Our Greatest Adventure: Baby Boy Nursery Tour

Click the link below to read my guest post with Smiling Tree Toys (one of my favorite wood toy companies)!

Guest Post: Interactive Floating Library!

Baby Brooks will soon be here and is already our GREATEST adventure! When we first found out we were expecting back in January, I had no idea how much my life would actually change and definitely didn’t expect to struggle so much with keeping up my love for cooking and blogging. While this has been quite the hiatus, I can finally feel myself settling into in new normal and I can’t wait to reveal our baby boy’s adventure-themed nursery in this post! Whether you are pregnant and looking for gender-neutral or baby boy nursery theme ideas, randomly interested in my nursery design and baby product choices, or just simply wondering where the heck I’ve been for 9 months and are thinking this post will shed some light on my unexpected silence, I’m happy you are here and am thrilled to be back on the blog! Also, If you are currently in the nursery-decorating market I’ve included links to many of my nursery items in the nursery tour below – my hope is that this will ease the stress of hunting down the items that I spent months looking for! Join me on our baby boy’s nursery tour and keep reading to see what has made this journey [just the beginning of] our GREATEST adventure!

Courtesy warning: If you are here to simply see my nursery, scroll down past the next few paragraphs while I provide an update on my life and pregnancy journey!!

I would never have anticipated that it would be almost 9 months before I was back on the blog. You don’t really know how pregnancy will change you – and your priorities – until it happens. When I found out we were expecting, I was sure that this would propel my blogging inspiration to a new level. I couldn’t wait to share my journey with my amazing Instagram community of friends and bloggers who I had grown to love over the many months prior. I pictured myself posting bump pics each month, sharing the details of my meal choices and changing workout regime, taking photos of my evolving nursery and sharing every mama-to-be product choice, etc. In reality, I did quite the opposite. Not only has this journey left me exhausted and in a funk of eating strange (and out of character) things, it has taught me a very valuable lesson – to let life happen in a way that feels natural and needed. I fought the shift in the beginning, forcing myself to post on Instagram and devoting the little free time I had to fulfill my Instagram expectations at the expense of my comfort and the now-way-more-crucial quality time with my husband. At a certain point, I decided to let myself fail. And that’s how it felt early on, like I was failing. Here’s why…

Throughout my first and most of my second trimester, I was throwing up almost daily. It seemed the only thing I could keep down was the food I fought so hard against – the fried and fast kind. One time in particular I was driving home from work and actually threw up in the car (yes, while driving) and couldn’t make it home without stopping by Popeyes to get something fried in my stomach (which also happened to be my first time ever having Popeyes). While I was SO thrilled and thankful to have this little baby growing in me, it was especially difficult to get through this season for a few reasons: 1) I was training to become a Pure Barre teacher and this was both physically and mentally exhausting, 2) I was in the height of cheer tryouts and preparing my new cheer squad for my pending resignation, and 3) I was trying to hide my pregnancy from my colleagues, cheerleaders and high school students while simultaneously running into my back storage closet to vomit between (and even during) classes. This not only left me with no time or energy to blog, but also no appetite to even produce anything worth sharing! To me at the time, this was a big #fail.

In addition to the struggles I faced during the first half of my pregnancy, I was also dealing with another reality settling in: the career I had passionately held for the past 5 years was coming to an end. Before we got married, Matt and I discussed our dreams and vision for our future family, and we shared a common goal of having one parent stay home with the kids while they were young. We decided early on in our marriage that we wanted to make this dream of ours happen one way or another, and for us, this meant me resigning from my teaching and coaching career to pursue our ultimate goal – raising happy and God-loving children. While I’m thrilled to begin this new season of life and to fulfill my new God-given role, I would be lying if I said I wasn’t a bit bummed to be leaving. In fact, August has proven to be the most difficult as I find myself having a serious case of FOMO as I see my teacher friends posting their classrooms and fun professional development team building activities (yes, the same ones I complained about last year). What’s more, I even feel guilty for missing teaching as if it makes me less of a loving mother and less appreciative of the incredible gift I have growing inside me. Maybe it’s just the hormones, but this has certainly been a emotional summer! Thankfully I have been given the opportunity to create an online homeschool course through a homeschool and tutoring program called Lernsys (check out my 7th and 8th grade Science course), and this along with teaching Pure Barre has been where the majority of my time and energy has been spent this summer. Not with blogging or Instagram… and by now I’m beginning to learn that this isn’t as much as a #fail as I first considered it to be.

This brings me to my final update on my life and pregnancy. I have kept myself physically active throughout the past 8 months and even more so throughout the summer as I fully believed it would benefit my baby, pregnancy, and my own personal health. I’m not sure if I was wrong, but here is my experience. I had been an avid boxer (9round and Title) for the past 5 years, consistently going boxing around 4-5 times a week. In addition to this, I would run a few miles every couple of days and do the occasional at-home workout with my husband in our garage gym a time or two each week. Needless to say, this workout regime was not the most pregnancy-friendly! As soon as I found out I was pregnant, I shifted to Pure Barre as my primary exercise routine while also keeping my occasional 1.5 – 2 mile runs throughout the week. I ultimately became an instructor at the Pure Barre studio I belonged to and I kept up my workouts, runs, and teaching Pure Barre throughout the summer months – until I reached 32.5 weeks (almost 2 months out from D-day) when I began to notice an unusually frequent amount of contractions. 

