Vintage Baby Blocks By Design {Etc}

I came across these beautiful vintage baby blocks while blog hopping. They are made by Elaine of design {etc} who is a mommy herself. She is a freelance graphic designer by occupation, but says, "There's just something about creating with my hands...I love it! I am blessed to be able to work from home and it is my pleasure to create custom gifts for you and your loved ones!"

$10.00 per block ~ 5 blocks or more, $8.00 per block

Who Knew? Vertically Challenged Moms

By Robin England
BBA Contributor and Stay-at-home Mom
Plano, TX

Who knew that short (or should I say “vertically challenged”) moms needed to have drop down rails on their baby’s cribs? I am 5 feet, 1 ½ inches tall. I was the shortest kid in school my whole life and I’ve gotten used to being one of the shortest adults around as well. No big deal – it’s just who I am.

When we were looking for a crib during our first pregnancy, we fell in love with a beautiful crib that converted to a double bed. We thought this was a great idea and we pictured our son in this crib/bed through his 18th year. What we didn’t realize was that such beds did not have a drop down side because the front and back of the crib converts to a footboard and headboard for the double bed. But I didn’t care because it was pretty and we would be getting our money’s worth after those eighteen years, right?!

It wasn’t a problem when our son was small. We had the mattress up pretty high and I could get him in there fairly easily. But as he grew, and as we lowered the mattress to keep him from pulling up and out of the crib, I realized that I was dropping him into the crib more often than placing him in it. This situation created a host of issues. Our son would invariably wake up during mid-drop and start screaming – so goodbye nap time and rest time for Mommy! I tried standing on a stool to place him in the crib but that just made me feel like I was going to lose my balance and drop both of us. I ended up settling with straddling the crib rail in my middle (talk about uncomfortable) and rocking over the crib to place him – this worked about 50 percent of the time. The rest of the time, he woke up, fussed, screamed…you get the idea.

Now, three years later, that same crib is a very nice double bed. But if we had it to do over again, we would get a drop down rail and not worry about converting to a double bed. After all, his room is small and that big bed takes up a lot of space – especially in a room where Thomas the tank engine reigns supreme and requires quite a bit of floor space for his ‘friends’ and track.

Actually, we did “have it to do all over again” about six months ago when our daughter was born. What kind of crib did we get? A very nice little drop down rail number that converts to a small toddler bed. It’s perfect. She stays asleep as I easily place her in the crib and she takes good naps. Who knew???

Thanks to Robin for contributing this post. You can also submit your own "Who knew?" stories to be published on BBA. We're looking for the stories about pregnancy and parenting that you don't always find in the books, but you probably should. I've often thought, "How am I supposed to just know that?" That's how this column,"Who knew?" came to be.

Related Post:
:: Who Knew? Different Size Nipples

Inspirational Nursery Designs

Check out these 15 beautiful baby rooms on HGTV.com for ideas and inspiration when designing your own baby's nursery. They have a good mix of boys, girls and gender-neutral designs (which are often hard to find), including this Gender-Neutral: Organic and Stylish design below.

Restoration Hardware Baby & Child

Restoration Hardware has introduced its "newest arrival," Restoration Hardware's Baby and Child, and it's beautiful. Most of the bedding collections come in pink, blue and green with chocolate brown accents. The baby apparel is available in the same colors plus the neutral and organic bisque. It all looks so soft and cuddly. And of course, the furniture is classic and looks like it can grow with the child.

If Restoration Hardware is not in your budget, do what I do. Take inspiration from them and find similar things at other stores like Target and Babies R Us.

Chalkboard, Magnetic & Dry Erase Paint

I have been amazed with chalkboard paint ever since I first heard about it and tried it. But I recently came across more amazing options for kids' walls. There's a magnetic paint, dry erase paint and even glow in the dark paint!

These I found are made by RustOleum and can be found at most home stores or paint stores. One of their newest products is a Chalkboard Tint Base which allows you to choose from 12 colors including Fresco Red, Peapod and Grape Fizz to name a few.

Check out this creative wall mural using chalkboard paint (RealSimple.com). I recently saw another picture in a magazine that had large chalkboard rectangles painted around the room. Each had a whimsical, white frame painted around the chalkboard. It looked so real and gave a sophisticated touch to a "chalkboard" in a little girl's playroom.

DwellStudio for Target

Move over Pottery Barn, here comes DwellStudio for Target. From bedding to lamps to gliders, DwellStudio seems to have your modern nursery covered with trendy and boutique-style fabrics and furnishings that are oh so cute!!

I love their Zoo, Olivia and Circles bedding sets. They are reasonable at $79.99 for a 3-piece crib set (bumper pad, comforter, crib sheet) and you can add the crib skirt for just $19.99 more. The rest of the accessories are reasonable too; window panels are $14.99 and decorative pillows are $9.99.

Check out the entire DwellSudio collection here.

Medela Nursing Stool

Before buying or registering for the matching ottoman for your nursery's rocker or glider, check out the Medela Nursing Stool. It's a great alternative to an ottoman, whether or not you are nursing, for a few reasons:

1) At about $25, it's cheaper than most ottomans.

2) It offers steady support for easier nursing.

3) It's smaller than ottomans, so it doesn't take up too much valuable space in your nursery.

4) It's lightweight, so it can be moved from room to room depending on where you nurse your baby.

Modern Baby Bedding

Looking for nursery decorating ideas? Check out this cute modern baby boy and girl bedding by Brandee Danielle. It's $159 for a four-piece crib bedding set and matching accessories are moderately priced too at babymania.com.

For a limited time, babymania.com is offering free shipping on all baby bedding set orders over $99. Just use Coupon Code: BAB3409.

The Nursery: For Baby or Parents?

New parents spend anywhere from $5,000 to $15,000 to decorate a baby's nursery, according to the Juvenile Products Manufacturers Association, resulting in a $7.3 billion industry. That's a lot of money to spend on a room that the baby can't really enjoy until he's crawling. So, some parents are side-stepping ducks and bunnies and, instead, incorporating their own styles, interests and personalities into their babies' rooms.

Nursery: Family Pictures

When planning our baby's nursery, I collected baby photos from all of our family members. I scanned them and turned them into black and white prints. I left the top middle open for the baby's first picture and put mommy and daddy's baby pics on the sides. The bottom left frame includes my family and the bottom right, my husband's family.

It was such a great way to see who Jack looked like when he came along. He still loves looking at all of the pictures and letting me point out who is who.

Here's a tip for hanging the J-A-C-K letters and the bow. I used velcro circles to stick the letters and the bow to the wall. It was much easier than nails and allowed me to tilt them. The C has fallen a couple of times over the past year, but I'd still do it this way again.

My baby picture...Jack's baby picture...Scott's baby picture