Stress level 5000....

pat, I can't come up with any words of encouragement, but I hope you have a great trip and lose some of that stress. Maybe take that printer out to the backyard and beat it to pieces with a baseball bat before you go.

Oh, Pat! I cannot imagine how I would get through something as stressful as what you are going through. I can only hope that in the next four days you can conquer the problems. Regarding your prescription renewal, a fax from your MD’s office could renew it so that you can forego the appointment. At least, that is how it works in my part of Canada. But, of course, my “part of Canada” is Quebec, and things are always a bit different here.

PS. As for the printer, can you forward stuff to a friend who can print for you?

Do you have a Staples or such nearby? After beating on your printer put relevant info onto a USB and take to the photo copier that should print from the USB. At least you then have some paper in hand.
Good luck and have a great time once on the road.

Well, you can use a vacation! Hope your son’s recovery is quick and goes well, and hope things work out all the way around.

Pat! What a time you are having. At least you are a seasoned traveler and will stay on course even if you wobble a little. Getting on the plane will be a relief.

I hope you have a wonderful time with nothing to pull your mind back home!

Somehow I always feel better once I have departed, NOT because Im on vacation/holiday (bc my trips tend to take a lot of effort, moving from place to place for weeks) but because THERE'S NOTHING TO BE DONE ABOUT ANY OF THE STRESSORS ONCE YOU ARE ON THE ROAD, and somehow, on the plane to Europe, I just think "well, whatever will be will be; its an adventure", and I can let go. The printer won't matter, your son will somehow be ok, what your hair and nails look like won't matter that much after all (I book those appointments before I go too ;p), and what hubby has or doesnt have in his suitcase, well, he can deal with that!
You are going to have a great adventure, and most likely it will be a great time too! The countdown is the worst time, and then you will be free! Enjoy

Pat, oh my goodness, I can't even begin to imagine managing all those levels of stress!!! I wish I could somehow reach through the screen and get you some support. Hope the printer is all good by now but if not I like the Staples (or similar) idea — heck even just email the docs to a friend and say HELLLPPP!!

I hope you can get your son around to all his appointments and get all the insurance stuff taken care of without running yourself ragged, and then can get away in one piece to beautiful Greece!!!!

Hang in there Pat!!

Hey pat-I'm sorry to hear of your troubles, especially with your son, though I think I now know where you get your great attitude. Hang in there, you'll get there and it'll be great....in the meantime, and since printers are one of the current periods most horrible bits of technology....

Maybe take that printer out to the backyard and beat it to pieces with a baseball bat before you go

^ ^ ^ This is a great idea.

PS to previous post.

Forget the nail and brow appointments. Great opportunity to go to London salons ( ask your hotel ).

Only in Canada do mothers provide bear spray for their daughters who have summer jobs. Love it.

Oh Pat, I hope you feel that stress melt away as you get on the plane this week. My LOL for the day was the image of the look on your faces when your husband pulled out his suitcase to start packing and discovered his October wardrobe! Have a wonderful trip.

. . . he just hauled his suitcase out to pack and discovered it was STILL packed from last Octobers mexico trip . . .

Well the good part of this is that he can just shut the lid and be good to go.

he just hauled his suitcase out to pack and discovered it was STILL packed from last Octobers mexico trip . . .

?

Well the good part of this is that he can just shut the lid and be good to go.

When did it get laundered?

pat must be twins..no one person could be doing all this

Just go and enjoy---- sort out the rest when you get back

As you are running around, stop at a store and get some Canadian Club { skip the Rx refill :-) }

pat,

Sorry to hear about all your difficulties in getting ready for your trip, as that makes the process so much more difficult. You seem to have some unique problems not faced by most travellers. I'm usually in panic mode several days before departure trying to get everything done, but my issues are minor compared to what you're dealing with.

A few thoughts.....

• it's probably too late to buy a new printer and get it set up. As someone else suggested, it might be an idea to put the files on a USB drive and get them printed at an office supply store or at a friend's house. It sounds like your printer is an ink jet model so you might look at replacing that with a colour laser model when you get back. The newest Consumer Reports wasn't entirely pleased with the current batch of ink jet printers.
• Does hubby's daughter not have her own car? If not, I suppose it will be necessary to pay a visit to ICBC and get the insurance changed.
• I can well relate to the situation with your daughter working in the north, as I have a son living and working in the north. Unfortunately despite my repeated suggestions, he still refuses to pack bear spray or bear bangers along when he's out hiking. I'll keep trying to convince him.
• As someone else mentioned, it might be an idea to skip at least one of your appointments (nails or eyebrows?). Maybe you can get your hair person to trim your eyebrows ;-) You may be able to fit all the appointments in, but you'll be stressed until those are behind you.
• Hopefully you can get an appointment with your doctor fairly quickly. It often takes me about a week to get an appointment.
• It's unfortunate that you have to do all the planning and booking, as I'm sure that adds to the stress.

Hopefully everything will work out. I hope you have a wonderful and memorable trip! Once you've departed, the problems you're experiencing now will just be a distant memory.

Buon viaggio!

Oh Pat! Can't wait to read you're having a GREAT time on your trip!

