Only 12 Stamps...

I've had my passport for over six years now...



I only have another four years before I have to get it renewed. But as of today, I only have 12 stamps in it.



Now, before you get all "Why are you disappointed with only 12 stamps! That's more than most people!"... Please let me explain.

Or rather... Allow me to breakout the countries I have visited...

• Canada: 3 (stamps)
• Turks & Caicos: 3 (stamps)
• London: 2 (stamps)
• Baja (Mexico): 1 (stamp)
• Rome: 2 (stamps)
• Paris: 1 (stamp)

Funny enough, both London stamps were for business trips, not vacations. The T & C stamps were total vacations. (Again, this is the best place to vacation with small children.) Baja was for J & E's wedding in April. Paris and one of the Rome trips was for the "perpetual honeymoon" The husband and I take each year. (We've been to Rome, Paris, and the Turks & Caicos twice for perpetual honeymoons.) And then the other Rome trip was with Frogger this past June, when the writing workshop in Tuscany was cancelled and we found ourselves with two tickets on Alitalia Airlines that were non-refundable.

And then there's Canada.

The number of passport stamps is very misleading. I have been to Canada way more than three times in the past six years. I would put it at about 12 times, at least, in the past six years. It's just that when we fly to visit The Husband's parents in Canadian wine country, we fly to Buffalo, and then cross the border by car. In which case, they don't stamp your passport. So a bit of my stamps have been for really "non-vacation" purposes. Almost half of them, in fact.

So clearly, I have four years to get another 13 stamps, before the passport expires. That's my goal people. I wasnt a total of 25 country stamps in my passport when it expires in July 2012. I will be adding another stamp in December for the brother-in-law's wedding in Australia (which The Husband and I are counting as our "perpetual honeymoon" for this year.) But beyond that, I intend to knock a few more trips out of the way in the next three and a half years.

Where else would I like to go? Let's see...

1. Costa Rica
2. Mexico (again - maybe somewhere other than Cabo though)
3. Turks & Caicos (we've found our special place... so we will probably go there at least three more times before the passport expires)
4. Ireland (I'm a Mexican-Irish girl... I should visit the other motherland.)
5. Iceland (It's the land of Fire and Ice!)
6. Argentina (Kate has me thinking...)
7. Rome (Eek! I know... I've been there twice already. But I love it!)
8. Berlin (I spent a few years of my childhood living in Western Germany. I should really explore the other part of the country.)
9. Spain (Vicky Cristina Barcelona has inspired me.)
10. Greece (I originally wanted to go for my honeymoon. The Husband didn't want to go in the Summertime.)

Anyone else have any other places they think I should visit? I want my passport to really show that I am a traveler.