Our vacation date is closing in and besides being super excited I am also anxious, a little nervous and  realizing how much there is to think about this time around. In the past, meaning pre-Kaili, trips were a breeze to go on a blast to plan.

Our, meaning Shane and my last real  vacation was 4 years ago when we went to Beijing for the 2008 Paralympics. Since then we have taken a few getaways to Santa Barbara, Arizona and Washington but the past few years we have been stuck close to home while going through our fertility treatments. Once Kaili came we have been on the go, but as all of you who have kids know, a vacation with a young baby is not a real vacation. Gone are the days of sleeping in late, lounging on the beach, late night dining and dancing til dawn…and that is fine. But once in a while I think parents need to escape, enjoy each others company…alone and recharge their batteries. That is exactly what I..ahem, we plan to do.

This time we have 9 glorious days to do whatever we want in Rome and Paris. We might even dance til dawn because  we will be able to sleep in as long as we like, how amazing does that sound?  Packing for a long trip like this calls for some thinking ahead. There are a lot of things that are easy to grab while you are at your destination but others are just easier to bring with, like an outlet converter and face paint { GO USA } and the obvious red while and blue gear for the Paralympics. Where does one buy face paint anyhow?

Since we will be leaving the little Miss with family while we play in Europe {THANK YOU} I am realizing how much more preparation needs to be done before we leave. There are things I didn’t even think about like filling out a medical release form and leaving medicine dosages. I know I will go overboard on information for her caretakers but I don’t care. I spent my entire pregnancy being told to not worry but my gut was right 99% of the time, so I am going to go information overload for my own piece of mind.

Our parents are flying with Kaili to London where we will meet them for the second leg of our vacation. So I also need to get  Kaili’s suitcase packed with her passport inside so it wont be forgotten and make sure all the little things are ready for them to go before we walk out the door. What all that is, I am not quite sure yet, my head is spinning.

All I know is this trip is overdue and I can’t wait to escape with my husband for alone time. I also can’t wait to spend an amazing time in London with our family but the best part of it all will be watching the Paralympics and cheering for our friend in his quests for two gold medals.