Big Boy Room Inspiration Board

Much like Corrin's nursery, I know what I would like Micah's big boy room to look like.  There's already been a major change in my vision for Micah's room.  The paint color is a different color and a lot darker than I have originally intended.  My original color scheme was navy blue, red, and white.  We have since changed the room that has become Micah's room, and left the paint as is.  Instead of moving Micah into and painting the purple guest room, we have given him the room that was Mikey's game room, and moved Mikey out.  

Micah's furniture has followed him to his big boy room.  He's also still in his crib.  We debated about transitioning him to a big boy bed also, but decided to leave him.  Given his choice, Mikey would have him in a big boy bed.  I, however, am not ready for him to transition, and I don't think he's ready either.  He's not attempting to climb out of his crib.  He sleeps very well in his crib.

Anyway, here's my inspiration board for Micah's Traveling Big Boy Room...

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Nursery Inspiration Board

I have an idea of the way I would like Corrin's nursery to look when it is complete.  The finished nursery is so beautiful in my mind.  The reality is that we can't afford exactly what I want right now.  There's also the fact that even if we could afford it, I wouldn't spend that much in a nursery anyway.  So here's an inspiration board for Corrin's nursery.  We'll see if it actually turns out this way.  More than likely, you'll be able to see the inspiration in the nursery, but the exact same items won't be used.

Moving Around Furniture

You know those people who get bored and redecorate.  You're walking through your house, and something catches your eye. Or something annoys you, and you know there must be a way to organize it differently to be more efficient.  Or maybe you just want to try something new, just to see if it will work.  I think I may be one of those people.  Case in point, earlier this week, Micah's room went from this...

... to this...

Basically, I moved the crib to where the shelf had been.  The shelf went to where the dresser had been.  The dresser to the crib's spot.  His chair moved downstairs.  It may make it's way back into his room eventually, but I'm not sure.  Nothing on the wall changed, but I want to change the walls up too, and add some things in the blank spaces over the dresser and shelf.  I just don't know what to add yet.  Pinterest, however, is helping me make the decision.  Of course, I'll let you know when it changes.  Oh, and we managed to make progress on the closet.  It's still not what I envision it to be, but I'm working on a non-existent budget.  Here it is.

I finally organized the clothes that Micah has outgrown.  I want to get matching containers and separate the different sizes into their own containers.  I also have to find containers to hold the soft items on the shelf, like his homemade boppy and the bumper.  We're not even going to talk about the stuff on the floor.  I don't have anywhere else to store it.  We're keeping any- and everything that can be used for Baby Giles #2.

I really think it's an illness.  You know, moving furniture out of boredom.  I'm working on it.  Micah had no problem at all with the changes.  It's been a few days since we've made the changes to his room, and I think we're going to keep the room like this for a while.   Or at least until another round of boredom causes more rearranging to happen.

Today, we're hanging out with a couple of my best friends.  Look for that post soon.  Probably tomorrow, if I'm not too lazy.

House Update: Micah's Room

We had our housewarming. The house has come a long way since we purchased it in April.  We still have a lot of work to do, but we're making it.  I love Micah's room. Here is what we started out with.  It was very blah.

  Here's the room as we were moving in, but after the walls were painted.

Here it is today.

This picture came from Mikey's room at home.  It's the only thing he asked to be in the room.

The gallery consists of pictures of Micah, his silhouette, his name, our family name initial, his dedication outfit, his birth announcement, and a clock set at the time he was born.

The lamp was given to me by Mikey's mom when she left work because she was sick.

It still needs some work, but I like it so far.  The bathroom hasn't been touched. It needs lots of work. The lighting fixture/fan still needs to be replaced.  The wall over Micah's crib needs something.  The windows need curtains.  The closet needs organization. Our work is cut out for us, but I'm loving every minute of it.

Nursery Project: The Bedding

The baby's bedding has been purchased.  I found a great deal that marked off 75% of the cost of this bedding.  Which was originally absolutely too expensive.  So here it is; the baby's bedding.  I'll post pictures when we buy a mattress for the crib, set the crib up, and actually put the bedding on.  This probably won't be for quite a while.

Nursery Project: The Chosen Crib

There it is, the crib.

We have chosen our crib, and purchased it.  It is currently residing in it's box, which is leaning in a corner of my bedroom at my mother's house.  (Please excuse the ugly lime storage bins.  Those will be removed.)  We chose to go with the Baby's Dream Ocean crib, in espresso.  It was a tough decision, but we decided that since I will be working at my current job throughout the up coming school term, we would only purchase the necessities for the baby, and not set up a nursery.  Therefore, baby Giles will be sharing my room at my mom's.

