Busy busy!

Things have been CRAZY busy here lately.  I’ve been sick, both cars have been having issues, Mark’s been super busy with work and we’ve been trying to get ready for our trip to Austria this weekend.

Today I finally went to the doctor after feeling icky for a few weeks.  It turns out they think I have allergies here, and since I’ve gone so long without treating my allergies, they’ve given me a full blown sinus infection.  So I’m on 6 different medicines now, including a high dose of antibiotics that I have to take for 2 weeks.  Blah.  But hopefully I’ll start feeling better!

On a side note, the doctors office is literally right next to the flight line.  About 6 jets took off while I was at the doctors and the entire building shook.  It was great!  Then when I I was leaving I got in my car, and watched a jet take off RIGHT in front of me.  There was nothing between me and that jet, that was just a couple hundred feet in front of my car.  When I pulled out of the lot and was driving parallel to the runway, another jet took off and we were side by side for a few seconds.  And then once I got to the end of the runway, another jet took off and flew right over me!  I know I could be a little biased, but those things are just cool!  There is nothing that isn’t cool about those F-16’s.  They’re so sleek and loud and my heart about busts with pride that my very own husband, and many of our friends, fly them.

So our piece of junk Lancia almost didn’t start again today.  After about 5 minutes of trying to start it, Mark finally got it started.  I hate that stupid car.  It DOESN’T start at least once or twice a month.  We were watching Top Gear the other day and they did a piece on Lancia’s.  They talked about how great they were while they drove it down the road, except random pieces kept falling off as they drove it.  It was kinda funny, except not when you own one…  =)  (You can view it HERE (dad).  The funny part starts at around 3:45.) 

And while I’m complaining about cars, the drivers door lock on the Passat has decided to stop working so now we can’t lock our car….  The car we’re taking with us to Austria this weekend.  Perfect.  The plus side is that there is a VW dealership fairly close to our house with a guy who speaks very good English, thank GOD.  I had no clue how I was going to explain what was going on with the stupid car to an Italian that didn’t speak English.  The English – Italian dictionary only goes so far, and conveniently I had left it at home anyway.  But he was super nice and helpful and the car has an appointment next Monday after we get back.  Hopefully it won’t be too expensive.

So in Austria, you’re required to have winter tires on your car to drive there from November 1st to April 15th.  The Passat does not have winter tires on it…. Not by any stretch of the imagination.  They’re about as far OPPOSITE of winter tires that you can get.  They’re hugely fat, and very low profile, instead of tall and skinny like winter tires usually are.  But to get winter tires for that car would mean spending around $1000, and there is no way we were going to spend that much money for 1 weekend in Austria.  (Italy doesn’t have those requirements because it rarely snows down here.)  So we finally got some snow chains, although we read online that snow chains can interfere with the ABS and brake lines on the car, so if we do have to use them, there’s a chance the snow chains will clip the brake lines and then we’ll be without brakes.  Fantastic!  They’re getting heap loads (technical term) of snow up in Tirol lately, but hopefully the AWD-ness (another technical term) of the Passat will get us by.  Fingers crossed!

Other than that, not too much is going on.  I need to do another post about Abbie, hopefully with a video, but that’ll have to wait until later.  She has her 18 month appt next Monday (when she’ll be 19 months old.. oops), so I post how that goes then.

Hope you’re all geared up and ready for the Holidays!  I’m getting nervous about upcoming visitors, as usual, but I’ll get over it.  Lately I haven’t had much time to think, let alone worry, anyway.  =)