Look, Dad! The fern is still alive.

Ok, I admit it: I’m nesting. But I think I’ve always been a nester, so this isn’t really THAT much different. Of course it started with the nursery, but it’s spreading from there.

The outside of our house has been in sorry shape since we moved in. The roof needed cleaning, the windows and screens need cleaning, and our patio could be beautiful, but we have nothing out there and it’s just ugly.

But suddenly I need the outside to be nicer. I need more plants. We have a row of hooks by the front door that have been empty (except for the two weeks after our July wedding) since we moved in. But on my birthday, I had to pot some flower baskets there. And we repotted some plants for the patio to add some beauty back there.

And of course, the house needs to be inviting not just for babies, but also for birds and butterflies. There’s a space next to the lanai where it looks like a garden should be. Not quite ready for a garden, but we did hang a bird feeder. And when the birds started to show up, I wanted to get a bird bath for them, too. Right next to the butterfly-attracting plant that has somehow survived for more than a year.

The crazy thing about all these plants and bird feeder is that we’re actually taking care of them. We’re watering the plants. Filling the bird feeder. This is new territory for both of us.

And then I decided that the bathroom update we’ve talked about several times is something we have to do right now. So we got new fixtures for the bathroom and picked out some paint. That little project is about 30% complete. The new faucet is in, so the hard part is done. I’m hoping we’ll finish it up with the light fixture and the new paint and accessories next weekend.

And, of course, there’s the nursery. This has been my favorite house project ever. I love Lily’s nursery. And, yes, I know she won’t care, it’s for me, and I love it. There are a couple of little things to add, but it’s about 90% done. Now we just need to add the baby.

I added pictures in the album called “nesting.” They start with the most recent first. This little process goes way back to January when we started clearing out rooms.