Nursery update. . .

We got our crib in the other day! It is very pretty - and was quite easy to put together. It seems well made and sturdy, so I'm happy I spent the money on a quality brand.

I also put up the wall decals and artwork. The pictures are a little dark, but it gives you an idea:

The decals are really cute in real life. The room may seem a little sparse, but I want the space to be really calm and serene - not busy. All that's left to add is a small night table and lamp next to the glider; the dresser will go in the closet for now.

I had also added some small corner shelves near the changing table. I thought they would provide a nice little storage space for smaller items:

The curtains are done!!!

Behold, our family room before painting and new curtains. A nice room - just kind of boring and vanilla.

Since we had so much time to kill this summer, what with waiting for a baby and all, I thought I would take on a little project to give the room a little more flair.

Well, I'm finally finished with our family room curtain project - hurray!! The construction of the panels went smoothly, but I did learn some great techniques and tricks along the way. The installation of the hardware was another story, though. . .

I used a local handyman contracting firm that had great reviews and an excellent BBB rating. The gentlemen they sent out was very nice, but not terribly well-equipped. He had basic tools and, fortunately, a mitre saw in the trunk of his Volvo (seriously), but no small hardware, parts, etc. I guess I was expecting a dude with a van lined with tools and little bins of parts and hardware - you know, prepared for anything. I was also a little ticked when they told me he would show up at 9 am and that didn't happen. I gave a detailed description of the job (mount curtain hardware on 19' wall) to the office when I booked the appointment, but the guy calls me at 8:30 and asks me what the job was?!? So, he has to go to the shop and pick up an extension ladder, delaying his arrival almost an hour. Not so much. . .

The rest is a long and tragic story involving 2 trips to Lowe's (1 of which was unecessary as it turns out) and 6 hours of labor - I won't bore you with it. With the exception of some disappointment over a center sconce piece not working with the other hardware pieces, it turned out OK. Here's the final result:

The paint is almost undectectable in these pictures because of the lighting. In the afternoon and evening, though, it makes the room much warmer and more elegant. Darling hubby seems quite pleased with the results and keeps telling me how great the curtains look. It really does tranform the room; every time I walk in it feels like a new house!!

Nursery is starting to take shape!!

Now that my family room curtain project is finished, we emptied all the sewing equipment out of the nursery. Our glider and ottoman arrived from Babies R Us, so I went ahead and put that together. It's so comfy and cushy - I hope it will be great for those long nights when we have a little one!

I also assembled our changing table. I got a great deal on it at Target ($71.99!), so I was pleasantly surprised at how sturdy it felt once it was assembled. I didn't want to spend too much on something we'd only use for a couple of years. The picture below shows the room with the changer and glider. It's a petite room, but all that's left to add is the crib (on the wall where I'm standing to take the picture) and a small nightstand to the left of the glider. I'm really loving the wall color; it looks so pretty in the afternoon light. Please ignore the large plastic bags on the right of the picture - those hold my family room curtains, which are rolled onto tubes and stored in the bags.

Next up for the nursery: I pick up our crib tomorrow!! It arrived before the dresser and nightstand, but the box is quite large and we would have made two trips to pick up the stuff in our truck no matter what. Hopefully, the other pieces will arrive soon and I can put together the rest of the room. I also have some wall art and cute decals to decorate the walls. And I'm going to add some simple shelves and brackets for storing books.

The family room curtains go in tomorrow - hurray for this project being complete!!!! The handyman will be here at 9 am to help mount the hardware and put up the panels, so I'm looking forward to getting some pics of them when it's all complete.

In closing, I'd like to send out a big congratulations to my fellow blogger, Wendy, and her husband Steve, who's adopted baby daughter was born this morning!! I wish them every blessing and hope they have a smooth transition from the hospital to home.

2 months - and a few nibbles. . .

This week marked two months since homestudy approval. I have to tell you, the time goes by quickly!! I've been plugging away at the curtains for the family room. The silk fronts are complete and now I'm constructing the linings. That should go quickly and I hope to have them done by next week.

In other news, our SW has already asked us about 2 different situations with birthmoms! Nothing concrete yet; she usually gives us a quick synopsis of some factors about the birthmom that may make us hesitant to be shown and then we can decide if we want to be considered. So far, in both cases, hubby and I have agreed that the particulars are not deal-breakers for us. Besides, even if we are selected form a profile standpoint, we still have a chance to meet the birthparent(s) and decide if we are go/no-go at that point.

We've agreed that we are willing to be shown to darn near all situations. Not because we are desperate for a baby, but more because we wholeheartedly believe that God has already chosen our child for us. We feel that it is silly of us to quibble over "possibilities" and "potential risks" about certain medical or other issues in the birthparents when some of these same issues may have occurred in a biological child of ours.

We know that God will entrust us with a child that we have the skills and resources to care for. If that child has a medical problem or if the birthparent(s) face(s) challenges, then we will do our best to satisfy His plan. How blessed are we that we will get the chance to do just that?