Staying Organized--Double Duty

Sorry I didn't continue on with my little "mini-series;" we've had some pretty awesome things going on around here that kept me from getting back to my computer. But here we go.

Double Duty: Make sure everything you buy or get can pull it's weight; everything should do more than the one thing it was specifically bought for!

I have so many cases of this around our house, it's crazy! The fact of the matter is, if you only ever use something for it's intended purpose, you will never really get your money's worth out of it. Especially "baby-things."

The "baby market" isn't stupid. They know that unless they are selling diapers, wipes, or formula/food; a majority of their consumers are first time parents--or those BUYING for first time parents. And first time parents honestly believe their baby needs every little thing! I'll be honest: I wasn't immune to it. But I quickly (and luckily before Emma got here) learned I needed to make my things work FOR ME instead of me working for my things.

Changing Tables: Now I will say this was something I was ADAMANTLY against from the beginning. I truly never understood why someone would buy a piece of FURNITURE they can't use after the baby is out of diapers. Furniture isn't cheap! So right away I knew we would be using the top of our baby's dresser as the "official" baby changing station. I got a fairly inexpensive changing pad and a cute cover which works amazing. I had some leftover shelving liner (the mesh-like stuff you put on the shelves so things stick), so I put it under the changing pad and it never moves. Emma is getting to the wiggling-fight-mommy-and-the-diaper stage, and still the changing pad stays put!

Another reason we decided to forgo the additional piece of furniture? Space. The fact of the matter is, there is only so much space in any given room. And when you have a crib, a dresser, a bookshelf, a rocking chair (a personal must), the diaper genie, and a few other things-well space becomes prime and I didn't see the need to take up space with a changing table.

On the flip side? I have a friend who bought a changing table for her first daughter. She used it for daughters 1, 2, & 3. But after daughter 3 was about a year old (still in diapers), she decided to use it as a bookshelf for her girls. She was lucky hers was able to be converted, and so she ultimately made it pull double duty. I just didn't see too many out there now that would look like a bookshelf and not like a changing table with books on it.

Wall Art: Now this might seem silly. I get that. BUT. You really need to make sure the things you are putting on the wall can pull double duty too! My personal cases?

1. We painted a tree (a gorgeous, realistic but still artsy tree) on a wall in Emma's room. Well, in one corner. How can I make this pull double duty? Here's how. See, right now the theme for her room is "Oh the Places You'll Go." Dr. Seuss did a lot with trees. When she's maybe a year old, I can start hanging pictures from the "branches" of her throughout the year. Pictures we can interchange as she gets older. Later, if she decides she wants a princess-themed room or something along those lines, we can easily make the tree into a magical, fairy inspired tree or something. So, instead of using a Seussical tree with the orange and pink and yellow leaves, her tree is more natural looking so we can convert it later.
2. Pictures. I have two types of pictures hanging in Emma's room. Both are over her dresser. The first type is a set of 4 brightly colored frames with Dr. Seuss book cover prints in them. These pictures and frames were a deliberate decision--as was their placement. I knew as Emma got older, it would be harder to keep her attention while I changed her diaper or outfit. So I put bright, colorful pictures where she would see them. And it works. Whenever she starts to get uber-wiggly, I just go "Ohhh" and look at the one by her and point. She stops what she's doing to look too.  The other type is a collage picture frame. I knew I would want to have up-to-date pictures of Emma up in her room all the time so I went to my favorite store and chose one which would allow me to take up some wall space, but also allow me to mix up the images when I wanted to. Before she was born I had our maternity pics in there. Then her 1 week pics. Then her 3 month pics. Next up is her 9 month pictures in April. So this picture frame collage is already pulling its weight!
3. Curtains. These may not seem like "wall art," but I think they should be. As I mentioned earlier, Emma's room is inspired by Dr. Seuss. You would think I would go and buy the curtains and valances to match. Which--yeah, okay, I did (the valances, I mean). But I also went back to my favorite store and bought shear white tiered curtains. When I hung them up I realized I didn't need or want the ones that "matched." Now we can easily use these super girly curtains to go with any theme in the future! 

 

 Toys: Kids toys can be so expensive. So unless the toy can pull "double duty," don't get it. For me, there's two ways they can do that.

1. There's the obvious way: Toys that convert. Those "sit to stand" toys--they go from being toys that lay flat on the floor when the baby is just learning to sit to becoming walking aids--are great for this. You definitely get your money's worth from them. We also have the play mat which came with "links." Since Emma doesn't use the play mat as much anymore, I took the links and attached them to her other toys. Because, let's face it, the jumperoos only come with maybe 3-4 links and that's no where near enough! Or I attach them to her high chair to give her something to play with that she can't (easily) drop on the floor.
2. Toys that add to the decor. Sometimes it's nice to have a toy that also enhances the look of the room. I alluded to this earlier in my post about diapers. Emma received a stuffed dog at one of her baby showers which was signed by those who attended. I keep it on the dresser in front of the tub of diapers and what not. This keeps everyone from having to stare at those diapers, keeping the look of the room. This dog also gives me something to keep Emma occupied when the pictures on the wall don't cut it.

Clothes: I won't delve too much into this again, but I will say you need to make sure your baby's clothes can pull their weight. Spend the money on the nicer clothes. Emma's grandmothers have bought her some "name brand" clothes...and they hold up a lot better than the inexpensive items. Be sure to find ways to transition clothes from season to season.

Food: Again, not an obvious one. But you will find or have already found, that feeding a baby can be kind of a struggle. And time consuming. I never thought about it before Emma, but it takes a long time to feed a baby solids or mushy food, especially when you compare it to giving them a bottle! So here are a few tips I have about food and feeding time.

Containers. We have containers of all sizes. They all have lids. Very Important! Then you can use them for travel OR at home. I also kept a few of the formula containers to use for traveling. I even kept one to store some of her bagged baby food.  The bags tend to get lost in the cabinet, so this really helps me know right where to go to get them.

I'll go more into food in another post, too. About when I started prepping