Tomorrow we depart for the United States so things are very hectic at Casa da Praia. When I was a lawyer, I would invariably prep my body for changing time zones by pulling an all nighter before going on holiday. I can report that a certain zen descends at about 4am when the lists, flow charts and memos all come together. These days, sans delightful but demanding clients, I have more control over my timetable so I hope to be in bed at my usual time. My list of action items for today includes:

• copy/print key recipes such as Sticky Date Pudding and Sago Plum Pudding from Our Family Favourites blog since we won’t have ready access to the internet at my mother-in-law’s place in Pittsburgh;
• shift the bags of batting from under the bed in the master bedroom into my studio;
• finish burning CDs of the Looking Forward, Looking Back challenge quilts and dispatch to quilting publications on behalf of The Quilters’ Guild of NSW;
• wipe down the exterior surfaces of the kitchen cupboards and wash the kitchen floor while David vacuums the rest of the house in preparation for our home exchange guests;
• work out whether winter clothes and Christmas gifts will actually fit into our suitcases that we have to be able to easily carry ourselves as we catch public transport to the airport;
• review and comment on some edited instructions for a magazine project;
• finish off the checklist for the cleaners that we have engaged to come in between our sets of home exchange visitors;
• have my last ocean swim for a few weeks;
• and so on.

Of course, our holiday travel means that we will miss out on a summer Christmas this year. Rooruu has some great ideas for a summer Christmas but that’s a list for another day.