The countdown is on...

Getting super excited about our trip!  Less than two weeks away.  Yesterday I was able to grab some toiletries and packing items.  Still need to grab a few last minute clothes, which will be done this weekend.  And decide what to wear on the plane!  We'll be flying out in the early evening, then when we arrive it'll be early morning in Berlin so we'll have the whole day ahead of us.  So choosing plane attire will also bleed into our first day in Berlin.  So I need to choose appropriately. :)

The photo here is of Prague - one of the stops on our tour.  I have no idea if Prague really looks like this, but I assume we'll see something sort of like this at one point at least!

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The crucial stuff: shoes and a day bag for trekking around Europe!

I've stressed about this.  A LOT.  It's important to find the perfect day bag and shoe for Europe.  Here is the advertisement of requirements needed to fill such a role:

SHOES
Must be...

• Comfortable (huge deal breaker here)
• Not look ugly
• Match almost everything I'm going to wear
• Not give me blisters (refer to point 1, above...)

DAY BAG
Must...

• Fit my huge Nikon 1 camera with both lenses
• Hold a sweater if I decide I'm not cold
• Be able to fit all the crap I buy that I don't want to lug around
• Zip closed at the top
• Work as a cross-body bag (for bike tours, etc.)

As you can see, this is a big deal.  Those are big lists!  Added to the fact that I don't care for cross-body bags on me, this made it a tough challenge.  Last night I determinedly marched into the mall with the single thought in mind that: I'm not leaving here without a day bag or shoes.  Tonight's the night!

And voila, I found the two items above at Aldo!  (Which incidentally is the same store I vowed never to buy shoes from again... but I'm desperate.  And they're cute...).   The shoes are super comfy!  And look cute on!  The day bag is amazing because the bottom expands for more room if needed, and the top flap can stand up to hold even more of my crap if I need to really shove it full!  And I can convert the strap into a shoulder strap or cross-body on the fly.  It's amazing.  Oh, and has lots of pockets - the cup holders of day bags!

Aldo store lady was very very nice and patient and offered to order my size shoes and new day bag online and ship to my house for free.  So I'm eagerly awaiting their arrival.

Countdown to our Contiki is 21 days!  Exactly 3 weeks!  Aaaaanndd... I still have stuff left to buy. :P  But, I'm getting very close to being ready!

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Clothes shopping for Orlando...now

I'm not really sure if I need new clothes. Or need summer clothes in general, but because I'm a girl it's a default answer to say I do. And think I do. Which is why I picked up some more summer items today (eek)!

I could probably have gotten away with what I have already (and wore on our cruise) but we are going to Orlando next month, and that's a nice, sunny state as well. So some nice new summer clothes just seem like a nice reason to take advantage of the *great* sale on American Eagle's website today! 20% off everything this weekend, and free shipping! Free shipping to Canada is huge! So here's what I gave in to...

I loooove the dress. My concern was that it's the same colour as the skirt I purchased earlier this year (see a few posts below...). But in the end I decided I loved the grey the most, and should buy the colour I like best. The orange tunic was a "I-need-something-I-can-also-wear-to-work" purchase, but also because it matches the cute sand-coloured shorts I got. And also because I just love that colour!

So yeah. There's my total girl-rationalization for buying these clothes. But also because it was a great deal - of course! :)

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