As we await final visa approval to legally
step foot in Luxembourg in the next few weeks, the stress of packing, and all
of the various administrative duties I still have to complete before our
adventure begins have been weighing heavily on my mind. I won't even get into
the fact that we are also simultaneously packing up our entire house to be put
in storage starting next week, but to do so, I have to plan and pack for our
trip first. Yeesh.
Fortunately, this isn't exactly our first
rodeo moving overseas. John and I moved to Seoul separately (and met there), then moved to Alabama together, then Hawaii, then I moved back to Ohio while he deployed to Iraq, then back
to Hawaii when he returned, then we moved to Ohio together. None of that
includes the four or five places we've moved to with Boo in her four years on
this Earth. I can confidently say that we are getting to be pros at knowing
what we need and how to pack minimally.
We are permitted to take four suitcases
each, and ship 500lbs. of household goods. Holy overkill, Batman. Fortunately,
we are arriving to a fully-furnished apartment, so I do not have to worry about
any appliances or linens. Thus, we want to keep it to as few suitcases as
possible, no shipping of goods. I plan to buy toiletries and a hair dryer over
there (my hair dryer blew up in Seoul even with an adapter and converter, so I
don't want to deal with that again).
For us, fitting everything into one
suitcase each isn't a volume issue, it's a weight issue. Winter clothes and
boots are heavy, so we will probably end up taking one checked suitcase each,
one carry on each (this way we have a small suitcase for weekend trips anyway),
and sharing one checked suitcase for overflow. I have a very minimalist wardrobe,
where I just add tights and sweaters to differentiate between seasons, plus I
have a heavy jacket and light jacket. Makes it easy to pack!
Europe won't be any colder or snowier than
Cleveland, so we already have all the necessary gear. Boo is currently a solid
4T, so I'm hoping no growth spurts, but if we have to buy her cute new clothes,
well, that's the heavy burden I must bear. *Excuse me while I feverishly feed
her milk and veggies*
I've also purchased luggage straps
to allow us to navigate the airports and get to a cab easily when we arrive:
In addition to clothes, we are taking
Boo's carseat, her three-wheeled Razor scooter (good PT for her bum knee..see
below), a stuffed animal or two, a few primers to practice math, reading, and
writing in the mornings, various electronics like laptops and iPads, an
eight-pack of outlet adapters, a years' worth of contact lenses, and a
ridiculous amount of medication. I've secured six months' worth of our vitamins
and prescriptions, including syringes so mama can relax and know her Boo is
covered.
Why so much medication? Are you guys
okay?? You arrogant American - you know there are pharmacies/drugstores in
Europe, don't you?
You see, though Boo and I are very healthy
individuals who rarely go to the doctor for illness, I have hypothyroidism, and
she has extended oligoarticular juvenile idiopathic arthritis, aka juvenile
rheumatoid arthritis. I require a daily Synthroid pill and bi-monthly blood
draws to stay healthy, and Boo requires weekly injections, a blood draw every
few months, and a daily multivitamin because her folic acid is depleted by the
drugs.
Yes, I'm aware the Luxembourgers (locally
called Bourgers) probably take multivitamins, but I don't speak French or
German (do the labels have English? Probably, but I don't know that with
certainty), and the 100% folic acid requirement is too important to not take a
few freaking bottles of vitamins to be completely sure. Even in Ohio, most
childrens' vitamins here don't have enough folic acid in one pill, and I have
to hunt for the right ones!
As for the prescriptions, I can't risk
shipping medication only for it to get stuck in customs. I am so thankful that
the wonderful doctors at Cleveland Clinic made obtaining so much medication a
relative breeze, and for the pharmacists at CVS for being awesome and quickly
obtaining everything I needed. Now, I just have to call customs and make sure I
don't get stopped for drug trafficking!
Spinning off why I'm taking so much
medication, the treatments make Boo's immune system a little weaker, so she is
unable to receive live virus vaccines right now (don't you fret, she is FULLY
vaccinated and covered until age 6 for now), and she must see a rheumatologist
every 4 months to check her blood cell counts. Thus, going without full health
insurance is a no-no. My health insurance with the state government, though
fabulous while in Ohio, only covers "true medical emergencies"
overseas, for which we are reimbursed later only if we've obtained all the
proper documentation in English. That isn't enough coverage to keep me
comfortable. Fortunately, we were able to switch over to John's medical
insurance, which does keep us covered and able to see doctors. I've even found
a pediatric rheumatologist in Luxembourg, and will call for an appointment as
soon as we arrive.
Because Boo and I will be doing so much
walking, we will not be needing a physical therapist for her knee (here she
goes every other week), but her therapist suggested we purchase shoes with a
gel heel to make sure her feet are fully supported. That's on my to-do list.
As for the other various administrative
tasks, John will have a work phone when we arrive, and I plan to get a SIM card
and continue using the same iPhone. I've heard rumors and need to research
whether or not I have to switch SIM cards each time I step foot into another
country, or whether the roaming charges aren't so bad. Boo and I plan to travel
extensively in Germany and France, so I don't want to get surprised with a big
bill.
The next few weeks are going to be a
little fast-paced and uncertain, but what lies ahead is so worth it! Boo and I
plan to go down to Washington, D.C. the first week of August to visit a few of
my friends living there and do a "domestic trial run" of us traveling
together alone and visiting tourist attractions/crowded areas. I'm
excited!
Next up: what am I going to bring on the
thirteen-hour flight to entertain Boo? I should probably get on that...
No comments:
Post a Comment