Turns out my idea of a healthy pregnancy may need some reconsideration. After having contractions through the Pure Barre classes I taught one morning, I decided to stop by my doctor for a check. We ended up heading to the hospital and spent the next 2 days in and out in an attempt to halt pre-term labor. Then comes the doctor’s orders… “lenient bed rest”… no walks, exercise, and minimal time on my feet (GASP). I know it’s for the best and will make any sacrifice to keep our baby cooking for a few more weeks, but it has me restless and wondering if all my activity had anything to do with it. This probably merits a blog post of it’s own, but I’m certainly no expert on maintaining a healthy pregnancy and was not going to be quick to share my “expertise” (or lack thereof) on this platform as I was going through it for the first time. I have learned a lot though, the biggest lesson being to listen to my body and stay in tune with how it feels. Every pregnancy, body, and baby is different and should be treated as such. As much as I wanted to be the girl who was at Pure Barre and working out on my due date, I won’t be her and I’m okay with that! I am not blind to the blessing I’ve been given – I understand that many women have dealt with enormous lengths of pain, loss of pregnancy, and difficulty getting to the point I am beyond blessed to be at. I cannot fathom the pain many of my friends face and cannot begin to say I understand, so I will sit on the couch, smile at my giant moving bump, and be nothing but thankful.

Through it all, the free time I’ve had to enjoy myself has shifted from keeping up with my hobby of blogging and Instagram to putting down my phone and growing my relationship with my husband and the Lord. It has been a season of navigating my new normal – from a teacher and coach by day and blogger at night to a stay-at-home mom who occasionally teaches Pure Barre – and I’m still not quite sure how this new season will look for me. Maybe I will pick up the computer more often and get back into the swing of blogging once Brooks arrives?! Maybe I will post randomly when I have inspiration coupled with unexpected time?! Regardless, my priorities have shifted and I understand that sacrifices must be made in this season of life. What I refuse to sacrifice is the precious time with our new baby, connecting with my husband, my personal health, or my relationship with Christ. I cannot do it all, and I’m learning to be at peace with that!

Baby Brooks’ Nursery Tour

Now that my “short and sweet” update is over… it’s NURSERY TOUR TIME (the other thing that has kept me busy this summer)!

The theme we (…I) chose for our nursery is “Adventure”, which is especially fitting for our lifestyle and this journey so far! We wanted something that was gender-neutral (mainly because I started planning it out before we knew the gender) and that would yield an abundance of creativity as Brooks grows! I tried to stick with the idea that “less is more”, keeping things simple yet functional. In Brook’s room, you will find a mountain range on the wall (a super simple and quick DIY – I will share how we did it on a separate post), floating bookshelves full of intentionally chosen books, a single wooden toybox holding carefully selected and gifted toys, and the refurbished baby furniture set that Matt had himself as a newborn! Check out the photos below to see my favorite elements of our baby boy’s first space (and my new favorite room in the house)! It’s safe to say this is my new happy place :). I have also included direct links to several of the products (or similar ones) that I used in my own nursery for easy shopping if you are in the baby-product market! Please note that some of these links are affiliate links from which I would earn a small commission off your purchase. Below are a few of my Nursery décor tips:

1. Go with a fun Accent Wall

This wall makes it easy to keep the décor needs of the rest of the room simple! A fun and unique spin on an art wall that ends up saving you LOADS of money on art and décor! If you have a bunch of extra paint samples around, this (or some variation of this) is the absolute perfect way to use them. Not only was this one of the easiest DIY projects I’ve done, but it was also one of the quickest – I had the idea to do it at around 9 AM one Saturday morning and it was done by noon! I believe this project deserves it’s own blog post, so I’ll save the details for another time.

2. Make a Cozy Corner

I knew I wanted a glider in Brooks’ nursery instead of a traditional rocker for a few reasons: 1) I knew I would be spending a LOT of time in here nursing and wanted to make sure I had a comfy spot to do so, and 2) I wanted to make our bedtime stories into a cozy routine that Brooks’ looks forward to into his toddler years, and a comfy glider is conducive to a growing boy! In addition, the glider is an easier piece to transition into the regular home décor once baby outgrows his “little kid” room and bedtime stories (which I hope is NEVER).  This Upholstered Swivel Glider (the link takes you to a very similar one but mine is no longer available) and the side table/ottoman (on sale a while back from world market, but here is a comparable one –> faux fur ottoman) make the space perfectly warm, functional, and inviting! I have already spent many mornings cuddled up here with my (decaf) coffee and a good book :). In addition, I knew I wanted to have Brooks’ books (hehe, “Brooks’ books”) on display for both easy access AND as an added functional design element to the room! I have LOVED selecting the books to proudly put on display and have had so much fun arranging them onto his floating shelves! Plus, using the shelves to display his books is SO much of a better use of space than throwing a bunch of knick-knack items that will never be touched! My side table was a final sale from world market (I did find the exact table Here but it is way pricier than I what snagged it for), but I found a comparable side table for a much lower price if you are planning to stick to the adventure theme –> Bronze Arrow Side Table! Finally, this Hemp Rope Lamp was the perfect cherry on top of my cozy corner, bringing the vintage adventure theme to life!

