Preparing for your baby to come home is an exciting adventure. Getting the nursery ready is the first step in getting ready. There are many things to consider including safety, preparedness, and arranging things so that it’s easy to stay organized. Make sure you’re prepared to stay organized while keeping your baby safe by using these tips and tricks.

1) Furniture: Choose your furniture wisely. This will be your biggest investment and set the tone for the room. If you haven’t done so, choose your theme first. Sometimes you’ll be inspired by bedding, wall paper, a chair, piece of clothing, or even a toy. If your furniture is a contrasting style, the room may not come together like you were hoping. When you’ve chosen your furniture, do your research before you buy it. Look for customer reviews, safety ratings, and don’t forget special deals from the manufacturer! You may be able to buy that boutique baby furniture a lot cheaper online than in the store.

2) Bedding: The bedding often is the starting point for decorating the room. If you are buying commercial bedding, make sure that the bumper pad is not too thick and that the fabric doesn’t have parts that can be chewed off, like tassels or buttons. Make sure that the bumper pad is removed when your baby starts pulling up because it can be used for climbing out. Fluffy pillows and large quilts and comforters can be suffocation hazards and are usually intended to be decorative. Use small, thin receiving blankets or pajamas that cover for the first few months instead of blankets and pillows.

3) Accessories: You can use accessories to decorate the room, bringing the theme full circle. Pictures, lamps, wall hangings and curtains are all great accessories. Remember that lamps can be dangerous and even fire hazards, so make certain that they are out of baby’s reach. Cords can be secured to the back of a dresser if you intend on putting the lamp there, so that the baby can’t pull the lamp down. Use unbreakable, cool touch light bulbs, too. Decorating the room can be a lot of fun. Use shelves and hooks to display decorative items and keepsakes.

4) Child Proofing: Outlets and power strips should be covered so that the baby cannot be shocked. All furniture should be anchored to studs in the walls. Cords, including curtain and blinds cords, should be secured out of baby’s reach or not in the room at all. All diapering items and medication should also be kept away from the baby. Diaper wipes, baby oils, lotions, and diaper rash creams are dangerous, even fatal, if inhaled or ingested.

5) Necessities: You will need a lot of little things in the nursery. Medications, fingernail clippers, thermometer, extra sheets, pajamas, diapers, and a lot more. Make sure that you have a place for these things out of the baby’s reach. Use containers that lock and are kept in a high place, preferably in a closet or some other inaccessible place. They will not only make the room look junky if they are stored in sight, but they are more likely to pose a hazard.

6) Organization: To keep organized, turn the nursery closet into an organization heaven. Remember that everything is small, and although numerous, it doesn’t take much space to store. Install shelving that gives you a place for everything from socks to your cool mist humidifier. Hang those precious baby clothes on infant hangers or children’s hangers
so that they don’t get misshapen.

About the Author: Kurt Adams is on the staff of Only Kids Hangers, a leading provider of infant hangers. The right baby hangers, like wooden baby hangers and children’s coat hangers, keep baby clothers organized and children’s hangers are great for retail stores.

Getting the nursery ready for the arrival of a new baby can be really fun. Couples sometimes like to do this together, but you may be nesting and decide that you are doing it all yourself! Use this checklist to make sure that you’ve considered everything. When you’re prepared, you will be able to concentrate more on the baby and yourself than on the nursery.

The first step is to see what big items you may need. This is generally where people start. Pick out your furniture with a few things in mind. The crib should not be an older one because safety standards change nearly every year. Lead paint, strangulation hazards, and pinch points are concerns with older cribs.

A glider rocker or comfortable rocking chair with a nursing stool is a must for the nursery. People sometimes skip the rocker because they are expensive, but rocking is soothing for both baby and parent. You need the foot stool to comfortably rock your baby. If the price seems high, look into buying a used one. Flip the chair over and inspect it for safety before you buy it. Make sure that nuts and bolts are tight and not stripped. Make sure that welds are not cracked. When you sit in it and shift your weight, the chair should not make loud sounds or move very much. A wood creak sound is okay and soothing to babies, but metal scraping and squealing sounds could be a sign of faulty design.

Most people want to buy a changing station and some parents do use them a lot. But, this is one item that many parents regret buying because they very rarely take the time to go all the way to the nursery to change a diaper. If you really like the idea of the changing table, choose one that has a good pad and safety straps. Buy a lot of covers for the pad so that you can change them often. If you want to make sure that you use it a lot, make it part of your child’s bedtime routine. After the bath, you can use the changing table to diaper and clothe your child. A changing table keeps the baby close to your face so that you can sing, talk, and make eye contact while you get them ready for bed.

Dressers are useful, but take up a lot of space and can be climbing and tipping hazards. A lot of parents choose to use the closet instead. You can hang precious outfits on children’s hangers or infant hangers to keep them from getting stretched out. Use bins or baskets for little items like receiving blankets, socks, onesies and washcloths. Using the closet for storage helps you to keep a lot of things out of baby’s reach. Use baby hangers to hang most things so that you have plenty of room for shelves and your nursery closet could quickly become your favorite space.

About the Author: Kurt Adams is on the staff of Only Kids Hangers, a leading provider of infant hangers. The right baby hangers, like wooden baby hangers and children’s coat hangers, keep baby clothers organized and children’s hangers are great for retail stores. For more information, please visit www.onlykidshangers.com.