So, here we are..

We have reached the "stopping" point. Our family has moved into temporary residence just outside of Chicago. (Which is nice because my parents live just a few miles away, so Grandma is always willing to watch the boys while I hook up the internet at Panera).

It's strange to go from all the amenities to...nothing. No cell phone, no internet, no cable. Now, I love a good fiction book, which I've already finished the one I brought....so, I'm not sure what I'm going to do now.

We go to Toronto on Tuesday for a MissionPrep conference. And then we still have to go to Michigan to change over driver's licenses and apply for international licenses. But we've already taken care of most of the "official" things here (ie: uniforms, etc.).

It's surreal not having any responsibilities. We really should enjoy this feeling, but for some strange reason we can't. Typically on vacation you enjoy the time off with the nagging understanding that in a week or so you will be "back to reality". Well, right now our reality is: we have nothing to do (and no money to waste). It probably doesn't help that when it's not been raining lately, the mosquitoes eat you alive, and there are no parks in the neighborhood (God bless urban sprawl).

Maybe this is a divine opportunity to simply be. To enjoy life without "life" getting in the way. It's a sabbatical of sorts, perhaps. If only I could see it that way when I'm bored, internet-less, no book to read, and no TV to watch.