Travel Bug

I'm not sure what's happening to me. I'm not usually a spontaneous person. I don't usually do things that push us outside our budget. I don't usually make quick decisions that require significant financial commitments. However... looking at my calendar for the next few months, you would never believe it. We are planning to nearly cover the expanse of the globe! (Okay, not quite, but you get the idea...) And a big chunk of it was not planned. But it's going to be great!

It all starts with a trip down to Virginia for a Nascar race. That will definitely be a highlight for us. My brother and a friend are planning to visit, and we're all going to the race at Richmond. We went last year, and apart from forgetting ear plugs, it was a fantastic event! We're looking forward to another great race this year.

A few weeks after that, we're taking a quick trip to the west coast. We're flying into Seattle and then driving up into British Columbia. We're super excited to have the chance to be at my cousin's wedding. A bonus for that trip is that some of my family (including mom & dad!) are planning to be there as well. It'll be a great time to catch up with some family members that we don't get to see very often.

Coming home from that, I'll have about 36 hours at home before I leave on a work trip to India. I'm sad to say that this one will be solo - Andy is not able to travel with me. The mission organization that I work for is part of an association of mission agencies, and the annual meeting is being held in Delhi. As part of my role, I provide administrative assistance for this gathering. Along with the annual meeting, we'll also hold a mission conference, and spend time doing local outreach in and around Delhi. All in all, I'll be gone for a very long two weeks.

I'll get a couple weeks of catch up time at home (and work!) and then at the end of October, we're off to Honduras! This trip was a totally spontaneous decision and we're really excited about it. Andy has a friend who is getting married, and the wedding is in Honduras. Since we've had Honduras high on our list of travel destinations, this seemed like a great opportunity. (Andy served on two short term assignments in Honduras - thus the connection for him.) We plan to spend a few days in and around the city of Tegucigalpa, and then we hope to take the last half of our week and enjoy some time on Roatan, a beautiful island.

After our Honduran jaunt, we'll actually stay home for a bit - I think! Although Honduras or India might seem like the biggest trips of the year, we're actually saving the best for last (in my opinion). We are planning to spend almost two weeks in Manitoba over Christmas! It will be the first time in three years that I'll get to spend Christmas with my family, and I am very excited. Actually, that's probably the understatement of the year. I almost cried when we bought the tickets because I couldn't believe we were actually going to make it happen.

I think that in 2009, we'll be staying close to home! For now though, we're going to enjoy the opportunities we have to travel. What could be next? Thailand?! :)