without the beach, swimwear, and sandals…and nobody really cares if you’ve had a bikini wax or not.  Ok…well on second thought – it’s not like packing for a tropical vacation at all.

I think it’s important as an adult to recognize your strengths and weaknesses.  One of my weaknesses is that I’m a chronic over-packer.  I can’t help it.  It’s not that I’m a hoarder; it’s just that I like to be prepared for just about anything.  My strength – I’m pretty freaky organized and usually I AM ready for anything.   I anticipate disasters like cows predict rain (and pack accordingly). Yes, I am the person you want to contact in the event of a zombie apocalypse!  Flaming throwing axes…puhleese…I got this!!!

Having said that, preparing for this trip has left me a bit dumbfounded.  I don’t really know where I am going in the ‘can you picture it’ sense; I’m not sure what Ben will need; I’m not sure what I will need.  On top of that, I know that I should pack light because we will be living in a hospital room for the next two months and traditionally that means very limited space and little or no storage.  It’s been a bit difficult to know what to do or how to prepare in such a short time.  As well as the physical clothing/personal needs aspect, I have also had to consider what needs to be done around our house for the next two months as well.  This was my ‘to do’ list:

• renew insurance on both vehicles.
• buy travel insurance
• update our wills – not necessary, but as a professional disaster planner – this is a good time for this!
• contact our accountant and order T4s for the business
• do our RRSP contribution
• Prepare for corporate year-end
• buy Ben a bunch of button up shirts – he can only wear this type of shirt for the next 2 months
• order button up pajamas online – we could wear hospital ones, but they often look like tiny little jailbird outfits – nobody needs that
• download all relevant medical information/pictures to a portable hard drive
• adjust Ben’s glasses
• call Ticketmaster (sob…I don’t want to talk about it…I love you Garth and Trisha!)
• get haircuts for me and Ben
• replace Ben’s watch
• meet with Ben’s teachers – get lesson plans
• get pre-addressed envelopes to the school

These are are also a number of things I didn’t accomplish this week, like changing the oil in my car, preparing my personal tax stuff, preparing my corporate tax stuff, and learning French (or at least mastering the art of the strong French accent), but it should all work out in the wash.

I’ve given up on packing personal stuff – I also gave up on my goal to have one suitcase and Ben’s Captain America bag…we are loaded down and I have made all the sacrifices I am willing to wait.  Here we come Montreal!!!