One of the most exciting parts of preparing to bring home your newborn is setting up the nursery — though it can also be stressful. You want a space that is functional and, of course, cute. Sometimes a nursery can become a cluttered, chaotic space, especially after the baby comes home when you might not have as much time and energy to keep things tidy and organized.

While hiring a designer is an option that some parents choose, there are many techniques and products made specifically to help parents set up an organized — and fun— nursery themselves.

Why You Need a Functional Nursery Ready Before Baby Comes

With a baby comes a lot of necessary things — clothes, diapers, toys, pacifiers, bottles, strollers. The list goes on. As the parent of a newborn baby, you’re going to be pretty tired pretty often. Taking the time before the baby comes to set up a nursery that functions well will save you tons of energy once you bring your baby home.

An organized space will make it easier for you to take care of your baby when you’re tired or stressed. You’ll know exactly where everything is when you need it, which will make life a little easier for you, your partner, and your baby.

Planning, organizing, and decorating the nursery will make you even more excited to bring your baby home. A beautiful, tidy space made just for your newborn is a satisfying sight worth working hard for.

How to Design a Functional Nursery

1. Designate Separate Functional Areas

At a minimum, the functional areas you should aim to have include:

• A comfortable chair for feeding and reading
• A table for changing diapers
• A dresser or other storage for clothes, toiletries, toys, etc.
• A crib

Keep everything you might need when utilizing those separate spaces within arm’s reach, i.e. diapers stored above the changing table on a shelf or spit up cloths stashed beside the feeding chair.

2. Give Everything Its Own Place

Every item you need should have its own home. Put books on a shelf, store blankets in a bin, and so on. This will help with the tidiness. Things placed on the floor due to lack of specific storage make the space look cluttered. Not to mention you don’t want to trip over something when you rush to soothe a screaming baby in the middle of the night.

3. Label Your Things

Whether it’s with an electronic label maker or just a permanent marker, put labels on all bins and drawers. This will help you out when you’re getting used to using your new nursery as well as help anyone else who might be giving you a hand with your little bundle of joy.

There are plenty of options online for cute stickers made specifically for nursery organization.

4. Leave Room for Potential

You’re going to have a lot of stuff, that’s for sure, but try to leave room for growth as you plan your nursery’s layout. More stuff will come as your baby grows and acquires more toys and gadgets. You’ll be glad you saved some space for it!

Tips and Tricks for Nursery Organization

Designate totes or bins for future clothes that can be kept in the closet. You’ll probably end up with clothes that don’t quite fit yet and don’t belong with the rest of your baby’s day-to-day wardrobe. Keep these in a separate spot. This way only the clothes that currently fit your newborn are taking up space in the dresser.

Store bulks and multiples separately from current-use items. It’s always a good idea to have back stock of diapers, rash cream, and other things you use frequently. But you don’t need to keep five packages of baby wipes right next to the changing table. It looks cluttered and isn’t very efficient. Keep enough to get you through a couple of days and hide the extras in a storage bin in the closet or under the table.

For smaller items kept in your baby’s nursery, use drawer organizers. This way, you can keep different items in one drawer without having to worry about rummaging to find what you need when you need it.

Create a keepsake box. There will be things in your nursery that you won’t want to get rid of because of the sentimental value — old clothes you loved to dress your baby in, his first pacifier, you name it. It’s okay to hang onto those things. Keep them in a special box that you can look through whenever you’re feeling nostalgic!

Get rid of things you don’t need. Friends and relatives can be very generous with gifts for your newborn. You’ll probably end up with things you don’t need or don’t want. Give away or donate items that would otherwise create clutter.

Taking care of a newborn is at times challenging and exhausting. Making the time to set up a functional, tidy nursery space while you’re expecting can save you trouble in the future when you have a lot on your plate. As the saying goes, “work smarter, not harder”!

