How I Survived Invasion of the Baby Gear

When my husband and I started to talk about having a baby, one of things we discussed was how we would organize our house. To many, this might seem like a frivolous matter, but to people like us, people who have spent the better part of their relationship paring down belongings, managing to beat back the inevitable piles of baby-related clutter was a very real concern. It’s funny how your priorities change the minute that precious little bundle arrives, isn’t it?

We swore up and down that we would avoid buying too much gear. When our son Nathan was born, we entered Newborn Survival Mode and realized quickly we’d be needing a baby swing and a vibrating bouncy seat. For Christmas my mom sent Nate a technicolour activity mat, which he absolutely loved.

In the early days of Nate’s life, our living room was littered with the stuff of newborns. Stuffed animals sat among the books in our living room. The pack ‘n play was set up in the same corner. A bag of diapers sat nearby. As he got older and became more interactive, it became clear to me that I was going to have to make room in our everyday lives for baby toys.

In an effort to beat back the piles of baby gear that were quickly taking over our home, I went to work gathering some things from around the house and came up with a baby play area for our living room.

A. Diaper Change Survival Kit. I got this little basket from the Dollarama. Inside of it are a handful of diapers, a container of wipes, some Vaseline, zinc cream and baby Tylenol. This way I can change Nate right there on the mat or on a blanket or the couch. We no longer need a change table in our dining room!

B. TOYS. What is a play area without toys? This big old basket was my mom’s and I always loved it. It goes with our furniture. It’s filled with baby toys, most of which are hand-me-downs. It comes in handy when we have playdates with some friends of ours who have babies that are a bit older, too.

C. Diaper Disposal. We keep this little garbage bin in the living room. It’s small so it fills up fast, which means it gets emptied frequently. No smell! And it tucks in behind the bouncy chair if we want to hide it.

D. Bounce! Nate likes to sit in the bouncy seat in the morning when I come downstairs to make coffee. It gets moved around the house a lot, but when it’s time to put it away it lives on the mat.

E. Activity Mat. My mom sent Nate this activity mat for Christmas. It folds up but I leave it open most of the time. Sometimes I lay Nate under it while I change his diaper.

F. Laundry. What’s a new baby without gobs of laundry? I can keep Nate happy playing while I fold his clothes nearby.

G. The Mat. My sister-in-law gave us this mat when her kids were done playing with it. Since we have hardwood floors, having a bit of a mat or carpet is what pulls this little area all together.

This little corner works great for us…and it cost virtually nothing to throw together. The house might not always be clean but this way we can keep the baby gear tidy! And of course the cat likes it, too…

Tagged as: baby decor, baby gear, home organization, newborn