3. Designate a Place to Play

Confession – I have played with Brooks’ toys and even rode his rocking horse in the past month (if that thing can hold a 9 month pregnant lady, I’m pretty sure it can handle Brooks well into his teenage years)! My primary goal with Brooks’ room was to ignite curiosity by keeping décor minimal and making room for space to explore and play! Each of Brooks’ toys that fill his toybox have been carefully selected by me or gifted to us by those who love him (my favorite toy shop is Oompa Toys online- my favorites are the Wooden Wave Blocks and Fire Blocks)! While I’ve had a blast filling his toybox, what I’m SUPER thrilled about is this Lovevery Play Gym (pictured above)! This thing was gifted to us and is the PERFECT combination of fun and educational for baby’s first year! It comes with a little playbook that explains how to use the play gym for each month of baby’s life, which is ideal for a mom who hasn’t a clue! Plus, the quality of the organic materials used is unmatched in any other gym I’ve seen (in addition to being easy on the eyes so it’s not so much of an eyesore when it inevitably moves to the living room). The rocking horse was actually Matt’s old rocking horse that was refinished by my father in-law, but I did find this Bamboo Wood Rocking Horse that could easily be painted or finished the way you want to suit your own nursery décor!

4. Let Décor Double as Functional Storage

In order to keep the nursery simple and functional, I knew I needed to keep décor to a minimum and take advantage of the items I brought into the room. This meant finding ways to turn decorative accents into functional pieces that both added appeal to the room’s theme while simultaneously satisfying one of the many storage needs that a nursery demands. The dresser/changing table (inherited from and refurbished by my in-laws) is full of secret spaces for me to stash necessities (like these Wire Baskets that are the perfect size for stashing lots of diapers in a “cuter” way) Because let’s be honest, I don’t want to have to open a drawer and fumble around when I’ve got a fussy baby in one hand! This Hanging Organizer (seen on the side of the dresser) also serves as the perfect tool for storing creams, rash applicators, and other diapering essentials. Additionally, I left the space on top of the dresser pretty empty with room for added storage because, while I feel like I have a good idea of what to expect, I am a rookie and don’t know what else I’ll want lying close during his changing sessions!

There is one thing to keep in mind as you shop for pieces for your nursery – fight the urge to buy “all the baby things” and think in terms of longevity. As with all of the pieces I chose for the room, I wanted to select items that would be easy to transition between rooms as our family grows. These Metal Branch Towel Hooks, the simple wooden toy box, and Canvas Bamboo Laundry Basket – while not as adorable as the little elephant hooks, personalized painted toybox, and embroidered baby laundry basket – will be easy to assimilate back into my home décor once Brooks’ outgrows them. They also keep the room from looking too “matchy matchy”. Nursery’s can often become so cluttered with monogrammed, personalized and patterned baby pieces that the theme looks to be more “this is a baby room” than anything else! Make yours unique by keeping it subtle and serene – it will be the perfect place for your baby to sleep, play, and grow!

5. Decorate the Crib LAST

I have a reason for this last tip – I almost did NOT follow this rule and, had I not, would have ended up with a very busy and off-balanced nursery! If I’m being honest, the only reason I saved the crib for last is simply because we did not receive our chosen bedding at our showers (we received many other AMAZING items though!) which fortunately left it to be a last minute task. The crib is a big focal point of the room, but the room itself has a lot of weighted spaces and many of those were unanticipated. Our nursery evolved so much over the course of several months that my “ideal bedding” ended up being drastically different that what I had on my registry at first. For example, the accent wall just happened one day and added a lot of unexpected weight to the room, so having a heavy crib wall also would make the room overwhelming. In addition, the floating bookshelves ended up bringing a lot more color and “pop” to the room than anticipated, so having a busy crib would have been far too much! By the time our bookshelves came to life and our toys and accent wall were in place, the crib needed to be an open and simple space that complimented – not set – the ambiance of the room. This also allowed me to play up the crib with some fun stuffed animals (these are from Restoration Hardware baby and child – OBSESSED with them)!

Whatever is your “plan of attack” for your nursery design, expect it to change with the passing months. You never know what you will be gifted and in what direction the weight of the room will go until it slowly unfolds over the course of your pregnancy! Save the “flair” for last and you will end up with the perfect space for your little one (and you)! It’s a safe bet to say you will spend many hours there building special memories with your newest family member, so it’s important that you love the room you build! Besides, in a few years it will be a stressful mess of dirty practice clothes and tacky wall posters, so savor the years that you have some control over it :).

I will let y’all know when baby arrives, but for now, you can find me chillin’ hard in the nursery :).

Kelsie