Phase I - done! I think.
June 10th:
It looks like our first phase of planning (at least spots that we are staying) is complete. It used to be that we did it all at once, lodging, attractions, and plans for driving....not anymore. It's really hard to find time to do anything - time just to speak when we have these three. Now that the cat is out of the bag, Jess is wiped at the end of the day and time where she would have been planning is often occupied by business stuff. And, before you ask why I don't do the planning, that's not the deal. I'm just as exhausted with work, the ride home has been a nightmare lately, especially on Fridays. There are way too many people on the roads here. They are texting, not paying attention and there are almost always two to three accidents on the way home, especially Fridays. It would go a lot better if you were allowed to drink while driving. I don't think one beer would be so bad. It's taking close to two hours on Fridays and that keeps you well within the legal limits.
Then there's the laundry..."The Pile" is back. It's like weeds - there's no stopping it! I'm ready to hire our baby sitter and pay her $10/hour to fold it just so we can get it done!
Back to the planning - I pick the spots, what I want to see, she supplements it with kid stuff and then she makes the plan. It's much easier that way.
This picture maps out all the spots that we will be staying in - for the most part. I think we need to confirm one spot, but that's it. We'll be hitting everything - any spots you don't see covered, we have either been or will be going in the future (all the other isles that we haven't been to).
I tried my best to edit this on the phone - you'd think it would be easier to do that. You should get the general idea of what's going on. Start to the northeast of Inverness (left of the 1) and then go clockwise around the map. I was hoping it would make some sort of cool shape. It did not. Nothing mystical here, except how two fools can survive with three boys under seven, on the road for three weeks.
For those of you playing along and who looked for the hints about the pregnancy in previous posts, there it is, in the corner...
I was mapping out the years of their births, and previous trips. 2011 (2013 trip), 2014 (2015 trip), 2016 (2018 trip), 2018...I'm pretty sure the next major trip like this won't be until like 2025....
It's been a busy weekend and I suppose that this blog is just as much about life here as it is about our experiences of life on the road with the boys, in other places for extended periods of time, with no additional help and a wife who will be 5-6 months pregnant....what are we thinking?
Duncan has been eyeing the peonies since they have been coming up. He smells all the flowers we have, then knocks the heads off. I just really liked this pic because it looks like we are on vacation already.
This morning we took the opportunity to cut some flowers. If you see this picture on facebook, you are probably seeing the edited version - the one without the hole in the ceiling where the pipe from the bathroom rotted out and then leaked into the kitchen. That's life - the good, the bad, the ugly and the smelly. But, Mommy got flowers, so it's all good.
Yesterday was trophy day for soccer. I coached Neil's team and I think our record was 5-1-1 - at least according to the kids. I think it was more like 5-2 but it doesn't matter. It's been awesome watching the kids get better with their skills, become more aware and get in the game. I'm proud of them and now that I know what to expect, I am sure that they are going to be awesome next season. Unfortunately, they made Malcolm's games the same time as Neil's and I didn't get to watch him all season.
I don't think he cares because he got his first trophy, so he's super happy.
Right now, they are watching Pirates of the Caribbean and I am supposed to be showering but am writing this. I will get in trouble for that. So, I am going to get started so that we can head to the town's Art Festival and hang out for a bit.
The Arts Festival was a nice day - as it always is. Just tough to walk around with the double stroller. We started out checking out the petting zoo. Neil was cautious, Malcolm was scared (as usual) and Duncs was probably trying to eat the animal feed.
Then we hit the face painters. Always go to the face painters early - they're still fresh and they want to do a good job. I'm sure they've had it after an hour or two. Neil went with his standard, St. Andrew's Cross - like in Braveheart and Malcolm wanted a skeleton. They were really good while they got it done and the girls did a great job.
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| Malcolm Approved |
Neil could have been an extra in Braveheart. And Malcolm...something out of Coco.
They were good enough to take the obligatory photos required - hopefully a sign that they will do the same this summer - but I doubt it. Which reminds me, I need a new camera base.
I do have to say that Jess is good at planning the trips. She's a master negotiator. We were having some trouble getting a spot in the north (now Armadale). The place that we saw, was a minimum of three nights stay. She got the guy to go with two (which was all we needed) AND she got him to agree to buy a baby travel cot. We had to find another place for our (I think) second stop and we found a brand new place. Things are looking good.
She also secured our tour for Castle Stalker. It's one of the spots that I have been wanting to go to. And for obvious reasons...
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| Castle Stalker |
We'll take a boat and guided tour of the place. I'm a huge fan of castles and this is one of the must dos for this trip. Castle Sween is the other but I am not sure we are going to get there. Then there's Dunnottar - which we have been to before but may not get to on this trip due to efficiency of travel. It really is a masterpiece, so I'd like for them all to see it. Neil was there in 2013 and even took possession of a soccer ball they fished out of the cistern.
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| Dunnottar Castle |
Today was also used to start braking in their boots for the trip. How friggin' awesome are these? Except for the pink on Duncan's. It's not terrible, I'm just not excited about it.
The day wound down with some snuggling on the couch. Which turned into face and then the duckface and a pile on. Then mayhem, before heading up to bed. In part, my fault for winding them up.
Get ready folks because this one is gearing up and it's almost here. 44 days until we head to the airport (always an adventure) and get the shitshow on the road. Some of Jess' concerns are already proving to be true, but not how she planned...that's right, the hottest summer in 12 years on deck. Guess who was there in 2006, for the first time, when there was a massive heatwave that summer and we almost died in Amsterdam. Oh look, we will be back there too! I'm already worried about the flight and tandem carrying Malcolm and Duncan off the plane, the four hour layover in Amsterdam, the cranky angry little boy tantrums, a second trimester wife, the cranky old man tantrums and then there's the language barrier. Yes, they speak English but sometimes it's a little tough to understand. For example...
Then there's the disclaimer...if you're easily offended, this might not be the blog for you. It gets rough sometimes and it is mostly purely observational stuff that gets in here. There will be a lot of cursing, anger and poop. Poop in diapers, people having to poop at inopportune times, poop in the groove of the shoes and probably poop on my thumb or another digit. That's the worst. There will be inappropriate humor mostly born out of delirium. I will do my best to manage my impulsivities, however, we all have our breaking point. Especially when traveling in other countries and dealing with other cultures that we are not used to. We learn, we laugh and we have a good time. But anyone who has read the previous blogs will tell you that the angry posts are the best ones. Buckle up, shit's about to get real!
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