Creating a Nursery For You and Your Baby

01/05/2016

My sister in law is pregnant and over due with her first baby. Her and her mother designed the nursery themselves and did a wonderful job. As soon as you walk into the nursery you feel calm and cool. Being calm is very important when having a new baby so creating a space where you can feel relaxed is important for you and your baby.

Let’s start with the rocking chair/feeding area..

A nice comfy chair with arm rests is important for feeding. A wide chair helps for using the nursing pillow if you are breastfeeding as well as a stool for your legs. A side table can be used for a small night light, water, bottles, or books. A cork board or something similar can help display various items or reminders

Next is the change table…

A picture, hanging toy, mobile or something that attracts the babies attention while changing can help with those stressful  moments just be careful to secure everything to the wall so not to fall off. Lots of storage for diapers, wipes, receiving blankets, clothes, cloths, diaper cream and other important helps as well as making them easily accessible because you’ll probably have only one hand available.

Now the closet…

A well organized closet can be a life saver especially when you are dealing with so many clothes. Lots of shelf space is important as babies come with a lot of stuff. A small stool should be kept near the closet to reach the higher not as used items. Don’t forget to buy little hangers, big hangers won’t do for the babies clothes. You will most likely be folding clothes rather than hanging them as it takes less time so set aside a couple shelves for clothes, blankets, receiving blankets, swaddles, towels, etc. If you’re in need of extra extra organization you can label the shelves to help others to know where to put stuff away.

On to the BLINDS!!

Before I get started on the blinds I have to point out the little bookshelf/storage baskets in this photo. I can not take credit for this, my creative sister in law flipped the storage baskets sideways to make a bookshelf! It’s functional and super cute. Plus when the baby gets older they’ll be able to reach the books. Let’s not forget to mention the adorable soft, plush reading chair. A must in every nursery.

Ok on to the curtains. Big, thick, preferably dark curtains/blinds are key to the sleep of your little one. Babies are used to sleeping in a very dark space, aka the womb. Creating the perfect sleep conditions for your nursery will only help your little one sleep better which means you get to sleep too! Behind the curtains are blinds which allows you to choose how dark you want the nursery to be. My daughter needed it to be dark all the time for her to nap well but my son was a little more flexible with his sleep.

And now the crib….

The crib is really your personal choice and what works well for your family. There are so many different types of cribs so for my I went for one that I liked. I also wanted a very solid, real wood crib which has turned out to be successful as we bought it used from a family of 3 kids and my two kids used it. It’s still in excellent condition, a few teething scars but very functional. In my opinion I would hold off on installing the mobile until you figure out what kind of baby you have. My daughter loved the mobile but my son found it over stimulating. You can buy wedges for the crib as well which help when the baby is congested or gases. Bumper pads are not recommended but there are breathable ones now that aren’t as frowned upon. Try to eliminate the number of toys and blankets go into the crib until the baby is much older. Keep the crib simple, too much can be too stimulating for the little one and hinder their ability to self soothe.