Summer holidays start next week. On Friday afternoon to be precise; school finishes at midday. At least the holidays are only for seven weeks and not nine or ten as they were in Japan.
So we're heading off to the UK for the first time in two years. It's turning out to be harder to organise this trip than sorting out our move across continents.
Our lovely neighbours will look after Raymi-cat while we're away: we're currently looking after theirs. We're driving to the UK so Kita can come too. Apparently it's 'only' 1,000km...
Originally we'd planned to do the journey in one go, but have now decided to leave a day earlier and stop off half way. Tim used to live in Germany as a child so we're spending the night in a dog-friendly hotel near his old home. It will certainly make the 12 hour drive more survivable: for all of us.
Naturally, with the dog coming too there will be a very different dynamic to our usual UK-visit-activities. As yet, I have no idea how this will work out. I'm worried about her escaping from the various places we'll be staying.
In previous years there was a standard formula for our UK visits. We'd arrive in the UK in time for Mum's birthday and my oldest friend, Penny, would come from Wales to stay for a few days. We would have a big, family, birthday lunch for Mum followed by a fun walk on the Common.
Later, Penny and I would go out for an evening of girly catch-up at the fabulous Lainston House. Then the rest of the time was spent helping Mum in the garden and doing a lot of shopping for things we couldn't get in Tokyo. Usually clothes for me and Rhiannon. And tea. Lots and lots of tea.
At some point we'd go to Devon for a week or so for a proper touristy-type holiday. Even though I grew up there, I take pleasure in being a grockle for a while. And I meet up with other friends from the Devon-Days. And eat a proper Devonshire Cream Tea.
This visit will be very different. Although the basics will remain as above, the nitty-gritty has changed. For a start, Tim will head straight off to work. That's right, he has to work for three out of the five weeks we're there.
There will not be a family birthday party for Mum, which makes her very sad. But I will do my best to make her special day memorable for her regardless.
Tim's parents have just moved back to the UK from the States, so we are also heading to Buckinghamshire to spend some time with them.
I want to see a very dear friend from Tokyo who now lives in the UK and Rhiannon wants to see someone special too. Luckily, both are based in roughly the same area as the in-laws, so I'm trying to organise dates and times to combine the visits.
We'll go to Devon as usual, but I will probably make two trips. Tim's working of course and I want to see other friends who already have dates fixed for their own holidays. Then I need to collect Tim after his work is finished. I'll be spending a lot of time on the A303...
And again, more worries about Kita - Britain doesn't seem to be as dog-friendly as Japan or Germany. In Japan we could take Kita into most attractions and here in Germany, dogs are even welcomed into some restaurants. From what I've heard, even some pubs in the UK refuse to have dogs in them now. Not to mention the many reports I've heard of vicious off-leash dogs...
Our shopping list is pretty long: school uniform, riding gear, various food-stuffs and bed linen... the Germans only have giant square pillows, not the rectangular ones, we don't have enough pillowcases!
There are lots of other friends I'd love to catch up with too, but I really can't work out how to see everyone. It may be five weeks, but it all disappears up its own backside very quickly!
Add all this to everything I have to finish before next Friday afternoon and I feel very much like this...