started the novel

Hey, yesterday I got the binder out and started asking myself questions about the plot and the characters of the story so that I can build an outline. So far, so good. I have written, as in HANDwritten a full page so far and am trying to decide where to start it. These characters have been with me for such a long time that I could literally start at their births, but that seems overlong and needless, I could start at the moment of crisis, which I most likely will, or I could start nearer to the end and flashback. These are just idle thoughts I have flitting through this interesting head of mine....interesting to me, at least.
I have named the characters...Inez, of the title, being the understanding latina widow, Anna, the owner of the Physician-assisted suicide clinic (honestly, have to find a better clinic type name), and Richard, the reason the 2 women strike up their odd friendship.
Physically, Anna is a certain blonde actress of my age that I admire, Inez is me and Richard is the same as B from my past.
Hopefully writing this out on a public post lights my fire and continues to make me write.

hoping to figure out how to homeschool while on trip

I know, I know that the trip is months off and all that jazz but I realized that bringing the right books and the right stuff on the trip for homeschooling....well it seems overwhelming, SUDDENLY!!! Ack. I am thinking, we'll just do something simple, then I think, OH, I can contact that company that offered to have the kids do some video blurbs on the internet and they will send us books, then I think, no, we will just bring the curriculum I am most comfortable with....
OK, I need to calm down and just look at what my kids are needing for this next year and just get that. ugh. Maybe I could hide under a pillow?

little by little...

John just came home from the beach with full wetsuits for the kids that will fit them while we are in Southern waters. Little by little, things that we get and books that we read and videos that we watch, makes the fact that we are leaving seem more real. John is showing them how to get the wetsuits on and I am imagining what it will be like when they are trying to surf in Peru or in Chile.
We watched a video on Peru and the city in the Clouds and I got frustrated with the kids reaction to it. I asked them for their thoughts and Teresa (especially) just said, "I dunno!" and shrugged and got all flustered. It made me excited to see Cuzco and Machu Picchu. Wow, we are going there! Leo said that since it was so far away from the surf that we would not go there and I had to correct him. We would have to go, considering that we are in that part of the world only this one time(as far as I know it will only be this one time).
I get the impression that when I talk about leaving in Nov. that people are thinking, "Yeah, right!" and thinking that we would not really go. My friends know that we will go. Now, for more research....sigh.

feeling groovy

Well, I am finally getting the trailer so that we can actually LIVE in it! Aaaahhhh. I got a binder out and will start my novel with an outline today. We have about 50 books out from the library, some are for the reading programs for summer that we are doing, some are for school (Story of the World, doncha know?) and some are for researching Central and South America, travel books. My problems with a lot of those travel books are that they are for "hotel" people, whereas we are campground people.
Reading the caution areas of those books, brought it home to me. We are going to the home of the malarial mosquito! Ack! We will need mosquito nets for both the grownups and the kiddoes. We will have to get innoculations against some of those crazy illnesses that preside down there. (Big breath, now don't panic, Toni). Everyone thinks I am so brave. Well, not feeling particulary brave or groovy all of the sudden.
That's it for today. Now I have freaked myself out and need to re-establish my equilibrium. Yoga, anyone?