sodium are baaaaad.

A lazy Easter Sunday...

Matt and I spent Easter Sunday just chillin' at home. It was a cold, wet and nasty day in P-town. He went fishing for a bit in the morning, but after that we pretty much just vegged. For dinner we had planned to blacken some fish, but when it came time to cook, neither of us wanted to mess with that. Matt suggested pancakes, but I talked him into letting me try a new recipe instead - whole wheat buttermilk waffles. He reluctantly agreed... but they were actually really good! I loved the texture of the oats in the waffles. We had a few leftover, so we just stuck them in the fridge, and we can pop them in the toaster this week for breakfast or a snack. Enjoy!

Whole Wheat Buttermilk Waffles
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup old-fashioned oats
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon baking powder
3 tablespoons granular sugar substitute (I used Splenda)
3 tablespoons canola oil
1 1/4 cups 1 percent or fat-free buttermilk
1/2 cup water
1 large egg

Combine flour, oats, baking powder and sugar substitute in a medium bowl. Whisk together oil, buttermilk, water and egg in a separate bowl. Pour the buttermilk mixture into the flour mixture and stir until combined. Heat waffle iron; coat lightly with cooking spray. Add 1/2 cup to 1 cup of batter (depending on the size of your iron) and cook until browned and crisp.

Note: We also cooked some turkey bacon on the side. I just dabbed a little butter on my waffles and ate them plain; Matt ate his with crunchy peanut butter and syrup. If you want to keep it low sugar, but want a little sweetness, try them with sugar free jelly. One last thing... this recipe doesn't call for salt, but next time I'm going to throw in a dash of salt. I think it needed it.

I love Easter candy...

These are my #1 top pick for Easter candy... I could easily eat a whole bag in one sitting.






Lori and I used to skip school (high school) and go get these at the grocery store in G-ville... we'd eat them with pretzels... yum.



Reeses. Peanut Butter. Egg. 'Nuff said.

Daily Dish

I want to share an e-mail I received this morning via the "South Beach Daily Dish" ... I know we've all seen lists similar to this one, but it's good info to read again, nonetheless... I hope you like berries and beans! :)

Daily Dish
Top 20 Antioxidant-Rich Foods
Trying to add more disease-fighting antioxidants into your diet? The following 20 foods contain the highest antioxidant concentration.

1. Pomegranates
2. Small red beans (dried)
3. Wild blueberries
4. Red kidney beans
5. Pinto beans
6. Blueberries (cultivated)
7. Cranberries
8. Artichokes (cooked)
9. Blackberries
10. Prunes
11. Raspberries
12. Strawberries
13. Red Delicious apples
14. Granny Smith apples
15. Pecans
16. Sweet cherries
17. Black plums
18. Gala apples
19. Black beans (dried)
20. Plums

Antioxidants are naturally occurring nutrients that help prevent heart disease, cancer, and the effects of aging. Little is actually known about how antioxidants work or what makes them function best. Scientists believe that some antioxidants are more potent than others, and their potency can be affected by cooking or digestion. For example, the antioxidants in blueberries lose their potency when cooked, while the antioxidants in tomatoes become more potent when cooked.

So use this list to find antioxidant-rich foods, but for the best nutritional outcome, eat them in a wide variety. (Note that all the foods listed above are acceptable on the South Beach Diet; fruits would be introduced starting in Phase 2.)

Baby Shower Brunch

I hosted a baby shower for my cousin Megan on Sunday and served a brunch. We had a sausage and ham breakfast casserole, chocolate-covered strawberries, fresh blackberry tartlets, whole grain banana-blueberry bread, cheesy bread, mini orange tea muffins and strawberry cupcakes with cream cheese frosting. I wish I had snapped some photos of the food before we started eating! But, I was able to get a few good ones before it was too picked over... Looks pretty yummy, if I do say so myself. :)

Puppy dog nicknames...

Honey and Oscar have many aliases...these are just a few I can think of off the top of my head... (they're at the dock with me today, which is what made me think of this...)

H: Bee, "The" Bee, Honey Bee, Queen Bee, Bee-otch, Bunny, Bunny Bear, Nun, Bunnun, Bee Bear, Blackie, Sister, Sissie, Sis, The Black One, Chunk, Bumble.

O: Os, Ossie, Tossie, Tosti Osti, Sweetness, Cotton, Cotton Puff, White Boy, Nater, Tater Bug, The White One, Bud, Buddy, Brother, Bro, "Roy".

The list goes on... I have no idea where/how we came up with most of these!

Easiest Jambalaya recipe... ever

I realized at about 3:00 Tuesday afternoon that I had nothing planned for dinner. I went home to check on the dogs, and while I was there I grabbed a bag of shrimp out of the freezer and threw it in the sink. I knew it would thaw quickly, but I didn't know what the heck I was going to do with it. I found this Paula Deen recipe on foodnetwork.com and tweaked it just a bit. Luckily I had (almost) all the ingredients on hand. It was full of flavor, had a nice, spicy kick to it, and best of all it was a simple and fast one-pot meal!

Ingredients:
Jambalaya Mix (see recipe below)
2 cups water
1 (14-ounce) can diced tomatoes
1 (8-ounce) can tomato sauce
1 pound medium, fresh shrimp, peeled and deveined

Jambalaya Mix:
1 cup brown rice
3 tablespoons dried minced onion
1 tablespoon dried parsley flakes
1 tablespoon chicken bouillon granules
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 bay leaf

In a small bowl, combine rice, onion, parsley, bouillon, thyme, garlic powder, black pepper, cayenne pepper, salt, and bay leaf. (You can make this ahead of time and store in an airtight container.)

Directions:
In a medium size sauce pan combine jambalaya mix, water, tomatoes and tomato sauce. Bring mixture to a boil over medium-high heat. Cover, reduce heat and let simmer for 20 minutes. Add shrimp and cook for an additional 5 minutes or so, or until shrimp are pink.

Serve immediately. Delish!

Note: Paula's recipe called for only 1/2 to 3/4 pound of shrimp and 1/2 pound fully cooked smoked sausage, cut into 1/4-inch slices - the sausage to be added at the beginning with all the other ingredients. We didn't have any sausage on hand, so we just used a full pound of shrimp. Next time I want to try it with the sausage, and perhaps even add some chicken? We'll see. :)