Sometimes it’s hard to watch the overnight transformations that we see every day on HGTV and Instagram, because inevitably the comparison game starts up and your home and life start to feel inadequate. You know what I’m talking about, right? Those spaces can be beautiful sources of inspiration, but the near constant onslaught of perfectly curated spaces can also be overwhelming at best. I mean, where’s the clutter? Where’s the renovation dirt? Where are the late night, stress filled discussions about the budget? Where’s the time and sacrifice – and therefore the soul?

This phase of life (being pregnant) has been a very humbling one. After being told I’d likely never have kids, then having surgery to increase our chances/trying for almost a year/taking fertility drugs to finally conceive, I feel like all my attention was always on the getting pregnant, not the whole actually BEING pregnant thing. So it came as a big shock when my body suddenly couldn’t keep up anymore. I’m someone who is used to working non-stop, especially in physically/mentally demanding jobs, and when I don’t have work to do I feel pretty lost. I’ve had to slow down lots these last few months, and while that’s for the best even when I’m not pregnant, it’s been an anxiety-riddled ride for this overachiever. One silver lining, however – it’s been a good reminder that home doesn’t happen overnight and that well-loved, intentional, soul filled spaces can’t be created in the blink of an eye… especially if you’re doing all the work yourself.

Decorating the nursery has been a slow journey,so I’ve made sure to take the time to find pieces that really speak to me and the feeling that I wanted to create. The best part is that this room will never be “done” – it’ll evolve as our needs and desires change, and as we can slowly afford to fill the space. That idea used to stress me out, but now it feels like a beautiful process that I’m so lucky to be able to experience.

So, what ended up being included so far in the nursery?

1. All the rabbit prints

As a child, my mom’s nickname for me was “bunnyhopper”, because apparently I hopped around like a rabbit. One of my favorite stuffed animals was a tiny rabbit. I also remember dressing up as a bunny for several consecutive Halloweens, because your girl apparently just couldn’t get enough. Of course, pregnancy has rattled my brain enough that none of that came to mind when I was putting together this room; all I could think of was “rabbits are cute and I’m really drawn to them”. (Insert face palm moment here)

The links for these prints: https://www.etsy.com/listing/763943363/nursery-wall-art-decor-watercolor-bunny?ref=yr_purchases and https://society6.com/product/rabbits–hares_poster?sku=s6-3692386p66a213v756&c_kid=s6-3692386p66a213v756&g_adgroupid=72197341136&utm_term=&utm_source=GOOGLE&g_merchantid=7992249&campaign=%5BNB%5D_1027_US_%5BPLA%5D_DSK_Wall_Art_Posters&utm_medium=cpc&g_adid=355661761913&g_campaign=%5BNB%5D_1027_US_%5BPLA%5D_DSK_Wall_Art_Posters&adgroup=Wall+Art+-+Posters+-+NewPT&g_productid=s6-3692386p66a213v756&g_adtype=pla&g_ifcreative=&g_partition=770248394149&g_campaignid=1630068703&g_ifproduct=product&g_network=g&g_acctid=521-729-4540&g_keyword=&g_keywordid=pla-770248394149&g_productchannel=online&gclid=Cj0KCQjw–GFBhDeARIsACH_kdZPZHsdRvd48GwBEycChgADHXABChAMTdncHlOyRfeJivZSGe4K5CkaAjDyEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

2. An Amelia Earhart doll

While I didn’t want to go overboard with the flying references in the nursery because, ahem, our entire basement is already covered plane decor, plus more in storage (it’s basically a lowkey shrine to my husband’s career and passion), I knew I wanted to incorporate something that related to his passion and something that spoke to my passion (empowering women who accomplish everything society typically says they can’t). The answer? This adorable mini doll from Thimble and Time. Eventually I plan to get a few more, like Jane Goodall, Kamala Harris, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and, of course, Florence Nightingale. Although if money were no object, I’d buy every single doll in that collection.

3. A plant… or two

You can never have too many plants. Even if my husband disagrees. The limit for plants does not exist.

4. This amazing rocking chair

It’s oversized but not too bulky. It comes with a lumbar support pillow. It’s gorgeous. What more could you want?

Seriously, this thing is so comfortable and beautiful. Plus, someday when baby girl is bigger, she and I will both be able to fit in it comfortably for story time.

5. DIY bookshelves

Plans for these are all over the internet (although I might do my own blog post on how I built these soon!), they’re easy to build, and they can be completely customized to your space. These were the perfect addition for the nursery, though I’m sure we’ll have far more books than will fit in these shelves. It’ll be easy to rotate through the books as her interests change and we’ll be able to see the covers of the ones that we’re loving most each week. Plus the lowest one is at a kid friendly height, so she’ll be able to grab her own books before we know it!

6. A fun rug

Rugs are an easy way to change the style of a space, and one of the benefits of kids’ rooms is that you can be a little more playful with your design! After all, kids love color, and it’s hard for things to feel too “young” for a space when they’re in a young person’s room.

Of course there are lots of other things we included that I didn’t mention here – the cart beside the rocking chair (going for practicality here), the lamps that I have yet to purchase, the items on top of the dresser, etc. These will all be layered in over time too, and I can’t wait to see how the space evolves over the next couple of months and years!