The Nursery

Well, my due date has come and gone and our little Evangeline is still not here on the outside yet. I am now officially 4 days overdue and there really is no sign of her arrival so far. But we’re ready! I’ve read about a dozen books, the car seat is installed, our house is just about spotless, my freezer, fridge and pantry are full of meals and snacks, my mom is here and the baby’s room is ready. I’m feeling quite good still and there is no major snowstorm in the forecast. I really can’t complain! So, since my mom and I are finding ourselves trying to fill the days with things to do while we wait for this stubborn little one, I decided maybe I should take this opportunity to post pictures of her room.

Now, I must preface this by saying yes, I had waaaaaay toooo much spare time during this pregnancy. I had quit my job as a wedding coordinator just a few weeks before we found out we were pregnant (go figure!). I spent a few months working full time as a temp a Jeremy’s office but by summer I had cut back to working just two days a week. I officially became a stay at home mom two weeks ago. Jeremy and I had never had weekends off together and I had never had so much time during the week. So, with all this spare time (soon to become a favorite pastime) we took on a bunch of DIY projects to create a pretty and relaxing nursery for our baby girl while sticking to a budget. We both love how it turned out and are so excited to bring Evangeline home to her very own room! So, here it is:

The crib was a gift from my mom, sister and brothers. I love the clean lines and the extra storage drawer underneath.

The curtains, crib skirt, mobile and russian doll art are all DIY.

The owl hooks were also a semi-DIY project that I turned into hair clip/bow hangers. The little pink top is something Jeremy found at a consignment store!

Jeremy used Illustrator to create a graphic print of a scripture verse (Matt. 19:14).

This changing table was the very first thing we bought for her nursery. It was a $20 find on our local classifieds that Jeremy refinished. He also made the added shelf to hold all the diaper changing supplies. 

My very favorite doll from my childhood, Melissa Sue. She's definitely seen better days but I couldn't resist adding her to the room!

The blocks were another DIY project and once Evangeline is here, we'll replace the floral paper in the frame with a photo of her.

Here is the closet that Jeremy made an amazing built-in for. I love all the added storage and still haven't figured out a use for each of the baskets. I can't believe how much extra storage we ended up with but I'm sure we'll find lots of things to put in there as she gets older. 

I made closet dividers out of wooden letter "o"'s, left over fabric from some of the other DIY projects and sticky foam numbers. I didn't realize how much more organized I'd feel with these until we put them in but I really like having them now!

I can't wait to read books in the rocking chair, peek on her while she is fast asleep in her crib and play with all her toys. Now we just need our baby girl to get here!

Evangeline Joy Sanchez

* Posted by Jeremy

What a journey it has been as we have waited for the arrival of our baby girl.  Her room is ready, car seat installed, hospital bags packed…now we just wait until she decides to come meet the world.  While we wait, I thought it would be a good idea to explain where we came up with her name, Evangeline Joy.

Anyone who knows Natalie and I knows that we can be two of the most indecisive people on the planet.  After all, I gained the nickname Mr. Perhaps from my siblings in college because I would hesitate to commit to anything.  Needless to say, picking the name of our firstborn child seemed like a daunting task.

Rewind back to October 2009.  We took a trip to Mexico to celebrate our 5 year anniversary.  We had been trying to get pregnant for well over a year and had begun the process of facing the reality of infertility.  Our tropical vacation was a great break in the middle of a busy schedule and trying to process the trial we were stepping into. 

Searching for a good book to read on our vacation, I settled on the classic novel, Uncle Tom’s Cabin.  Let me first point out that I can hardly call myself a reader of “classic novels.”  In fact, the number of these timeless books I have under my belt is probably less than I can count on one hand and most of those were read in school.  Needless to say, someone had recommended it and I decided to give it a try. 

Uncle Tom’s Cabin is about slavery and was written in the mid 1800s.  As I was reading the book I was drawn to the character of a daughter of a slave owner.  She was a little 5-year-old girl who developed a special friendship with Uncle Tom.  Her name was Evangeline.  There are two traits that stood out about Evangeline, 1 – She loved Jesus, 2 – She had a tender and compassionate heart for people.  I would tell Natalie different parts about the book and what an adorable character Evangeline was.  After finishing the book, which I definitely recommend, Evangeline’s character always stuck with me. 

Now, here I sit on the day before her due date thinking of what an amazing thing God has done since that trip.  After being told by my Dr. that we would not be able to get pregnant, we prayed for a miracle and God answered.  Five days after the devastating news we got the most exciting news of all…we were pregnant!  This “good news” sparked the biggest roller coaster we’ve ever been on. 

After finding out we were having a baby girl, the name talk began, and went on…and on…and on!  Evangeline, which means messenger of good news, was always on the back of my mind and Natalie started to like it more and more.  The more we said it…the more it just felt right.  After cycling through name after name, we finally settled on this beautiful name.  The middle name wasn’t so difficult, especially since we knew it had to be short since we picked a 10-letter first name.  Joy, the emotion of great happiness, fit perfectly. 

I never knew that I could love this little girl so much before I have even seen her and heard her cry!  My prayer is that she will grow up to have the two traits that drew me to her name over a year ago, that she will love Jesus, and that she will have a tender heart for people.  Thankfully, we serve a God who answers our prayers…I can’t wait to meet you Evangeline Joy!


After we picked her name we heard about a song called "Ma Belle Evangeline" from the Disney movie The Princess and the Frog.  It made us love the name even more!  Check out the clip here.