Connect your children with the seasonal nature around them by preparing their rooms for spring. Read the following Flower Clvb tips, then hear advice from baby registry expert and founder of Poppylist, Sarah Hollingsworth.
Spring Nursery Tips
Bring something from outside, inside. Whether a blooming branch or bunch of daffodils from your garden, incorporating nature into your baby’s room will add a fresh feel to their space.
Go through your books and pick out any ones related to growth, birth and of course, spring to have available and accessible for reading. Place non-seasonal books away for later.
Notice what is blooming outside. Sprinkle a few bud vases around the room and place either real or faux flowers in them to mirror what is growing around your neighborhood.
Plant a few seedlings and allow them to bud along the windowsill of your baby’s room.
Find ways to incorporate spring colors in your baby’s space. While yellow can be a tricky color to design with, it is one of the first colors we see during spring. Pull out any blankets or sheets with spring colors and put away the blankets or sheets that might resemble fall colors.
Find a local artist that you can support and invest in one new piece of artwork whether an image or sculpture. This will help your child visually connect with the season and encourage them to take note of the growing life around them. If you are unable to buy a piece of art, take some water colors and create a painting based on an observation from the nearest garden. In my ideal world, I would have one frame in the baby’s room that changes imagery based on the season.
When you can, open the windows and allow your children to hear the chirping of the birds and to receive the fresh air as much as possible.
Select an oil such as as lavender or rose and dust the dresser, counter and book-shelf tops.
Consider the way light enters into your child’s room during certain times of the day and identify ways to . elevate it. Whether shifting the reading nook ever so slightly, or the play rug where the baby does tummy time, find a way to take comfort in the natural light.
Dangle some faux blooms or dried flowers. Having something dangle, will lift the eye in the room and will be an interesting, contrasting and evocative element for your baby to focus their attention.
*FULL DISCLOSURE: These are my suggestions that admittedly, I do not follow to the letter, as my life circumstances do not permit. Currently my kiddos are sharing a small room and all they do in there is sleep. Do what you can/want but do not fret if baby’s room is simply a crib and blank walls. Your love is all they need.
This week I am highlighting fellow mompreneur, Sarah Hollingsworth, Founder of Poppylist.
Poppylist provides you with a curated baby registry list matched to your lifestyle and needs, without all the added stuff. Our product recommendations are sourced directly from a network of parents, with additional input from over 350 moms and dads.
My Interview with Founder of Poppylist, Sarah Hollingsworth
Why did you decide to start Poppylist?
When I was purchasing items for Amelia, I accidentally bought a mini crib. I didn't even know such a thing existed! It was in that moment, after having already spent over 20 hours researching items, that I knew this experience for all future parents needed to be better. To be simpler. And it was in my own overwhelming experience building my baby registry that Poppylist was born.
What is the most rewarding part of being a mom and running a business at the same time?
The most rewarding part right now is having the flexibility to adjust my schedule to support my family without having to request time off from work or get approval from a boss. It's rewarding and liberating wrapped into one. In the future, when Amelia can truly understand what it means to have a parent running their own business, then I think it'll become so much more rewarding in a different way. And I can't wait to share this part of my life with her!
…Continued
What about the poppy flower made you decide that "Poppylist" was the perfect name for your company?
When I first found out I was pregnant, I downloaded an app that tells you the size of your baby. Amelia was the size of a poppy seed. And since I'm from California (it's our state flower), I've always loved poppies. And so Poppylist just felt like a natural fit from the beginning.
What do you think is the most important item to have in a baby's nursery?
A comfortable chair or daybed with a side table. Hands down. A place to rest, cuddle, nap, nurse, read, etc. And you want a side table next to that space for your water, snacks, phone, books, etc. Create a corner where you, the mother, will feel at peace. It'll be a corner where both of you grow together.
If you could give any advice to new mothers, what would it be?
To have an open mind, no expectations, and listen to your gut. No one mother's experience is the same, so it's important to go in with an open mind about everything from your birth plan to feeding, and just accept that whatever is best for the mother and the baby, then that's perfect. Since there's so much information out there, sometimes we second guess what we truly know to be true as mothers. And I would tell every mother to pay attention to their intuition and do what feels right to her.
I am offering 15% off of silk flower poppy bunches with discount code, “POPPYLIST” at checkout. I hope these blooms make your baby’s room feel a little more vibrant this spring!