@Kate – absolutely! I did not want to be caught unprepared. Of course now I’m walking around with a stapler in my purse because my preparation doesn’t extend to actually putting everything back where it should be…

@Coree- good for your 7-year-old! 13 miles is no joke. He’s a total trooper.

Definitely. I need to renew my American passport but have been putting it off, b/c I travel on a British passport normally and getting American size photos is a faff. But I like having the 2nd as backup, in case of theft, etc. Putting it on my to do list for next week.
I went down hard with a migraine on Saturday, but recovered and we had a slightly damp cycle ride on Sunday. My 7 year old is doing a charity cycle challenge, so has to rack up the miles (100 in 40 days), so we’re out rain or shine. He did an amazing 13 miles with no complaint, so I felt like I got good exercise and good family time. We were covered in mud by the time we got home, so all took turns having a nice warm bath.

@Marcia- I agree with your husband! Yep, the “penny wise, pound foolish” phrase comes to mind. Why be nervous about when your passport is showing up before an international trip that could cost thousands of dollars…because you didn’t want to pay a $60 expediting fee??

(I’m going to add a PSA here that you should always expedite your passport application/renewal. If you can afford to travel internationally, you can afford to pay the expediting fee, and I have seen some folks cut it very very close with trips that were 3-4 months away…).

reminds me of something my husband said years ago “if we can afford to move house we can afford to pay for professional movers” 🙂

good advice!