December means it’s time for the annual WordPress Snow Plugin to take effect. Ironically enough, the primary background color on this blog is the same color as the “snowflakes”. If it looks like your monitor is freaking out, trust that it’s me, not you.

December also means I’m inching closer to the big drive across the country. As I continue to prioritize the list of things I need to get done before hitting the road, the one item that remains at the top of the list is figuring out how to get the cats safely across the country in my car while also maximizing comfort. I’m not keen on keeping them in their carriers for 10-11 hours at a time, but I know that giving them free reign of most of the car presents its own set of challenges.

The current gameplan is to pack everything of importance in my trunk to give the girls the entire back seat to themselves. While I’m still determining the best approach for their litter box, and food situation, I know the most important aspect of this is their comfort with being in the car for an extended period of time. Building that comfort means test drives are required, which is exactly what happened yesterday.

Of course the one thing I haven’t mentioned throughout all of these initial preparations is my diabetes. Transporting my medication isn’t a big concern thanks to a portable mini-fridge that Dayle got me (that comes with an adapter for a car’s cigarette lighter port). Dining on the road isn’t a big worry either thanks to the prevalence of drive-thru establishments where needed. And I’ve done enough traveling to know what snacks are best to keep handy.

I’ll have a better idea of what I’ll have room for as packing and arranging becomes more final. I’ve still got time to figure all of this stuff out (as indicated by the newly placed widget on the homepage).