Update

I've been absent for a little while, but that's just because we've been crazy busy! Had a lovely bank holiday weekend off, which is a rarity, and I actually got to spend some time with Nick for our anniversary. N'aww!

So I'd say I'm approaching the halfway point in my savings, Nick's about two thirds of the way, and we've still got about eleven months to go! That's not including any currency we receive as gifts over Christmas, or any bonuses from work, or my Herbalife money! It's pretty safe to say that we're going to be fine on the money front of things. Once we get back from Spain at the end of May, we can start looking at flights and get our visas sorted - that's when it starts getting scarily real! I'm 80% certain I'm going to hand my notice in around the middle of September too, which means I'll finish work just before Christmas! And I can actually relax!! Shock, horror! My last paycheck would come through in January, so it means I'd have to work ultra hard at Herbalife or I'll just be dwindling away at my savings for two months, and also sitting on my backside for three!

That's something that really scares me too, handing in my notice. Then it's properly final. I've had a job the entire time I've been old enough to have one, and this is probably the only one I actually enjoy. Just the thought of it all being over and finished with... it's just scary, the first of many big steps. Eep!

We're trying to get everything we need bit by bit, so we don't have a huge cost at once, so for our birthdays (Nick's was late, mine's a bit early) we bought each other our back packs! Check these babies out...

How cool are they?! Nick's one has wheels and a little handle so you can pull it along; men love gadgety stuff like that, right? He'll probably be the one that's not complaining a week into our travels. Mine's more of a traditional travelling backpack, and if it gets really bad, I'm sure we can figure out a way to attach it to Nick's one (mwahaha!), but it also comes with a mini-me version! It's so cute! That way, when we go through the airport etc. or are walking about through town, I can keep all my money and passport with me - plus the laptop just about fits in there, so I can keep that close to hand to blog all our adventures! Ridiculously excited about these bags! When I posted the photos up on social media though, and showed them to other people, I was a bit miffed to hear some people say 'Oh, you're actually going then?'. No fucking shit sherlock. I wouldn't tell the entire world that we'd set a date to go if we wouldn't follow it through.

This day next year, we'll be... nearly at the end of our Europe run. Probably around Italy or Sicily, and approaching Spain, getting a nice colour so we don't look like aliens landing in Oz.