Dream Nursery

A nursery will house your tiny, simply perfect, little dream-come-true.


As such, it is my opinion that your nursery should be a bit of a dream come true, as well. Ponies and race cars come later. A nursery houses innocence incarnate. It holds your dreams. And it is a place you will likely spend a great deal of time.

Our nursery dream was for our little angel to spend time in a place where we found peace and comfort - the forest. We wanted a wide open sky and critters, trees and bugs, flowers and fun.
As it happens, nature-themed nurseries have grown in popularity over the last year - creating more material for anyone who would like to bring similar elements into their child's nursery, but who don't have the time to M-A-K-E it all.


A couple years before we got pregnant with our little Gremlin, I stumbled across a fabric that I ADORED! I purchased a quarter yard (small piece) to file away for 'when we were ready'. The fabric, of Heidi Grace designs, had all the elements we wanted to have surrounding our precious baby!!! 

Fast forward a couple years and we were ready :)


By this time, the fabric was discontinued! I was beside myself.

I had planned out what I envisioned for the nursery. Mr. RC Homestead had started looking at paints... all that. UGH!


I went a little overboard in my attempts to retain the nursery of my dreams. A friend even offered to drive around to different fabric stores with me to search through their selvage/discount sections to see if we could find scraps. I contacted the DESIGNER (who was VERY polite, by the way... but sadly out of this particular fabric). She offered that she had seen it pop up on a couple occasions on Etsy, that I should keep my eyes out for it on there.


**The dream of parenthood will motivate you to do crazy things.
***The reality of pending parenthood will drive you to do things you KNOW are well past crazy :)


A miracle happened a couple weeks into my search, someone offered a couple yards of it on Etsy! Woo Hoo!!!


I emailed the seller and asked how much she had.. total. Because I wanted IT ALL!!!  (this still makes me blush... I was a little intense about this dog-gone fabric)


She didn't have much, but I figured I could use it as a accent through-out the room and use the illustrations as inspiration through-out.


Here are the nursery pictures... I think it turned out pretty ok, if I do say so myself.


We painted a light blue around the entire room, then I ran a paint brush around the bottom and we painted 'rolling hills' below that line with a medium green tone.

We took trees and birds and bugs from the fabric and painted them all around the room...

I improvised a butterfly, because it seemed like we needed one!

We spent the chilly evenings of last winter picking away at little projects for the room. We must have spent a week of evenings working on this felt 'critter', grapevine mobile... but I LOVE it, and so does baby Gremlin

We refinished furniture over the summer, found a couple pieces, bought a couple on clearance. I found a sheep-skin-like fabric on clearance at the Walmart and covered a changing pad - looks great and no one knows its fake. In-fact, Gremlin couldn't care less :)

The lamp in the room was from Ikea, but they only had the shade I wanted in white... so I diluted fabric paint and brushed some color onto it. Tada! green!

We found an area rug at Gabriel Brother's for (get this) $50! That worked perfect for our 'dirt' floor.

 We rearranged the room almost every week... the plight of the expecting couple.


By the time Gremlin was due to arrive, the room was just as we wanted it to be.


Here are a couple shots of the room 'assembled':

Inspiration can be found anywhere. :)

Don't give up, just because the fabric is discontinued. Any new parent in their right mind would chase that stuff down!

Happy NURSery-ing

--The Rubber City Homestead

Leftover Chinese Soup

I just donned my snow boots and headed out to the garden to grab a couple leaves of kale to add to my newest soup:  Leftover Chinese Soup

This soup makes me giggle because we have given the dog, or composted so many rounds of extra rice from Chinese takeout over the years. Its not that we are huge Chinese-take-out-eaters, but we will indulge maybe once every other month... enough that I should have thought of this sooner.

While Chinese take out is certainly fun, the ratio of sweet and sour chicken (or choose your favorite) to rice is always a little bit off. Not only do Mr. RC Homestead and I always have leftovers, we always have RICE leftovers.

This GORGEOUS snowy day had me thinking... what to make to warm the house and our bellies for dinner. As usual, my thoughts landed on soup!

I grabbed the leftover rice, some leftover chicken (I always cook or grill the whole package, freeze or fridge the part we won't use on a given dinner - it saves time later in the week), and whatever veggies sounded good. For today, a couple carrots, some onion, a couple pinches of tarragon, a spoon of chicken boullion and I had a good start.

When I tasted the soup, I knew there was a little bit of something to be desired. So I headed out, grabbed the kale, finely chopped and tossed it in... yum! Now we are headed in the right direction!!!
Chicken and rice meets kale soup meets..... yummy in the tummy! Salt and pepper to taste.

Now my mind is realing about other soups I could make with Chinese takeout leftovers... ha ha ha!

Stay cozy, Rubber City!

Baby Carriers, Reviews and Information

Baby Carriers are essential - not only to the modern hippy parent -  but also to those who want to get anything done in those precious first weeks of a newborn's life.

As we were preparing for baby Gremlin, we reviewed a number of different carriers and decided on two for our first little one. I'll share here what we learned in hopes of helping you with your decision.

