Pregnancy Week: Room Plan

It’s day two of Pregnancy Week here on Our Dream Foreclosure and today’s topic – the baby room plan! Yesterday, I discussed my birth plan and may have shared a bit too much… heehee.

The most popular post in our blog’s little history is on Kenton’s nursery…

The plan all along was to make that room gender neutral and use it for both of our babies. I can’t believe it’s actually time to move Kenton out and make way for his little brother or sister!

Kenton – about three months old

Kenton – 15 months old

He has very few days left in this room…

But he’s taking the crib along with him to… his “big boy” room!

Well, we’re calling it Kenton’s big boy room, but it’s really going to look like another nursery – a boy’s nursery – for a while.

More on that in a minute, back to where the new baby will sleep.

Note: we later swapped out the rocker/ottoman – pic at the top of this post is accurate.

Baby will go in the nursery and the only major change we’re making is a crib swap.  Since Kenton is taking his crib with him, baby needs a new crib – which we’ve already purchased.

We decided not to get the same crib we got for Kenton and go for a cheaper, Ikea crib for the baby. Why? Because we care less about our second child.

Ha! Obviously, that’s not true. Kenton is very active – jumping in his crib and basically beating the thing up. The baby will be a blob for about three months, then just roll around for another three. Finally, around six months he/she will be sitting up and a couple months after that will start to pull up to stand. Basically, we figure we have at least six months with the “cheap” crib before Kenton may be ready for a toddler bed and the baby gets the sturdier crib in time for shenanigans like standing and jumping. That’s the thought anyway, we’ll cross that bridge when we get there. Right now, it was far less painful to spend $99 than $300 – plus we still had to buy a $169 mattress. Kids are expensive!

Other than the crib, we’ll only make minor changes – like swapping out the K’s and other items with Kenton’s name. And, of course, we’ll have my mom add a bird to the wire!

The closet will have to be cleared of 24mos clothing and newborn selections will be put back (I kept them all!).

We’ll also add a portrait of the new baby to this wall, once we have a chance to take one.

My initial thought is that I’ll move Kenton’s portrait up higher and put the new one below it – but we’ll see how it comes together.

But that’s it… otherwise this room is ready to go!

It’s the room next store we’re working hard on. That’s where Kenton is moving. Here’s a look at how the upstairs rooms are organized from my depressing Upstairs to do list post:

The most challenging part of this room shuffle was taking all of my sewing/craft crap that had been in Kenton’s new room and moving it into the study – into a merged space – Half office/half craft room. That part is coming together nicely, actually – but that’s for another post!

Kenton’s room is coming along… but is not ready to be revealed. It’s going to be a “Big Boy Bike Room” – with inspiration from Le Tour de France. This photo is my primary inspiration.

It was taken in Annecy, France while we were there following Le Tour. I love the different Tour jerseys criss-crossing the quintessential European street. I have those colors/patterns and I’ll be making some bunting to mimic this and using those colors as accents in the space.

We actually have a yellow jersey signed by the 2009 tour winner, Alberto Contador, that we will display in there.

There’s Jason with the jersey just after we scored the autograph. That was such a fun day!

The Olympic rings will finally move from their temporary spot in the playroom into Kenton’s room:

We’ll also be putting up bookshelves on one side and using a little Ikea tent as a reading cave.

Our goal is to make it look more like the flamme rouge you see with one KM left in a bike race than a circus tent (don’t know cycling lingo? Google it or come back later to see the Ikea hack!).

So, that’s the plan. We’re almost there! I’m excited to show you the new room. Kenton would like to show you his bellybutton, if he could figure out buttons…

Meanwhile, I’m soaking in every second with my firstborn as my “only”…

Self-portrait in our daily-used, slightly-messy nursery. Only my “baby” for four more weeks! 

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Upstairs To Do

Since we gave you a brief look at the upstairs of our home yesterday, today I thought I’d explain a bit about what’s behind each door… and just how much work I have cut out for me before this bambino arrives.

And behind me is our master bedroom.

