In the words of the prophet...

In the words of the prophet, Dave Matthews, "Open up my head and let me out..."

So we're 8 days from travel, and our carefree lifestyle isn't changing much. Lots of little projects to accomplish (cat flap on the basement door so the kiddos don't experiment with gravity there), packing still to be done, and lists to be made. Okay, so I generally leave it to C to make the lists. It's always been my way to keep the to-do list in the place where I have the most room -- my big, mostly empty head. But lately the empty spaces seem to be filling up.

Let's face it, we're about to undergo a radical, life-changing transition, and we find ourselves as worried about helping others cope with that change as with dealing with it in our own hearts. Friends and family are counting down with us, and trying to gauge our emotional barometers as t(ravel)-day approaches. My bosses are clearly a lot more concerned about whether brownie baking will go as well without me for a short week than what two new children in a new house with a new family will do to my lifestyle short- and long-term (as wonderful as they've been to me over the years, they haven't asked me once about how any of this actually feels). We're panicked about our new daughter's ever-present pink coat (she's wearing it in all the pictures) and whether she'll have to leave it behind. J wondered aloud last night about whether we'll pay attention to him any more once the newbies come home. And it seems like suddenly all our alma maters (we have 5 between us) are calling and asking if we can spare some cash for capital campaigns. Maybe when we come back will send them some birr. Think they'd give us a good conversion rate?

Makes you wish the idea of the pensieve from Harry Potter was real, in a way.

But like C said a few weeks ago -- maybe an 18-hour flight is just what we need. Anyone have reading suggestions? I have a library card and a gift certificate for Barnes and Noble, and maybe I'll get a spare few minutes in the next week (between cat flaps, storm doors, brownies, laundry, packing, inventory, training, recipe development, shopping, list-making, and holding J very close as often as possible) to look for literature.

So in the words of the prophet: "Open up my head and let me out...BABY!!"