Before we go.

I haven't posted anything for over a year but have decided to do a little travel blog/diary as C and I are off on a trip across Canada.

This is not the first holiday we've taken or even our first long distance flight but it is our first trip of this length and scale together, just the two of us. C is now 6 and I think he is old enough now to appreciate and enjoy travel.

Our first stop is Toronto where we are staying with friends who are currently living there. We are spending 6 days with them and then we board The Canadian train to the Rockies for a few days in Jasper, from there we will get back on the train to Vancouver. We stay in Vancouver for four days and then we will sadly come home and back to reality.

So before we go. We are nearly packed I've always been a last minute throw it all in the suitcase packer and mostly this is fine but there has been the off occasion where I've arrived somewhere without clean underwear, pjs or toothbrush. Recently there was a stay in a Travellodge after a music festival where I forgot my overnight bag completely and found it all ready to go when I arrived home hungover the following lunchtime.
I will be all packed by time I go to bed tonight though....

This week has been all about double checking all our plans and making sure I had printed out all the tickets, paperwork etc. I was feeling smug and organised on Monday evening about 11pm until I casually flicked through the Lonely Planet guide book to check the rules for booster seats for children when a small paragraph caught my eye about Lone Parents. Being a single parent travelling alone with a small child I quickly read what it said and began to panic. Apparently I needed a legally witnessed consent to travel form signed by my ex husband even though we have joint parental responsibility and I have residency of C. I googled this and really began to panic, some websites recommended taking your divorce paperwork, child's birth certificate, custody documents and the consent to travel document. I spent the witching hour sat on the floor of our spare bedroom swearing and surrounded by divorce paperwork.
First thing in the morning I checked with the very helpful Foreign Office and they confirmed I did need a letter of consent but the rest was not necessary. They guided me to a draft of the letter I could use and registered us with their Locate service so that should we have any issues the British Consulate in Canada would know our basic details and be able to come to our aid quickly.

I then had to phone the ex and ask him very nicely if I drafted the consent letter he would sign and courier back to me. At work I rushed round with a colleague to the legal department to ask one of the lawyers if they would be happy to witness it for me. After the promise of holiday sweets they agreed to sign it. Phew! Just needed to get it written to the ex and back before Friday.
The ex did sign and send back and it arrived on Wednesday. Thursday I signed it and it was witnesses by a lawyer at work.

So we are all set to go....except I've still got to finish the packing...