Henry's Nursery

Beatrix Potter holds a special place in my heart. My first "little girl" bedroom {about ages 5-9} was decorated with Beatrix Potter--from my bedspread to my nightlight! 

I knew I wanted to decorate Henry's nursery with Peter Rabbit and all the whimsy that accompanies the stories and illustrations of Beatrix Potter.

Scott hung the crown molding, created beautiful canned lighting, and painted the room a chalky, dusty pastel green. Basically, my husband is my hero for making my nursery vision come to life!

I love how the room turned out! It's so sweet and dreamy, filled with antique store finds, monograms {Thanks, Mom!}, beautiful bedding, and many items that are precious to me.

Henry Thomas, I just can't wait to rock you in this room! One more week, baby boy!

Jack's First Day of Preschool

This Wednesday was Jack's first day at his new preschool! He hopped right out of the car in the carpool line, and when I picked him up he said, "I love school!!! Thank you, thank you, thank you, Mommy! I want to come here every day!!"

He came home with dirt and paint on his clothes, which I took to be the sure signs of a great day at preschool!

He was such a big boy going into his new school all by himself. I am so proud of this kiddo!

Jack was WAY more excited for his after school treat than actually going to school, I'm going to be honest. "Mom, are we going to Sweet Frog!?" he asked, as soon as we got back in the car after school. "Yes, baby! And you get to pick out whatever flavor you want!"

What did my Jack Attack want? That would be Cake Batter ice cream with cherries, hot fudge, gummy bears, and Lego candy. EW. But he was in Heaven!!

We laughed and enjoyed ice cream together, and I got to hear all about his day. He was in Heaven from the ice cream consumption, and I was in Heaven getting to spend time with my "sugar candy boy," as I call him all the time! :)

Less Than 10 Days!

That's right! It's officially less than ten days until Mr. Henry makes his arrival!!

Here are some of the things I'm feeling in this "waiting" stage right now:

1. Anxious for my mom to get here: The woman has to be me for several days! And I'm just going to be honest: Being me is cray cray under the best of circumstances. Getting up early. Packing lunches. Checking homework. Watering plants. Returning books to the library. Making breakfast--orange juice for Nathan, apple juice for Jack. You get the picture. I'm ready for my momma to get here, so I can start her intensive training on being Emily Ryan for a while! ;)

2. SO ready to not be pregnant anymore: The swelling. The weight gain. The contractions. None of my clothes fit. None of my shoes fit. I'm getting up to go pee four times every night. Like, I am soooooo over being pregnant.

3. Over-the-moon excited to meet Henry: It's so difficult to put into words what sort of deep love you have for your child, before you've ever even held him in your arms. I love Henry so much I would die for him in an instant if I had to. I can't wait to hold that little boy in my arms and weep over him and kiss him over and over. I just can't wait for that moment that he's no longer unseen under my belly, kicking and jabbing--but rather crying on my chest, curling into me, falling asleep. Oh goodness, I am ready to get all mushy gushy into full blown baby mode again.

4. Worrying about Jack: Will he feel ignored? Will he feel like he's no longer my precious baby!? He will always and forever be my precious, snuggly baby!! Will he act out? He's just starting at a new school today. What if there are too many changes at once!?

5. Worrying about Nathan: Will he feel invisible? He's already feeling like school is so long. Some days it practically feels like he's just home for dinner-bath-bed. And that's it! Will he feel like I don't have the time to get down on his level and listen to him and connect with him? Will he be jealous that Jack gets to spend more time with the baby?

6. Gratitude for three boys: I am so grateful to God for blessing me with three sons. I never did a single good thing in my life to deserve three precious boys.

7. Anxious for what the future will look like: How will I handle the sleep deprivation? How will I handle the initial pain from breastfeeding? How will I handle going to the gym in four months, carrying a diaper bag and a baby and Jack and my water bottle and my earbuds and my towel? What will church look like? I don't think I can make it through service and Sunday school! What will my work look like with a baby? What if I can't get him on a good nap schedule?

8. Fear of bleeding: I've had emergency bleeding with both of my other deliveries (discovered this go around that I have a low platelet count), and I'm assuming I'll have emergency bleeding with this delivery, too. But, it's still a bit scary. One moment, you're holding your baby. In the next moment, baby is out of your arms. They're always shoving pills down my throat and jabbing my thighs with needles. And then, I'm totally drugged and can barely open my eyes. Not exactly how you want to feel when you just want to snuggle with your newest addition. The things we do for our children!! ;)

9. Pleeeeease don't be born on September 11th.

Labor Day

The unthinkable happened: Scott got three full days off! HEAVEN! We had the most fun Labor Day weekend, soaking up every moment we could!

Yesterday, Scott wanted to take the boys fishing and out on the kayak. So, nearly nine months pregnant mommy tagged along.

The boys were excited!!

Note to self: Do not go kayaking when you're almost nine months pregnant. It isn't enjoyable. It's uncomfortable. And it will cause 24 hours of contractions. OY.

We didn't catch any fish, but we made a memory! And that certainly counts for something! :)

Jack's Preschool Open House ... And Big Changes

As if we don't have enough major changes going on in our little family's life right now, Jack is about to start {next week!} at a brand new preschool. I really wrestled and prayed over the decision to move him to a new preschool. Leaving our school of three years that we've absolutely loved was not an easy choice to make. But, I feel the Lord's blessing over this school, and it's much, much closer to our house. I've just had to make some decisions to make MY life easier lately, and this was one of them.

Jack's teachers seem absolutely precious! His little classroom looks so sweet, and we even signed up for Soccer Shots. Big boy stuff! I have no doubt he'll love his new school. Open house was a huge success this morning!

In case you can't tell from these two pictures below, Jack was super excited about wearing his new shoes to his new school. {And he was pretty excited to get McDonald's for lunch in celebration of a successful preschool open house!}

I am sooooooo taking my life one day at a time right now. Nathan starting kindergarten. Nathan riding the bus. Homework!? Jack starting at a new school. All new faces. New moms. And once again, I'm finding myself feeling like I'm starting all over in a brand new place! New baby two weeks away. Diapers and sleepless nights and breastfeeding after a four-year break from babies!

I think it is no wonder that the Lord has put this verse over and over in my path lately:

God was so blatant with this verse, that I just yesterday commissioned an artist to do this framed lettering to hang in my house. This verse is the story of the Ryans, and the story of what we're walking through right now. We're always walking blindly in life, aren't we? We aren't promised tomorrow, we aren't promised our jobs or any type of security. But we are promised that the Lord goes before us, and especially on these unfamiliar paths we've been traversing of late. And, to think, we'll be moving again in 1 year and 9 months! Thank Jesus that He never forsakes us, and that He goes before us turning our darkness into light and our rough places into smooth places.

Breathe, Emily, just breathe. I'm working on it. :)