These nurseries are a HOOT!

Owls seem to be a popular theme lately, and rightfully so!  There are so many cute owl accessories and decor available.  Check out these owl-themed design ideas:

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This super cute owl bedding is from Litto Kids



This adorable "owl"-phabet poster can be found on Etsy

I'm loving how the white "pops" on the colors chosen for this nursery:

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Nature themed Nursery

 Earth tones and rustic furniture allow for a great nature-themed baby room in which your child can grow.

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Here's the link to a cute DIY project to create a bird & branch mobile like the one pictured below:

I love this rustic crib for this theme!

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Click on the link below this pic for a DIY tutorial on how to create this log cabin effect on your walls.

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Cute nature inspired wall art from amenity

Securing Furniture to Prevent Tip-over

Meghan's Hope is a site dedicated to raising awareness about the dangers of furniture tip-over.  I know we all want to protect our little ones the best we can, so please read these tips from the site for how to secure your furniture and televisions:

Secure ALL furniture with shelves, drawers, and doors to the walls (into a stud if possible) with an appropriate device.

It doesn’t matter how tall or short, heavy, stable, or well made it is. 

Be sure that what you use can hold the weight of a fully loaded piece of furniture.   You may need more than one or two straps.

You can use any of the following (easily found on line if not in a store near you):

Safety First Furniture Wall Straps

Mommy’s Helper Furniture Safety Brackets

Kidco’s Anti-tip furniture straps

Quake Hold TV strap, computer strap, big or flat screen TV strap, and appliance strap.  They also have putty and industrial Velcro.

Parent Unit’s Safety straps and topple stops (great for TV’s/computer monitors)

“L” brackets

Earthquake cables

Secure ALL TV’s to the wall and/or to the table/entertainment center on which it sits. 

Don’t forget to secure computer monitors.

Place TV sets and computer monitors on low, stable units as far back as possible, then secure them to the wall and/or to the surface on which it sits

Do not place anything on top of the TV, out of reach is not out of mind!

Place heavy and most often used/played with items on the lowest shelf and in the lowest drawer, putting progressively lighter items in drawers from the bottom up.

Place any items that may be of interest to a child within easy reach so they are not enticed to climb for it or reach for it. 

Do not place items on top of dressers that children may want to play with or that they use.  It only tempts them to climb to reach them.

Do not place items you do not want your child to have within their sight but out of their reach (or even out of sight and out of their reach if they know where you put it) as they are likely to try to climb or reach for it.  Remote controls and toys/games/videos/DVD’s are items kids frequently reach for on top of TV’s. 

Don’t assume simply telling your child not to climb/reach is enough, it isn’t.  Even if they can tell you what they are not supposed to do!

Don’t assume your child will remember the dangers even if you’ve told them to be careful.  Play is the work of children.

Think outside the box.  Consider other things in your home that could be a risk and should be secured.  Perhaps a sculpture or artwork, vases, or large decorative pieces on the floor or on a stand, table, or shelf.

Don’t assume it can’t happen to you, it can, and in a heartbeat.

Don’t assume your child is too old.  Every child under 10 needs to be protected.  Adults and the elderly have also been seriously injured or even killed by fallen furniture or televisions.

Make sure everywhere your child spends time (day care, grandparents, etc) is also a safe environment.

Do it right, do it now.  The next child saved could be yours.

Even if your furniture and TV’s are secured, check the safety straps frequently to be sure they are still secure.  They can come loose or plastic cable ties and parts can break over time, especially if exposed to sunlight or increased pressure.

Click on the link at the beginning of the post to view Meghan's story and to view links to other safety resources.

Loft Beds for Kids

I think loft beds are great... they allow for more storage space, stimulate children's imaginations and encourage them to play in their rooms.  When my brother and I were little, my dad built us both loft beds.  We both LOVED them!   

Here are some innovative loft beds I've came across:

This loft bed would be great in a small space.  The pull-out desk and the trundle bed are unique features.

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The step side feature and themed designs of the below two beds are very unique and creative.

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This modern style would be great for a "tween" bedroom.

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I really like the stairs on the below loft bed as opposed to a ladder.  This would be safer for younger siblings who want to climb into older brother's or sister's bed.

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 Can you imagine being able to get out of bed using a slide?  That would have been AWESOME when I was a child (hey, that would be awesome now as an adult!).

