Today, I have a very special name and gender reveal to share with you!

If you know me well, you know that I love surprises. I always have, and I’ve always loved being able to surprise others on special occasions or for no reason at all. Turns out, this little baby is taking after mama in that regard!

The day I got my positive pregnancy test I had the strongest feeling that this little baby was a girl. There were only a few moments over the past 16 weeks where I doubted my gut feeling. (Though now that I think about it, my gut’s been so out of whack that I should probably be more wary of trusting it. haha)

Ultrasound Day

The day of our ultrasound was beautiful and sunny. Benj and I couldn’t stop grinning all morning as we thought about getting to see our squirmy little baby! We got to the clinic early, followed the same tech who had done my 7 week ultrasound down a long hallway, and stepped into the dim sonography room.

Baby turned out to be one of the most cooperative ones the tech had had in a while, which made his job much easier. We looked at the baby’s heart, spine, and other organs as the tech pointed out everything along the way. I’m definitely thankful for such an awesome experience.

Our tech was great and lighthearted and kept us engaged in the whole process. I told him I thought it was a girl. He asked us what girl and boy names we were considering, and we told him. We had completely settled on our girl name, but there were still two boy names we’d kept tossing back and forth.

Since baby was being so helpful at every turn, he was able to get a really clear shot right between baby’s legs. He froze the screen and asked us if we were ready to find out what we were having. We said, “Yes,” smiling all the while, and he started typing on the screen.

“It’s…..a……boy!!!”

It’s a Boy

My giant smile never diminished. I know it was giant because Benj was recording a video! I laughed, although I think my eyes grew wider as the surprise and shock of his words hit my brain. After a few seconds, I looked over at him and asked, “So it’s pretty clear?”

He laughed and told us that he’d give us $3,000.00 if he was wrong. It’s a good thing baby was being so cooperative or I might have had trouble believing him! By the time the ultrasound was over, I knew which of our two names fit this baby best. Benj and I were on an an emotional high as we walked out of the clinic and back to our car, shocked and giddy.

“It’s Jack, isn’t it?” I said outside. “Jack Everett.”

Benj wholeheartedly agreed. He’d loved that name most from the beginning. Even though I’d favored the other name we’d picked out going into the ultrasound, it was so clear to me that this baby is our little Jack Everett.

Jack means “God is gracious”, and we couldn’t think of a more fitting name considering how the Lord has worked in our lives the past year.

It was time to put together our woodland themed gender reveal!

Planning Our Woodland Themed Gender Reveal

Benj dropped me off at Joann’s before heading back to work so that I could pick out the materials for the bunting we’d planned to make for our woodland themed gender reveal.

I had also wanted this to be a focal point in our baby’s nursery, but figured I would wait until we knew the gender before planning it too carefully. I ended up wandering around the store for 2 hours, just taking my time, exploring my options, and picking out materials.

There was so much extra excitement swirling around in my brain now that I knew we were expecting a little boy. This wasn’t because I wouldn’t have been just as excited about a little girl. No, it was because little girl things were what had been occupying my thoughts for the past 4 months!

I had everything pink and frilly and feminine on the brain. It was almost like finding out I was pregnant all over again as I began thinking about ALL the little boy things.

Jack’s Woodland Themed Bunting

I settled on brown and cream burlap after looking at lots of options. Then, I picked out 8 inch letter stencils with white paint for the letters and a few more paint colors for the animals. Cream jute twine was perfect for tying it together- no pun intended!

First, I created and cut a template for the bunting using a yardstick. Then, I proceeded to cut out the panels of burlap. It was certainly a challenge to work with, but I managed to get them all cut out without losing my mind. Then, I painted on the letters with a sponge brush.

My husband is an incredibly talented artist, so I asked him if he’d like to paint some woodland animals for the bunting. He’s told me that I could commission artwork many times, so I was excited to finally take him up on that offer. Of course, Benj was more than happy to comply!

Creating the Woodland Animals

We spent a little time figuring out which animals we wanted on the bunting and which styling would look best. Benj started sketching on a notepad and came up with some animal sketches we were excited about.

I helped by squealing a lot and saying, “They’re so cute!”

Benj then sketched the woodland animals onto the burlap before painting them on. That was no easy task! Then he started painting, mixing the paints as he went.

These little woodland critters are pretty much the cutest things I’ve ever seen. I can’t wait to hang this bunting up in Jack’s nursery!

Benj helped me to hot glue all of the panels onto the twine after they were finished.

I have to say, it was a lot of work to create, but it’s probably my favorite DIY project I’ve ever managed to complete. I couldn’t have done it without help from my sweet husband, though!

Come on, Jack!

We are so thrilled to be welcoming this little guy into our home in just 4 1/2 months or so! And mama is incredibly excited to be able to shop, decorate, knit, and plan finally knowing this baby’s gender!

We can’t wait to meet you, Jack.