NEVER TOO LATE: EASTER 2015

Well, this post is terribly late, but as I was going back through pictures the other day I realized I didn't want to forget Easter 2015.  I'll just blame it on Roo for my lack of gumption the past few months:)

I love what these pictures capture for our family: cuddles with sleepy babies, the sheer delight in hunting for Easter eggs, how my brother is one big kid (which I love), and that we all really enjoy being together.

Being about 17 weeks pregnant at the time, I was just beginning to show and cinched my belt up tight so that people could see my growing bump.  The thrill of what was in store for us became real that weekend when we were thrown into a house full of toddlers.  Crying, laughing, yelling, excited toddlers running around.  I had to take naps just watching them expend all that energy.

At one point, Wade and I looked at each other from across the room as the toddlers circled us.  I can't remember a time I could read Wade's mind better than in that moment: Can we really do this?

But then the older ones left, and we were left with the littlest who began playing quietly by herself.  One alone we can handle (or so we think now:)

We were learning a valuable lesson.  Embrace those crazy and energy-filled moments, because there will also be quiet times that will be fulfilling but also make you yearn for the excitable moments when you're all together again.

We watched the cousins play together that weekend and smiled knowing that our little one would soon be among them.  Chasing behind them, yelling at them to wait up, and getting big hugs from her older cousins.

It was a surreal moment and made me want to freeze everything as it was, just for a little while longer.

But it also made me want to speed up time to Easter 2016 when Roo is in these pictures, and we can look back and remember how things used to be, remark at how much has changed, and be thankful that some things, like our family, are still the same.

MAKING PROGRESS

I've talked here before how I've been nervous about getting everything done before the baby makes her debut.  Top of the list to get done has been the nursery.  Previously, this room was my husband's haven.  A place for him to live out all those boyhood fantasies of having an entire room dedicated to video games.

So for years, he scoured Craigslist, Goodwills, and garage sales to bring home just about every game system and game from the 80s and 90s created.  I exaggerate, of course, but when I would walk in there, it would certainly seem that way to me.

So many games.

Seriously, how many games does one grown man need?

Well, I guess I shouldn't be talking since I've amassed quite the stockpile of fabric and felt.

I had been starting the conversation of moving his stuff out of the room months ago.  In his mind I have 3 months left, which equals 3 months to finish things.  Wrong-o, buddy!  We need to get things done now so that I can still move around and add the fun stuff before I can't get off the couch.

After trying to get me to put it off another weekend by saying I needed to rest (I'm not falling for that anymore), he moved everything out of the room and we painted it.  A nice blank slate.  Perfect for adding fun touches of color.

The below pictures are how the room looked before.

And now it looks like this...

This is a pretty grainy shot from my phone, but better pictures are coming as we start adding things to make it Roo's room.

I'm not a big fan of home improvement projects, but with every swish of white paint over the blue, I felt an overwhelming flood of emotion that we were making this our daughter's room.  It still seems strange to say that.

Now I'm entrenched in deciding on crib sheets and the color to paint a dresser that will be the changing table.  Sometimes I feel paralyzed by the choices, but my mom has been so patient and helped me narrow things down.  I don't want to jinx it, but I feel like we're fairly close to getting things finalized.

A big THANK YOU to my mom and dad for helping us paint, keeping us on track, and for putting up with sore backs.




I'm linking up today with Life of Meg!