My to-do lists have to-do lists....

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A week exactly until I leave for Madrid to au pair for three little girls for three months, the realisation of the enormity of the things I have left to do finally hits me. In retrospect I probably should have planned this last week out better, but I had forgotten how many things need doing before you do a big trip. I now have so many lists I've started making lists of my lists... I'm not an organised person to begin with but this is crazy!

The packing this time has actually been a bit easier than when I went to Chile. I have learned to be practical about what I really will and will not wear. Yes, that is a great pair of shoes, but in 32 degrees of heat who needs fur lined boots? On the other hand, my 6th cami top will be well worn by the time I come back. As per usual, my mums rearrangement of the suit case pack has left me in awe, and with an extra 5 kilos of space. I swear I will never work out how she does it...

Still wrestling with the millions of bags I feel I need to bring... despite not being a bag kind of girl I can't seem to shake the desire to bring one backpack, one day bag, one big handbag and one small handbag, as well as the suitcase itself. Along with the shoes this will take up most of my luggage allowance, leaving me enough room for the bikinis and my spanish dictionary which alone weighs almost as much as me. The amount of Spanish work I've decided to bring is looking pretty optimistic too, but I think I'd rather bring it and eventually get round to doing some work rather than not bring it and then be stuck not being able to work... Yes, I am fully aware that they will not ever leave my suitcase, but that is beside the point.

Then there's the frantic emails.. With the arrangement of who is going to pick me up from the airport getting less and less secure by the minute and the realisation that on this trip, unlike the last, I need to plan my own insurance, I seem to be gaining things to do rather than loosing them. Thankfully it's no disaster if I forget something, so long as I get the vitals down, as Madrid is hardly far away. This also makes it easier to escape if the children turn out to be the spawn of the devil dressed like barbie. Which I'm sure they wont be, as they look really lovely, but still!

I feel like maybe it would be better to revise by watching all the disney princess movies rather than drilling my tenses... I've never been a very girly girl, lord only knows what made me think I could entertain three girls under ten over their summer holidays. During their interview they sung me grease lightening, but they were also all wearing ballerina costumes... I like arts and crafts and cutting and sticking and drawing, and if they don't I don't really have a backup plan, but never mind! We shall see what we all end up doing! I'm sure there's something, even if I have to have my make up done by a four year old every day, it should be really fun!

SO, next stop is the frantic goodbyes and then it's off to españa on the 26th, wish me luck =D

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