sebastian put his budding artist skills to work today on the sofa covers. if you remember, about six months ago i replaced our sofa covers that had been vomitted on so many times that no matter how often they were washed, i couldn't get the smell out or the pieces of upchuck out of the zipper.

he released his inner picasso all over the sofa covers with a blue ball point pen. i noticed the scribbling late in the afternoon and asked him about it. i asked him why, and he told me that someone had told him to. fair enough, i will discipline both of you, i informed sebastian and his invisible patron. at that point sebastian admitted no one had told him to. (surprise).

i told him i was proud of him for not lying, but it was time for discipline, because what he did was wrong. after a party, being denied dessert was not effective, so i got creative. he told me as he was going to bed that he wouldnt' scribble on the sofa again, and i do believe him.

the triumverate all have these loose chesty coughs; and what concerns me most has little to do with what you might expect, you know, their already tenuous health, getting on a plane in a few days...no, i am concerned with the vomit. just hate that stuff.

you wouldn't believe the packing that's going on here. i have already packed carys, sela and jasper's shared suitcase, and have shirts, shorts and pants left for sebastian. that is pretty easy, he wants to wear his incredibles costume on the plane and he has two spiderman costumes that he will wear out this summer. oh this is a good time. he wears a wife beater and bob's to bed, so really, he is an easy packer.

magnificent has deemed (and he is good at stuff like this so i agree with him), that we need to fill one suitcase with three days worth of clothes for everyone, nappies, wipes, food, and this is the suitcase we will live out of until we reach our first destination. an excellent plan.

my carry on has been designated as THE distributor carry on. it contains three bags: one blue, one red, one purple. inside are five nappies, wipes, hand sanitiser, and a change of clothes. my bag also contains food for the plane. as well as extra nappies, but those are in a separate bag than the three coloured ones and will only be distributed as needed. there is a bag of medicine: phenergan, benadryl, teething gel, my anticonvulsants, cough medicine, augmentin and tylenol. my bag also contains the four kids enteratinment bags:

portable dvd, videos, colouring books, books, plastic jungle creatures, an etch a sketch, a notebook, markers (gee, now all we need is a sofa!) stickers, basically one new activity every hour.

and snacks for sebastian, i gave up expecting him to eat healthily on the flight a long time ago. goldfish, chocolate bears, apple juice, yakult, cheese and crackers, banana, sliced apple. for the babies i don't really offer snacks, because the last thing i want is them to vomit unnecessarily. they will get their pureed moosh and fromage frais and they will enjoy it.

i would love to sneak vanity fair in there if possible, because i cling to this foolish hope that i can actually read it.

i have also done something i consider to be brilliant: i have written down on one piece of paper all the kids passport numbers and expirations, so that when the time comes to fill out that foolish form, i don't have to find and open and shut all the passports. one piece of paper, thank you very much.

in the suitcases, we have several categories:

medical supplies, children extras (blankets, bibs, jackets), oh yes, my clothes, charles' clothes, bottles, bowls, utensils, i tell you, we are taking heaps of stuff. and i have to arrange it and it seems so daunting.

oh and the photocopying, oy! i have to have all three kids medical reports with me just in case. and their birth certificates.

we are going to have a massive amount of stuff with us. however, we are paying about $8,oooUS for these tickets, and i think that buys a certain amount of luggage, doesn't it? if only it paid for peace of mind.

Comments

[lyns]

great idea with the passport numbers thing...iam paper work girl so I am going to steal that idea!!!! Use that 70lbs per bag per person who has a seat and don't feel one moments guilt about it!!! Have a great trip... love ya and will miss you A LOT!!!!xo lyns

[Cricket]

I lost track. Did you include a change of clothes onboard for you/MC, too? I remember a friend saying she'd never again fly (with her 5 kids) w/out extra clothes for herself. (Ya'll are the pros, so I'm sure you've done it.)

