And the " Playroom" Begins - Before Pictures and Plans

Baby O, I know she is 13.5 months and becoming a non-baby, but for now she is still my baby.  Anyway, Baby O is growing so fast and accumulating toys just as fast.  It is the two of those things together that means it is time to begin creating her "playroom".  Our downstairs/game room started off as my husband's man cave, but add in workout pieces, cat litter and loads of laundry and now it's not so much of a man cave.  He is very big with electronics and wanted a projector so I still let it be his area.  We have a huge screen taking up about half of our second longest wall and he loves it.  Since the downstairs being perfect for his theater room was a big part of why we bought the house I promised that when it came time to make Baby O a playroom that I would not take his theater completely away.  That is why we are referring to it as her "playroom" and not her playroom. 

I have already started moving some things around so the before picture are more like after before pictures or the before pictures take 2.  Either way, they are still before pictures and I promise the rest of the house is not this unorganized.  Now most of the decor that we had down there was red and black so as to not have to redo everything we are picking colors that incorporate red with black as accents in the furniture and frames.

This is the entrance to the downstairs.  That cabinet has movies, video games and all things my husband.  This area will probably stay the same with minor changes if anything.

 

 

 



I know the pictures are a little fuzzy, but I was rushing.  That is also baby O in the first picture supporting her aunt in her Syracuse shirt.  This is the largest wall in our downstairs, but unfortunately the couch has to stay where it is at for safety reasons - to cover all the wires from the projector.  Since the couch cannot be moved the only changes will be new pillows and maybe the blanket basket being moved to a closet.  The couch was recently moved there, before it was parallel to the projector facing the screen.  There is a chaise chair that you will see in another picture that was where the couch is now.  The second picture is the second half of that long wall.  As you can see there are toys just tossed on the floor and that is only a fraction of Baby O's toys.  For that second section of  I want to get large cube shelves that would hold bigger toys such as the foam blocks I want to get her for Christmas.  I also might get some super large totes/baskets for things such as dress up clothes that she will have in the future.  Yes, I know I am thinking about say 2 years down the line, but it is just like gardening - plan for the future.  Oh and of course we are getting new and matching window treatments.  Finally!!

This picture is of the opposite wall from the last pictures.  That is the chaise chair I mention before that was where the couch is now.  Well, I hate the couch, but I really hate that chair!  Good news for me - we are getting rid of the chair.  You may not be able to see it in the picture, but the chair has seen better days.  For this area I want to get a cube shelf bookshelf, it is one that has nine cubes.  I think that will provide nice storage for little items like play food and small wooden blocks.  I also was to put a little chair that received from a friend in the corner to create a reading nook.  I also want to add simple shelves to the lower wall to hold books. 

 

 

This is the wall opposite the wall from the first picture.  That is half of the screen, but the area with the dresser is where I want to focus.  I am hoping to move the dresser to the next area I will show.  If I am able to do that then the area where the dresser is will become Baby O's art area.  I am also planning on repositioning the elliptical, but it is going to have to stay in that general area.  Behind those double door to the left is the laundry room in case you were wondering.

 

Ok this picture is super blurry, but it was the only one I took so I am stuck using it.  Not much about this area, but that is where I am hoping to move the dresser.  That is the cat litter in there, but that will be moving to the laundry room.

 

 

I hae ideas for the walls - large letters spelling out words relating to the area (read, create), pictures of Baby O, framed book dust jackets and places to hang art created by Baby O.  I also want to get an area rug, a chidrens table and a play kitchen, but for now lets focus on the main basics.  Check back to see "Playroom" Renovation: Part 1.





Long Time, No See

Ok so I took a decent size break from being on here.  The last time I posted was the beginning of May and so much has happened since then. Let's see . . .
 
May:
- My first Mother's Day!  We had our families over for a brunch and celebrated our first Mother's Day as Mothers, Grandmothers and great-grandmothers.  Baby O and I had made cards and magnets for all of the moms. 
 

This is the magnet we made for all the moms.  Everyone had different colors, but all still the same general concept.  The flower was made using Baby O's thumbprints.  Granted it took a lot of help from me and a bit of time, but they turned out so cute!
 