Moms Share Their Nursery Organization Techniques

“My biggest challenge was always the clothes rotation. They go through sizes so fast! I kept two storage containers under the hanging clothes in the closet, one for clothes that are too big and one for clothes that are too small. As soon as they grew out of something (sizes between brands are different, so it’s not always a complete clean of a particular size) I would put it in the ‘too small’ box. And when the ‘too small’ box filled up, I’d close it up and put it in storage for the next baby. On subsequent babies I still do the same. Now their ‘too big’ boxes are the next size up from our oldest.” –Heather Roland

“My kids share a bedroom. We moved out toys to make room for the crib. We ordered a two-pack of collapsible storage ottomans. Each child has one to store their toys and stuffed animals as they grow; until then, one is in the bedroom holding stuffed animals, and the second is in the living room holding more toys/stuffed animals. We picked up a closet system that allows for both kids’ clothes to be stored separately but in the same space. Anything that’s not the next sized up or is a too big hand me down is either in a garment bag or in a storage tote, stored in another closet.” –Hannah Hillenberg

“Floating shelves above the diaper changing station helped us a lot! We keep all diapers and wipes and diaper cream on the shelves so it’s close by and out of the way.” –Audry Waters

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All mothers will agree that one of the most important things for a newborn, and for themselves, is sleep. Sleep can often be a battle, though, because while newborns spend a large portion of the time sleeping, they sleep in shorter increments than their parents.

According to Stanford Children’s Health, newborns sleep about eight hours during the day and about eight hours at night, though often not sleeping more than one or two hours at a time. Most babies don’t start sleeping through the night without waking until they are about three months old.

This somewhat erratic sleep schedule can affect parents greatly. How often a baby wakes up during the night directly determines how often a mother or father will also wake up. Mothers who breastfeed, of course, are more likely to get out of bed when their baby starts crying in the night than fathers.

It’s not hard to find quick and easy sleeping tips for babies online. A quick Google search for “Tips to help my baby sleep better” returns over 900 million results. However, more sleep-deprived parents are starting to turn to sleep consultants, or sleep coaches, for help.

Kim West,  is the self-described “Sleep Lady,” and author of The Sleep Lady’s Good Night, Sleep Tight.  She boasts that her method has a 95% success rate, but it’s not necessarily a quick and easy process.

“My gentle method depends on step-by-step changes in bedtime, napping, and overnight routines so that your child can develop sleep independence, which will help your child go to sleep on her own, and sleep more soundly and longer while feeling confident that Mom and Dad will be nearby and responsive,” West writes.

A main component of her method is what West refers to as the Sleep Lady Shuffle.  Mom begins seated right next to her baby as he sleeps but moves a bit further away every few days. Every time the parent moves, from beside the crib all the way outside the bedroom, they will still be close enough to soothe if necessary, helping the baby learn that even though he can’t see his mother, she is not far away and is responsive.

West warns that parents will have to alter their own sleep schedules in order to correct their newborn’s and that patience is the key to success with her method. West also points out that regressions happen, and methods aren’t always perfect.

“Consistency is key,” West writes. “Whatever approach you use, the key is consistency. If you don’t follow it, it won’t work. And if you do follow it, research by the American Academy of Sleep Medicine has shown, it probably will work.”

Jace Verdin praised West’s Sleep Lady Shuffle, saying, “The Shuffle was super effective super quick for us. Honestly, the first night was horrible (as the Sleep Lady warns you). My son cried like I had never heard him cry before. But, I was able to sit right next to him, pick him up to comfort him, talk to him and pat him if he needed it. The second night was better. The third night he was down in fifteen minutes with no crying, just fussing. And he woke up — wait for it — ONCE! Never done that in his life.”

Another popular approach sleep consultants use is the graduated extinction method, or the check-and-console method. The approach entails putting your newborn to bed when he is drowsy but awake and checking on him multiple times, each with longer intervals between, until he is asleep.

Other sleep coaches have their own methods. Some insist upon taking the baby to a sleep specialist first to see if there could be any medical or physical reasons a baby is sleeping poorly. Other consultants work in-home and stay overnight to help parents teach sleeping methods and patterns and will also offer guidance over the phone when needed.

New mom Odelia from New York used a sleep consultant who came to her home.  She believes that having a coach there to teach her in-person had more advantages and was a more successful method than simply reading about various approaches online or in books.

“Having the coach come over for an overnight session was one of the best decisions we made as new parents … Natalie came to the rescue, proving to be extremely knowledgeable, supportive and patient. After just one night of sleep training, our baby learned to self soothe and consistently sleeps 11-12 hours a night,” Odelia says.

Some doctors see the trend of hiring sleep consultants as unnecessary and believe parents are perfectly capable of helping their babies on their own.

