Picking a nursery theme has been as difficult as picking a name- more on that in a later post. The original idea was a nice, pastel seashore theme. After quite a bit of time searching, most of what we found was either too Florida beach tacky, not right for a baby, and/or all primary colors. One of the first decor pieces we bought was this really neat tile fish mosaic. Matt picked it out, but it wasn't until we got home and I went to move it that I realized it weighed a good 25lbs and there was no way we could hang it above the crib. Talk about an accident waiting to happen...
Eventually I found a crib bedding set that we loved. It turns out that crib bedding sets are ridiculously expensive, especially considering that they say not to use a crib bumper anymore. Basically you end up paying a couple hundred bucks for a sheet and crib skirt! What a ripoff! Amazingly, Matt's mom found material that was very similar to the pattern we loved. She is quite the seamstress and agreed to make the bedding for us, which makes it even more special :) Aunt Erin helped a good bit so a HUGE thanks goes to both of them. This is the crib bumper and you can see all three of the materials we used.
After months of not knowing what else to put in the room, one day a month or so ago we went to see Mr. Popper's Penguins and afterward Matt said, "Why not do a penguin theme?" How we had not thought of this before remains a mystery. By the time we got home I had found some really cute things on Amazon and Etsy. You can only use so many penguins without turning the place into a seaquarium, so we still needed something for the wall behind the crib. Preferably something that didn't weigh a ton and wasn't a death threat. Lo and behold the idea came to use polka dot decals (my neighbor who hosted the BaByQue loves them and put some up in her kitchen recently). It should be noted that I am terrible when it comes to accessorizing. I envy girls who can pick out cool jewelry and have perfect pictures, rugs, draperies, etc in their homes. So I was pretty proud of the fact that the dots just happened to mimic the dots in the fabric- although to be honest it was a total, unplanned fluke.
Putting up those darn dots was a challenge to my OCD. Oh, and there are 192 of them. How can you not make everything mirror image? Matt got a free pass on that project since nothing makes him more crazy than seeing me hang pictures without using a level or GOD FORBID a tape measure.
We also have to thank Aunt Rachel for making the cover for the changing pad. It matches the chair fabric perfectly and is soooo soft. A friend's mom crocheted the white blanket on the chair. It is just gorgeous. Turns out that Matt's mom made him one just like it as a baby. My sweet friend Sara made the animal collage. Her little boy Cole told her, "If Auntie Fleah doesn't like it can I have it?", but there is no way she is getting it back. Sorry buddy but Auntie Fleah is keeping that forever. Last but not least we ordered prints of both of our families so the little Penguin will have everyone who loves him most watching him every night. The pictures aren't here yet but once they are, the room is officially done.
Now all we need is a baby.
Nana's flight from Orlando got in the same day we came home from the hospital. Grandma and Grandpa Wolford and Aunt Erin were still at our house, so everyone got to meet for the first time! Nana was thrilled to spend a few days with Jackson and got to be there for quite a few of his "firsts", including his first time at Daddy's flag football game, first bath, first faux hawk, and first trip to the grocery store.
First trip to the Botanical Gardens
