As a new parent, there’s always the chance you’ll become overwhelmed by all the things you need to do. You need to look into a nursery, maternity care, ensure your insurance details are up to date, fret when one thing goes wrong, and keep it together for the baby’s sake. Staying on top of all this can be challenging, and we would not expect you to be calm through it all.
But here is one thing you can do to reduce the strain on your part – prepare in advance. It might seem unnecessary, but parents who start preparing before the baby comes have an easier time adapting to their new arrival. Let’s look at how you can ensure your nursery is perfect for your little one before you even get to meet them:
How To Get Your Nursery Ready For It’s New Arrival
Selecting a Nursery
Before you even start thinking about the best wallpaper designs for the nursery, you need to decide where it will be. Most people already have a room in the house dedicated to this purpose. But if you’ve recently moved or are a new parent, you probably need to think about this.
Will you give up your room for the baby? Or will you use the spare guest room? When choosing the right room for the nursery, think about the number of items it will require to hold. Also, consider that this might be your baby’s room for a long time. Once that nursery wallpaper goes up, there’s probably no turning back.
Some parents prefer sharing their room with the baby. If this is the case, locate the nursery towards a corner that can be the baby’s dedicated space. It will be much easier to keep an eye on the baby this way. Some pediatrics even recommend this proximity for the first six months of the baby’s life.
Tip: for a separate nursery, locate the nursery near your room so you can check on the child at night with ease. You don’t want to be walking to a room across the house every twenty minutes. It gets tiresome.
Choosing a Theme
Everything you do from this point onwards will tie to your theme, so you should come up with one. Think about what you want to communicate in the room. Are you going for a fun vibe? Would you rather create a calm space? Your choice will determine:
- The colors you use,
- Whether you use patterns and textures,
- The lighting you will install, and
- The accessories you include in the space.
Decorating a nursery without a theme can make the room too busy, which would be uncomfortable for you and the baby. Besides, you do not want to end up with clutter all over your baby’s space.
Cleaning, Painting/Papering, and Fixing the Room
Babies are sensitive to dust and other allergens in their spaces. So, before you bring in any furniture and accessories, you’ll want to make sure that the room is clean. We advise that you start by clearing out everything in the room. Some of the fixtures in the room will likely need an update, and now is the time to do this. Have an electrician come over and inspect the wiring.
If you need to install dimming lights, do so at this point. Also, install smoke and carbon monoxide detectors now. The next step is to ensure that the windows and door are in good condition. Inspect them for any defects and repair these before oiling their hinges.
You can now scrub the whole room from the walls to the floors, ceiling, and door. Ensure that nothing remains dirty and leave the room to dry. With the walls clean, you now need to work on their appearance. In the past, the go-to was paintwork, but this has proven to be a hassle and limiting to creativity. The better option lies in using temporary wallpaper on the walls.
It hides blemishes, is easy to clean and maintain, looks great on the walls, and is easy to install and remove. You can move ahead with the painting or papering at this point. Don’t forget to apply wallpaper to the ceiling to complete the room’s look. The floor will likely need a final wash to cater to the mess that will result from this process.
Clean all the items that were in the room which you intend to reintroduce into the space. You don’t want them contaminating the clean space. You can now them back in the space. Store the items that you will not need in a separate room, and you can sort them when you have the time to do so. Or give them away.
Fitting the Nursery
Remember the theme you earlier chose? It will guide your furniture selection. Some of the items you will need to buy include:
- A cradle/ bassinet, or an equivalent,
- A sofa/ rocking chair, or equivalent which is comfortable to hold you for naps and feeding time,
- Shelves for toys and baby supplies,
- A dresser to store the baby clothes,
- A changing station, and
- Bins- for toys, dirty clothes.
Baby furniture can be costly. You can save money by considering items that can serve more than one purpose. For example, if you can get a dresser that doubles as a changing station, you can get two uses from one furniture piece. In addition, you will also need to consider other items such as Nuna Premium Car Seats, Pushchairs, and Baby Gear AU or similar to enable you to get out and about and explore with baby safely.
Setting Up the Space
You are almost ready to welcome the baby – just one more thing left on your list. You need to organize the space and ensure it’s conducive to you and the baby. How? By grouping related activities in the same area. For example, your baby will often need changing. You can move the changing station near their crib so you can easily move them from one surface to the other. You can also move the sofa or rocking chair near the crib for easier movement when transferring the baby to their bed.
We recommend that you also create safe spaces for your baby all around the house. From the kitchen to the bathroom to the family room, ensure you are ready to have the baby in these spaces by equipping them accordingly. All the best! While you cannot prepare for everything, these changes will have you feeling confident about your new journey.
