Today's the day!

Have been very lucky with our dinner invitations, and once again enjoyed a succulent lamb roast last night. This time compliments of Shane and Kelly. Shane and I knocked off a container of Margaritas, while Kelly and Colin stuck to the wine. We were all extremely brave as we said goodbye.

Have been doing 'last minute' jobs all week, and there still seems to be more to do. Guess in another few hours we'll have done everything that's going to be done and can just sit back and enjoy the ride.

Leaving Tauranga airport at 4.20pm, then fly out of Auckland 7.15 tonight on Air New Zealand. Will be good to finally be on our way...I'm hoping Colin's fear of flying has diminished since the last trip.

Got an email from Nancy...they're all excited about our impending visit, and her and Dave will be waiting at the San Francisco airport ready to take us to a seafood feast. They really know how to eat these two, so I'm wearing elastic waist clothes in anticipation.

2 more sleeps...

Boy does that time get around! Had a great weekend at the drags and caught up with lots of old buddies. Got to bed around 4a.m. Sunday, so was starting to wilt by the end of the day.

Arrived back home just in time to share a beautiful roast lamb dinner the neighbours had cooked. A perfect end to the weekend, although another late night. I figure there's plenty of time to catch up on sleep before we fly out.

Took the grandkids to see "Ice Age 2" yesterday and had a few chuckles. Bought some goodies to take away with us, then got home to find Colin had cleaned out the kitchen cupboards and was polishing his medals all ready for Dawn Parade in the morning.

Woke this morning to find dawn had been and gone, along with gallons of rain water. Guess we missed out. Hope the troops didn't spend too much time trying to find us!

7 more sleeps...

Blobby is pretty laid back about the prospect of us going away for 3 months. Don't think he gives a toss actually!

I've just bought 6 boxes of cat food for him...hope it's enough!

This time next week, we'll be in Sacramento as guests of our friends Dave and Nancy Smith...owners of the Nostalgia Nitro dragster "Nitro Fever" as well as Sacramento Raceway Park. http://sacramentoraceway.com

We met these two on our 2004 trip, when Colin helped them out with their race car in Boise, Idaho. They invited us back again last year to stay with them and to restore Dave's '40 Ford Coupe. When we received their Christmas card last year...it included another invitation to be their guests for 3 months this year. What can you do???

Most of our house is cleaned out...just a few more personal items to put away in the shed. The 'to do' list is getting shorter and the rubbish fire burns quietly on. We vow to keep our life more simple from now on...at least as far as "stuff" is concerned. Some of the boxes we are storing away haven't been unpacked since the last trip!

Our agent Carol phoned this morning and has found a tenant for us. They are moving their furniture here tomorrow to store in the garage. It's starting to feel 'real' now!

Thought a blog site would be a good idea for keeping everyone up to date on what we're doing. A lot easier than writing letters as in previous trips!

Mesothelioma