Flashback Friday- First Nursery Prep

Oct 21, 2011 by cafebebemama

3 1/2 years ago my Dad came over from America to help Mark and I make our teeny-weeny box room into a special nursery for our yet-to-arrive baby. Dad took one week out of his busy schedule to come make what would be Ella’s room into a perfect nursery. They make a great team, my Dad and Mark. My Dad has all the patience in the world and is a very hard worker. Mark has very little patience and is a very hard worker. They are the perfect match!

The rather atrocious wallpaper was steamed off the walls leaving chunks of plaster on the floor. There was furious plastering and sanding and patching and buffing. They managed to get the walls suitable for paint and after a trip to B&Q we had our colours. Shades of green, as we didn’t know what variety of baby we’d be having, were the decision. Thankfully, the room being a “box” room meant there wasn’t too much painting but they had loads of fun in the process.

I had a great time with this makeover because I did very little! Being pregnant gave me the perfect excuse to not have to paint or scrape or clean. I provided beverage service, food and encouragement and manged to put together the changing table and screw the newly painted knobs on the dresser drawers. Woo hoo. When the cot finally was assembled I did take great pride in dressing the bed and then lining the drawers of the dresser and putting all of the wee baby clothes in them. That was my job, I thought!

This project was a wonderful effort for what became Ella’s nursery and will convert nicely into Bebe’s nursery. It was also one of the first times that my Dad and Mark has to work together and get to know each other a bit better which was lovely. I left them alone to do this and I think they both had a great time in the process!

The other project that began before Ella came to join us was our wall decoration. I wanted to have something symbolic on the wall that included everyone in the family. I can’t remember where I got the idea, however. I think it might have been a suggestion for a Baby Shower. I asked everyone in the family (both here and across the pond) to paint a picture on a square canvas for the baby. It could be anything but it just needed to be done by their fair hand. Christmas of 2007, before Ella was born, we had a painting session at our house with hubby’s side of the family and my mom who was here for Christmas.

When my Dad came over in February to help us do the nursery, he brought with him the canvases from that side of the family. There’s a rather special one from my Grandpa who died about 3 weeks after my Dad went back to the US. I’ll always have a reminder of him now which is lovely.

I love all of these pictures! Each member of the family is represented in their own bit of artwork. We’re going to do something different for Bebe on that wall but these canvases will go to Ella’s new bedroom as well.

What fun this process was! And how different it is now! We have very little to do to the nursery to get it ready and very MUCH to do to switch our two other bedrooms into a Big Girl room for Ella and a new master bedroom for us. Phew!

What memories would you like to share this week? Do you have a photo that makes you smile? A special event you want to remember? Or maybe just something that gives you a chance to tell a fun story? It’s Flashback Friday! Your flashback, your memories…written by your fair hand and shared with us on the Linky below. Come back each Friday for a walk down Memory Lane!