Glasgoing

Well, we've signed the contract. We've got a date we're working towards. How amazing. And daunting.

There's a lot to do before we step onto that plane in just over 2 months - packing up the house, finishing up my job, Christmas, birthdays, and not to mention all the emotions that come with leaving for a year. Don't even get me started on the fact we're having to leave our dog.

We're pretty lucky that a family neighbour can take care of him. He's every bit as important to us as human family members but he just won't be able to understand where we've gone - that's the bit that stabs my heart when I least expect it. BUT he will be loved, my family will still see him, my sister will still be able to take him out for dog dates, so his life will be amazing in the year that we're away.

We did consider bringing him with us but after seeing the cost of bringing him over and back, weighing up the amount of time he would be in quarantine on the return leg (and in Melbourne, not even Adelaide), taking into consideration the fact that we want to travel on weekends to see parts of Europe we missed last time, let alone the fact that it's so cold and at the best of times, he *hates* to be chilly..... It really just wasn't going to be fair to any of us. 

So. He will stay. Be adored by our neighbour and my family.

And we will adventure for a year, and see so many things - but inevitably, none will be as good as coming home and seeing him ;)

I'll keep you posted as best I can as we go through the motions of packing up our Adelaide lives and prepping to rent our home. What an odd interim advenutre this will be, while we wait for the main one to begin. 

Glasgow?

My husband - god that feels odd to write - might be offered a position with his company in Glasgow in the coming weeks. He had the interview months ago but it's a slow moving process and while he's had the unofficial 'yeah you've probably got it' - that's all we know.

In the months since that interview, we've been living on tenterhooks. It's affecting all our decisions. Do we get a new washing machine? Or wait and see if we actually need one in Scotland? Do we get a second car for me? Or hold off? I recently started a new job and it seems amazing....but I don't want to (can't) get too invested in case I leave in 6 months. There are so many if's, but's and what if's.
In the meantime, with all this waiting, we've also realised what that could mean for our house. Rent it? Who to? And what about our dog? In the ideal world, we'd take him with us. It's a no brainer because he's our family. BUT. He feels the cold so easily so we wouldn't feel happy leaving him outside while we're at work (assuming I find work? Another question) because what is the likelihood of finding a rental with a decent yard AND a large dog door? We could look at doggy daycares but they average $40 a visit and we're looking at a minimum of $8K to get him over there with us and back home again.....
But if we leave him here, who would we leave him with for 2 years? Because that's the contract time we would be away for. 2 years. It guts me because that's a large chunk of his life we'd miss. And a big imposition on whoever we would ask.

NB: Now we've had actual quotes to bring our dog over and it would be $15,000 round trip. Far OUT. On the other hand, the contract time has changed to a one year. Still. I feel like my heart is breaking at the idea of leaving him behind - it might not break as sharply if I know who will be looking after him.

Cameron's face, post lick >< 

2020

Verbal approval. January departure.