So, here’s what needs to happen in the next 16 weeks… In order:

Cleaning out an office is no fun. No fun at all. I found bank records from 2003. Our poor shredder is working OT. And books. All the books. We have SO MANY BOOKS. We’re going to need to get creative with that.

The sewing room has always been a “/storage room.” It’s basically holding the entire contents of a baby consignment store at the moment. Of course, I can’t get rid of anything because the child in my belly may have outdoor plumbing like his/her big brother – so, therefore, everything is currently being hoarded.

Kenton’s “big boy” room, by the way, is going to be AMAZING. In my head, if nowhere else. I have big plans… but you’ll have to wait for that. (Unless you follow me on Pinterest, then you already know.)

One of my favorite things about our nursery is that it is gender neutral. We basically just have to move out Kenton’s clothes and it’s ready for his new baby brother or sister.

So, that’s “it.” That’s all I have to do – me and my rotund belly (with the hubby’s help of course) – between now and October. Wish us luck! It’s basically completely overwhelming.

Oh, there is one more room… the bathroom.

This is our third bathroom and we’ve never used it. NEVER. It needs to be completely gutted. The shower is pulling away from the wall. The linoleum is pulling away from the wall – and it’s linoleum. The toilet is old. The mirror/vanity are outdated.

Eventually, this will be the kid’s bathroom and we will likely tackle that monster of a project this fall/winter.

Kenton takes his baths in our master bathroom, which has a fun big tub. Also, potty training is still a ways off – so, this room has not been a huge priority.

So, who wants to come over and help?! Don’t all storm down my door at once.

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Another Dream Dot Nursery!

This week, I started getting some referrals from another blog… so I checked it out and saw something familiar…

Silver DIY dots! Nope, those aren’t mine… here’s what my pile looked like:

Yep, basically the same – because this adorable momma-to-be followed my DIY dot tutorial and did her own wall. It turned out AMAZING!

She even added silver butterflys as an accent, which I adore.  Check out more picks at http://ayeshacurry.tumblr.com/. I wish I understood Tumblr and could leave her a comment! Great job, Ayesha!

Here is our “original:”

You can find the tutorial here. If you replicate this, we would LOVE to see it! Please share!

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Dream Storage: Diapers

Okay, I’ll admit it.  This post is born out of guilt.

First, I confess – I’m amazing.  It’s true.  Okay, that’s a lie.  It’s my mom that’s amazing, but I’m her off-spring, so maybe I get a bit of the awesomeness in my DNA?  Anyway, while perusing Ikea during the nursery-shopping-frenzy pre-Kenton, my mom spotted a fantastic magazine wall rack and thought it would make for good diaper storage.  Boy, was she right!  With a little silver spray paint, this puppy fit perfectly into the nursery and is an awesome spot for diapers.  It holds about 200 diapers – all within arm’s reach of the changing table.  Various pictures of it have popped up all over Pinterest, which I loved because it’s a cheap and fun nursery addition.  Until, dumb Ikea stopped carrying it.  I have no idea when that happened, but it happened.  BOO!!!  I felt really bad.  I did Google, eBay and Craig’s List searches for people who asked me about it.  For a time, there were a few out there to be found.  (If you’re lucky, it’s called the Ikea Allamala Magazine Rack.)

So, I promised to do some searching/digging/crafting on my own and come up with some alternative solutions, which I (finally) have for you here.

We’ve got baskets, magazine racks, floating shelves and shower caddies – yes, shower caddies!

Who knew that creative diaper storage could come from such random objects?

First up: the shower caddy.

I actually loved this one so much, I spray painted it and gave it away as a baby shower gift.  I matched (or tried to) the color in the bedding my friends had registered for – gave this puppy a coat of primer and two coats of green spray – and voila!

more on this baby shower gift later this week!

This piece holds about 100 diapers.  I found it at Marshall’s and it cost me less than $20 (+spray paint and diapers!).

Next up: the magazine rack.

Imagine this with a coat of bright blue or yellow?  This is a nice piece too because as baby grows, it can be repurposed for coloring books (which is exactly why I didn’t return it as originally planned.  It now has a reserved spot in our new playroom!).

