Bring your baby home to a healthy, clean, creative space
There is too much to think about when you have a baby on the way. I remember growing frustrated with the never-ending list of things to accomplish before the due date. If you’re early on, you might not be feeling the squeeze yet, but there is a great deal of pressure on you as a couple when you are preparing to grow your family.
You cannot afford to put off things like the nursery or scheduling the birthing classes. I remember my wife nearly in tears when she found out she might be too late to get into the six weeks of pregnancy and childbirth classes she wanted. “What if we have to wait until fall and then he comes early?” she asked in a panic. We were fine. There were plenty of openings left in the late summer classes.
Others I know have not been so lucky. My wife is a planner. If you don’t have a planner in the couple you can end up like a family member of mine who forgot to select a pediatrician prior to the baby’s arrival. It sounds crazy, but you can do everything right and forget to make just a single phone call to the local pediatrician’s office. It happens all the time.
When we are so focused on the health of Mom and baby, it can be easy to let things like establishing and designing a nursery space go by the wayside. Don’t be that couple that comes home exhausted after almost three days in the hospital and still has a crib to put together.
Leave the thinking and planning out of this. You have enough on your plate. Just use this simple list to get your nursery set up so that you can move on to other things.
Clean
Do not even think of putting that changing table into the room you used as an office. It has to be cleaned first. Your baby needs his or her own space. And once that adorable little kid is screaming all hours of the night, you’ll be glad you dedicated some room just for her.
Keep it simple. Download Curb-It App, the on-demand junk hauling app, or simply move everything into its new space. Either way, get the whole room empty of everything. Then do a thorough cleaning.
Plan
Don’t buy the dresser, changing table, crib, and rocking chair online without first assessing the space and dimensions of the room. My wife and I had a very cramped looking layout, and it was tough to get around. We found out the hard way. We had to return the changing table and convert the top of the dresser to serve as a changing spot.
Ask yourself and your partner some questions as you prepare the space. Will we read stories in here? Will we play in here? Is this room well ventilated? Is that window insulated? All of this is easier to fix now, with a plan and some time still on your hands.
Go Wild
Colors and patterns are fun to work with, but it goes to a whole new level when you have a kid. Anything goes! You can paint a giant elephant on the wall or pick out a bright green paint and all you’ll get is compliments. Kids rooms and nurseries should be fun!
Remember that your baby needs a place to get creative and to let her growing mind wander and expand. Encourage creativity and play (if the space allows) by making toys and supplies available and at-the-ready.
Adapt
As your child grows, and as your understanding of how the kid’s room will be utilized evolves, stay flexible. Be ready to switch up the location of furniture or to repaint a wall at a moment’s notice. My son is freaked out by Spongebob. If I had purchased that giant Spongebob doll, it would have to find another home until he outgrows the phase.
Prepare to optimize the space as you learn your patterns and habits. Are the diapers close enough to the changing table? Do you have to reach awkwardly over the baby to reach an item that should be closer? You’ll find that there are dozens of ways to make life easier on you and your partner simply by considering how you can optimize your space.
Curb-It is on-demand junk removal
You snap a pic of the stuff you want gone
You get upfront prices from background-checked Providers
You select your Hauler and your stuff is gone within hours
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