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This is a great idea for a teenager's room where space is limited... a daybed below with lofted couch-style seating above:

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The pull out drawers integrated into the stairs in the below loft allows for creative additional storage:

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 The idea of a rock-climbing wall is a good idea for a bedroom that doubles as a playroom:

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http://www.sweetdreambed.com/ also has some absolutely amazing custom loft beds.... from castle beds to cottage beds to tree house beds, and many more.  Check out their site!

Zoo-themed nursery decor

My inspiration for this blog post are these zoo-themed blocks I found in a magazine.... these would be great as nursery decor, and double as toys for your little one once they get older!

Here are some super cute and creative nursery ideas and accessories to follow this theme:

  

This mom draped burlap from the ceiling to give the appearance of a tent.  She also painted the mural herself using patterns.  Click on the "source" link below for how-to's on projects in this nursery:

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I love the modern wall art in this nursery... this would be a really fun DIY project! 

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In the above nursery, I love the way the artist incorporated the animals into the letters of the baby's name!

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These large 3D wall stickers are wonderful!  Gives the feel of a mural but takes a lot less time:

 

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I came across this bedding and love it for this theme!  The animals' eyes are absolutely adorable.



These bookends would also look great in a zoo-themed room:

Search Amazon.com for zoo nursery decor

Handprint and Footprint Canvas Wall Art

I love this idea!  You can make personalized wall decor for your children's room/nursery, or use these canvases to make gifts for family members incorporating your little one's handprints and/or footprints.  I had purchased a kit similar to this, and put my baby's footprints on one of the canvases (he's too little to do his handprints... I tried and they did not turn out very well!).  I painted "Brock <3's Daddy" at the top and gave it to my husband as a gift for Valentine's Day.  He has it hanging in his office.

Fun DIY Craft to announce pregnancy to family

My husband and I found out we were pregnant at the beginning of June 2010.  We were so excited that it took everything in us to not call our parents right then and there to tell them, but we wanted to think of a unique way to share the news with them.  With Father's Day approaching two weeks later, we decided to have a get together with both sets of parents at our house.  I made "diaper duty" tool belts for our dads as their Father's Day presents to announce the news:

I got the tool belts from Sears and bought fabric paint to label them.  (I believe the tool belts are technically called "waist aprons".)  I stuffed them each with diapers, a travel pack of wipes, a pacifier, a sample packet of diaper rash cream, a travel size baby powder bottle, a Munchkin diaper bag dispenser, travel hand sanitizer, and then comical items like a mask, goggles, gloves and earplugs.  It turned out to really be a hit!  This could be used as a fun way to announce that you're pregnant to your husband/boyfriend as well!

DIY Closet Dividers

One of the projects I made for Brock's room was creating closet dividers to help organize his clothes.  I found DIY instructions at ashleyannphotography.com.  Follow this link to see them: Closet Dividers

I followed the sports theme for these, and I added scrap booking stickers to them as well.  I also had to make a small cut in each of them in order to fit them over the wire rack.

Here is the final product... I love the way they turned out!  I'm thinking about making some for baby shower gifts :)

Baby Brock's Room!

Hi there!  Thank you for visiting my blog.  My first post is about a project that my husband and I are very proud of: our baby boy's nursery!  We decided to go with a sports theme for the room since we are both sports fans.  Our inspiration room is a super cute design I found on HGTV's Rate My Space:

See more pics of inspiration room here


And here are photos of Brock's room:

My parents found this name plaque while on vacation in Tennessee.

The room wasn't quite finished when I took these photos.  We now have a small TV that I had from college hung on the bare wall (mainly for mommy to have something to watch during feedings, lol), and a glider in front of the window.

My dad, my husband, and my father-in-law installed the chair-rail and crown molding shelf.  The bedding is the Playoffs design by Lambs and Ivy.  The crib and changing table is Graco Lauren.  The varsity letter wall decal is from Dali Decals and can be found here: Varsity Monogram Decal

A friend of ours took our maternity photos, and she took one in front of the name decal, and also took one incorporating the name plaque:

My husband and I two weeks before Brock was born.

Lastly, here is a pic of my little chubby cheeked peanut!



I look forward to sharing my love for design and crafting in this blog and I hope you all enjoy it!!