Before we even knew that I was pregnant I had started thinking about our second nursery. We had started the process to adopt again, so in true “me” fashion, I started buying items to decorate the nursery.

Since we weren’t sure on the gender (or even age since we were open to a toddler or preschooler), I wanted to keep the nursery theme fun but neutral. I had opted on an ocean theme because décor items could easily be added to personalize the room.

The theme actually started with a few adorable prints that I found on Etsy while shopping for playroom décor.

For our original nursery, I had done a grey and white travel theme. When we moved, we didn’t set up the nursery right away, so by the time we were ready to move Emmett into his own room, I painted the room a fun blue color.

I wanted to keep a neutral color tone for the majority of this nursery, and add pops of color throughout the room. We painted it the same greige that we have throughout our home, and then added pops of gold, turquoise, and pink (once we found out it is a girl).

I absolutely love the Babyletto Hudson crib that we bought for our original nursery, so I almost bought an identical crib for our baby girl. After looking at the different options currently available, we decided to stick with Babyletto, but opted for the Lolly crib for baby girl’s nursery.

The Lolly crib went great with the changing table that I found while browsing Target (it converts to a book case once the changing table portion is no longer needed).

The crib sheets and changing pad covers were two items that I had purchased before I knew we were pregnant. Ironically, these sheets were picked up the day before I got that positive test. I love the watercolor ocean print since they gave a softer feel for the ocean nursery theme.

The Ikea Hemnes series has been a staple in our home for years. I stalked our local Ikea’s website waiting for the white stain 3-drawer dresser to come back in stock and once I saw it pop up, we ventured down that evening. I wanted to add something fun to it, so I purchased these gold knobs to replace the ones that come with the dresser.

To continue with the pops of gold, I picked up some geometric gold metal baskets to hold books and blankets, and a corresponding side table for those late night feedings or pumping sessions.

When we moved into this house, this room had a bunch of cabinets along the wall. We removed the cabinets to make more space in the room and discovered that the new carpet didn’t go under one of the cabinets. We decided to put the glider in that corner of the room and I used a soft rug under the glider to help hide the mismatched carpet.

Early in the pandemic, Sunday mornings became my time for Target visits. It was great because the store was empty from a people perspective, and often shelves were being restocked with hard to find items. I found this gold shelf during one of these trips and bought it for Emmett’s bedroom. As we started to put the nursery together, I picked up another shelf for similar décor in the nursery.

The gold shelf will be fun to fill with personalized items for Anneliese, I had originally planned on Emmett’s shelf being filled with items from our travels, but over the past 18 months it has transitioned to holding his Home Depot Kids workshop kit projects.

In the past few years, Minted has really expanded their offerings to be more than just personalized greeting cards! I love this ocean themed print that I ordered, and since they’re printed to order, I was able to order the exact size that I wanted for the area.

I opted not to hang anything over the crib for a couple reasons. First of all, while we don’t live in California, we’re still in earthquake zones so I didn’t want to risk anything falling off the walls while she’s sleeping. Second, once we move her into this room we will add her Miku baby monitor above the crib.

To add in with the gold accents, and coordinate with the drawer pulls, I found this gold faceted curtain rod. I already had the turquoise and white rugby stripe curtains from our previous home. This color combination is no longer available, but there are other colors available.

Not knowing what pacifier type Anneliese would prefer, I picked up a few different varieties. These acrylic jars with gold tops perfectly fit into the décor of the room, and were are currently holding pacifiers and headbands.

The jars can easily transition to hold other items as she grows, or can transition to other spots around the house if she no longer wants them in her room.

I’ve been collecting headbands for a potential future daughter for years. I’m glad that I was able to pull them out of storage and add them to Anneliese’s room. We’ve used a few of them already, but I figure she has plenty of time to work through her stash of headbands.

A few of the more delicate bows are in the acrylic jars shown above, but I wanted to find a fun way to display some of her collection. I made this display piece with some cedar we got from my dad and a small curtain rod. Maybe at some point I’ll get a step by step tutorial put together on how I made it.

I love how her watercolor ocean themed nursery turned out. She is sleeping in our room currently, but we still use her nursery for diaper changes and feedings during the day.

We’ll slowly work on moving her into her room over the next few months so she can enjoy it for many years to come!