For the first six months of my daughter’s life, I spent zero time in the nursery. My daughter slept in a cradle next to my bed. Most of her diaper changes were done in the portacrib in the living room. Until she started sleeping there, the nursery felt like a beautiful waste of space.
With the twins, I changed my approach to nesting. My husband and I still did a lot of work in the room that will become the nursery, (It had pink walls and a dirty old carpet, ew) but instead of filling it with empty cribs, we made it into a guest room for my mom - the magnificent saint who is staying with me until March! Then we focused our attention on our own bedroom, because that is where the twins actually live.
I’m going to try to make this into an exhaustive list of what I have found to be helpful to have in my little postpartum oasis. First things first, of course, the giant cradle. At this stage, the boys don’t wake each other up. Newborns can sleep through any amount of screaming in their ear, it seems. Hanging from the cradle is my diaper organizer. It holds diapers and wipes, of course, but also extra cradle sheets, burp clothes, and pajamas for the boys. There's room to spare, I might add.
Now I didn't waste any space on a changing table. I just change the boys on a towel on my bed. I also didn't bother to get one of those tiny diaper genies. They may reduce the smell in the room, but I need a much larger trash can for all the diapers we go through. We take the trash out every other day.
The next most important space is the nursing/pumping area. I don't nurse in the bed. Beds are too comfortable, and I'm terrified of falling asleep while nursing and subsequently dropping my poor babies on the floor. So I nurse in a chair (big enough to hold my nursing pillow) next to a table. The table is essential for the water that I guzzle while nursing.
*Side note* Not many people discuss this, but nursing makes you so thirsty! It was torture not to know that with my daughter. I'd get all comfortable and start to nurse and suddenly be struck with thirst! And there was no relief for it until the nursing session was over, because I didn't want to disturb my sweet nursing baby while I walked to the kitchen.
The table is also essential for the pump and pumping bra. Now I didn't go spend twenty bucks on a fancy pumping bra. I just cut some holes in an old sports bra (free the nipples!). Why bother with a pumping bra at all? Because holding the stupid pumps to your boobs for ten minutes multiple times a day gets old real quick, and hurts your wrists to boot!
The table also holds my kindle and my bluetooth headphones. The kindle and the headphones are tools for helping me stay awake during those night time feedings. It's important that the headphones are bluetooth. Changing diapers with wires hanging down in the way is very annoying.
The night time feedings are also helped by soft lighting. No one wants harsh overhead lighting when they have to get out of bed at 2 am. You want a pretty lamp you can turn on that is just bright enough to ensure that you got all the poop off those cute baby butts.
Fitting a mini fridge into my bedroom was one the best ideas I ever had. I pump and store so much breastmilk. I would hate to have to go downstairs to the kitchen as often as I open my mini fridge. Plus it holds snacks! Nothing like nursing twins to make a girl extra hungry!
Along with all the pumping and storing breastmilk comes lots of washing bottles. So I keep dish soap and dish towels in my bathroom.
Lastly I put up a mini white board on the wall to write down which kid ate from which boob at which feeding. Lots of girls use those cute bows that clip onto your bra to remind you which boob to offer your kid first, but twins. And I like to see the whole day written on the board. It's helpful to ensure that both my boys are eating 8 to 12 times in 24 hours.
Ok there you have it! The 15 things in my postpartum bedroom that make my life easier!
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