Let's Play Pretend - The Sweeter Side of Mommyhood

I have big plans for the kind of childhood my kids will get to live. It’s full of projects and crafts, playing pretend and cooking great food, and most of all full of special memories with those people in our lives that we call family. Related or not, those are the people that matter most in the grand scheme of our lives, and the people I most want my childrens’ childhoods centered around.

Part of this grand childhood fantasy is the already-there bond that my girls share as sisters. Having four brothers, the sister bond is something I never experienced growing up. Grace is still so small but she watches and adores her sister. And Lilly takes care of her baby whispering to her, holding her hand, keeping her company wherever she happens to be.

I will always be here, as Mommy, teacher, facilitator, creator of all sorts of special things for them. Part of my role in their fantasy will play out in their shared bedroom space. At first, I’ll admit, I cringed at the thought of my children needing to share a bedroom. Coming from a six bedroom house, where my brother’s and I all had our own room, there was quite an adjustment that needed to take place in Jacquie-la-la-land. But the more I watch my kids, the more I see Lilly play and imagine and pretend, the more excited I get about the girls sharing a great bedroom.

Here is their room right now:

This is why Lilly “sleeps” so well- her bed is full of all the stuff she loves!

Daddy’s old rocking horse.

Where I find Lilly after almost every nap- reading on the top bunk. And yes I do slather my child in SPF 50.

My little book worm. Love those toesies!

Only pink pigs allowed in here. The new room will feature almost 30 piggy banks from Lilly’s collection and 3 giraffe banks from Gracie’s.

There are many plans already in the works for their big room-remodel (the first of which involves switching them into the master bedroom and convincing my husband that dark gray is a BEYOND PERFECT color to paint the walls). First and foremost, their room will be about play. Mostly pretend play, reading, being cozy- more quiet, concentrated play than the toys in our main living space elicit. Their bedroom won’t be about batteries and noise and balls and craziness (though our family does love to be crazy). It will be about dress up and doll houses and lots and lots of reading. A place where our girls can spend time together dreaming up whatever scenarios their little hearts desire.

Already in place is this fantastic Ikea bunk bed. I’m not sure where I’m going with it yet- but there will definitely be some modifications going on in there.

I love the chalkboard paint applied here, but we already have a giant chalkboard under the counter in the kitchen and I’m not sure I want all that chalk dust around their bed linens… we’ll see.

I’ll also be crafting some paper hot air balloons to hang from the ceiling and making a few great pieces of artwork to hang. Lilly will help with that so stay tuned to see what we make together! Here’s a bit of my inspiration:

The paint color is chosen, rug idea is in place and lighting has already been discussed.

The special touches will be homemade quilts from Mommy, a big wooden dollhouse courtesy of Uncle Nick’s engineering expertise, a rocking horse and toy box from Daddy’s childhood, a play tent, big comfy chair, and lots and lots of books.

(via younghouselove.com)

I’ve begun to lay out the squares for the girls quilts. I’m still gathering fabric and moving around the various patterns, but I think they will be beautiful.

I can’t wait to make this happen for my babies! Our ultimate goal is to spend a little bit of money and whole lotta time making this space magical for them. The more we can make ourselves, reuse, repurpose, and upcycle- the better. Budget restrictions apply (when do they not?!) but we will slowly and steadily gather what we need to turn their room from baby pinkness to little girl play space. Hopefully in time for Gracie’s 1st birthday.

It will break my heart to cover up the pink, to move away from the room I so dearly, dearly, love and associate with all things “baby”, but change is good…right?

Most of these images come to you via my pinterest board that links directly back to each project/product idea. Besides the quilt, the photos of my kids, and obviously their pink room, they are not my images, only my inspiration. Check out their sites, they are overflowing with great ideas!

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Speaking of pretend, this awesome toy has quickly become a favorite.

My Aunt Linda got this for Lilly for her 2nd birthday and I’m absolutely in love with it. There’s a little oven mitt, cupcake pan, cupcake wrappers, frosting, and candles, plus three icing markers (which- bonus!- are totally and completely washable (thank goodness).