Vacation approaching

Vacation in a few days means a few things:

We start making crazy lists and piles all around the house. To go on the trip, to be done before the trip, to recycle, to get rid of to take care of, etc, etc, etc
We both start feeling sick or hoping we are not starting to feel sick.
We start hoping the kids will stay well. "Does he feel warm? Get the Tylenol!"

Do other people start feeling almost manic before a vacation? We have things we have neglected that now I feel a need to get done before we go. I have not balanced the checkbook in about 6 months. Now I am balancing it everyday, one month at a time, so that I know we are all up to date by the time we leave. I am shredding things and organizing things like we are going to be gone for 7 months, rather than 7 days. Because even though that one box has not been unpacked since we moved into the house a year ago, it must be done now, before we leave for a week!

And I start worrying that something will happen in the last days leading up to the trip that will prevent us from actually getting on the plane. I try to will us all to stay well and to stay safe and not get in any crazy car accidents or any other such nonsense. Do other people feel this way?

Part of the craziness might be that we have not gone on a vacation since summer 2006, when we had the amazing vacation in France and England for Harry and Woody's wedding, the month before I had the IVF and got pregnant. It was truly our last hurrah before pregnancy and babies. And it was a wonderful trip and we will likely never have another one like it, or not for a very long time, anyway. The past two years have been a whirlwind of pregnancy, and giving birth to twins, and moving cross-country, and getting new jobs, and trying to figure out what it means to be a family of 4. It has been wonderful, but holy crap, we are exhausted! We think we are doing a pretty good job, but man, we need a vacation! Wish us luck that the trip to FL is not thwarted by any natural disasters and that, even with our 16 month old monsters, er, make that darlings, it is still fun enough and relaxing enough to make it all worth it. Did I say relaxing? I fear that some illness is coming over me to make me think such foolish thoughts. Maybe we should cancel the trip?