 

 

This is the card we made for all the moms.  She actually sat pretty still for the picture which was a surprise, but the handprints were a little tough.  They might not have turned out perfect, but that is the best part about handmade gifts from children.

 
 
- Baby O says dada for the first time!  She had not stopped with the dada since then.
 
- Baby O begins to crawl!  It started off as kind of a scoot using her face, but quickly picked up into a full out crawl.
 
June:
- My husband's first Father's Day!  We again had our families over for a brunch.  There were no special little gifts for the dads since /i could not find anything that a very young child could do for a dad.  We did still make cards for all the dads. 
 

 

This is the card we made for the dads.  I knew I wanted to do something with her handprint, but trying to think of something for dads was a little harder.  I think they turned out pretty well.  Again, they were not perfect, but that is what makes them special. 
 
- Our longest time apart!  My husband's work does a trip every year for the top employees.  This year it was in San Diego, but we did not bring Baby O with us since most things were adults only.  It might have only been 5 days, but it was the longest 5 days of our lives.  She stayed with Grammy, Pappy and Aunt Boo both at our house and theirs.  She had a great time while we were gone and even learned some new tricks to surprise us with.
 
July:
- Baby O's first 4th of July!  She had mixed feelings about everything.  I would say that the bright lights were good, but the loud noise was bad.  As we expected she did not make it to see the real fireworks, but at least she slept like a baby (no pun intended) through the whole thing.
 
- Baby O gets her first teeth!  They took their time, but the first one has finally popped through.  We are up to 5 teeth now!
 
August:
- Baby O starts standing, but only while holding on it things.  You have to start somewhere right.
 
- Baby O started taking a few steps, but only if holding a non moving object like the couch.
 
- More teeth came in!
 
September:
- Baby O said mama!  We have heard mamamamamamama before, but this was the first real mama.  I asked her who she wanted to give her a bath thinking she would say dada since that was all she said through dinner.  To my surprise her answer was mama.  We were so shocked!  Not the way I thought she would say it, but I'll take it.

- Baby O turned 1!!  I had the best party planned.  Everything was set up outside and what does it do right before people arrive?  RAIN!!  My sister, husband and I grab everything out of the rain.  After the rain and my tears have stopped we dry everything off and set it back up.  Everyone arrives and we are outside for about an hour before what happens, RAIN . . . AGAIN!  We just have the rest of the party inside and everything worked out fine.  Lesson learned though - always have a backup plan ready to go.
 

Baby O LOVED the balloons!

Baby O unwrapping her presents. 

 Baby O smashing up her cupcake.

 

 - Baby O had her first professional photo shoot.  Dawn Biery Photography is wonderful! 

 

- Baby O began walking while holding onto a moving object like her stroller!  We tried and tried then out of nowhere one evening she just grabbed the handle and went.

 

October:

- Well we are only half way through October which I am sure will container somemore fun Baby O things.

 

 

 

And so it begins!

Hi! I’m Kelly a semi stay at home mom of a beautiful daughter (Baby O). Through my teaching experiences and my own research, I have realized that the best time to teach children is when they are younger. The younger the better!  Young children are so observant to the world around them.  Everything is new and I love the look of wonder they get.  It seems like Baby O is always discovering something new, even if it is a toy she has played with several times before.  That toy may look different from a new angle or make a sound she didn't know about.  Because I love the look she gets when I just let her explore, I have decided to look into the Montessori method of teaching.  I began researching the Montessori method of teaching and am going to implement so many of its aspects into my daughter's life. Not everyone in my family understands these concepts or thinks they are necessary which is why I am being this blog. I want to share various learning and teaching concepts and ideas that I found to incorporate into her life. I am also planning on including party tips since we have one about every month as well as fun crafts for both you and your children (again most of my family thinks I'm nuts for putting so much thought and effort into such simple things, I love it what can I say). I am trying to supply the best for my family whether that is natural toys, organic and healthy food or just my time and love. So keep in touch and follow me on my journey of creating a healthy, happy and educated family.