How To Plan the Baby's Room

One of the most exciting things about planning for a new baby is getting the nursery ready. Retailers offer a wide variety of adorable furniture and accessories, with something to fit in most any budget. Setting up a fun and functional nursery is not a difficult task, but does require a bit of planning.

1. Measure the Room: Guessing at measurements, especially in a small room, could make it easy to overbuy furniture. Take the time to get exact measurements.
2. Make a Sketch: It doesn't have to be anything fancy, but making a quick drawing of the room will help you to decide where you can locate the crib, dresser and other items. Be sure to make note of not only room dimensions, but also the location of windows and doors.
3. Go Over Your Budget: Baby furniture ranges in price from quite affordable to "lap of luxury." It's important that you have a good idea of what you are comfortable spending so that you don't run out of funds (or go way over budget!) halfway through the project.
4. Choose Your Theme: Knowing the baby's gender can be helpful in choosing nursery decor, but some expectant parents prefer to be surprised. There are many choices in bedding, wallpaper and other items that work well for boys or girls, so planning the nursery needn't wait until the birth for couples who decide that they'd rather not know the sex of their baby. Another advantage of choosing gender-neutral nursery decor is that it makes the room useful in case more children are later added to the family.
5. Comparison Shop: One of the biggest advantages to planning ahead is that you can compare prices to find the best deals. Browse traditional stores and online merchants (don't forget about the auction sites!) so that you'll recognize the bargains when you see them.
6. Stretch the Budget: While some infant furniture is designed to be of use for just a few years, other pieces can stay with your children as they grow. Some cribs can be easily converted to toddler (and even twin) beds and purchasing full-sized dressers saves the cost of buying replacement pieces down the line.
7. Spread the Word! If friends are planning a baby shower for you, be sure to register for nursery items. Oftentimes, guests are happy to buy from a gift registry since that way, they can be assured that you will make use of their gifts. Also, friends and family members may have baby furniture that you could borrow, freeing up your budget for other items. One word of caution: Be sure that the items haven't been recalled by the manufacturer and that they meet all current safety standards.
8. Safety First! In addition to exercising caution about utilizing hand-me-down furniture and other baby gear, parents need to look out for other possible dangers in the nursery. Kits are available to test for the presence of lead-based paint, which should be done not only in the nursery, but throughout the house. Also, older window treatments may have cords that pose a strangulation hazard to babies; be sure that all mini-blinds and other window treatments have modern, break-away type cords.
9. Suggested Items: Depending on the space available in your nursery, you may have to be careful about selecting the most useful pieces. While a crib and dresser seem mandatory, most other items are simply a matter of preference. Changing tables are nice, but if space is limited, the crib can work just as well. One item that most parents find especially useful is a comfortable chair. It takes several months (sometimes longer!) for babies to sleep through the night, so having a soft place to sit with the baby is most beneficial!

Ideally, expectant parents will have the nursery planned well in advance and mostly ready about a month before the due date. Babies can be somewhat unpredictable and tend to arrive on their own schedules, so having the baby's room finished ahead of time means that there is one less thing to worry about!