Holy cow! (literally)

Let me first preface this post with a...I HAVE NEVER BLOGGED BEFORE! In fact, I rarely feel like there is anything much from the day to day hub-bub worth blogging. But, yet, as I write those words down there are so many more things I wish I would have written down, things my kids said, experiences I've had, experiences we've shared as a family, accomplishments, feelings, etc. And here I am, feeling like this will be the one way to stay in contact with my ever so dear friends and family and share with them the new experiences we will embark on 'This Crazy Summer!'

So, as of Monday, April 2nd, our family found out we had the opportunity to fly to India for 2 months this summer! India? Really? Yes! Can you believe it? Well, 2 days later, plane tickets have been purchased, our itinerary has been set, and in fact, we ARE going to India!  I still haven't quite wrapped my brain around it and there are so many unanswered questions and I'm stuck somewhere between "this is only for two months" and "THIS IS FOR TWO MONTHS!" But regardless where I am, this adventure IS happening and I have no doubt it will be an experience of a lifetime.

Here's a little background on the India trip. Several months ago, (like in December), my husband was told he will be traveling to India in February for work...for 6 weeks! I know there are so many military wives and others who have to deal with extended work-related trips, for so much longer than 6 weeks away from their husbands. And, yes, they do it with grace and style. It's not that I couldn't do it...I'm sure we would have all survived, but, the thought of a husband, a best friend who I see almost the entire day (he works from home), gone from our family was, well, just a huge bummer. But, instead of him going, they pushed the trip aside because of other work-related...work.  Honestly, he thought he had totally dodged going...ha, ha, ha!

Fast forward a few months. April 2nd, 2012 at about 2:00 pm I get a text from my husband that says, "Do you want to take the entire family to India?" The only thing that popped in my head was, "Heck ya!", and that was my immediate text back to him. Not even a doubt crossed my mind. I knew that instant it would be a trip of a lifetime. Of course I had questions, and by the end of April 2nd, the list grew to about 200 of them. Then, by April 4th it was more like 5,000. Most of the answers I could find online, and some were answered by others who have preceded him and already gone, but everyday my list grows and diminishes. And the one thought that I keep having is, I won't be able to eat a cheeseburger for two months...

For those that know us well already had a family vacation planned and paid for to Orlando, Florida for 2 weeks. Leaving the day after school, May 26th. So fun, right? Also, I have embarked on the  adventure of planning my 20-year class reunion that will take place in August. Now, smack dab in the middle of those two fun-enough-for-the-summer adventures, we will be spending the time in between in a foreign country. We will be leaving straight from Orlando, flying to New York to see the 'Statue of Liberty' in all her glory-from the airplane, to London (where we have an almost 7 hour layover and are hoping to be able to hop in a taxi for a short time and see the city), to New Delhi, India.  We will spend a couple of days in New Delhi, travel down to the Taj Mahal and then continue our adventure, where we will be staying for the remainder of the time in Vizag, India. (I'm guessing that is the western way of saying it, but if you look it up on a map you will likely find:  Vishakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, India. I like Vizag better.


So, here we are. The only problem with today is that it's not the end of May, yet. And by then I will be wishing we were back in April so I had more time to get ready. Really, I just want to pack for Florida and buy clothes for my kids in India so they look like the natives.  The only problem is that no matter how hard we all try, I'm pretty sure we'll stick out!


Oh, one last thing I forgot to mention, we leave India on August 6th and fly straight to LAX so I can finish planning and attend my class reunion. For all my classmates that might read this, I promise I will not be drunk no matter how I may seem at the reunion...it's just jet lag.