Getting Ready

We are experiencing the joys of getting our house ready to sell. I love our little house and will be sad to move but reality is we are out of room.
This is a house of firsts: first time home buyers, first time car owners (two paid off!), first time parents (as well as second and third times), first time "hunkering" down for a hurricane on our own (not one but two), along with many other small firsts that come with growing up, being married and paying bills. The experts say to clean out, add fresh coats of paint and try to hide all of the living that has goes on in the house. Yes, I will do that but what I would like to show is that this house has seen our family grow, which potential home buyers won't see because I am told to put away family photos. They won't see the fun because Jeff is painting over the crayon on the walls, the skid marks from the ride-on firetruck, push toys and walkers and patching the holes from various objects being catapulted from toddlers hands.
I am holding out as long as possible on cleaning out the girls room and bath toys. The obvious reason being that they might kill each other if they don't have something to play with but also because part of me thinks potential home buyers might find comfort in knowing that the bedroom holds one million toys and that 5 bath time Barbies, a mesh bag full of foam letters, two things of bubble bath, Cowabunga Coconut shampoo and one extravagant Barbie mermaid slide, all fit quite nicely in the bathtub corner shelf.