Let the countdown begin

I have been feeling antsy lately, restless. I am so ready for our adventure, but it's not until September. Bruce thought it might be good to get a big wall calendar so we can count down the weeks/days. I also was visiting Kim at her blog and noticed her countdown widget...what a great idea. Then every day I can see on my computer screen how many weeks/days I have left, that will be just what I need. So I put one on my blog...thanks Kim! Kim is leaving in July, so her days are 1/2 what ours are....lucky dog!

We only have 4 more weeks of regular after-school classes and then our summer program starts. It will be 12 weeks of 1/2 day summer camps. Our schedule will switch from having the morning & early afternoon free and not having to go to work until 3:00 pm to being at the studio at 8:00 am and working until 1:30, so our afternoons will be free. I prefer the morning free, but alas. We will work the same number of hours per week, a light load at 20, but instead of working Tuesday-Saturday, we'll work Tuesday-Friday. Once the camps start the weeks fly by....usually when we start them it goes like this "ugh, 12 weeks of camps", then the next thing we know it's "ah, only 6 more camps"....then "yeah, only 1 more camp". Camps are great fun, we do super cool projects with the kids have a wonderful time, but it's draining and exhausting (in a good way that doing art with kids brings).

It feels like I'm a kid again...."are we there yet?" We were big on road trips when I was younger, as most of the country was back in the 60's and 70's. We had a big green station wagon and all of us would pack in there at least 2 times a year and head to Florida. I think I have been to Florida maybe 25-30 times. My parents are from Florida and my oldest sister and brother we born there. My sister Anne and I were born in Michigan. My father was a golf professional and started out in Florida and then took a job at a private club in Michigan. But anytime we had vacation it would be back to Florida to see the grandparents and Aunts and Uncles and it would allow my dad to golf.

I recently saw my brother, he and his family came out to San Diego for a weeks vacation, so Bruce and I drove down to have dinner with them. We were talking about the hell we had on those car trips. Mom and Dad in the front and 4 kids in the back. I'm sure many of you had those trips. "This is the imaginary line, don't cross it". "Mom, Anne hit me". "Mom, Mark kicked me". We didn't have DVD players in the car or hand-held games or ipods. My Dad would pop in his 8-track and we'd listen to his music, Edie Gourmet, Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, etc... We played the alphabet game with license plates. Yee Haa! My brother also reminded me that on the drive down to Florida we'd always stay the night in a Holiday Inn and every time we'd have to eat, we'd stop at a Holiday Inn. He is sick of Holiday Inn's. We'd also stop in the same city for the night...talk about creatures of habit. Florida was our vacation...my dad didn't want to go anywhere else. Sure, we'd stop at Rock City or Mammoth Caves on the way down, but that's it. It was always St. Petersburg Florida. Staying with my grandmother, swimming in her pool, going to Treasure Island beach, going to Disney World when there was no Epicot center. The sunshine state. All my grandparents have passed on and only my cousin and her husband live there now, so no more Florida trips for me.....ever again.

What was I talking about? Sorry, got side-tracked. Ah, yes....counting the days until France. It seems so far away, but I know that once the summer gets going it will come up fast. It's hard to be patient when the countryside is calling you. The picture above was taken in September when we visited the Aveyron region. This is very close to where our house is. The nice thing about that area is that it won't change from when we saw it in September to when we'll be back in September. It is patiently waiting for us.

Comments

[Kimberlee]

My counter was over 100 when I started, you'll be amazed out how quickly the number reduces! I've been reading bits of your blog, and we love some of the same areas ... *sigh* ... can't wait for the adventures to begin!

[Colleen]

WOW! It's getting close isn't it?! You seem to have everything put together so nicely. I'm excited to know how your trip goes with the dogs on the boat. They have internet right? On the boat?

[nicole]

Alisa - just responded to your comment over at my place. We both have the countdown going...I'll be reading your blog too! Take care.

[Betty C.]

I like the countdown widget too! I will have to put one on somewhere about going to the USA...you still have quite a bit of time, really!

[Alisa Rosseter]

K - I'm waiting for your mark yo expire, then I'll know I'm 1/2 way there.

C - I'm excited about the boat too....yes they have internet on the boat, the have everything you'd want on that boat. We even have to bring evening wear (bruce needs suit & tie for dinner), not sure what we'll be doing with that in rural france! I guess we'll spend most of our time on deck 12, where the dogs are. We can visit them all day up until 8pm, they have park of the deck for walking and playing with the dogs, etc...so I'd rather have them with me then in their kennel.

N - we both do have countdowns going, me going and you coming back. We are hoping that things go so well during our sabbatical year that just one of us has to come back to take care of some things here...sell the house, sell the business (or keep in running with Travis) and that we can stay in France.

B - i was thrilled when I saw the widget on Kims blog....I know I have quite a bit of time, hopefully it will go fast.

[La Belette Rouge]

I so remember the torment of the car trip. There would be a point when my parents would tell me I could no longer ask if we were there yet. So, I would come up with inventive ways to ask the same question. Such as, if I got really sick would we go to a hospital in San Francisco or in Los Angeles. They admired my inventiveness so would indulge my question with an answer.

And, yes, you are almost in Paris. Lucky you! You can ask over and over.;-) You are closer to Paris than you were yesterday and tomorrow you will be even closer. Put on some music,play some games and distract yourself the best you can and you will get there even sooner.

[Alisa Rosseter]

LBR - love your sneaky ways! We are not going to Paris. We are going to, well, not even a tiny village. Our house we are renting is in the countryside on 5 acres. Closest village is 3km away, it's called Najac (a lovely village with a fortified castle at the end of it's road). The house is in the western Aveyron region, near the edge of the Tarn, Tarn-et-garonne and the lot. We are 1 hour northeast of Toulouse.

[La Belette Rouge]

Your French destination sounds delightful. Will you have good internet connection? I am hoping you will post regularly once you arrive. Please post lots of pictures.

[Alisa Rosseter]

Funny about the internet. The house we are renting does not have a phone or internet, but as part of our agreement/contract they are getting a phone and thus internet. I need to blog about our adventures...it's critical. I don't care about a phone, but internet, yes. They agreed to have it put in and it will be done this summer.