Finley's nursery.

after spending the first two and a half months of his life sleeping in his car seat, Finley finally graduated to the crib.  (WHAT?  she let her kid sleep in the car seat for ten weeks?  I can't believe it.  GO ON.)    

I tried early on to get him to sleep in the crib, but without any success.  mostly, he had a hard time settling himself down.  he'd be sound asleep, but the second I'd lay him in the crib, it was like a switch suddenly flipped.  almost instantly, he'd start grunting and fidgeting and complaining up a storm.  I don't like this wide open space mom!  he protested.  after spending an hour trying to convince him otherwise, I finally threw in the towel.  it was obvious he wasn't going to budge.  and so, back in the car seat he went.  score: Finley-1, mom-0.

a couple weeks later, I tried again.  this time, he stayed sleeping.  YESSS!  however, he made up for it by waking up off and on throughout the night.  NOOO!  after stumbling out of bed for the millionth time to either feed him or plug in his pacifier, I (once again) gave up.  this momma needed her shut-eye, especially if I was going to keep one step ahead of Rowan during the day.  I plunked him back in his car seat and within seconds he was out cold.  figures.  score: Finley-2, mom-0.

well, two can play at this game.  if he was going to be stubborn, then doggone it, so was I.  the next time he put up a stink about sleeping in the crib, I was going to let him cry it out.  nothing wrong with that, right?  I mean, I do it all the time, so why couldn't he?  I figured eventually he'd get the hint and go back to sleep.  

fast forward to attempt number three.  after getting him to sleep, I proceed to ever-so-gently lay him in the crib.  as I waited for the fussing to fire up, I patted myself on the back for coming up with such a clever plan.  move over Finley, momma was about to even up the score a little.  heh. 

ONLY THE FUSSING NEVER CAME.  he slept the entire night through, and has continued to ever since.  like huh? 

babies are so unpredictable.  the second you think you have them figured out, they up and decide to throw you a curve ball.  little stinkers!

anyway, I took these pictures on the day I cleaned out my closet.                                 

I forgot to mention that Finley's so-called "nursery" consists of one lone wall in our bedroom, OOPS!  but what do you expect?  with twelve people residing in a four-bedroom house, space is at a premium.  no extravagant nurseries around here, although wouldn't that be nice?         

cube bookcase from-- you guessed it, IKEA.

top left: we named our little guy Finley, but depending on who decides to rearrange the alphabet blocks, it changes almost daily.  Nilyef, Lefyin, Yelfin-- whatever, he's not picky.  also, with a large family, organization is key.  as well as keeping extra blankets in check, old locker bins provide easy access to diapers and wipes.  you know, for those umpteen diaper changes a day.  got poop?        

during the Missoni frenzy at Target a few months back, I was able to somehow get online and score a crib set.  love the fun, bright colors and playful print.  the deer head is one of Gary's trophies.  probably.  Fin likes to coo at him anyway.    

I have a thing for owls.  this little guy was from West Elm.  the reddish-orange jar was an antique store purchase.  it holds Finley's socks, hats, etc.  if Finley were a girl, it would probably be filled with adorable headbands and other hair-thingy's.  did I mention I also have a thing for elephants?  I know, I really need to quit shopping. 

and thus completes this episode of "how to make a nursery work when you don't really have room for a nursery."

-jessica