You know that English World War II slogan “Keep Calm and Carry On”?  I love that slogan.  (I even have a bookmark with it.)  But I also like the silly adaptations that some artists and companies have come out with.  For instance, “Keep Calm and Put the Kettle On” or “Keep Calm and Bake On” – I’ve been considering adding a print with one of those slogans to my kitchen.  And recently in Kramerbooks I happened upon a journal with the slogan “Now Panic and Freak Out.”  It cracks me up.  Except for when it hits a little too close to home.

I was making steady progress on Peanut’s room.  I had…

• Cleared the clutter from the baby’s room
• Painted the walls a bright, happy yellow
• Purchased some furniture (a dresser and crib, plus crib mattress)
• Purchased Peanut’s bedding and a few art and decor items (not nearly everything, but a start)
• Sent her big art piece off for framing

And then this happened…

I was getting kind of worried about getting everything done by my October 20th due date.  And then the universe threw me a gigantic curve ball, in the form of a baby who showed up two months early.  Suddenly, decorating the nursery wasn’t the top item on my agenda anymore.  Hubby and did what we could do in the evenings, but we were pretty drained after the long days in the NICU.

Here’s the blitz of activity starting just before Peanut’s arrival:

• Hubby put the crib together (such a typical “Dad” thing to do, right?).  We ordered our crib, dresser, and most of the decorative elements from Land of Nod, the baby and kids’ arm of Crate & Barrel.  And… WOW.  They’re not paying or perking me to say this (like I’m important enough, ha) and we paid for everything we got from Land of Nod ourselves, so I really mean it when I tell you we’ve been insanely impressed with them.  Beautiful pieces, great quality, fast and professional delivery, AND they sent us an Aden + Anais muslin swaddling blanket as a “thank you” for buying our crib from them!  Well played, Land of Nod, well played.
• Peanut’s rocking chair arrived from Pottery Barn Kids – it’s purrrrrrty.
• I ordered curtains, book and toy storage, and various decorative elements and then piled them in the corner of the room.
• We stocked up on diapers, wipes, baby bath products and first aid items so that we were ready to take care of Peanut when she came home from the hospital.
• A couple of hubby’s very kind coworkers picked up Peanut’s big art piece from the frame shop, where it had languished for weeks because they called me to tell me it was ready on the day I was put on bed rest, four days before Peanut’s untimely arrival.
• Washed Peanut’s linens and made her bed (and you’ll get pics soon – wait until you see her bedding, it’s so stinking cute I even wish it came in grown-up sizes).
• Washed and put away all of Peanut’s adorable tiny little outfits – she wore a few of her preemie t-shirts in the hospital, but the rest (and newborn-sized clothes that people have bought for her to grow into) got laundered and put away to wait for her to come home.
• Installed book ledges and put away toys.
• Installed curtain rods and hung curtains.
• Set up her toiletries and diapering station for easy middle-of-the-night access.
• Hung Peanut’s big print between her windows, wall letters over her dresser and flower hooks on her doors, and slapped some decals above her crib (not my original plan, but let’s be honest, hardly anything has gone according to my original plan with this kid).

The first few weeks after she was born were a whirlwind of figuring out the NICU, and hubby and I were both completely wiped out at the end of each day.  We’ve got a better handle on things now – I think – and Peanut’s nursery ended up being very close to ready (only missing a couple of decorative items) in time for her homecoming.  And the fact that it’s not impeccably decorated to my exacting standards?  Meh.  I know that all babies need is food, shelter, clean diapers on their butts, and lots and lots of love – and Peanut has all of that in spades.  The rest is just gravy.  I have one small project to share with you, and then the final nursery tour to follow…