The Nursery is finally finished!

We're finally finished with Maddyx's room! It's been a work-in-progress for quite some time. Some procrastination and a lot of "just not being able to decide (commit)" on my part. We're super happy with the way it turned out. I may tweak a few things here and there (just can't help myself), but other than that it's ready for our baby! The entire room was planned around the rug. Which I found online for a STEAL!! It was originally picked out for our girl nursery, when I thought we were adopting a girl from Korea, but was easily transferable to a boys room. The next line of business was the furniture. This took a good amount of time to decide on, but I do love it! We (Kasey) did a decal on the wall, which was an ALL. DAY. PROJECT, but so worth it in the end!

I found this bookshelf on craigslist. It's a West Elm unit and I just sanded & repainted it white. It was a light wood to begin with. I'm very happy with it! The baskets I found at Target. Just found the green--soo excited about that!

These lights, IKEA. AND the biggest pain in the you-know-what to put together! Who knew you had to be a genius to figure a light out!

Just found this artwork online about 2-3 weeks ago. This was the finishing touch on the nursery. I just purchased the prints and framed them myself.

Before furniture and accessories...

Cooper really wasn't too sure about what was going on. He did know it wasn't about him, and that did not make him happy!
This is what we started with...

My Mental Checklist.........

Since this blog is about sharing my "Present Moments" I thought I'd share what's occupying my brain these days. It's pretty much "What the heck do I still need in order to be ready for Maddyx to come home?!?!"....So I'm taking my mental check list and writing it down in the blog. The list consists of what I already have, and what I think I still need. Now, all you Moms out there I'm looking for some comments and feedback. What am I missing?!?! Let me know! My crazy planner side is starting to get a little uneasy. :-)

Items I still need to decide on and purchase:

• Stroller - So we still need to decide on, and buy a stroller. We really only need it for our nightly walks with the dog and maybe for some outings. I've been doing a lot of research. I mean A LOT of research. Which, is totally within the norm for me and I think I've almost made a decision.... but still not ready to commit (remember the diaper bag dilemma? Yea, this is the same sort of situation!).
• Carrier - We need to get a carrier. Maybe even two. Thinking the Ergo and maybe the MOBY for bonding. This we will definitely need for our trip over to Korea since we will use it for traveling back home with Maddyx. Since they hold up to 45lbs, we'll be OK with our big 26lb guy!
• Toy Chest - so I'm on the hunt for some sort of toy chest (one for nursery and another for living room) that we can put all the toys in. Might have found one, but still searching.
• Play yard or pack n play - I think I want to go with the joovy room play yard since they're so much bigger. Figure this will be good when I need to cook or shower and can't be right with him.
• Bottles - I only have two....think I'm going to need a few more!
• Diapers - Yes, we have ZERO diapers or wipes at this point. What size diaper do I need? What brand should I get?? I know it's personal preference, but we need to start somewhere!
• Humidifier - I don't know.....do I need this? Seems like every parent I know has one, so I guess I probably do!
• Extra Crib Pad - Have one, but I'm thinking we'll definitely need at least one back-up.
• Rocking Chair for the Nursery - Now, I'm still on the fence about this one. Do I really need this?? He's going to be 13mos when he comes home and I don't know (realistically) how much rocking we're going to be doing. I honestly don't have room for one of the big comfy slipcover rockers (which I love) in the nursery, and the only other one that I LOVE is purely for looks and not really for function. (Eames chair, for all of you that care!) Any thoughts??

Major items off my list (wheeew!):

• Britax Cowmooflage Carseat - yaay! It's super funky and I. Love. It! This is for my car, Daddy's gotta get his own!
• Video baby monitor by Mobicam - Tested and confirmed it works. Looking right into crib.
• Temporal Artery Thermometer - Tested and we both have a current temp of 88 degrees.. :-)
• Bebesounds Nasal Aspirator - ummm these are kind of awesome by the way! And no, I did not test this one out.
• Crib & Dresser & Nursery furniture - Check (and love)! I'll post some pics later.
• Fisher Price Deluxe Booster Seat - Now, I opted for this instead of a full-on high chair. I just didn't know if we'd really need a high chair and couldn't see wasting the money if the booster seat would work just as well. Any thoughts on this???
• Bath soaps, washcloths, diaper cream - Check! Got all my California Baby stuff....can't wait to use it.
• Floppy Seat Shopping Cart Cover - Check! For the germafobic Mom. :-)
• Diaper Dekor - Check!
• Potty training chair - Check!
• Swing gate for top of stairs - Check! (still need to find one that works well for the bottom)
• Lots of sippy cups and cute/fun plates - Check, check!
• Bath Towels & Rubber Duckies :-) - Check!

