Countdown is on...

and I'm not talking about Christmas (although that is around the corner too).   We'll be in Vienna in less than a month and I can hardly contain my excitement!  And, while it has been hard saying good-bye to our friends, I know we'll be back next fall so it's really not that long.

I am certainly bummed though that we will be missing out of one of Europe's greatest traditions - the Christmas Market.  We will be arriving right at the New Year so it'll be over, but the thought of a fabled Christmas market where you can exchange chain stores for cozy wooden chalets, Christmas music for angelic choirs and consumer frenzy for down to earth local holiday cheer makes me sad.  Just a different experience that I would love for my son to see.

In the meantime, I'm in a mad rush to finish Christmas shopping...thank God for online stores!