In case you forgot which crib the Ocean is, here's the picture again:

Nursery Project: The Crib

After the news that we should be finding out in three short weeks whether we'll be having a boy baby or a girl baby, I figured Mikey and I had better start figuring some things out.  And what better place to start than deciding on a place for the little one to sleep?  So the hunt for a crib is officially on.

Finding the crib is easier said than done.  There are so many choices, and it's hard to know what's safe and what's not.  Then there are the superficial choices.  Do we want a convertible crib or not?  Stained or painted?  What shade of stain: expresso, cherry, oak, honey, or natural?  Do we want modern or traditional style?  What price range?  Drop-sides or stationary? Decisions, Decisions...

I would like the crib that we end up with to be made of solid wood, have a non-toxic finish, have a modern look with clean lines, have stationary sides, and meet US safety standards.  A convertible crib would be an added bonus, and I think I want a stained finish.

So after figuring out what we want, it's time to shop.

Option # 1:  DaVinci Emily

This is a convertible crib made of pine, a soft wood.  It converts into a toddler bed, daybed, and full sized bed.  It comes in cherry, oak, ebony, and white finishes.  It has stationary sides, and meets all of the safety standards.  It also is recommended by Consumer Reports.  Not exactly the look I am looking for, but acceptable.  It's priced at around $250.

Option #2: IKEA Leksvik

This is also a convertible crib, however, it only converts into a toddler bed.  It's made of a mixture of solid beech (main parts and bed side) and spruce (panels and slats).  As far as I can tell, it only comes in the finish shown.  It has stationary sides, and meets US safety standards, and is also recommended by Consumer Reports.  I like that end panels are solid instead of slatted (is that a word?), and the price is right at $160.

Option #3: Baby's Dream Cube

This crib is also convertible.  It converts into a toddler bed, and two full beds.  You use both the solid and slatted side panels of the crib as the head boards of the full beds.  It has stationary sides, and comes in white or expresso finishes.  I also like that all Baby's Dream cribs are made of solid wood.  It meets all US safety standards, and according to the Baby's Dream website they guarantee that they use non-toxic finishes.  It's the most expensive crib I found at $550.  I love the modern look.

Option #4: Baby's Dream Ocean v1

This crib is also convertible.  It converts into a toddler bed, and a twin bed.  It has stationary sides, and comes in white or expresso finishes.  Again, I like that all Baby's Dream cribs are made of solid wood.  It meets all US safety standards, and according to the Baby's Dream website they guarantee that they use non-toxic finishes.  It's a little less expensive at $450.  I love the clean lines.

Like I said before; decisions, decisions.  Here's what I think.  I love the Baby's Dream cribs.  I think they are beautiful, and I wish that I could justify putting that much money into a crib.  I just don't think that I can.  That makes me sad, but it is what it is.  And we are not rich.  So I guess options 3 and 4 aren't really options, but they sure are beautiful.  The DaVinci Emily has the most options for converting, and is more reasonably priced.  I'm not sure about how non-toxic the finish is, and it's not exactly modern, but does have the clean lines.  I wish the end panels were solid instead of slatted.  It's not exactly what I wanted, but acceptable.  According to buyer ratings, there is reason to be concerned about the durability of the finish and the quality of the wood.  Babies apparently like to  mouth their cribs, and if the finish won't stand up to that, then that's a concern.  Also because pine is a soft wood, it will probably break off quite easily with little nibbling teeth.  The IKEA Leksvik has only one option for converting, but the best price.   Again not sure how non-toxic the finish is, but it's closer to the look that I want.  The only complaints that I found for this one were that its difficult to assemble, and that you have to assemble the base that supports the mattress.

Now we just have to decide which one.

Nursery Project: Getting Inspired

I am looking forward to a lot of things throughout this pregnancy and afterward, but right now I am focused on planning the nursery.  I would have thought that shopping for stuff for the baby would be it, but I've been very good about staying out of the baby section while I'm out shopping or not buying anything if I happen to run into baby-related items.

I don't know if I'm having a boy or girl yet (Mikey says boy, I say girl).  I have ideas for both a girl nursery and a boy nursery.  I think the colors could work for either, but the focus of the room will hopefully say boy or girl.  I am still gathering my thoughts, but here is an idea board for the girl nursery that is absolutely incomplete and doesn't really show what I have in my head, but it's the best I can do right now.