Baby Bjorn

The Baby Bjorn carrier is not unlike a backpack you wear on the front of your body... with a baby inside

Pricing: $$$$

Pros: 

• Baby Bjorn carriers can be found anywhere: Target, Babys R Us, Bye Bye Baby, Amazon.com, Craigslist, you name it
• Baby Bjorn is a trusted name, their products seem to hold-up quite well
• Bjorn offers a number of color and fabric options to suit all sorts of climates and personalities
• Small, convenient
• Classy

Cons:

• Some claim that the way the baby hangs from the Bjorn can be damaging or painful for the little one's hips, as all weight is essentially carried in their crotch
• The Bjorn is designed for smaller children. After a few months of age you will not be able to use the Bjorn to tote your bundle of joy around town
• Cost per months of use seems a bit steep. Children over 25lbs are not recommended for this carrier

Moby or Sleepy Wrap 

The Moby Wrap carrier is essentially  a long piece of fabric that you tie around your body in a tidy fashion. You slip the baby inside the wraps of the fabric and he is then 'tied' to you

Pricing: $$ ($ if you make your own)

Pros:

• I found the moby wrap particularly helpful as we established breast feeding. The fact that you can 'tie' your baby to you 'skin-to-skin' and not show the world that you are topless (around the house or hospital room) is very valuable in my opinion
• The moby comes in a variety of fabrics, colors, textures
• Also available just about anywhere: Walmart, Target, on-line, craigslist, you name it
• The moby allows for carry of the tiniest preemie through a much larger baby
• Videos all over youtube to help you build confidence on different carry options
• You can wrap it inside a jacket and pop the baby from a car to the carrier seamlessly during errands because you don't have to take off the moby between stops
• If you take 5 yards of fabric, cut it in half length-wise, you can make your own at home (Alternatively, I took two pieces of 2 1/2 yd of fabric, sewed them together with some jazzy stitches and you are also all set)

Cons

• It is a long-ole' piece of fabric (this is understandably intimidating at first and - honestly - a real turn-off for my husband as he simply didn't want to contend with the wrapping)
• The stretchy versions, while wonderful when the baby is young, are not as helpful as they grow - for longer use opt for a linen or other non-stretch variety
• It would be cool if the 'Moby tag' (read marker for middle of fabric length) was sown flat so that it didn't pop up and scratch baby in the face or on the back of the head

Ring Sling

The ring sling is just what it sounds to be - a length of fabric with a pair of rings at one end. Don't worry, the rings are sown in, you don't have to worry about loosing them.  :)

Price: $$ ($ if you make your own)

Pros:

• For me, this was a hand-me-down, so I didn't have to buy it -- extra bonus!
• The ring sling has slipped from the spotlight in recent years, so you can find even the coolest ones for cheap! For example, a friend and I stumbled across a gorgeous embroidered one at T.J.Maxx for a steal a couple months ago!
• I found the ring sling particularly helpful around the three month mark, baby could hold his head up a bit
• The donning of the ring sling is extremely quick and easy
• I hear the ring sling can be helpful for nursing, though I have not mastered this combination others have raved about it
• Patterns are available everywhere for making your own ring sling, if you are brave. Just google ring sling pattern, some are even free

Cons

• This, like the moby wrap, was too much fabric for the man of the house to entertain. Not that it is not possible, but heads up for all the new families out there. If your man is into the stream-line, he may not embrace this option
• I was uncomfortable using this when baby had no head control, but many do not have this concern, so approach as you like

Ergo Carrier

The Ergo, not unlike the Bjorn, is a back-pack-type infant and child carrier. 

Price: $$$$$

Pros:

• The Ergo suits the youngest preemie through a much larger child
• This carrier can be worn in the front, the back, or on your hip
• There are attachments that include a fanny-type and a back-pack-type attachment that can allow for carrying of a diaper, etc. These attachments are sold separately
• With the carrier comes a zippered pocket for parent, perfect for a wallet as you walk to market or paci, chapstick, etc
• The carrier also comes with a hood that you can snap over baby's head to block sun, hold baby's head up as he naps
• A water resistant cover is available for rainy climates
• A winter muff is available for cool climates
• Ergo is available in organic options
• Ergo has paired with Petunia Picklebottom for custom designs
• Ergo is ergonomic and keeps child's weight all across their bottom, not in their crotch, supposedly more comfortable and safer than some other carriers
• Teething pads are available for the straps nearest baby, so that they can goo all over the strap and you can clean them easily
• Ergo is a domestic company, out of Hawaii, always good to support jobs on the home front
• Daddy's like the Ergo
• While the cost among all carriers reviewed, the Ergo is highest, it is suitable for the longest durration of child carrying months. Children up to 45 lbs can be safely carried in the Ergo
• We opted for the performance Ergo due to the lighter material and could not be more pleased with this carrier

Cons:

• You will want to have an extra set of hands around as you learn to put this on with an infant, it is entirely possible, but takes a little learning
• At four months, my son and I were able to master the back carry, but I wouldn't have dared to try it sooner due to his neck strength
• Whether front or back carry, the child always faces the parent. For some this is no issue, as it is said to promote parent-child interaction - always a good thing.
• You can't reach the pocket if the carrier is worn on your back. Sounds self-explanatory, but relevant.
• Most stores in Summit County do not carry the Ergo. In-fact, we headed down to Columbus to try it out at Bye-Bye Baby. Hopefully local retailers will get hip to this awesome carrier (or Bye Bye Baby will open a store nearby)

Hope this helps you in your decision-making!

Cheers-

--The Rubber City Homestead