Also, I still label my kid, have since he could walk. When out, he always has names, addresses, and phone numbers on my business card in his pocket. I was always afraid he'd get separated from me at a ball game or festival and he is still terrible with remembering numbers.

Finally I had his own business cards printed with my and his father's addresses and home/cell/work phone numbers. And they're handy to stick in his gym bag and school backpack. Covers all the bases.

Gives me peace if nothing else.

Also, I always try to educate cops that little kids have handy information in their pockets.

Have a great trip! Hope the chest gunk stays at bay.

[Cricket]

PS - J has always been an artist. It hasn't stopped and he's 7. I wish you well with Seb.

[Rae]

Tess the all passport numbers and expiration dates on a piece of paper is brilliant. You may also need the passport issue dates?

I can barely imagine how you're keeping it together at the moment!

[Auntie P]

OMG... and I thought I had a rough time packing!! Counting down the days till I see you all!!
Love Auntie P
xo

[knobody]

hairspray is suppose to get ball point pen out of fabric. probably another non-polar solvent like ethanol or citrus limonene (the stuff in orange cleaners) might work as well, but test a hidden spot to make sure it won't spot the fabric.

and cricket, that's a great idea about putting a tag on your kid. i've been trying to get sagan to memorize his phone number (he's got it mostly down now) and now is address. for some reason it never occurred to me to just stick it on him. maybe i'll break out the dremmel and just make him a dog tag i can clip to a belt loop or stick around his neck. thanks for the tip.

[SheilaC]

Wow, Tess, thanks for all the packing details. Only 2 weeks until we take our trio to Scotland, so I'm working on the packing list now.

How the heck are you going to carry that carry-on??? It sounds like it will weigh a ton! And be a lot bigger than regulation size. Maybe MC will carry half the on-board stuff? Well done with all the organization, you both sound like experts.

I hope the trip goes smoothly, and that you will have a terrific holiday in Canada.

And I do hope you'll be able to post while you're away! Might suffer terrible withdrawal if I have to wait a month for news!

Best wishes,

[Erin]

O.k., I think I told you this in an earlier comment, but you make our summer odyssey of 10K+ kms through 3 provinces in 4-1/2 weeks with 3 kids in a van look like a picnic! I'm thankful if I remember to pack the bug dope and sunscreen, never mind the Tylenol and other medication; and I am SO thankful that we don't have to do the passports and ID thing--I'll definitely remember listing all the numbers on one sheet of paper, though, if we ever need it! Good tip about the address cards, too; hmmmm, wonder if I stapled a card to every piece of clothing, backpack, TEASPOONS (even plastic ones!) that are sent to school with my 2 boys if they would somehow manage to find their way home, too??! Looking forward to seeing you at the end of your trip, Tess (and Magnificient and entrouage, too, of course)!

[Maggaggie]

Hey Tess! Alexi has discovered the joy of ball point pens as well. However, the use has been limited to application on skin and clothing only. So far...

When Alexi went to Puerto Rico and Mexico, I made copies of all important docs and even kept an extra copy in the suitcase. I had an emergency checklist with all kinds of info and recent pictures as well. I can send to you if you want.

Are you connecting in St. Louis?

[Elaine]

Rubbing alcohol is also fantastic for removing ballpoint pen ink.

[Augmentin Side Effects]

My name is Cindy Floyd and i would like to show you my personal experience with Augmentin.

I suffered from Pseudofolliculitis behind my head for years and by chance I got Augmentin from Libya without any prescription. In Europe all the doctors that I consulted could not find solution for this problem so one day I just worked into a pharmacy in Libya and showed it to the Doctor in charge of the pharmacy who adviced me to take Augmentin. I was a bit hesitant but before my returning date (after 5 days) I noticed that all the bumps are drying. and now I'm very proud of my head.

Side Effects :
None…Miracle drug…

I hope this information will be useful to others,
Cindy Floyd