Next, some simple items you may already have or can find anywhere for CHEAP: a basket and a floating shelf.

Again, image these painted in a nursery accent color – perfect!  These also can be repurposed when the bambino is potty trained.

So, there you have it – a few alternative and creative ideas for diaper storage.  What do you think? Anything here you would use – or do you have another item you repurposed for diaper storage?  Do share!

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Nursery Dreamdate: New Rocker!

There she is!  Our new Curtis rocker from CB2.

For the first eight months of Kenton’s life, we snuggled with him in the Pottery Barn Dream Rocker we scored on Craig’s List for $300 (retails for about $1200 – with ottoman).

We were never 100% happy with that rocker.  The color was blah and it took up a ton of room in our not-so-big nursery.  So, a few weeks ago, we sold the rocker and matching ottoman on Craig’s List for $400.  That was plenty of cash to order the $299 Curtis rocker and left us with a small profit!

We already had the white leather Crate & Barrel ottoman.  It was being used in our family room, but since we did a new DIY ottoman/coffee table, we no longer needed it downstairs.  (Great story behind that ottoman – it retails for $169, but we scored it for $12 at a charity auction a few years back.  You read that correctly, $12!)

The timing on this smaller rocker couldn’t have been better.  Kenton recently figured out how to pull the curtain through the slats in his crib, which meant the inevitable “pulling the crib out from the wall” just happened – leaving even less space in the room.

The downsides to the rocker – it’s not as cozy as the old one, but the seat seems to be softening with each feeding session.  Also, the arm rests are a little low, so we’ve been using a Boppy pillow to help our arms hold the weight of our 20lb+ little munckhin.

The budget for this particular nursery swap is AWESOME:

Sale of old rocker = (-$400)

New rocker (w/ taxes, S&H) = $340

Ottoman = already had

Pillow = already had

Faux sheepskin rug = already had

TOTAL = (-$60)

That’s right – our wallet has three extra $20’s thanks to this improvement!

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The Land of Dreams

Not to brag, but I have to say I noticed a familiar nursery theme in the “What’s New?” email advertisement I got this week from The Land of Nod:

Gray/White stripes, polka-dots, bright yellow accents…

Yep, it’s official.  Kenton’s nursery was ahead of the trend.  Now, hopefully my grand idea for his “big boy” room will also be a trendsetter… we shall see!

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Nursery Update to the Updreamate

GOOD NEWS!

The “Dream Rocker” is now in the capable hands of a local momma-to-be.  A woman on a nursery mission… she wanted this rocker, bad.  Gosh, it just seems like a few months ago that was me.  Wait… I guess it was!

The Mr. and I gladly accepted $400 for the rocker/ottoman set – $100 more than we paid just a few months ago.  NICE!

Immediately, we hopped on CB2’s website and ordered the new rocker of our dreams…

After taxes and shipping, we netted about $50.  Not exactly sure what we’ll do with that little profit, but I’m sure we’ll figure something out (hardy-har-har-har-wink-wink).  We also already have the perfect ottoman to go with our new rocker, so there’s no need for that expense.  Allegedly, the new nursery addition will be here this weekend!  Yippee!

Okay, now for the BAD NEWS!

I know!  It’s devastating.

I noticed some people who pinned this photo on Pinterest complain about not being able to find it at Ikea.  So, I did some digging and, sadly, the Allamala Magazine Wall Rack was discontinued.  Cue: screams of terror and gnashing of teeth.

However, I did find quite a few eBay and Craig’s List listings when I Googled it – so there is hope.  I’m also going to try and find some similar items that can serve the same purpose and do a post about that.  So, if you have ideas – please send them my way.

Now, dry your tears… it’s BABY PICTURE TIME!

Yep, eight months old!  Craziness.  This month we added shoes.  Check out the monthly progression here.

