The shared nursery.  I think if I had to come up with one word to describe it, I’d choose…..intentional.  That might seem like an odd choice for a nursery but it is true.  In the past I’ve put months and months in to designing and creating the perfect nursery for the other kids.  Especially Jude and Taryn.  Walk down memory lane?  Jude’s nursery here.  Taryn’s here.  For each, it was a room of their own and not a shared space.  Beyond that, we didn’t put much thought in to what was in the room outside of aesthetics.  This room was a whole new ball game, both being a shared space for Jude and Jonah, and we needed it to be a really healthy space.  Low toxins, low off gassing, simple, without a lot of extra “stuff”.  The body heals and detoxes while it is at rest, and I want this space to be safe and healthy for both of my boys.  Jude’s chemical sensitivities are SO much better.  With a lot of healing, he no longer reacts when we bring something new in to the house, which is so huge for our family!  We had a good start in this room in that we’d already redone the flooring with something very eco-friendly, non-toxic without off gassing and removed the carpet.  We also have no VOC paint on the walls, we had already removed the vinyl mini blinds and put up cotton curtains.  Jude’s bed and nightstand are unfinished wood, so there is little to off gas there and he has organic sheets, pillow and a cotton quilt that comes from IKEA.  IKEA follows strict standards in their furniture and textiles, more than the US government currently calls for. I love the photo of Marti and Jude on his nightstand.  It reminds me of much of an impact one person can have on your life by giving of themselves.  For those that don’t know, Marti was Jude’s occupational therapist and advocate during his vaccine injury recovery.  That photo, taken by Michele, will always appear in our home as a reminder that there are good people in this world.  I never want him to forget what she did for him.

When it came time to add the space for Jonah, we knew we wanted an IKEA crib because of their manufacturing standards.  We added an organic crib mattress I purchased from a friend and client.  Plus organic white bedding and his name letters are hanging temporarily on the crib that I made out of burlap, nontoxic paint and jute.  The blanket draped over the edge of the crib in the top photo was lovingly made by Taryn.  She took so much time and care in tying each knot around the edge.  The green and white knotted blanket was made by Jude (I helped).  The white rugs also came from IKEA, as did the mirror, book shelves near Jude’s bed and the shelves next to the changing station.  We bought as much as we could used for this baby, because those items will have already off gassed and put less toxins in the air, our home and around our kids.  The changing station was a free find, Ty and I spotted it in a neighbors yard with a free sign on it.  We cleaned it up and Jase put a coat of no VOC paint on it and let it sit outside for about a week – good as new!  The frames over the crib are recycled from Jude’s old nursery and the photos will be swapped out once Jonah arrives and makes his photo debut.  Our changing station houses part of our cloth diaper stash along with an air purifier.  We have Honeywell purifiers throughout our house and love them.  The best air purifier in the room though is the Peace Lily plant in front of the window.  The Peace Lily is known for eliminating toxins and cleaning the air, it is a great choice for the nursery.  We used a glass pot instead of plastic and organic buffalo potting soil.  We bought a TON of clothing from a few of my clients who were getting rid of their baby stash.  This kid is going to be very well dressed!  We washed everything, used and new, in a combination of epsom salt, baking soda, vinegar and Dr. Bronners.  This helps to remove any chemicals in the clothing, old or new.  We have since started using soap nuts and LOVE them.  One last detail, I also couldn’t resist a shot of his first outfit, found on Etsy.  I find it hilarious.

Jude is VERY excited to be sharing a room with his baby brother.  I love this shared space.  It feels clean, bright, airy and simple.

While we have the nursery all set up, we also have a space for Jonah in our bedroom as he’ll be in with us for quite some time.  My mom bought us a wonderful upholstered rocking chair.  We have a white bassinet that a very nice lady gave to us, and a changing station set up on one of our IKEA cabinets for night time changes.  We’ve moved furniture all around in our bedroom to accommodate the birth tub as I hope to be able to shut the door while laboring if I need quiet away from the kiddos.  I’ll try and take a few photos though and share because I love our room right now.  It feels cozy and ready for a sweet baby.