Must Haves for Travel

While we are waiting for "the call", we have been gathering items to pack and currently I am embarrassed and ashamed to show you a photo of our spare bedroom. Yea, I know you want to ask...why do we have a spare bedroom with 5 kids all crowded into 2 rooms? Because our kids want to be together, and we assume that our newest ones will as well. I know that might change some day, in fact I expect it to, but I love the fact that recently Josh and Kenny switched beds so that Josh could be in the middle bunk "so I can be near BOTH my brothers!".

I don't know what is on your "must have" list for travel, but I thought I'd share a few of what is on ours this time around. Keep in mind we are traveling with 3 kids, so don't laugh too hard!:

1) Rummikub - Best. Game. Ever. We all love it!

2) Uno - Second Best Game Ever :-)

3) School work - We will take along everything we need for all 3 kids to stay caught up, and yes that is likely to mean we have one entire suitcase full of books and papers, etc. We are even taking along a couple of lapbook unit studies for all 3 boys, one on Thanksgiving and one on the Symbols of Christmas which we will do just for fun. We know we will have oodles of down time so we need to be prepared!

4) Rubber Sink Stoppers for doing laundry in sinks and tubs if necessary. For some reason, it always seems necessary over there but I am dreading it for 5 of us!

5) Various seasoned rice packages. Easy to cook, filler food, no one will complain about it.

6) Unread Reader's Digest and Time magazines for the last 3 months or so.

7) Blankies for everyone, we are bargaining...blankies or stuffed animals, blankies are sure to win.

8) Laptop. Of course. You don't really think I'd leave you all behind, do you? Hahahaha!

9) Every single medical item I can think of, including fresh hypodermic needles...just in case. Believe me, over there, that is not as absurd as it sounds.

10) Someone special has been writing a daily devotional which will be on the very top of my list to take with me.

11) No jeans ::sob sob:: I will feel naked.

12) Extra contacts. Ever see the Twilight Zone episode where the guy is one of the last left on earth and is thrilled because all he wants to do is read...until he breaks his glasses? I won't ever be that guy.

13) Gummies for snacks. Always, packs and packs of chewy sweet gummies to be spread out amongst backpacks.

14) More DVD's than any child ought to have a right to view. But hey, what else are they going to do on those long flights? We have hit every sale for a year that we could think of and have a Benji trilogy, Best of Bonanza, a collection of John Wayne cowboy flicks (Except my favorite of all time, "The Cowboys" which I'd love the boys to see!), 180 old cartoons like Popeye, Bullwinkle, etc., Andy Griffith, and a few other options. Luckily almost everything we bought was what others wouldn't want so they were usually in the $1 bin.

15) The love and prayers of others. Absolutely essential!

It feels very strange with this being a 2 trip adoption...we are not taking clothes for our new children! I admit I am very glad not to be worrying about things like formula and diapers this time around. It was fun the first and second time around, but far more stressful in some ways. I also realize I might very well be eating those words..hahaha!

I have no idea how we will pack everything, we will look like typical Westerners and will be scoffed at, I am sure. Way back when we adopted Matthew my Mom bought us a really nice set of luggage. I was just thinking today that none of us ever had a clue just how many miles would be put on those bags!! We also have more luggage in varying sizes stored in our garage than most people have in a lifetime, an astonishing array of carryons, mid-size and super sized suitcases! We have a shelf full of backpacks and thermal lunchbags and coolers too.

Today we received our new passports. I didn't think it was possible to have a worse photo than I had on my old one, but somehow I managed it. Dominick almost hooted out loud as we both had joked about how my old one looked as if I had been...well...how to put this delicately...oh forget trying...it looked like I was totally stoned!! Seriously, awful half closed eyes. This one makes me look almost manic, as Matthew and Dominick were making me laugh when she took the photo. I am assuming I will be using this passport for this adoption only with no more international travel anticipated ever again, so maybe I will be fortunate and won't have to have "Passport Control" stare at it oddly anymore after we are done with this go round. I'll be fortunate if this photo doesn't get me put on the Watch List for TSA, it is that bad! HAHA!

So we are ready to drag out the suitcases and get packing, whenever the call comes in. Funny, in the car today the boys remarked about Halloween being this weekend and how none of them really cared...all they were thinking about was going to get their sisters! It's true, I hadn't quite put my finger on it until today when I realized that they hadn't said a word about getting costumes, asked what we were doing on Halloween, or even mentioned their classroom parties. It seems their minds are far away just as mine is.

Happy Wednesday tomorrow, and thanks for waiting with us for the phone to ring, I noticed our blog hits are up quite a bit this week. It's so nice to know we are not waiting alone :-)