Social media can also often discourage parents from trying certain methods, like co-sleeping or the cry-it-out method where a parent will leave their baby to cry in hopes of him learning to self-soothe. What is important, however, is making sure whatever method you choose is the right one for both parents and for baby.

Generally, the fee for hiring a sleep coach can range anywhere from $100 to $1,000. For more information on finding a sleep consultant near you, visit the Family Sleep Institute.

Local Harrisburg and Central Pa sleep specialists: https://onceuponabedtime.com/

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New moms know that breastfeeding has many benefits for both mothers and their babies. There are physical benefits for baby’s health — lower risks of asthma, diabetes and gastrointestinal issues — but also emotional benefits as well.

According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Service’s women’s health site, being physically close with mom is important for newborns; it gives them comfort, warmth, and security. It can help strengthen the connection between mother and baby.

But can that connection be disrupted when a breastfeeding mother is scrolling on her smartphone?

According to experts, that is a possibility. This concept, which has been called “brexting” is a trending hashtag on Twitter.  And it has become a popular topic of conversation with new moms offline too.

Health officials believe that being distracted while breastfeeding compromises a developmental process that happens when a baby sees and responds to their mother’s face.

A study performed in 1975 concluded that when mothers approached their babies without smiling or talking, the babies would become distressed and turn away, whereas, if the mother cooed and smiled at the baby, he would smile and move his arms and legs.

Another study from Harvard found that if a mother breastfed with a blank expression, their baby would react anxiously. Experts believe a newborn will likely have a similar reaction if her mother is distracted by a device such as a smartphone.

For new mother Ellie Brackman, whose newborn came into the world in January, deciding to breastfeed was an easy choice.

“With everything in pregnancy and birth I wanted to be as natural as possible,” she said. “I had this mentality of ‘My body is designed to do this on its own, so I should let it.’ So I gave birth without any medication and wanted to breastfeed. I also think it is super cool that with breastfeeding my body can recognize when or if my baby needs certain nutrients. If she’s starting to get sick, my body will pick up on that and send more antibodies through my breast milk to her. Also, it’s a more economical choice for my husband and me. Babies are expensive and not having to pay for formula definitely helps. For me as a new mom, it feels really special that I’m the only one who can give her exactly what she needs. I’m her whole world right now, and I love that.”

Brackman is not familiar with the concept of brexting. She said that while she believes paying attention and being present while breastfeeding her newborn is important, she’s not sure that being productive during that time is necessarily a bad thing.

“I think it’s just like anything else with technology — you have to stay in control of it and be aware of your time spent with it. I spend a minimum of four hours a day breastfeeding my baby. That time adds up, and breastfeeding is not an easy thing to do. I’m the type of person who can’t just sit all day; I have to get things done or be busy or I go crazy. Even though breastfeeding is hard work and a far cry from just sitting on the couch all day, I still need to do something with my mind during that time.”

She explained that while she breastfeeds her newborn, it’s not uncommon for her to Facetime with family members who live far away or read articles about childcare or shop online for things her baby needs.

“However, even though I use my phone while nursing, I never spend the entire time scrolling,” Brackman said. “I have to pay pretty close attention to my baby while she nurses because I actually overproduce milk and she tends to chug really fast. I also have to keep her awake during feedings or she will just fall asleep and not fill her belly. I can see how there might be a possibility for some women to scroll the whole time they nurse and that could lead to some disconnect between mother and baby, but I think overall brexting isn’t a major issue. I think being a new mom is pretty tough both mentally and physically. If checking your Instagram while you nurse gives you the mental break you need then take it. You can’t care for your baby very well if you’re frazzled.”

Though some think brexting could potentially lead to over-feeding, which could subsequently lead to other issues like obesity, there is not enough evidence yet to conclude this.  

More studies are being conducted now to find how brexting affects a child.  So far they have not found anything conclusive to confirm that the specific distraction of smartphone use while breastfeeding is technically harmful.  And the reality is that even before smartphones were in the picture, many mothers did other activities during breastfeeding, like reading or watching TV, that would be considered distracting. Smartphone use has become prevalent for everyone; no one is immune to its potential for distraction. But mothers are often shamed for a variety of choices they make when it comes to pregnancy, breastfeeding, and childcare, so it is not necessarily surprising that the concept of brexting is so heavily debated online.