Counting Down to HK

Hey All. 

So, 2 weeks to the big move!!! We're steadily getting ready around the house--going through things, boxing up, selling half the furniture. Personally, I'm trying to figure out which pairs of shoes I absolutely cannot live without for 10 weeks in China. I'm only allowed 20kg in baggage on the plane!! I think my suitcase itself probably weighs 5kg, so I'm not sure what I'm going to do. At least I'm able to leave stuff here with Victoria's parents that I won't need there. 

Needless to say, things have been a bit hectic while we get ready to move across the world. I took the boys to stay with Victoria's parents for a few days early this week, just to get them out of the house so that she could get some things done without them screaming 'mommy mommy mommy' every 2 seconds. That was fine--kind of frustrating to be cast out of my own house for 3 days, but otherwise fine. The boys have been a handful lately, mostly because their napping schedule has been constantly messed up as they are shuffled around relatives houses (everyone wants to see them before they leave). Alessio is really moving into the toddler stage--he doesn't look like or move like a baby anymore. He's learning so many new words, and he's becoming more assertive, by which I mean there is a lot of bad-tempered crying when he doesn't get his way. He's moving quickly toward those Terrible 2's, and I have a feeling he'll be a handful when he gets there, but he's still just about the cutest kid I've ever seen. 

The weather has turned cold. It's been in the 40s or 50s every day this week. Everyone says that it's unusual for it to be this cold this soon--it just makes me a little bit happier that I'm going to be in Hong Kong, where it's in the 80s, for a few of the colder months. It will probably be quite a shock when (if) I come back to Geneva in January. Speaking of coming back, I'm still looking for a family to work for in January. I've met with a couple of nice families, but all I keep hearing is that people are looking for someone to stay an entire year, and I can only stay until June or so. It's really frustrating to hear that when the family is saying that otherwise they really like me and blah blah blah. I'm sure that I'll find someone; I just have to keep looking. 

Law school applications are going steady. I'm writing all of my personal statements, and that hasn't been as bad as I anticipated. It will be a few weeks before I can submit any because I have to wait for my final letter of recommendation to be processed, so that takes some of the time pressure off of my mind. 

One way I'm going to relax--I'm going to Oktoberfest in Munich this weekend!!! I'm taking a road trip (5 hours!!!) in a rented Mazda with Pamela, Sharron, Isa, and Lauren, and we are camping (yes, camping) for the weekend. I'm really excited. It should be a great adventure, and I'm sure that I will have pictures to post when I get back. 

Until then...