It’s just after midnight, and everyone’s bags are packed and everything on the “To Do” list has been done.
Actually, the bags have been packed for a while, but I left “draining & unplugging the hot tub” as the very last task on the list, so you can guess where I’ve been in the interim. What a beautiful night out there…! I sure needed it, too, because I’ll confess to some last minute nerves. As far as the rest of the family is concerned, how fun or interesting will they find this trip?
I know what my first goal is. I want to avoid dragging the side of the RV against the edge of the garage as I pull it out of storage. Maybe you’ll excuse me any accident after that, though?
Anyway, the point of this post was supposed to be about our luggage. I researched the airline’s policy, and I see that they’ll charge us $100 for each bag after the first, and for all bags over 49 pounds. I calculated bag weights by using the bathroom scale to compare my weight holding each bag to my weight without, so that I could redistribute weight among bags to get them all under 50 pounds each. I did notice some excess weight even on the “without a bag” measurement, but that’s only because of my heroism: in the last few weeks, I’ve somehow managed to single-handedly eat all the last bits of leftovers and under-appreciated items from the backs of the refrigerator and the freezer.
Bags. As you might guess: Cheryl’s bag was both over-stuffed and overweight (by about 10 pounds). No, that’s not because of heavy things like a hairdryer and an iron. She felt those were important enough to put in her carry on. Hey, if she want’s to carry all that weight around the airports, and endure the looks from TSA, who am I to argue? Anyway, we redistributed to get her bag within the weight limit.
JT & Sean are apparently wearing the same clothes for 5 weeks, with an occasional underwear change. So they filled their bags with whatever else they thought might be useful: stuffed animals, an extra pair of dirty sneakers, flashlights, a first aid kit, and their Camelback backpacks from Mor Mor.
Carry-ons? If you know us at all, stop and think a moment and see if you can guess what everyone’s carry-on bags contain. Have you made your guesses? Let’s see if you’re correct. Here’s what each carry-on contained:
• Dad: easy one: the family laptop and all the trip paperwork (itinerary, reservation confirmations, etc.)
• Mom: 5 pairs of shoes, a hair brush, and a cowboy hat that (worn only once, when she tried it on before purchasing it 2 years ago at the Big E). Oh – when I saw it, I added my cowboy hat on top of it.
• Sean: his summer reading book and as much of Mom’s overflow clothes that could fit without ripping the zipper. Note: I was initially transferring Cheryl’s smallest possible items so the poor guy could actually still tote his carry-on. When I realized what it would do to an 11 year old boy if the zipper opened and a wad of ladies undergarments came tumbling out, I put her dresses in there instead. That’s safer, right?
• JT: XBOX. Nothing else. Really. Just his XBOX.
Well… I’m already laughing, so I guess it’s a good start to the trip. Now let’s see if we hit our first deadline: departing the house by 8am.
