today was a very long day.

it’s 10:30 as I type this and I am definitely going to bed straight after.

we packed up everything. Shana helped a TON. — seriously, we’d still be packing if not for her help (THANKS SHANA!!)

we said goodbye to the cats and dog, said goodbye to Sandy who is so good and is pet sitting until the kiddos catch their flight to Spain next week on the 26th.

we said goodbye to Pond House, which has been a good house, and to my car (Martha) that has been an extremely good car.

it’s weird to think I won’t be driving anymore–I think a lot of my identity is wrapped up in driving, being a good driver, and a lot of my mental well-being is wrapped up in car rides with loud music.

who am I without wheels?

a bus rider.

a beach walker?

someday: a scooter driver.

I’m pretty excited for that last one.

anyway, we left Vermont and drove to Boston pretty pain-free, and now we get to sleep in and fantasize about life in Spain and have anxiety about ALL the things…

here’s us at the airport today after dropping off the rental car:

we’re both in good shape, with probably 85% of the junk in the house sorted and shipped into different boxes (going with us | long term storage | trash | on the “free” table in our driveway (very popular) | idgaf what happens to this I’m just leaving it…)

there’s a lot to be excited about with this move, like

• experiencing a radically different culture
• Spanish vibes (the chilled out culture is REAL)
• starting over/fresh start
• living by the beach
• and a huge, gigantic list of other cool stuff

but one of the #1 things we’re both extremely looking forward to is:

the house we’re renting in España has A KITCHEN DOOR.

why, you might ask, is this so valuable to us?

The Bastardos

We have 5 cats, only 4 of which are going with us to Spain (we will find a better fitting home for Stella).

THREE of our cats, affectionately known as “the bastardos” are relentless drones in pursuit of one single goal: to eat our food however they can.

steal it off your plate? yes

eat your ingredients when you turn to grab the salt? yes indeed

get into the cabinet and go jambon on all your snacks and the kitty treats? sadly yes

they aren’t particularly sneaky, they are just attacking from all angles while you try and grab a quick meal. It is legit difficult and a total shit experience to constantly have to defend your food from cute, idiot predators.

it’s this energy, times three:

our new house will HAVE A KITCHEN DOOR

life-changing opportunity to for us…

Things have been stressful, but when we check into the hotel on Friday afternoon (8 days from now, aaaggghhh) we should just be on the conveyor belt of things happening…

• wake up saturday morning
• have a leisurely breakfast and/or lunch
• make our way to the airport directly from the hotel walkway

We’re not bringing many things, just a suitcase, a backpack, and a carry-on for each of us.

We’ll spend the 22nd, 23rd, and 24th in London before flying to our new home in Vigo on the morning of the 25th.

The animals will arrive two days later on the 27th in Porto, Portugal.

So the 28th is REALLY when we’ll be able to relax and start settling down.

In Other News

We saw a snapping turtle yesterday up by our old barn looking for places to lay eggs.

The geese and their goslings have abandoned us for some bigger area of water, as they do every year while the babies are still plump, featherless nuggets, but at least we got to see a snapping turtle.