Today was a day to finish up loose ends around the house, do some laundry and start packing. This is a little different than my usual trips lasting only a week to 10 days. This time I’ll be gone a day short of a month! So not only do I have to pack clothes I have to pack biking gear (jerseys, lights, batteries, tools, tubes) and the other miscellaneous things we might need over the course of two 1 week tours. And there is no Walmart where we’ll be. But if we forget something, I am sure we can find it right around the corner from our first hotel in Hattersheim am Main. Here is what the mess looks like…..

I was lucky today…Gretchen did a load of shirts for me while I was bringing a load of furniture to the house. That saved me a bunch of time and I am very grateful for her help!!

In the morning I’ll get up and go through the final checklist once more…. then off to the Airport! We’ll go from Des Moines to Atlanta where we’ll have a 3 hour layover then it’s on to Frankfurt, arriving Tuesday morning at 8:40 am. Lots to do on Tuesday but I’ll save that discussion till later.

And tomorrow morning will be here before I know it…. It’s time to post this and on to bed! More tomorrow…..