And here’s a gratuitous shot of the now-chunky babe stripped down to a onesie…

Okay, bye… I need to go gnaw on some baby fat…

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Nursery Updreamate

Now that I’m eight months into this whole parenting an infant thing, I thought I’d give an update on our nursery.  What we love, what we’re just living with and what will we change…

First up… the curtains.  Go ahead and file these in the LOVE category.

I know, I know, WTH?  You may be shocked to read I love these things after all of the draaAaama behind settling on this particular pair.  However, it was meant to be.  These Bed, Bath & Beyond curtains block out the sun, keep the room temperature perfect and spend most of the time drawn shut.  I heart them and am so glad we found each other after so much heartache.

Next… the Ikea hack magazine rack turned diaper storage…

This was a brilliant move, ifIdosaysomyself.  This handy unit stores about 150 diapers.  It’s almost like it was made to do just that.  Each section is the perfect width for half of a diaper package… see:

Mr. Dreamer was too busy trying to get our precious munchkin into one of these – so there’s no demo shot, but you get it, right?  Perfect fit!  LOVE IT.

Another love?  The mesh bumper.

Our little wiggle-worm could somehow maneuver his swaddled self to the edge of his crib from day one.  Little unswaddled hands and arms were sneaking out and getting stuck.  So, this bumper is a must for us – and awesome.  Even though, said wiggle-worm now knows how to pull it down and look towards the door when it’s time to get up.  Mm-hmmm.  Pretty presh.

The infamous diaper pail can be submitted to the like category.

Yes, it did make my top 10 must have list… and it is pretty amazing (and matches our nursery decor quite well)… However, remember I said it didn’t stink?  Well,  I wrote that before solids were introduced to our precious little stinky munchkin.  There are some things even the world’s greatest diaper pail cannot contain.  Sorry, I spoke too soon on that one.  I’d still buy it again – but with air fresheners, which I’ve since added.

Finally… the item we’ll be bidding adieu to… our rocking chair…

the "dream" rocker

I never really loved this piece.  It was a must have, but I never really felt that it fit in.  It’s also not the most comfortable chair and takes up a ton of room in our relatively small nursery.  So, the rocker and ottoman are currently listed on Craig’s List.  We hope to get back what we paid for it, plus a few dollars.  Which we will use to buy this…

mr dreamer taking a photo of the tag so we didn't forget!

That is the Curtis Rocker from CB2.  We don’t have a CB2 store in Arizona, but had the chance to browse through one when we were in DC.  We immediately fell in love with that rocker and knew it would be much better for our nursery.

So… stay tuned!  We’ll let you know when the great switcharoo happens.  That will definitely take the nursery up a notch!

PS – The polka-dots are doing quite well!  Almost a year after we put them on the wall, they’re still there and look FANTASTIC. We definitely heart those puppies!

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ohDreamdoh

Got a tweet from a friend today that she spotted my nursery on ohdeedoh!  WHAT?!  She wasn’t lying.  Nope.  See:

Yeah, I KNOW.  Awesome.  Thanks, ohdeedoh for declaring our nursery a “winner.”  We’re humbled and tickled pink.

If you’re visiting from ohdeedoh, welcome!  More posts on the nur-suhr-ray can be found here and the complete budget breakdown (we did it for under $1,000!) is here.

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Dream of the Month!

Kenton’s nursery is a finalist for “Project of the Month” on Project Nursery!  Can you believe it?!

Just click here to cast your vote – which you can do every 24 hours.  VERY EXCITING.  Don’t be distracted by the other ridiculously adorable competition… focus!

Also adorable…

The little man himself, (Pictured with his girlfriend.)  He’s now 20 weeks old, officially 4.5 months and has two teeth.  Yes, TWO.  Need proof?  Fine.

Apparently, photographing teeth is traumatic.  Poor kid.  However, he’ll appreciate that we have evidence of this milestone at some point. Right? Okay, maybe not… good thing Dad is around to comfort him. (Meanwhile, mom just keeps snapping pictures!  I’m not a terrible mother, I promise – I just even find the sad faces ridiculously adorable.)

Am I right?!

Okay, now GO VOTE!

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