I say it every time

and then I end up packing just as much as every other year.

This year I really tried and I think I managed to really cut down on what I've stacked in the suitcase. The problem seems to be that when I pack I get big ol' case of the what ifs. You know, the what if we decide to go out for dinner? What if it gets cold? What if we end up at a beach? Which reminds me I should make sure the bathing suits are packed....

See what I mean?

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Packing

Every time we plan a trip it's a big production that includes hours of planning to keep the Peanut busy.

After four years I like to think we've got it down to the absolute basics:

A few new DVD's with a DVD player or laptop
(on an airplane this is less important for during the main legs but for longer trips to and from the airport this is invaluable especially if you want to be able to visit with the family members who have come to pick you up or take you back)

Crayons and a new colouring book or activity book
I say new because it's nice to have the gift of novelty on your side. This year we're picking up a kindergarten activity book for the Peanut to work through as well as a blank notebook for her to draw in. On our last trip she had a book of mazes and puzzles that kept her busy and made her already brilliant mind even shinier so we're hoping to replicate that.

Paint with water books
a few years ago we came across Water Wow books and they've been in our travel bag ever since. While I'm not a huge fan of licensed character products like Disney Princesses or Dora I every once in a while disregard my dislike of buying into the marketing machine and go for it.

Water Wow books are like colouring books that your child paints onto with water. The page fills in with colour when a wet brush is used and once the water dries the page is ready to be painted on again and again, and the Peanut does.

Snacks
because there is nothing and I mean nothing worse than an over hungry child strapped into and airplane seat. Once, when the Peanut was about 18 months we got on a plane around dinner time, we hadn't had a chance to stop and feed her and some how her snack bag was taken from me in the rush to get seated and ready for take off and placed in the overhead compartment. The crying, kicking and screaming was a stern teacher, Now the snack bag is never out of reach.

Random small toys
We've included Polly Pockets, matchbox cars and even a slinky at one time or another but hands down, the most bang for our buck has been a package of Bendaroos.
The Peanut has been known to play with these for hours.

For the Bean we'll be bringing her stuffed bunny and making sure that she's got full access to her food source aka Momma. For me I'll be bringing a good book or two.

So these are on my short list for the carry on bag, what types of things do you always carry on for the kidlets?

So I'm a bit of a geek

I may have mentioned my love for Depeche Mode in a post not too long ago. I'm so very very psyched and excited about the new album they have coming out in a few months. Now I don't consider myself their biggest fan, nor do I really consider myself a rabid fan of the group. I love love love the music, I think Martin Gore is a genius.

While packing up my daughters stuffed animals and toys this morning/afternoon I watched/listened to Germany's Echo awards show from start to almost finish in order to watch the world premier of their new single, Wrong.

The only things that keeps the peace these days

are painting and ddd's (DVD's) from the library. While we've tried discussing the move with the peanut she's less than enthusiastic about conversing. Her preferred tactic is to change the subject to what Kipper ze dog has been doing on automatic replay for the last week. So we know she's a little disconcerted about things disappearing into boxes and strange people walking into the apartment at random times but there's no reasoning with a two year old.

As I said Kipper is on auto-replay and the paints and art supplies have been left out to pacify our little Mussolini.


I think it's a little unfair that as a 36 year old, I must refrain from temper tantrums and meltdowns and pack instead.

I've always thought of myself as a little isolationist. I don't make friends easily, in fact the friends I do make usually make the first move to introduce themselves. And as one of my dear mommy friends pointed out the other day, I tend to make friends so that I don't have to make others. My circle stays pretty small that way. It's amazing how roots seem to set themselves down when you aren't looking.


I'm being transplanted and my roots are cringing at the thought of getting used to new soil. I'm going to miss the mountain, the ocean and my neighborhood. I'm going to miss running into friends on the street and all the pars and playgrounds we frequent. And while I know I'll have some of these things at the new place and will be close enough to come back to see the rest any time I want to, I want to whine about it and moan and basically be a big baby about it.

