Nursery - decisions

Hello!!! I hope you are all having a great week so far. Mine is flying!!!

Anyways, today I am back to with another post about the nursery. After a lot of research, hearing advices and visits to stores we decided on the main furniture for our baby's nursery.


Crib: we decided to go with Pottery Barn. It was on sale and I was able to get an extra discount (yes,... I am the type of person who likes discounts and coupons!!!). The crib seems to be sturdy and will last for a while since it becomes a toddler bed. We already assembled it.

Mattress: we have been looking in stores and supermarkets however we could not make up our minds on the mattress yet. We don't plan on spending a lot of money... also, I am a little bit concerned about buying the ones with a plastic exterior (I keep wondering if it makes a lot of noise when the baby moves or if it gets too warm). On the other hand, we already purchased a waterproof mattress cover - I believe we will buy another one. Would 2 be enough?

Still on this topic,... we are aware that it is important to have a firm/ super firm mattress, however should we pick the one with coils - which are really heavy and will make it difficult to make the bed - or should we go with the organic foam ones? We are open to suggestions!

Dresser/ Changing Table: we decided to go with the Ikea one. I like the idea of having a lot of drawers and storage space to organize my baby things. I will definitely change the knobs to something more girly.

We also got a changing pad to have on the top of the dresser. This is a non-allergic foam and comes with stripes to be attached to the dresser. 

Rocking Chair: after a long search, we also decided to go with the Charleston Chair from Pottery Barn. They were having a sale and I was able to negotiate an extra discount. We chose a light grey - to match the theme (pink, grey, white). We don't have a lot of space in the nursery, so I like the fact that this chair is not really big and it is firm. This is a rocking chair, but in the future I can convert it into a regular arm chair - just switch the base.

We didn't buy the ottoman though. If we feel the need to have some support for our feet/legs, I will buy something cheaper.

Blinds: we got the cordless blinds from Levolor at Lowe's and already got them trimmed according to the size of our windows. I preferred to buy two (smaller) instead of a big one considering that only one part of the window is functional. Hubby still needs to install te blinds,... but we have been so busy lately! 

Ideally I will have time to get a pair of curtains,... in my mind it will give a charming touch to the nursery.

I believe these are the most important furniture for the nursery. Am I forgetting something?

I would like to paint one of the walls or have some wallpaper on it - as a feature wall, but I know that time is an issue right now and we are each day closer to the birth of our little princess.

Soon I will be back with a post about stores and baby registry,...

Advices and recommendations are really welcome!

Baby gear - part I

Hi guys,....

We already bought some of the things we will need for the baby. We have been watching videos on Youtube and also had a great amount of advice from friends - and we really appreciate them!!!!

It is difficult at a first moment to determine what will be important/useful for the baby. When you visit baby stores, everything seems to be important,... and after talking to a sales consultant I am under the impression these products are a "real necessity"!!!

That's why I rely more on the advice of my friends that already have babies! They make the process less overwhelming and more real.

I also understand that people can talk about their experience and that each baby is different.

So, here is a list of the products that I believe we will use with our baby and that's why we already purchased them.

1. Stroller
That the first thing we got for the baby. It is a difficult task finding a stroller, there are so many options and price points in the market. We decided to go with a travel system from Graco. It seemed to be good quality and durable. Some features that caught our attention are: the possibility of having the baby facing both directions; the large storage compartment, the click and connect system, the fact that we could use only the car seat. Ron picked the colour, he liked the grey. According to the manufacturer, this stroller can last for a long time, since it "grows" with the baby.

It is important to mention that, if you live in Canada, the car seat should be bought here (and not in the US). The Government has specific regulations regarding safety. We were informed that the day we leave the hospital a nurse will come to our car to ensure that it has the "National safety mark" and it was installed properly. For more information, please visit the Government website.

National Safety Mark

2. Baby Monitor

Since we live in a 3-story townhouse, we thought it would be really important to have a baby monitor  allowing us to keep tabs on our baby while  we are in another room. The model we chose from v-tech has good reviews and comes with 2 transmitters (cameras with night vision and audio) and one receiver (monitor). We bought ours at Babies R Us.

