Getting a Thule (we pronounce it TOOL)

One of our first purchases for this great cross country trip will be this Thule ("2lee")Atlantis 2100XL roof top box for my 4Runner:

With all the things we will be transporting ourselves, and me having the pleasure of the company of a dog and two cats for our 2 day trip, it's a necessity, though I hate the fact that it is so damned expensive.  But it will be very useful for camping trips and skiing adventures (it is actually long enough to fit Mike's enormous skis), so I believe it is a justifiable purchase.  Now I just have to decide if I want to have instant gratification and order it from Amazon (and save about $70 over REI's price and get it by this weekend and be able to use it camping over the 4th) or use a gift card we received for our wedding and order it from REI (end up saving $100 due to gift card, but list price is more expensive than Amazon AND it will take 2 weeks to get to the REI store).  I'm leaning toward Amazon and the using the REI card for something more "fun".  Will have to chat with the hubby about this (that's fun to say!).

Mike's purchase for this trip will be a cap for his truck; something he has been wanting/needing to buy for a while now.  We'll be able to put a bunch of things in there that we don't want on a moving van.  I will also be getting a hitch put on my SUV in case we determine I need to pull a trailer.  We both need to take our respective vehicles in for a tune up/inspection to make sure everything is good for a long drive.  I'm not looking forward to that expense, but again, it is necessary.

There is SO much to do, and so little time to do it all in.  The end of July is going to come quickly.  Did I mention we still need to find somewhere to live?!  AAGGGGGGGHHHHHHH!  It's hard to line up movers when we don't have a definitive end destination yet.  I didn't have a binder for the wedding, but I will be getting one together for this move.  And I don't want to think about the logistics of transporting 3 animals, especially since 2 of the 3 are terrified of the car.  All I have to say is: valium - for the kitties and maybe for me once we're done. :)