Many of us will be very happy about that ...for now, we'll be cheering for you!
YOU CAN DO THIS!!!💪

Sounds sounds like you are a good mom, maybe some other family members can step up just a bit. Soon your whole life will get a lot simpler, whether it’s when wheels are up at your home airport or upon touching down on the other end. In the mean time just put one foot in front of the other and get the essentials done, but give yourself a break on what is truly essential. I totally empathize with pre-travel stress, including the part of having to do all of the planning. You’ll make it through this!

or go to the local library to print, if that's an easier option...

but when you do get your nails done, please ENJOY and relax!

What's the ole saying??.........."If you want something done, ask a busy person!!" YOU will get it all done, no doubt.

But, that is absolutely hilarious about your husband's suitcase still being packed from his last trip.......TOOOO funny!! REALLY funny!

Your household would make a great reality TV episode show this week....keep your sense of humor....it will all look very funny in the rear-view mirror.

Your posts always seem so calm and go-with-the-flow, so it is good to see that you are indeed human :)

Have a wonderful, safe trip. It WILL all come together.

.......and the tickets can always be printed at the airport ....... and what is so funny is that every time I print ours at home, the agent at the check-in gate completely reprints our boarding passes anyway :) Can you just transfer them from your computer to your phone? We see people checking in that way all the time.

I agree with Stan. Please take a baseball bat to that stupid printer. YOU NEED A VACATION! You also need your husband to take on more responsibilities. OK. You can do this, Pat. You're in the home stretch, and you know what you need to accomplish. Now you just have to tackle everything, one thing at a time. You've got this. Just keep plugging away at it and you will get it done. When you are sitting in the chair for your hair and nails, I want you to close your eyes, embrace the fact that you literally can't do anything else in that particular moment, so take those thirty minutes or so to breathe and drink a cup of coffee or hot chocolate or tea. After that, you can go full speed and knock out the tasks you have to do. :o)

Loving arms hugging you here. Once you get it under control, I hope your airport has one of those massage/ manicure places because that's what you deserve. If it does, try to check in early enough so you have time for a deep tissue massage in the private room, and ask your husband to save a bar stool for you afterwards. A massage followed by a glass of something and you'll be ready to board the plane and balance the worries. Bon voyage.

THANK YOU ...
everyones posts helped a lot.. and tonight, at 11.14 pm I finally got all the stuff I needed printed out.. and all the dates coordinate( I was so worried Id screwed up there somewhere.. five flights, a train, two ferries, nine hotels !!! All done..

Now.. I just have to figure out how to get the "pile" into my 22 inch suitcase.. surely a case of not practicing what I preach if I have to go up to the 24 inch suitcase.. so serious editing must be done .. two more days of work, three beauty appts ( and no.. they can not be edited out.. vanity is thy name.. lol)

Now I can start organizing all the tips for sightseeing and restaurants Ive gleaned off the forums the last few months..

Don't have much advice for your other concerns but with the printer, choose the option to print in greyscale, it won't use any of the colour inks and none of your documents need to be printed in colour anyway.

Appreciate this is late advice however!

five flights, a train, two ferries, nine hotels !!!

This is going to be an epic trip. I'm envious!!

Hi,
Glad to read it’s all coming together. Would love to hear more about your trip and please post a trip report!

hey pat
you're the best mom and woman out there. laughed so much about your husband and his suitcase, any dirty clothes? LOL i totally agree with Bets about massage and a bar stool after. you've done a fabulous job and your family will have a great time and think you waved a magic wand to plan this. yes it's stress just think of the fun things to do now.
MYKONOS: walked the beautiful town then sat a restaurant along the water in city center with a beer and lunch, a relaxing day, we were on a greek island cruise.
PARIS: obonparis.com a paris tour bus burger restaurant. we will be in paris for 8 nights end of september and found this site, thought let's check it out. take a tour around paris in a restaurant bus (food truck) and have lunch (burgers, fries, soda, and dessert).
frenchie-ftg.com a so called fastfood restaurant with their own smokehouse, making bacon, hot dogs, sausages, pastrami and pastries for breakfast and lunch with a flair. heard about this place from ina garten, the chef. "favorite go to" place
withlocals.com "best of paris on a unique ride" maybe a good way to help son mom & dad for an outing. (they are in different cities)
wanted something different to do, we are taking a train to andresy outside of paris. having lunch at auberge de la goelette. ring a bell and a small boat comes to pick you up across the canal.
PRAGUE: livingprague.com (mentioned in the czech forum, this is jason's own site) friends loved prague, said lots of walking and stairs/steps, excellent food. she had pork knuckle on a tiny rotisserie brought to table, could feed 2, cabbage and soups.
enjoy your vacation and things will get better every day. you've traveled alot, just some different ideas. have fun pat with a glass of vino.
aloha

Pat -- This too shall pass..... and then you'll have a wonderful trip. And all the stress of planning and logistics will reduce the stress of the trip itself.

I'm getting ready for a much shorter and simpler trip, and my printer is acting up. Is something going on here with the world's printers? Luckily I don't have enough hair or nails to bother with, and the eyebrows are hopeless too.

Have a great time, make husband carry the bags, and let us know how it all went. And quit wasting time reading all these replies from your long-time readers and admirers! ;-)