On the eve of a new era

In the beginning, there was BC (Before Carlyn), followed by AC. And soon we'll enter the era to be known as AM.

And what does one do on the last day of the current era? We were up early to get Carlyn to her last day of school until late September. Thank goodness her school district views this as a special learning opportunity and we were only required to complete one form (well, there will be some homework, too).

Since then, there's been a lot of laundry, organizing, errands, list-making but no frenzy. We started early enough to avoid that. Tonight, amid final preparations, we'll enjoy a dinner of leftovers as we contemplate three weeks of restaurant food. Going out to eat sounds fabulous until you've done it two or three times a day over the course of a week or so.

We'll be up at 3 o'clock for our 6 a.m. flight and will eat breakfast with my nephew and niece-in-law during our 6-hour layover in Chicago.

From there, Tokyo, here we come.

And on Sunday, Maryn begins her last full week at her Social Welfare Institute. We know she'll miss her pals and nannies, but hope she adjusts quickly to her new family.

And when she comes home, she'll have a bright, happy room; a lively and affectionate big sister; and lots of kitties to entertain her.

Maryn's daddy, aunts and uncles, and big sister all slept in this crib.
Jie Jie on her first day of third grade.
Starlight and her son, Holstein. Just 40% of the available cats on the premises.