Thunderstruck

We lived through an incredibly wicked storm last night. Wind gusts that looked like something from a hurricane. Driving rain. Hail. Thunder and lightning that went on for hours, both before and after the storm had passed. It was a little scary, to be honest.
The puppy dog does not like storms. Imagine 100 lbs of dog running down the hall to out bedroom closet to escape the sound of the weather radio going off. He stayed there all night due to the fact that the radio was going off all night.
The Little Man decided to comfort the puppy dog. He went into the closet, and played him a song on his keyboard, telling him to be brave. The Big Man, always the boy scout, gave us each a flashlight in case we lost power. We did lose power, only briefly. Little Man thought it was great fun to juggle them. Our street flooded-storm drains backed up, and the water was waist deep at the corner.
We escaped with little damage. My garden flooded, the fence blew in, and that was it. My friend Bev lost the windows and wall on one side of her house, and now they can't stay in their home until its repaired. Another friend of a friend had a tree hit by lightning and it split in half. A family in the next town over had their house hit by lightning, and it caught on fire-a total loss.
But today, the sun is shining, and it is to be much cooler and less humid. I have some errands that need to get run today-grocery shopping, exchanging some stuff at the mall-and I need to do a few more loads of laundry. I want to also do a little pampering-do a manicure & pedicure, maybe a facial, and definately a massage.
I've been doing a lot of purging lately. I've been cleaning out closets and drawers and cabinets. Its been quite freeing, especially since I've been seeing progress in getting over this stuck thing in my life. I cleaned out under my bathroom sink, and got rid of stuff that I've been hanging onto for a long time. Curling irons that don't really work for me (too small a barrel). Cleaning products that didn't work out so well. Makeup that didn't look so hot on me. Gone, baby gone.
Its so freeing, to get beyond holding onto mistakes. I know that I am guilty of that. I hang onto things that really didn't work out for me, out of a sense of guilt for having bought it in the first place. The other day, I was looking for something in the "hole" and came across my box of needlepoint and cross stitch supplies. I realized something-I am never, ever going to do most of these. Honestly, I don't know why I had bought most of them in the first place. I think it was a combination of boredom and wanting to fill my cup (news flash:shopping really doesn't do that)I do love needlepoint and cross stitch, and happen to be quite talented at it as well, but there is no way I am going to do all of these projects.
So, I am going to open up my own little Ebay shop and start unloading them. I just have to figure out how to get it set up, and then take it from there.
The other big thing was I tidied up the laundry room yesterday. I cleaned off my folding table (aka the Big Man's work table). It now makes doing laundry quite pleasant. Once again, it was a sense of unburdening and liberation. Its amazing how one little change in my life can make such a huge difference.
The other thing I did was get it straight in my head to get meals planned and executed. Tonight, I am thinking something very light because I have been eating a lot of junk again.
Breakfasts-I love my Greek omelets for breakfast. Basically its egg beaters mixed with cooked spinach, feta cheese, capers and artichoke hearts. Its really yummy with whole wheat toast and a big bowl of fruit salad (this time of year, strawberries, kiwi, pineapple and manadarin oranges). I also love oriental omelets (egg beaters, stir fry veggies and mogolian fire oil) and Spanish omelets (egg beaters, salsa and taco cheese). Frosted mini wheats with sliced bananas and strawberries. Sugar free maple and brown sugar oatmeal with sliced fruit. And I totally love smoothies.
Lunches are a struggle for me. I know I need to eat something healthy and light, and that's hard. I like wraps, and I think that I am going to make some for the week. Turkey breast, cheese and lots of veggies (spinach and broccoli slaw)in a nice wrap, with some fruit and maybe a little container of chocolate or tapioca pudding (hey, a girl needs some suger).
I have a bad habit of snacking on bad food all day long, and that has to stop. I like apples with peanut butter yogurt dip. I like yogurt with fruit (a little parfait action please). I like veggies with ranch dip (plain yogurt mixed with ranch seasoning) like carrots and broccoli. I like my healthy choices, its just I have that sense of rebellion that makes me choose the bad stuff. I mean, I have every intention of eating healthy, and I do 95% of it but then I wind up with chips or fried food or popcorn or a combination of all three, topped off with a super duper huge soda. And I am not exercising at all which doesn't help. Basically, I am reminding myself on a regular basis that I am not taking care of myself or saying to myself that I am worth the time and effort.
The not exercising (even though I really do love it, honestly)and not eating healthy have a cumulative effect that spills over into other areas of my life. I mean, that not taking the effort spills over into so much else. How I look, how my home looks, how I treat my family...
But, when I go grocery shopping today, I am going to make sure that I get what I need to eat better. Its not just buying the stuff, its making sure that its easy to take (if I have to make salad or cut up fruit all the time, I am not going to eat it). Its the least I can do for the boys (including the puppy dog)