Henry's Room

Henry's room is tiny and probably my favorite room in the house.  It was my office and coat closet and kept this identity when Chris moved in after the wedding last summer.  Around Easter, we started making the transition from office to baby room.  So weird.  Our computer was moved into the living room and I was forced to get rid of some clothes (and my sweet in laws are currently housing our winter coats, we will cross that bridge when we get there).  

Chris surprised me while I was away on Palm Sunday weekend and painted the room.  We had already purchased the crib, so of course as soon as I got home, it was a must to put it up.  Since the room is so tiny, storage is huge.  We found this crib on walmart.com of all places and I love the drawer under the crib.  This is great storage for his extra sheets, changing pad cover, blankets, and a few other odds and ends.  

We went rounds on what to hang above his crib.  Lots of prints?  A few prints?  Random pictures?  Just words?  We decided on a sweet line from Where the Wild Things Are, a tiger (of course), and a fun lyric from an Elton John song.  My dear friend Jenny put these prints together for us, as well as the print on the peg board.  I found this mobile from Wee Gallery.  You can spend a fortune on mobiles and when I read about them, you really are only supposed to have them up for a few months.  Didn't seem worth it to me.  I also read that the first few weeks a baby focuses in on black and white, so this seemed fitting not only for the colors of the room, but because we are all about eye care in this household.  If he doesn't like it, we didn't break the bank.  

Next up was the dresser.  My friend Nancy had painted a dresser in this fashion for her nursery and I fell in love.  My parents found this dresser at an auction and it is the perfect dimensions for a changing table.  We attempted to just paint the knobs white, that was a disaster.  So, off to Lowe's it was.  I think it turned out pretty darn cute.

I found the idea of putting a peg board above the changing table on pinterest (of course).  This is a great way to hold a few diapers without taking up any additional space and a fun background for a few special pieces.  I love the verse we chose to put on the board.  A constant reminder of how we hope Henry will be raised.  I have toyed with the idea to add a mobile on the peg board, but I haven't found anything I love and I am not the most creative being in the world.

The little book shelves were found at a garage sale by my mom.  Fifty cents each!  We sanded them and added some paint.  They are the perfect size to house some "special books" that can be easily reached.  

The shelves were already around the top of the room and I decided to keep them.  Henry has several books already and I wanted to display them as well as a place for his stuffed animals. There is still a hole that we can fill with some random toys or storage boxes if needed.  My favorite item on this shelf is Chris' childhood stuffed animal, Lenny the Lion.  He no longer looks like a lion.  His Grams was very sweet to get us a "Big Lenny" at our family shower.  I am sure Big Lenny will get his fair share of love.

Kind of dark, but I think you get the picture.

Chris also vamped up Henry's closet for him.  It used to just have one bar up top.  Chris added the shelf and another bar in order to be able to hang more clothing.  Down low we have a shoe storage shelf with boxes for bath toys, chew toys, pacifiers, etc.  Jasper discovered Henry's Sophie the giraffe one day and will now go back and scratch at the door in search of his friend.  We are going to have to watch him when we actually start using Sophie.  

My favorite piece of the entire room is the rug.  It is so bold and fun.  The little step stool was an auction find from mom and the pillow cases were made by a friend, Chrissy.  I was so sad the room was going to be too small for a rocking chair, I still wanted a comfy place to sit.  So, I thought the pillows would be nice if we were wanting to play in his room or for a late night feeding. 

And there you have it!  I am sure there are odds and ends I might add over the next few weeks prior to his arrival, but it is basically finished!  I love how cozy it is and I cannot wait to tuck the little guy into bed on his first night home.