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.