Nursery Tree

With just over three weeks left until Hills Baby #2 arrives...

...we figured we'd better get to work on the soon-to-be-nursery

(formerly the downstairs guest room). We decided to paint

a tree in one corner, and on that tree will sit a family--a.k.a.

a "parliament"--of very cute hand-made owls. If you click on

the image below, you'll see the tree sketch Tam drew in chalk

before pulling out paint.

Then we got to work! Tam's friend Sara came over
and they both got busy painting.


Here's a shot of the finished tree. Isn't it great?!
What owls wouldn't want to perch here?!!


Here's another shot with the guest bed placed where
it will be in the final nursery room layout. Yes, it does
cover the tree trunk a bit but that's okay. Tam will
likely sleep in the nursery for the baby's first few months
instead of keeping a bassinet in the master bedroom.
That way Daddy can catch some zzzzzzzzs.


Now back to these future tree residents, the owls...
Tracy (Tam's sis) stumbled upon a Web site featuring
the most adorable hand-made owl mobile made of socks.
Tam loved it and thought it'd be a great theme/color
anchor for the nursery. Even Dennis was excited about
creating a tree for these owls. So Tracy talked with friends
and family about going in on a joint shower gift. She then
contacted the artist, who happens to live in Australia, and
commissioned her to make one mobile (four sock owls, each
measuring roughly 4" tall) and five additional larger sock owls
(at about 7" tall each) to sit on the tree. Here's a shot of the
finished sock owl family.

The four smaller owls in the shot above have now been
put into a mobile using driftwood the artist found along
the beach in Australia (see below). All the owls are in
flight--in other words, in shipping transit--to Seattle now,
and we eagerly await their arrival!

We'll post a picture later showing the owls on the tree!