To Do List ...

I really need to get on here more. But as is so often the case with most people, life has intruded in BIG ways, and visiting here has really been put on the back burner.

K and I have been traveling loads - we have many trade shows to attend and still manage to squeeze in those romantic getaways that he and I enjoy so much. We've also been shopping for the home nest, plumping up the digs, as it were.

We've had a constant array of houseguests since the end of May (still do, in fact!) so the hacienda has been a flurry of activity for the longest time now. Eventually, the dust will settle again and we'll be back to 'normal' again.

No time for more than this meager update - my K will be here soon to whisk me away for yet another lunch à deux ... I do so love those moments alone with my guy!

K's home!

Julia was at COC again today to write her math placement test. Then she had a appointment with the academic advisor about the classes she needs to take/classes that are available. I spent my time picking up around the condo and doing laundry. Dinner was a thai salad. Well, a pseudo thai salad - I used the spaghetti leftover from the night before instead of soba noodles. didn't matter - it was delicious! You can find the recipe here ...

K came home later that evening! Jack was enthused, Molson was curious, and TimBit (in typical TimBit fashion) couldn't care less if he tried. Later, when we tucked in for the night, they all joined us in the bedroom - the cats on the bed and Jack on the floor close by. G'nite!

6 Popes ...

It's a lazy, hazy Sunday here in Valencia. After arriving, we unloaded the car, settled the menagerie, and noshed on some fruit.

Jack's happy to have room to stretch out ... finally!

TimBit's found a cool spot ...

.... and Molson's found a temporary perch.

I started updating family and friends on the safe end to our odyssey and when I paused, I was the only one still awake; I decided to give in and headed for bed.

This morning was the first time that I've awoken to a day that was anything other than sunny. It's dreary and overcast but no one's complaining. The beasts are catching up on sleep (despite doing a load of it during the four day drive!), and as Julia put it, if it were sunny, she'd feel compelled to be outdoors and doing stuff - this way, she can catch up on rest. And so we have. Jack, who typically heads out in the morning as soon as I'm awake, waited until well after 10 this morning to even seen like he needed to be walked. TimBit has been a redheaded pile of sleeping fur, and Molson has found her place midway up the spiral staircase that leads to the loft - it affords her a perfect view of the entire floor plan on the condo and no one can sneak up on her and startle her.

K will be back from Vegas in a couple of days and hopefully, Julia and I will have organized this place and our belongings by the time he arrives.

California is another one of those places who offer personalized licence plates. (Quebec's slated to have that option in the fall of 2015.) Brandie♥N was a no brainer. 17 DAYS had Julia and me wondering though ... 17 days what? Since he got his licence? Since he got his licence back? Since he's been sober? Since he's been clean? Since he bought his car? Since he got out of prison? I wanted Julia to ask when we pulled up alongside Mr 17 Days at a red light but she wouldn't do it. *sigh* Now, I'll never know.

Earlier today, I was walking to the supermarket when I saw a woman driving a car with the plate "6 Popes". This time, I didn't have to wonder ... she looked as though she had lived through the reigns of the last 6 popes!

Bye bye Corrie!

Sunday morning and I do what I do every Sunday morning when I'm home. I get up just before 8, let Jack out, and pop the kettle on. At 8, I turn the TV on and tune in to CBC for 2 1/2 hours of Coronation Street. (Yeah, yeah, I can just see all my kids rolling their eyes right about now!) Corrie ... or as K calls it - C-Street ... has been around since 1960 (yeah yeah, that's actually longer than Mom's been around, kids!) and has the distinction of being the world's longest running TV soap opera. I got hooked just before I had Kevin and apart from the years in Switzerland, I've been a fan and watcher since. Despite only waking up during the commercials (or the good parts, as he refers to them!), K seems to have quite a handle on the show as well. But I digress. Last time I'll ever watch Corrie in Repen. After the show was over, I popped in on Jordan to show him Molson's cut. He (and his cats) didn't seem very impressed but I'm still sure that Molson will appreciate not having all that fur when we hit the road.

Right now, I'm sitting here and debating on whether to tackle the dishwasher or the laundry first. Laundry - it'll take care of itself while I'm dealing with the dishes. Then the pharmacy, back to Mondou to exchange Molson's collar (yes, Julia - you were right!) and then home again to try to tackle the gazillion things left to do before we leave. And all the while with this pain that seems to have taken permanent residence in my back and this dull throb of a headache that's also decided to drop in for a visit.

The Final Countdown ...

I think this is what they call the homestretch. It's Tuesday morning and we plan to leave next Tuesday morning. I've still got SO much to do, none of which is getting done given that I put my back out on Sunday and it's STILL hurting like a sunnunabitch! I'm stressed about what still needs doing, I'm stressed about what won't get done, I'm stressed about the road trip, and I'm stressed about all this stressing. I typically internalize a lot but there's so much of it this time that it's overflowing.

Recently, I was telling K about the last time I moved away from Canada. The company was there to take care of ALL the paperwork (visas, customs stuff, etc) and I did nothing related to the actual move but pack clothing and make coffee for the movers (on both sides of the pond). Then there was the transition company, who facilitated everything here in Quebec and were also in Switzerland to anticipate and alleviate every possible bump in the road and then smooth over the ones that managed to make their way into our lives. This time ... there is me. Not that I don't think that I'm up to the task, just that there is so much to do! But like K keep telling me, don't sweat the small stuff and just get here!

A lot of it is simple math. The contents of the home that I have now (3 storeys, 4 bedrooms, 3 washrooms, a basement, garage, backyard shed) will never fit into the home I'm headed to (condo with 3 bedrooms, 2 washrooms). Nor should it. This is a new life and not everything from the old life should be dragged along with me. As I look around, there isn't one stick of furniture to which I feel an emotional tie, nothing that I feel the need to bring to California. There is some art, some tchotchke, some books and dish ware. In the end, some of the things I hold most dear to my heart will be in the car with me - my daughter Julia, and my animals. And in the end, two of the things I hold most dear to my heart will remain behind - my sons, Kevin and Jordan.

I am ... CALIFORNIA!

Poor K ... after living there 5+ years, he scores a 64%. I visit 3 times and get an 83. Tsk tsk tsk.

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