Home Tour: Declan's Nursery

We've lived here about two and a half months now, and I have yet to share any home pictures. Probably because it took about two months to actually unpack every last box. And then there was the business of getting some prints of Declan for our walls. I think Joe may have a heart attack if another orange box from Shutterfly arrives on our doorstep. But now things are put away and the walls are cheerfully adorned, so I figured I'd kick off the home tour with Declan's room. 

I didn't originally plan a nursery for Declan because he and Ez were sharing a room at our last house. All the furniture was just arranged in the only way it would all fit and everything was very cramped and inconvenient. It just wasn't the best setup. Now they each have their own room and I think it makes life and sleep schedules much easier. 

Declan's room is probably my favorite room in the house. I took the mom initiative to decide that Declan loves elephants. He has no say in it, but if he sees them often enough, it may turn out to be true. His room is really bright and since Declan isn't mobile it tends to remain organized for the most part. Unlike a certain two year old's room.  Or my closet, for that matter.

One of my favorite things about his room is that there are so many handmade touches from friends and family that really show how loved Declan is. The balloons, Declan crate, and teal letters were made by my close friend Jennifer. The striped kitty on the shelf over the changing table was knitted by my sister/Aunt Anna. The blue animal print quilt hanging over the crib was made by Joe's cousin. And the elephant print was actually taken by my sister/Aunt Bianca on a recent trip to Africa. It's a three month old elephant, and I love how playful he looks. Perfect for a baby or toddler's room. You can see more of her gorgeous photos here.

Home Makeover Project: Ezzy's Room

It's about that time again...painting update time! One of Ez's walls is made of wooden boards, so I decided it might look cool to paint a striped accent wall. I don't think I would attempt this if the lines weren't already outlined for me. That's too much precision and measuring for a very non-type A person like myself, whose motto is "close enough." After a little searching on Pinterest, I decided I liked a subtle gray color. Here was my inspiration:

Here was Ez's room before:

I forgot to take before pictures, so this is from when we first moved in. Other than the horse and bucket of stuffed animals being moved against the wall, this is pretty much what his room looked like. With the way the furniture was arranged, the amount of play space was narrow and rectangular and not that inviting. I wanted to rearrange everything to make it more open. I moved his changing table and the small container next to it into his closet (his dresser was already in there), and I moved the crib against the back wall. That made a huge difference, and now Ez loves playing in there. He'll often wander in there by himself and I'll find him playing contentedly with his toys.

Back at our old place, Ezzy's nursery had a balloon theme. You can check it out here. Lately Ez has an obsession with moons, and one could even argue that his first word is moon/"boon" - so I ran with that and gave him a moon decoration from our room, a pond & moon painting that I made, and some moon and star night lights from Ikea. Even the gray paint is called silver moonlight. He also likes cars, so we got him the car roadway rug, also from Ikea. I think he'll love that for years to come. (I hope so, anyway!) The mini green recliner with monster trucks on it was a birthday gift from Ez's cousins & aunt. The rocking horse was a birthday gift from Gangy, Grampa, and the uncles. We got the white wall shelves from Ikea, and I really love having a few seasonal and favorite books displayed. For some reason Ez has the most Halloween books of any holiday. I think he has 2 Valentine books, 2 Christmas books, and 6 Halloween books. Not quite sure how that worked out. We'll have to add some Christmas books this year. 

I still haven't decided what to put above the big chair. I'm thinking maybe another shelf? Any suggestions? Also, my friend suggested curtains. I installed those blinds myself, and that was quite the headache (as were the shelves, for that matter), so curtains will be a future project, once the power drill and I are on speaking terms again. 

And here's a progress pic of Joe and Ez enjoying his little reading nook before it was quite finished. Love those two so much.

Nursery Tour: Balloons & Giraffes

Ezzy's nursery is done! Actually, it was done last week, but it took me awhile to get some decent pictures. Almost everything in his room was a gift, and my original theme, which was hot air balloons, eventually branched out into including all kinds of balloons, and plenty of giraffes and elephants too. I'm really happy with how it's turned out, and so far it's the nicest room in the house. He's the only one with brand new furniture and homemade decorations and blankets thanks to our crafty friends.    

The Ezra balloon wall-hangings were handmade by Jen, and the balloon and circus animals mobile was from Ikea. All of the blankets hanging on his crib were handmade. The sleeping giraffe which plays melodies was a gift from Grandma Kathleen, and the elephant humidifier was a gift from our friends Stephen and Leigh. 

View from the entrance

The hot air balloons were a gift from Jessica, which we originally used as baby shower decorations. Love how they look hanging up next to the hot air balloon curtains which Zshnette and her grandma made for us. There's a little Winnie the Pooh floating in the red one, a gift from work. 

Jennifer made the Ezra box, which I'm using to store his receiving blankets and burp cloths. Most of those books were mine, or gifts, and the piggy bank and silver baby cup were baby shower gifts as well. 

Ezzy is already stocked on toys! (Although I admit, half those stuffed animals are mine.) The cute world suitcase was a gift from Jessica from Michaels and is holding all of Ezra's 2013 Time Capsule goodies. The floating globe is Joseph's. And the yellow owl nightlight was from Target. 

The cute little monkey bouncer was a gift from my cousin, and the chair was given to us by my aunt. Most of the blankets and the pillow were handmade. 

The wooden wall decorations were a gift from Grandma Tracie. The giraffe print was actually a gift bag from Target that I framed. And the photos are all from our maternity photo shoot when I was a lil over eight months pregnant.

And in case you were wondering what James thinks of the room, he seems to like it. Or, at least, he makes his daily rounds to make sure everything's in place and accounted for.

 Joe has decided James is his dance partner. I'm sure you can guess by James' expression how thrilled he is by their new hobby.

Nursery Ideas & Inspiration

Thanks to Pinterest, I've been getting some ideas of what I like for a nursery. Since we'll still be renting for at least the next year, I doubt we're gonna go crazy and paint everything. Luckily, most of the nurseries I liked were in neutral colors anyway. Also, I found that I love balloons/hot air balloons and elephants. Who knew?

A few neutral nurseries that caught my eye:

 

I found this on www.houzz.com and the main thing that stood out to me was the elephant hamper. So I hunted it down, and at $71 I doubt we'll actually get it, but it's so cute that I'll share it here:

Elephant Hamper from HomeDecorators.com

I like the cream, white, and brown color scheme of this nursery (also from houzz.com). Personally, I would add more pops of color in the form of art, a rug, and bedding. They also make good use of a small space, which I imagine will be close to the size of our nursery.

Here's another cream, white, and brown nursery. I'm a fan of how it's lighter than the one above, and I love those storage cubby boxes. I think the shiny dresser, velvety chair, and furry rug are a little too fancy for a baby though (or for me, for that matter).

Here are some really cute, colorful rugs I found:

My Hot Air Balloon Rug

Whimsy Sky Rug

Round Balloon Rug

And some balloon wall art I've been eyeing:

Captains of the Clouds

Baby Giraffe Soaring

LOVE this Quote - Unfortunately, I haven't been able to find this print for sale

Bunny Balloon in Orange Creamsicle

Flight of the Elephants

Voyages Over Edinburgh

Around the World Mural Banner

And some DIY project inspiration for when I'm on maternity leave:

DIY Paper Lantern Hot Air Balloons

Elephants and Birds Mobile

Dream Your Sky Mobile

Paper Hot Air Balloon Mobile

And, even though Ezzy's 1st birthday is a long way off, I'm just gonna throw in a picture of this cake, because it's adorable, and because it's cake:

Shabby Chic Hot Air Balloons Cake