3. Diaper Pail

After some research online, we decided to go with the diaper genie. I like the idea of having a foot pedal to open and close. It also offers odor control through a carbon filter. There are special plastic refills (bags) required, and they can be pricy, however you can find good deals on them at Costco. We picked the white one to match the furniture.

Plastic refills

4. Nursing Pillow
I read that "nursing pillows work wonders", and honestly, I can see it being pretty useful when breastfeeding in a glider or anywhere around the house. We purchased the Jolly Jumper, however it is not machine washable (my bad!!! did not check that before buying it), but it was a great deal. We are considering buying a second one from Boppy - machine washable, if we find a good deal.

Jolly Jumper nursing pillow

5. Car seat mat:
We thought it would be a good ideia to have something to protect our car. I hope it works!

6. Playmat:

I think this mat is adorable and I hope our baby will like spending time on it. I also think it is easy to take with us to our friends' house.

Any advice on these or other products?

Nursery ideas - part I

Hey guys,...

As I mentioned in a previous post, my idea for the nursery is to have white crib and a white dresser. The rocking/gliding chair I am not so sure yet.

I always liked the sleigh crib - the one with the"headboard"that goes against the wall. But right now I am second guessing myself since we have seen one at Pottery Barn that is really cute,... a little more traditional, but cute.

Sleigh Crib

Kendall crib from Pottery Barn

Ikea furniture is always an option, right?,... 

Ikea crib - Gulliver

Not so sure what to do now,... but I know we gotta make a decision soon, since we are 27 weeks pregnant. Another thing to consider is that, Ikea cribs/mattresses size are slightly different from all other cribs.

Also, instead of buying a changing table or a "baby dresser" (the dressers from the baby stores), we decided to go with Ikea Hemnes dresser. I believe it will work perfectly, with great room for storage!

Ikea Hemnes dresser

My plan is to paint the nursery with a greyish neutral color, and one wall (the one where the crib goes) will be a darker grey; and mostly all the other decoration - pillow, throws, crib skirt,... will be in shades of pink.

What do you think of these ideias?

Next post I will make a list of the things we already got for the baby!

It is a ... GIRL!!!!!!!

It is a GIRL!!!!!

As I mentioned in my last post, during our last ultrasound (20 weeks), baby didn't cooperate for us to know the gender. But the most important thing was to know that our baby is healthy and developing accordingly.

However, the technician could not confirm the gender. She said we would need to check during the next ultrasound - scheduled for the end of February.

Honestly, I would not be able to wait until the end of February to start buying clothes and the things I want for my baby. Therefore we searched online for some options, private clinics that perform a 3D Ultrasound and are able to tell you the gender of the baby.

We chose a company that is located close to our workplace, was open after hours and most importantly had good reviews. They have so many options with packages that include live broadcasting, teddy bear with the heartbeat of your baby, pictures, DVD and the list goes on and on. We just got the gender determination special.

And it worked! We are having a GIRL!!!!! Also, it was the first time we were able to see her face!

My husband was more emotional than I was,... it was a very special moment for us.

2017: We are having a baby!!!!

I don't think it is too late,... so: Happy New Year!

I know it's been a long time and I have no excuses for you. I was considering to stop with this blog if I can call it like that.

Another year has ended and I can say that 2016 was a year of changes, surprises, ..., it was a year of emotions. Talking about the house, we didn't finish or started any new project, although ideas were not an issue, we had a busy summer! We got the high chairs for the breakfast bar and the pendant lights (I will post pics in a near future).

But the most important thing that happened in 2016 is: our family is growing. Nope, it is not another dog. We are having a baby!!!

We are really excited with what 2017 will bring us. We still don't know if it is a boy or a girl, but according to our last doctor's appointment baby is developing really well and that's what matters, right?!

We have been visiting baby stores, not to mention searching for tips and advices from friends. It is overwhelming, but we are enjoying the whole process. We are reading books recommended by my friend that lives in NY and just had her second baby.

Have you guys seen how many cute stuff there are for babies??????

For now, we decided that the nursery furniture will be white (crib, dresser/changing table, rocking/gliding chair) and the decoration will be according to the gender. Pinterest has been of great help for ideas.

We already purchased the stroller, baby monitor and a few clothes - gender neutral.

Advices are welcome! Please don't hesitate to leave your comment here!

Next post I will show the things that we already have for the baby.