This will just be a quickie - hey, the action around these parts has been so non-existent you’ve got to be happy with whatever you get - right?

Tomorrow morning we’re off to San Diego in our lovely rental mini-van (leather seats and an Ipod doc - what more could we need). We plan to spend our days playing in the sand with Leigh, Jason and Kaia, and exploring the city I yearn to live in (if only that damn PowerBall would come through for me).

I’ve outdone myself in over-packing (12 outfits for two days - that is reasonable, right?). On top of the clothes there is the huge bag of sand and water toys, Bella’s Diego Chair (can’t leave home without it), a big box and cooler of food, the camcorder, my camera equipment, laptop (to download pictures just in case I fill two 1 gig memory cards in my two days). Minimalists we are not.

I’m nervous though. I made myself go swimsuit shopping for the first time since Bella was Julianna’s age. My black, one piece mom-suit was far, far past it’s prime - nubby fabric, snapped elastic and a flap in the breeze shelf bra. Because I felt like I needed to get outside my comfort zone (and because Sam had been begging since he saw me in Brooke’s bikini last fall) I headed to Everything But Water to try on some two piece swim suits. The salesladies laughed at the look on my face as I contemplated the idea of myself, a small bit of fabric, a big mirror and fluorescent lighting. [I’m thinking the expression was a cross between hesitation/dread/disgust/longing/loathing/confusion and just a tiny bit of queasiness] Luckily for me (the queen of Libra-indecision), once I told her my bra size I had very few suits to choose from. In the end, I left with two bottoms and three tops (bottoms size 8/tops size 14 and could have taken larger if they had it; is that not ridiculous?) I also left significantly poorer - that place is committing highway robbery. As if that those little triangles of fabric really cost that much…

Other than during pregnancy and those nights in the hot tub with my mama-loves (mb, leigh-leigh and brooke for those of you who have not been paying attention) I have not worn a bikini in public since the summer of my wedding (when I weighed 110lbs - thankyouverymuch). I’m scared. Isn’t that silly?

Okay - I had more to say about body image, self-loathing and other lighthearted topics, but Sam is done his shower and it’s 12:28am and we’re supposed to leave first thing tomorrow….so I’m getting kicked off my computer.

Till next time….