Tomorrow we leave for Europe! I just finished working a week of night shifts and while I thought I could get a lot done outside of work, I've of course left it all until the last minute. Yesterday I spent a few hours at the mall buying some generic t-shirts, a teesie-weensie umbrella, a voltage converter and a few gifts. Turns out that my first cousin, and my second cousin are going to make the trek to Berlin to visit us. I have a very, very small family and these are virtually the only relatives I keep in semi-contact with. It'll be interesting to see them as the last time I saw my 1st cousin was 6 years ago, and my 2nd cousin was about 20 years ago.

Spring has finally sprung here in Ontario and we've been spending a lot of time cleaning up the backyard. The forsythia bush is in full-flower and Mr. Mao has discovered a new perch on top of the fence. He was able to get up there, but then needed help getting down. Silly Kitty.

Last night I was packing for our trip and I suddenly realized that I hadn't seen The Dutchess in a while. Usually she is giving us the googlie-eyes begging for food every few hours. We looked in every nook and cranny in the house and finally came to the conclusion that she must be outside, although neither of us could remember letting her out. We ended up walking around the neighbourhood looking for her and just when we were about to give up we found her! She was sitting three doors down at a house that looked very similar to ours. The people there must have taken pity on her as there was kibble and water there for her. She must have been wondering why we (they) wouldn't let her in! Poor girl! I put a thank-you note on their door this morning...there's a new way of meeting the neighbours!

So, I'm off to Europe tomorrow, expect tons of pictures when I get back mid-May.