Most pregnant women find the second trimester as the most enjoyable time of their pregnancy. It is when the morning sickness starts to fade, energy seems to pick up, and the baby’s movement intensifies. To top it off, parents find out the gender of their baby.

Most pregnant women use that as a cue to start brainstorming and designing their baby’s nursery room as well as shopping for their baby’s stuff. 

The entire process of shopping for furniture, baby clothes, and supplies, and preparing the nursery may be an overwhelming task for new parents. But no need to be concerned, you can use the  Must-Have Newborn Checklist as your shopping list.  Also, this blog post will give you tips to help you start planning and preparing your little one’s nursery. 

Tips in Setting Up Your Nursery

Ideally, the nursery should be complete by the time you reach your 36^th weeks because you may want to be able just to relax and wait till your due date. You can start planning your nursery room as soon as you hit your second trimester. You need to assess how much time you will need to execute your design depending on the level of renovation and decoration the room will undergo. Work your way back from your 36^th week to determine when you should start.

NURSERY THEME AND LAYOUT

1.     Decide on the theme and colors of the room.

The internet offers a handful of inspiration for the overall aesthetic of your nursery room.  You may opt to make the room’s design gender-specific or gender-neutral. You can also make it more creative by choosing a specific theme inspired by flowers, fluffy animals, airplanes, or space.  

You may also design your nursery room using a specific color palette.  Did you know that there is a psychology behind the colors?  The paint color of your nursery affects the mood of the baby, caregiver, and parents. You can read more about the effects of colors on the mind and body in the Spruce.

2.     Fix the Nursery Layout

Your baby will spend the majority of his first year in his/her nursery, and so it is important to consider his primary needs when designing the layout. The baby will be in the room, mostly for sleeping, feeding, and diaper changing. Hence, it would be best if you consider giving appropriate space for each. Here are suggestions that may help you in designing the layout of the nursery.

 Sleeping Area

·       Your baby’s crib should be visible when you open the door so that it will be easy for you to do quick checks on the baby.

·       Avoid placing your baby’s crib next to the windows for safety reasons. Babies get curious as they get older, and they might try to grab onto the curtains or window sill.

·       Your baby’s crib should not be right beside other furniture, such as dressers or shelves that may fall off on it.

Changing Area

·       You can choose to buy a changing table.  Another option to save space and money is to use a dresser and put a changing mat over it.

·       The changing area should be near your crib so that it will be easy to move the baby on the changing mat.

·       The changing area should be near where the baby’s clothes are.

Feeding Area

·       Placing a rocking or reclinable chair near the crib makes it convenient for the mother and caregiver to feed the baby.

 ·       Use the feeding area as a reading corner for your baby.

Please remember that it would be best to strap heavy furniture to the wall to avoid accidents, especially when your little one starts to crawl and walk.

LIGHTING

Your bedroom should have good lighting, to help the baby recognize day and night. Your baby will also be able to associate the light to activities like playtime and naptime. 

Here are some tips to prepare the nursery’s lights

1.     Use bulbs that have soft light. 

Avoid bright lights that are uncomfortable with your baby’s eyes.

2.     Install a dimmer light. 

This light is very useful when you have to change or feed your baby during the night. 

3.     Avoid floor lamps in the nursery. 

When your baby begins to be mobile, he/she might knock over the lamp so it's best not to have it in the nursery.

NURSERY ORGANIZATION

You will be surprised how much a baby needs. Your baby needs supplies of clothing, bathing, diapering, feeding, and more, so it is essential to keep their things organized.  Avoid scrambling to look for the baby’s stuff by following these nursery organization tips.

1.     Group your baby’s things according to their use.

Organize your baby’s stuff into different containers.  For instance, you can have a trolley for all the baby’s diapering needs, such as fresh diapers, baby wipes, and diaper cream.  You can use a basket for the baby’s small toys.  You can fold and place the baby’s clothes inside a drawer or hang them in the cabinet. You have the freedom to use any storage containers as you wish.

Once your baby’s stuff is in a container, it is easy to grab it when you need it.

2.     Designate a place for their things.

To keep your baby’s stuff organized and easy to locate, return the things after you use it.

3.     Organize your baby’s clothes according to size.

Babies tend to accumulate many clothes from baby shower gifts, your shopping spree, and hand-me-downs. You may forget about clothes and realize it when they have already outgrown them. 

And so, it is best to group the clothes according to size and store them accordingly.  You can use labels for your drawers or cabinets for easier distinction. 

4.     Utilize wall for extra storage

Apart from hanging photos and decors, you can use the wall for extra storage space.  You can install ledges to display the books or add hooks to hang extra baskets.

Are you excited to start designing your nursery? We hope that we were able to give you nursery room organization tips.

Were the suggestions helpful for you?  If you have more tips on the nursery organization or any feedback, you can send it to us through the comment box below.