Nursery Reveal (finally)

Finally, finally, FI-NAL-LY the nursery is done. We've been waiting for-ever for the crib to come in. This has been the most painstaking process, but thankfully I love the finished result, and it came out very close to my original plan. A little back story. Back in November, we started to get the feeling that our adopted son or daughter might come to us with less time on the clock, so to speak, than we originally thought. When we first started the adoption process we thought that we'd be matched with a situation with 8-12 weeks of the pregnancy left, but what we were seeing was often so much less than that. Often 3 weeks or less (if only we'd known what we'd actually get). I knew that I didn't want to throw a room together in a couple of weeks... not that there's anything wrong with that. It's just that I've dreamed about my nursery since I was a very little girl. I remember watching Father of the Bride Part 2 and looking at the unbelievable room that Frank designs and thinking, THAT-that will be my room. I knew what I wanted would take more time, so I was forced to decide. I either needed to be willing to be happy with a room I could put together on the fly, or I needed to be okay with starting a room for a baby that was only a hope and a prayer at that point.

We started very slowly. In December, my mom and I just went out to casually look at furniture and see what was available, what I might like, ect. Well, that trip really motivated me. I'm not sure why I thought you could walk in and walk out with your crib, dresser, and rocker, but that proved to not be the case. Sam and I decided that we'd slowly begin to work on the room. We knew in light of our goal to work on the nursery before the match, that we would not know the gender. Thankfully, neutrals would be my go to choice for a nursery. In light of our infertility journey, and as I thought about the space and using it prior to the match, I really wanted a calm, tranquil space, one that I could sit in and dream, pray, and wait. In January, I stumbled across a great deal on some Pottery Barn Kids bedding that I thought could work for a boy of a girl (and that I really loved). We also got a GREAT deal on a rocker from Pottery Barn Kids. And slowly the idea for the room began to take shape. We started to clear out the room that would turn into the nursery. I began to plan a little more and created a Pinterest board of things that I liked. Eventually, I whittled that down to create "the plan."

The first purchase for the room was this quilt. The colors
and design of the room were inspired by this.

I'd love to give you a tour of the little space we've created for Garrison (and let's be real here, it's mostly for me). Won't you come in?

This is the view when you walk in the door. Maybe a bit cramped with the
rocking chair,  but we're making it work. The crib and dresser are by
Dolce Babi. The traditional crib is brand new (which is why it took FOUR
months to receive) and I LOVE it. 

Same thing, just giving you an idea of layout… the dresser is directly
across from the window. The stencil on the wall is inspired by
the pattern on the quilt and sheets.

A close up of the quilt-- the inspiration behind the stenciled wall.

Photos are from Garrison's newborn session by Jessica Tanner.

We actually left the room the same color (Sherwin Williams Worldly Gray)
we originally painted when we moved in… miraculously it worked
out better than I was expecting. We added the board and batten because
A- I love it and B- it helps make the gray furniture pop.

We added the two shelves on either side of the dresser to give some
space to place a few personal touches. The shelf on the left has a photo
from Garrison's newborn shoot in a frame from my great aunt. The gold
animals are from my shower and the print is the words to "Oceans" by
Hillsong given to me by a sweet friend.

The shelf on the right has a letter G wrapped in gray yarn (because Pinterest
said to), another golden animal (I need one more), a photo box of all of
the prints from Garrison's newborn shoot, a ceramic baby shoe with his birth
stats, and the frame of his monthly stats. I'll replace the monthly stats with
a family photo as soon as I get one printed.

The rocker is from Pottery Barn Kids. It's admittedly less about functionality
and more about how much I freaking love that rocker. My dear, sweet friend
Jennie made the blanket on the rocker for Garrison. It's one of my favorite
things! The curtains are also Pottery Barn Kids. It's the world's smallest window
for the biggest, thickest, heaviest, curtains, but again, I really love them.
Oh, and cat is a bonus feature. She blends quite well, don't ya think?

Two hand-lettered prints hang on either side of the
window. These are both from the etsy shop: PENscriptink.
This one is Psalm 61:2.

The second print is part of the hymn, "It is Well with My Soul."
Rachel from PENscriptink did these prints custom for me
and I painted plain white mats to get some extra gold.

To the right of the window is a little blanket ladder
Sam made for some of our favorite blankets.

On either side of the closet I hung a set of prints of baby animals.
This beautiful artwork is from the etsy shop: studioQ 

I chose the penguin because my incredibly talented friend
 Kristin is an interior designer and she LOVES penguins and she
let me pester her for weeks with questions about the room.

The peacock was a custom order from studioQ to tie
in with the quilt from Pottery Barn Kids. 

We knew we'd need more storage and more logical 

use of the closet space.  Sam made this from IKEA

shelving. All of the storage containers are from Target. 

A close up of Garrison's "library." The "A" and "Z" bookends are one of
the only crafts I made for the room, though it feels like the
room was one giant craft project.

In the corner you can see the puzzle from our fundraiser…
it's not hung properly yet, but you get the idea.

Probably Garrison's least favorite room choice-- I removed the ceiling fan
and had Sam install this light fixture. I'm pretty sure Garrison would have
preferred the ceiling fan…you live and learn. However, I like it,
and Sam installed a dimmer so it's great for bedtime.

So that's pretty much it. It was definitely a labor of love, and I'm pretty sure I'm the only one who loved any of the labor. Sam will probably never again let me say, "I have an idea." I'm so thankful that he put up with all of my ideas and worked so hard on all the projects. From installing crown to board and batten and from closet shelving to light fixtures, it was a lot of work, but I love the finished product. Garrison might just keep this room until he's 18.

Disclaimer- I put the giant stuffed elephant, quilt, and bumpers on just for the purpose of photographing the room. They are all carefully packed away again. No one need feel compelled to warn me about bumpers or suffocation or anything. : )