Birmingham

Well, we are 18 hours from departure. My usual plan for one week before our trip is to clean the car and start packing it with essentials. I have everyone start packing their clothes for the drawers in the car and pack their backpacks with sleepwear ("Jammie's" is not an acceptable terms these days particularly because underwear is the sleepwear of choice.), socks, underwear and bathing suits which we need every night in the hotel. I figure out what food we need to pack for the road and for our first major stop. I also clean the house so we come home to a nice house.

This year is a little different. Last week, we took our van into the shop for an oil change and to check a noise we heard. They have had our van since then. I am picking it up at 2 PM today, Thursday, the day before we leave and we are leaving at 6 AM. UHHHH! The van is not ready. There is another kink in the plan. We have had construction going on for the past year and we are at the tail end of it. While we are gone, the painters are coming in to finish the upstairs and the downstairs. As much as I can say that I am relieved I won't be here while they finish, we have had to prep for them which means making a ginormous mess. No clean house when I come home. UHHHH!

Literally, Paul and I (and the kids) are getting in the car and driving west and never looking back. It will be nice to not think about it. We will miss our doggies though. Thanks to our neighbor and our dear friend Miss Jen, our doggies will be well taken care of.

Today, I have been baking muffins, making sandwiches and quinoa, and packing dry goods. I'm picking up the van soon.Читать далее