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!

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!

We're heeeeeeeere!

Everyone is safe and sound and seem VERY happy! Much to tell but much tired tonight ... more tomorrow!

Traffic and construction ...

... and yet despite them both, here we are in Grand Junction, CO.

The beasts are doing admirably well. Julia suggested that we free Molson from the cat carrier and once she got a lay of the car, she promptly found a spot from which to perch and was as quiet as a church mouse. TimBit has done what TimBit does - he's asserted himself as the alpha male among the pets, which means that Jack does what TimBit wants, when TimBit wants, and how TimBit wants. Julia's well and has helped with the pets and the driving when needed.

Molson - it's like having a sac magique that breathes!

Jack keeps making the mistake of leaving his seat beside the window - TimBit immediately stakes his claim to the place and then Jack is stuck in the middle with hardly any room to do more than sit up! Silly puppy!

TimBit spreads out in the backseat and Jack's stuck having to move over. If they were humans, TimBit would be the schoolyard bully and Jack would be the one minus his lunch money!

Me? As of this minute, I'm tired, and I just want to settle Julia and the pets in their new home, as opposed to a different hotel room every night. And that is what we're shooting for tomorrow.

Killing Fireflies ...

Well, we've arrived in Omaha. We're fine - animals are fine - but I can't say as much for the fireflies that splattered against our window at dusk this evening. Julia and both learned something today - the goo that was once a firefly continues to luminesce against a windshield after the insect has impacted, slowly fading into nothing as the seconds tick by. There you have it. Your National Geographic moment for the day. We're exhausted so this one will be a short one. Yes, we're taking loads of pics but I'm too tired to post them here now. But I promise I will - maybe not tomorrow either, since we have another long one planned for then as well. G'nite one and all ... I love you, Kevin and Jordan, and I miss you like the blazes! xoxoxo

Julia - étudiante officielle!

We have arrived! Well, we've arrived in Flint, that is. After a very late start, we drove like the dickens and made it into the US in the dark. Julia's been fingerprinted, photographed ("But I'm not wearing any mascara!"), and is now an official international student. The animals have fared rather well, all things considered. We learned that Molson doesn't tolerate the prescription meds meant to calm her - instead, she seemed to be hallucinating while rolling around in her cat carrier. She'll be back on the natural calming meds tomorrow for sure!

I'm exhausted, so I'll cut this one short tonight and expand in another posting another time. We're shooting for Omaha tomorrow with a much earlier start. Julia's already tucked in, Jack's curled up and eyeing me as I type, Molson's burrowed under one of the beds ... and TimBit? He's slowly washing himself perched at the head of the other queen-sized bed. He knows he's the king of our castle. We know it too.

False start ...

As I scurried around grabbing last minute things and placing them by the front door, ready to be crammed into the car, Julia texted to say she was on her way to the SAAQ ... and could I please join her in case she needed any help. I headed there, where the ownership of the Cobalt was transferred from her to the buyer. Then we headed to Julia's dad's, where Julia had stored her winter tires. Then we waited while the new owner dealt with her insurance, so she could actually drive the car away. Then it was time to start calculating ... by the time we would have loaded up the car and the animals, it would have been going on 1pm - much later than the 9am departure we had hoped for. So instead, we decided to leave tomorrow. Secretly, I'm kinda happy about that. Driving on an hour and a half of sleep is never a good thing.

The headless chicken that is me ...

I feel as though I've been running all day and gotten nowhere fast!

Went to the garage and had my winter tires taken off early this morning. Yes, I know it's summer but I figured that I would save on wear and tear on the all seasons since the winter ones wouldn't have lasted another winter anyhow. I dropped in on Sharon and Matthew for coffee and to some catch up after leaving the garage and then headed back my way for some errands - rations for the cats and then a stop at the bank. Came home to find that FedEx had shown up while I was gone and that now, I need to go to PAT to get the envelope. I'll do that on my way to Kevin and Myriam's, right after I drop off the larger suitcase at Julia's, who decided not to leave anything at the condo when we were in Cali in June! Then, I'll race back here and do some laundry, start medicating the cats, pack, and try to do some of the thousand of other things that still need doing.

Tomorrow, Julia has to get to the SAAQ with the young woman who is buying her car to get that paperwork sorted. And I get to see Jordan before he heads for work!

Curious to see what time we all finally hit the road ...

I went to see Kevin and Myriam one last time before I leave. I ended up crying all the way from Verdun to Anjou, where I forced myself to stop so Jordan wouldn't notice my red eyes when I went there.

"I'll be back", I keep repeating to myself. It's become a mantra of sorts. But fuck, if there's anything harder than leaving your children behind, I don't know what that thing is ...

Verhovyna ...

Postponed due to Julia's surgery last week, we finally made it to Verhovyna this afternoon. While I can't remember exactly how long it's been since I saw Oksana, I know it can easily be summed up as "too long". We spent all afternoon catching up and then Julia and I were treated to Oksana's mom's delicious borscht and perohy. It was a wonderfully nostalgic visit - Verhovyna always reminds me of my old country place and Oksana's mom is a wonderful glimpse of what life might be like if my own mom were still here. Such an enjoyable day!

The road trip ...

There is A LOT of white to cover between the two red spots!