Packing under a full moon.

I have so much I want to write about...so many bloger-sations run through my head all day long but I never find time to sit and write them all down. Since the moment we passed court and were told we would travel in 2 weeks I have been constantly running. Here it is, 11pm, and at this moment I am doing a load of laundry, hard boiling eggs, sterilize-boiling bottle nipples, and downloading podcasts, all while trying to jot down a few things here. Those of you who have been given 2 weeks to travel understand where I am at mentally, emotionally and physically... must multi-task at all times!

And it's not that I have such incredibly important things to write about but still, it's nice to jot it down, to have it here so we can look back later and remember this crazy time unlike any other.

I want to write about how, at my very core, I Am A Traveler. I love to go, see, move, do, sit in new places were I don't understand the language. I like to take long trips with very few possessions. I have a habit of quitting my job and taking off for 6 months to continents I've never been to before. And when you are a Traveler, that means you are a very good packer. I know how much contact solution I use in a month down to the ounce. I actually like only having 3 outfits to choose from for months and months at a time. I know which adapters to use in which countries. I routinely suck the air out of ziplock bags in order to flatten my clothes even more so I can use a smaller suitcase. I designed and had my mom sew my own special hidden money pockets that I use in place of those stupid money belts that everyone can see a mile away. I am good at selecting and packing essentials for long trips. It's what I do, it's who I am.

I am now in over my head.

All day my head runs in circles....How many cans of formula do I need for 8 feedings x 8 days x two kids? How many diapers for two kids who may or may not get sick? Wait, I need bottle liners? Do I want more short sleeve onesies or more long sleeve onesies? How many pairs of socks do non-walking 4 month olds really need? Do I need lice medication and scabies medication? What are scabies? Wait--my kids don't have hair--cancel the lice meds! How many wipes... two for each diaper change, 8 changes a day x two kids for 8 days, that's 256 wipes! If Twin A weighs 12lbs and eats 4-5 oz every 3-4 hours and Twin B weighs 9.5lbs and eats 3-4 oz every 2-3 hours than how many bottle nipples do I need to bring?

Did I mention I know how much contact solution to take on a 4 month trek through SE Asia?

I want to write about the nursery. Which is a lovely hodge podge of old and new and borrowed and bought and even a few things bartered. We have lots of trinkets from our travels and even a few things from when we were both babies. Because the first thing we got for the nursery was the Robert Indiana HOPE print (created for Obama's campaign) the nursery has somehow become a red, white and blue theme. Sometimes I find The Esquire just sitting in the nursery, looking at all the little things, dreaming of what's to come.

I want to write about how simultaneously overjoyed and terrified I am. I was a nanny for a few years, so I know what it's like to spend all day with two kids. But those kids were different ages and more importantly, they weren't MINE. I went home at 6pm. Don't get me wrong, I still love those kids with all my might but they weren't mine. On Monday Aug 17th someone will hand us two humans... and they WILL be mine. Forever. For EVER. That is the happiest and scariest word I know these days.

I want to write about how fabulous all our friends and family have been since we passed court. My mom went out and instantly bought a pack and play so the twins have a place to sleep at her house. My father-in-law tracked down an old friend in Addis Ababa so we will have a friend to show us around. Our neighbors have been popping by offering to run little errands. My best girlfriends have been sending us hand-me-downs. This lovely lady put up with me for 5 hours as I hemmed and hawed over changing pad covers and debated the ethics of all little girls clothes having "Princess" stitched on them. She took me by the hand and said "this lotion, this diaper cream, this bathtub." She is the only reason I am not still standing in Target right now trying to decide between the blue blanket and the green one.

I want to write about the amazing full moon that is out tonight. There was a time when I could tell you exactly where I had been for every full moon for almost a 3 yr span. I always look at the full moon and wonder where I'll be the next time it comes around. Tonight it hit me, with a jolt, that the next time the Man in the Moon is at his fullest I'll be home, with my husband. And children. You would think after a year of waiting and 6 days of non-stop shopping that that thought wouldn't have surprised me as much as it did. At what point will this be old hat?

I want to write about so much more but the washer is done and the eggs are over boiled (I did pause to rescue the nipples). It's almost midnight...almost Thursday Aug 6th...almost one day closer to meeting our kids....