Work, School and Trips

It's been about ten weeks since my replacement at work started...and I am still there.  Our original plan was for me to be finished already, but my boss has been very wonderful and has given me odd jobs so I can work a few more weeks.  I decided to work longer in order to make a little extra money to put towards our big trip to the Congo this month.  It's an additional expense we were not planning for and every little bit counts.

On October 17th we fly out of Detroit, headed for Brussels.  From there, we make our way to Kinshasa, the capital of the DRC.  We are planning on spending a total of three days there (two full and two half days).  After talking with adoptive families that have visited waiting children, we decided on that amount.  We've heard that any more than three days is going to make leaving very, very hard.  Right now, I expect it to be hard to leave after three days, so I can't imagine leaving after a long period of time.

And it just so happened that Eric got a call requesting his presence at a meeting in Frankfurt with a client.  The meetings fall directly at the end of our Congo trip.  This allowed us to essentially make a "pit stop" in Germany for a few days before heading home.  This is going to be an awesome opportunity and I am thankful to be able to have this little distraction after leaving the boys.

So right now, my last day at work is going to be October 8th, which is CRAZY to think about.  It's really, really hard to imagine not working since it's what I've done since I was 14.  I am going to spend a week before our trip packing, getting ahead with school, and making sure everything is set in the boys' room, just in case.

Soon after we get back, approximately November 13th, Eric is going to be traveling to Mexico to produce a feature film that his friend is shooting.  Since I am going to be done working, I have been given the opportunity to go along for the ride.  As of now, Eric and I will be in Mexico for almost four weeks between November and December.

Both of these trips are opportunities of a lifetime, especially since I won't be traveling much (or at all) once the boys are home, at least for a while.  Despite how great these opportunities are, I still have been stressing over them quite a bit.

One of my biggest stresses is school.  Now, I know I have it easy with online classes.  But just because they are online doesn't make them actually easy.  To be honest, I am having a more difficult time than I have had in traditional classes.  This could be attributed by my professor who's on a power trip, but the other two are more difficult also.  Plus, I have a ten page research paper due while we are in Mexico (it must be submitted both as an electronic version and paper copy).  And on top of that, what is our agent suddenly needs us to sign and notarize something?  I am pretty sure a Mexican notary isn't going to fly when the Congolese government is working with an American family.

But you know what?  I know everything is going to be okay.  I know that I am going to be fine and that I am going to make it.  Yes, it is a stressful situation but it's all worth it.  Unfortunately, this doesn't always help slow my mind down as I try and plan everything out exactly.  But that's life, right?  you just have to roll with it.

I know I am going to be just fine over the next couple of months.  And just think, after it's all said and done, my boys may be home.  And Germany and Mexico aren't too shabby places to go for a little distraction from the waiting.

I know this was a more stressful post, but sometimes you just have to "talk" things out.  So thanks for listening :)