our final day/night as josh & kirsten...

today is a busy day at our homestead. josh took the day off of work so he could finish up a new closet in our room. that way our kiddos can have their own closets! and we are doing some last minute organizing of toys, bath stuff, sippy cups, etc. we got so much stuff at our shower that i think i need to add a room on to our house just to hold it all. don't get me wrong, i am very, very grateful. but there's a lot of work involved in creating a place for all the new stuff.

i have never been a big fan of letting toys and other children's items overtake any room of one's home. unless of course you are lucky enough to have a playroom. so, i am trying to figure out what toys to keep in the living room for everyday play and what toys to store in the basement for rainy day play. the kids foster mom sent over a great fisher price barn that they had at her house. and we registered for and received a great fisher price noah's ark. i think these items will take up residency in the living room, at least for awhile.

i am going to organize all of their little people, cars, animals, etc. into separate small storage boxes. i got this idea from my former nanny boss. she's a brilliant organizer! this system works well because every like item goes together in one box. then when the kids want to play with the little animals, we get out the little animal box.

i think we'll keep a few toys in their rooms too. at least our daughters. she got a couple of sweet streets sets. these are so cute and affordable too. you can build a whole little village, or just have a few of the sets. i highly recommend these. and of course, her baby dolls, barbies, and girly stuffed animals will also be in her room. they are in a cute basket on the bottom shelf of her night stand.

in the midst of all of the organizing and thinking we are crazy for what's to come, we are going to take some time out to have a date tonight. we have decided to dine at one of our favorite little italian places, zeppes. we have some gift certificates for a really, really great and expensive place, but we figured we'll save those for another time and go some place we know we'll enjoy.

i am sure i will experience a wide range of emotions tonight. sadness of the ending of our 'just us' time and excitement for the beginning of our family. the emotions i hope to feel most though, are that of love for my husband. i couldn't do any of this without him. everytime i have felt like throwing in the towel, he has kept me going. everytime i have doubted my ability to take on motherhood of three overnight, he has spoken of his belief in me. everytime i have wondered if we should have sought infertility treatment before adopting, he has reminded me of all we have learned over the past two and a half years. everytime i have felt like i am in this on my own, he jumps in and reminds me he's right by my side, and that's where he'll stay.

so together we journey through this day of 'just us' into our tomorrow of mom, dad, and three children. i have a feeling it's going to be a great beginning to the next chapter in our lives.