Yesterday, I was sharing with a friend that I'm excited but a little apprehensive about the length of time we'll be gone. She asked me why. This struck me, at first as "why wouldn't I be, that's a long time", but as I was providing my 'lame' reasons for being worried, I realized they were lame. She was reassuring me that everything here will be fine, our kids (who are both 18 or older) will be fine and they have lots of friends nearby if they need anything. She even offered to stop by and check on our house for us. Mostly, she reminded me that my focus should be on enjoying this opportunity to it's fullest and the time I'll have traveling with my husband.
It is a great opportunity. Another friend mentioned that she is so excited for me, but that she's also a little jealous. This was mentioned jokingly (somewhat), but it solidified the realization that this is a great opportunity that many, many people just wouldn't have.
So, instead of allowing the apprehension to continue or even grow, I'm choosing to only be excited about this adventure. We'll be traveling for 26 days, almost 4 full weeks and the itinerary looks fabulous! 5 days in city center London, 1 day in Dover and other coastline areas, 5 days in Oxford/Abingdon area, 7 days in Scotland, 1 day in Paris, an overnight train to Hungary and spending 6 days in Budapest.
Doing some research to get an idea of all the things we want to see/do while in each area has been fascinating. I want to see castle and cathedrals, forests and coastlines, typical tourist attractions as well as off-the-beaten-path locations. We want to try new foods, and some not new, but traditional local dishes. We'll get to drive (again for me - NZ) on the opposite side of the road. We'll attend church services in other countries (Scotland and Hungary). We're going to visit a couple places that are location for some of our favorite BBC sitcoms.
When I think about all of this, the excitement grows. When I think about all the support we have here at home to help keep an eye on things and support for our boys, the worry dissipates.
We were able to get a visit in with our son Jason, who's at college. So, at least it won't seem like quite so long in between visits. We even set up a prank that we can help with from London! I'll get a visit in with my mom this coming weekend too.
In conclusion, I will miss our family and friends. I will miss our church and even our quirky, little house. I might even miss the dog. But, those are the things that make returning from vacation so wonderful, aren't they? So, I'm going to enjoy our vacation, to it's fullest. I'm going to enjoy the time with my hubby without having to worry about the normal, daily routine at home. And I'm going to enjoy returning home at the end of it.
Note: my husband just came downstairs saying, "you know honey, I'm excited about London and Budapest, but the thing I think most is 'we're going to Scotland'!" He walked into the bedroom, then returned with his new Scottish Touring Hat on saying, "so much so, that I'm going to where my Scottish hat today." Oh yeah, we're going to have a great time!
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