In case I haven't mentioned it

but of course I have. We're moving to a new place. That means packing packing and more packing. It also means that I'll be putting some of my blogging on hold until things are settled. 5 questions and a card a week are going to be affected by the move, but they'll return and with a vengeance once we're settled in the new place.

I'll try to pop in with a post from time to time during the next few weeks. If nothing else the odd post will help me keep my sanity.

Speaking of Purging

I'm a reader, I have books books and more books. I kept most of my text books from College and I have authors that I haunt the book store in order to read them. My favourite art history class at Emily Carr was one that compared literature to film. We had a reading list that looked like it belonged to an english major and we got to watch a film every week.

I have a fairly good selection of Canadian Literature including both Margarets and a number of signed books from contemporary writers visited and read at Red Deer College. I used to be an English Major and I had hopes of being published but not the discipline for self editing and rewriting.

My secret reading indulgence is fantasy. I blame Tolkein, I read The Hobbit for the first time at the age of 7. I've re-read it numerous times and I'll probably read many many many many many many more times yet. I have a number of fantasy novels that I have read and re-read. I've been packing them around with me for the last 15 years.

They say not to judge a book by it's cover but I buy my fantasy books based on the cover art. I can remember studying the cover art for The Hobbit, probably because I was still at an age where I liked picture books; and if a fantasy novel's cover isn't interesting to me I'll pass it by. I've probably missed out on any number of good reads this way but I've never been disapointed with the ones I have chosen. I also choose Miranda's books by the artwork. I guess I've never outgrown liking picture books.

As we were packing up our books for our most recent move I decided to let some of them go. On one hand it's a little sad, the stories have meant enough to me that I've revisited them more than a few times; on another it's kind of liberating to cull tehm from my library. So I have about 50 books that I'm looking for new homes for. I've emailed the library to see if they'll take them but haven't heard back yet. Selling them to a used book store is kind of sad. I've spent hundreds of dollars on these books and they have become a part who I am. Having a stranger rummage through them and then offer a monetary amount (which will inevitably be much less than I'd like to get for them) kind of feels a little strange.

purge

So we moved into the place we are in right now, almost a year ago. This time last year I was doing the same thing I'm doing right now, packing packing and packing.

Even with starting over a month in advance we still had things being tossed into boxes at the last minute. Once I had to unpack them, I had no idea what to do with the stuff that had been left over at the end of last years packing. I just wanted to toss the bulk of the flotsam into the recycling, nearest Sally Ann or the trash. all that stuff were the bits and pieces from the junk pile that inevitably piles up on the one counter in the kitchen, stacks of random little things that I didn't want to throw away but really didn't want to keep.

I'm a pack rat. I hoard little things because I might want to use them or I might need them sometime; and then I go through a purge stage where I get rid of things and there's always one thing that I find myself looking for a few months later because I have a use for it but it's gone and the whole hoarding thing becomes justified because of that one little thing I could have used but threw out,recycled or gave away.

This time around I'm going through and finding homes for the flotsam and jetsam that sneak into the usual places and if it's not in a home when I start packing, It's going. That's what I'm telling myself any way.

So we're packing

and The shelves are down, the books are all gone into big boxes that we've been assured are the right size for boxes but there is no way that We'll be carrying that sucker down the stairs (thank what ever gods for movers) and I have a large Dishpack box open in the living/dining room area that is mocking me. I've got so much more to do and I'm contemplating putting everything else on hold until we're in the new place.

On top of it all our Peanut Butter is not feeling well. We had fevers last week and gobs and gobs of thick yellowish mucous flowing out of her nose. The combination of a head cold and a bunch of strange people traipsing in and out of our home to give us estimates on moving or to show the space to rent it out leaves us with one very out of sorts little girl. And by out of sorts I mean tantrums and night wakings and the new mantra of "I'm crying again" repeated over and over as I try to keep my cool.