Travel preparations...

We're leaving in less than a week and now we're really getting excited. 23 h 33 min of driving or 2,553 km between us and relaxation. I know some of you might think 'What's the big deal? They're driving from Canada to the US and are staying with the Grandparents. Big deal!' and you're right. It's not the crazy adventure we're aiming for and it's not like we're going to be on the road for months on end, but it's our first road trip with our children AND our dog and it's a big deal to us. This is going to be it. The big test of whether or not we can handle the stress of being on the road for longer periods of time without losing our marbles. If we're going to be stressed out and miserable the whole way down because the kids are screaming and whining, and the dog is going to be anxious and can't seem to settle down, we might as well face the fact that our dream of living in a bus while exploring the world is going to be just that. A dream. But if everything goes well and we're having fun and are more relaxed than we thought we would be, who knows. Maybe it will give us some extra motivation to work harder towards getting Sir Hendrix fixed and ready to be lived in.

It's also simply a break from life, which is very much needed at this point because, both Adrian and myself haven't had much downtime since our move up north and really need to recharge our batteries and spend some quality time with each other and our kids. Who knows, maybe we'll even manage to get a couple of dates in - without our children - so we can actually just enjoy each other's company without constant interruptions. We don't get to do that very often and you don't realize sometimes that you're just trying to get through the day, kind of drifting apart and that you need some alone time in order to find each other again. Either way this vacation is going to be awesome and good for all of us. Noah has been talking about his grandparents non-stop since they left and is really looking forward to seeing them and he has also been talking about going to the beach a lot. That little man loves the water and he's totally into sandcastles right now, so he's going to have a blast no matter what happens. The simple fact that Adrian won't have to work is going to keep him happy and Mia is happy as long as you pay attention to her. And me? Well, I'm happy whenever the sun is shining and it`s warm enough to throw on my favorite clothes-combo of shorts, tank top, flip flops and sunglasses, so you won't hear me complain.

But before we leave we have to make some preparations and I've got to admit, I'm pretty bad at that. I know people who like to pack weeks in advance of a trip, making lists and prepare for anything that could possibly go wrong. Personally, I find they're going a bit overboard but I guess they won't run around in a panic 10 minutes before they're supposed to leave because they can't find their passports or still have a 100 things that need doing, like me. I'm the kind of girl that starts packing the night before the trip and then freaks out in 15 minute intervals because I can't find the things I need and realize that there is way too much to do and too little time to get every thing done and I want to pull my hair out and slap myself. I know it's going to happen but I simply won't learn and will do the exact same thing the next time around.

Here's what we've got so far:

Found the updated vaccination records for Rocky

Took care of travel insurance for the whole family

Got a map from CAA.

All that's left to do now is, well... Pretty much EVERYTHING!

Here's our to-do list: 

Packing: This was an easy enough task back when I only had to throw a few things in a backpack for myself. Packing for two young children that need pretty much the whole household stresses me out every time, and half way through I just want to scream. They need their favorite stuffed animals, bottles, soothers, sleep blankets, playpens, food, spoons, bibs, toys and books for the car and so on and so on. God help you, if you forget any of these items once you have left, because Noah is going to have a fit if he doesn't have his bunny to sleep with at night. Here's a picture of Noah all ready to go. Guess he's smarter than his mother and belongs to the group of people that likes to pack a week ahead of time.

Prepare snacks for the road: I like to at least pack a few healthy snacks for the road, because I don't like eating junk food three times a day, and I don't like the amount of money you spend by doing so.

Prepare some toddler car activities: I'd like to keep Noah somewhat occupied in the car so he won't bug us too much while we're driving and trying to enjoy the trip. So I have been looking for ideas on Pinterest for days now and have found quite a few helpful and awesome things for toddlers to do. A trip to the Dollar Store is in order soon. We have also decided to buy a portable DVD player for him because three days in a car is a long time for any two year old, and there is only so much you can do with a child before he starts to get bored.

Create a timetable and book hotel rooms: We still have to sit down and actually look at the map and figure out how far we want to drive each day and where we want to stop each night. It would also be nice to figure out whether or not there is anything worth seeing along the way.

Make sure the Chickens are taken care off: We have a couple of friends that have offered to take care of our girls while we're gone and that's a big relief. They do have a couple of chickens themselves so I know they know what they're doing. If you're reading this, I'd like to say thank you so much. You guys are our heroes. One thing we still have to do is set a timer for the heat lamp so they won't freeze while we're baking on a hot beach down south. Sorry by the way, sistas. I know you're beach babes and would love to come but taking 5 chickens with us would simply be too much.

Clean the house: Because it's always nice to come home to a clean house after your vacation. Getting back after a relaxing holiday is usually depressing enough as it is. Coming home after a relaxing holiday to find a huge mess is enough to make me want to shoot myself. So at least you've got one thing to be happy about when entering your house, even if it's only going to last until your child has kicked off his shoes.

I'm pretty confident we will be able to work off our list before leaving on Friday, hopefully without having a major meltdown, and I know I will be fine once we're actually in the car and on our way. And maybe someday, I will learn and start organizing, packing and prepping a little earlier and save myself a lot of 'uh-oh-moments'. I wouldn't count on it though, because that's just how I roll and I've got to admit that I'm most productive under stress, which is not a bad thing at all when you're a mother.