Almost Ready!

Well, I am down to the final few days.

I am mostly packed.

One Carry-On and one slightly bigger than Carry-On.

I have done most of the required 'before I leave' cleaning.

Spinach, Pepper and Lemon will be dinner tomorrow.

All that is left to do...
3 days left at work.
A few loads of last minute laundry.
A thorough vacuuming.
A bunch of kitty snuggles.
A final bathroom cleaning.

Then I am off. For a month. A whole month.

I can't wait. Paris first, then Liverpool and London.

Botanical Beach

I was sorting through some old pictures tonight and found these in one of my folders.

A year and a half ago I finally made it out to Botanical Beach. I had never been there before.

Three of us loaded up the truck and headed out. The drive was great, and no sooner had we parked and were ready to go than the skies opened and it began to pour.

What the heck, we were there, so we went for our walk anyway.

By the time we got back to the truck we were absolutely soaked. Soaked.

It was great. We had a lot of fun, took some good pictures and had a good walk.

By the time I got home, I could still ring out my unmentionables.

Did I mention that we were soaked?

I think I will head back out there again this summer. Rain or shine.

Changes.

22 pounds.

More energy.

Food issues.

And more.

It's been almost 6 months since I cut wheat and sugar out of my diet. I have been pretty successful, with the exception of a few weeks over Christmas, which was mostly planned.

I am feeling great!

I have lost 22 pounds. I have been able to pull clothes out of the closet that I have not been able to wear in over three years. It felt good to get back into them. I still have a long way to go, but this is a good start. Also, I am not doing this to lose weight but it is the most noticeable side effect. And one I don't mind.

My skin has cleared up a lot. This is one of the best parts. I have had eczema my whole life and am able to control it everywhere except my face. Nice. The one place I really don't want it is the one place I can't seem to keep a handle on it. Eczema sucks. It's frustrating to get up every morning and see a nice big red patch in the middle of your face. And it won't go away. No matter how much you moisturize, or scrub, or cry. It's always there. Itching and peeling and showing itself to the world. No matter what great things happen in your day, you always have this thing. And you can't hide it. And everyone sees it. And some people are assholes. I mean seriously. Who would ever think it's OK to say 'Whats wrong with your face'. Nothing. Jerk. Alright, so that's my rant. Done for now, and hopefully I will rant less as it continues to clear up.

I have more energy and am sleeping better. I feel like a human being. I think. Ever since I had Mono when I was 12 I have had to be really aware of how much sleep I get or I end up really run down. And I have insomnia. Great combo. Mono rocks.* So I am not really sure what other people feel like on a daily basis, but it looks like they generally have more energy than I do. Now I find that I can't nap on the weekends because I have been sleeping so well at night. And it's not an ordeal to go out for the evening after work, or spend a whole day in the garden. I don't have to plan for 'recovery days' anymore!

Food issues. Wow. I am actually amazed. I didn't realize I was so messed up, until I wasn't as messed up anymore. I look at food totally differently. Totally. Now, I am much more laid back about food and what I eat and how I eat it. I can look at food and say yes or no based on weather or not I should eat it that day, and actually want it. Not based on the fact that it is there, and I want to eat ALL of it. And, besides, now I would rather have some fruit instead of junk.

Chilled out. I have. A bit. Not totally, but some. Things that used to really gross me out, like to the point of gagging, just don't bother me anymore. I have noticed a big change in the way I look at things. And not just food stuff, but everything. Weird that fixing the food part can fix not-food parts.

This gluten and sugar free thing is doing something. Something good. I will be sticking with it.

The next challenge will be to get my rear end back to the gym. I am working on it.


Lets see how it goes...

*Sooo not true.

What the Heck?

Well, it's been a really long time since I have been here. Too long.

The Holiday Countdown is now at 27 days and I still have so much to do. My lists seem to just grow and grow. But I have the important stuff done. I have bought enough cat food to last while I am gone. The rest is gravy.

Last weekend we had the kids and both the girls were getting over colds. Then, on the way out on Saturday, the little one switched from a cold, to the flu. She rode the rest of the way home in an old t-shirt of mine, and her underpants.

I think she may have shared her germs. Darn all those cute kisses!

I had a day of a sore throat that means I am getting my weird more-Laryngitis-than-Cold thing. Then it was gone! Yahoo! Unfortunately it has left behind the need to sleep 12+ hours a night. I make it until about 2pm at work, and then my poor body just wants to lay down. By the time I get home I manage to feed the cats, grab a quick bite to eat, then beddy-bye. This has been going on all week.

What the heck!?

I have had enough of this. Apparently my body disagrees. Off to bed I go.