We're almost there......

So I did my 'every other week' check in with AAC (our adoption agency) last Friday. Just seeing how things are moving along and where we're at in the process. According to what I was told on Friday, all of the families that received their referrals in December '09 have been filed for their exit permits, and they anticipate that ours will be filed in the next group....possibly in the next 3-4 weeks!! However, we wont know for sure until Korea contacts our agency confirming that we were filed. So, IF our Exit Permit is filed in the next 3-4 weeks, they said that we should expect our TRAVEL CALL (yes, this deserves all caps!) about 3-6 weeks after. In the grand scheme of things, this timeline seems soooo close! That being said, I still remain cautiously optimistic. This is a must in the adoption world. But I definitely thought this was worth sharing! We're almost there...... hard to believe that we could be bringing Maddyx home in 8 weeks!! OMG, I think I'm freaking out just writing that.....

Quote of the Day & Maddyx's Astrology Chart

So, I'm feeling like it's time to get spiritual and share an inspiring quote. As many of you may, or may not know, I am very inspired and intrigued by the Buddhist religion. I would not say that I am a Buddhist by any means, however, I do believe in, and relate the most to this belief system/religion (if I had to put religion in a box). Buddha means "Awakened One", someone who has awakened and sees things as they really are. A Buddha is a person who is completely free from all faults and mental obstructions. Because he has awakened from the sleep of ignorance and has removed all obstructions from his mind, he knows everything of the past, present, and future, directly and simultaneously. Buddha has great compassion which is completely impartial, embracing all living beings without discrimination. That being said, I love that I know that Maddyx's birth mother is a Buddhist. I realize that's a pretty popular religion in South Korea, but still, kind of neat to have that spiritual commonality.

So here is my quote for the day.

"In seperateness lies the world’s great misery, in compassion lies the world’s true strength" Buddha
If we become able to dissolve the separate perspective to a perspective of oneness with all other, we hold the key to end conflicts and to find solution and agreements suitable for everybody.


On another note, I got a wild hair and decided to do an astrology chart on Maddyx. I know, some of you are thinking that I'm crazy, and that's ok! I did it on myself first and it was so accurate that I HAD to do one for him (and my Hubby). I wont list everything from the chart (there's a lot), just a few neat points. We'll have to wait and see how accurate this turns out to be. If anyone is interested in doing their own, I found this website that does it for free.
http://alabe.com/freechart/ Again, ours were very accurate....it's very fun and interesting!

Maddyx's Astrology Chart Reading:

Rising Sign is in 20 Degrees Libra
Very attractive and popular, your charm helps you to get your own way and prevents others from getting angry with you. "Peace and harmony at all costs" is your battle cry. You always try to ameliorate or to cosmetically hide any physical ugliness or any angry feelings between people. Flashy, but not gaudy, you prefer to dress elegantly. You generally have good taste in music, art and literature. Beware of the tendency to compromise yourself in your attempt to be agreeable at all times. A bit of a social butterfly, at times you can be vain and lazy. For the most part, however, you are gracious and affectionate, and your refined and aristocratic demeanor serves as a role model to others.

Sun is in 02 Degrees Leo.
More than a bit of a showoff, you love to be the center of attention! But others do not usually mind because they tend to enjoy your genuine warmth and affection. Very spirited and willful, proud and self-important at times, you demand your own way. You are quite honest, however, and the respect of others is very important to you. You never compromise yourself and you pursue your goals with persistence and dedication. Your regal presence and demeanor draws you to positions of leadership and authority. But beware of being overly hardheaded, domineering, ostentatious or patronizing or you will lose the goodwill and admiration that you enjoy. Very theatrical, you live life on a grand scale wherever and whenever possible. Your strength and energy vitalizes those who come in contact with you.

Moon is in 14 Degrees Virgo.
You tend to be serious-minded but cheerful for the most part. You need tasks that engage both your mind and your hands. A careful worker, you enjoy making things. You are neat and orderly, and are very concerned with good health habits. Fastidious to the extreme, you cannot tolerate messes and will immediately clean them up. Reserved, shy, and very self-critical, you tend to be very hard on yourself. You usually will go out of your way to be helpful and useful to others. Practical, reliable, efficient and conservative, at times you are a bit of a prude. You are known to lead a simple, uncomplicated, frugal, methodical and unemotional lifestyle. You are devoted and caring to those you love.