Neutral nursery gone girl (and more owl stuff)

So one of the most common reasons people say they find out about the sex of their child is so they can "plan" better. I know there are other good reasons to find out, but that's the response I got most often when I told people that I was not. "I could never wait that long," they'd say, "I have to know so I can plan for it." Well, if there is one person I know who loves to plan, it's me. Seriously, it took a huge effort for me not to find out whether I was carrying a boy or girl for 9 months, but the moment she was born it was all worth it. And here's a shocker: I was still able to plan!

What, you ask? How ever did I set up the nursery without knowing the sex of my baby? That's just crazy! Oh and it must look boyish because all the neutral colors are more boyish than girlish.

Well, for starters, we knew we were gonna put the baby in the smallest room as an attempt to keep a decent-sized guest room for as long as possible. We had just painted the room a periwinkle blue when we first moved in only a couple years ago, so re-painting was not an option in my eyes. I was just gonna have to make it work. So again through Pinterest inspiration, I decided to paint a big white tree on the walls. Here's a great tutorial on how to paint a tree on a wall. I didn't follow the steps, as I did it all free-hand, but I did use the tree as a reference. I had a very hard time finding one I liked.

Anyway, here's what the nursery looked like before the baby was born:

Lovely, you say, just lovely, but it definitely looks more like a baby boy's room. I agree, but getting it to this point required just the right amount of planning/nesting to get me through 9 months of pregnancy. And, gasp, guess what? You still have time after the baby is born to customize it and make it more girly if you wish.

So that's just what I did. But not in a permanent way, so if/when we have another, he or she can go in the same room and even the sheets and curtains will be gender neutral. No, my girly additions were very small: a pink throw rug, pink storage boxes, and of course, lots of pink owls. Here's our nursery gone girl and owl crazy:

I spy with my little eye… How many owls in the room? 

Now, this is much better. You can totally tell that a little girl resides here. You can also see how much more stuff and how many more owls have accumulated in her little room. I thought we'd be OK with the bookshelf in the spare bedroom, but then books just started piling up all over the floor because I'm too lazy to go back and forth putting them away. Same goes with all her headbands, hats and shoes. It's a little tight, but not totally uncomfortable.

I would also like to bring to your attention one of the signature pieces in the room: the owl mobile. My mom (Ainsley's Mimi) made it out of CDs and yarn and all sorts of things and gave it to her as a baptism gift. (Not sure of the religious significance, but still super awesome!! She so darn creative, I can't stand it!) And Ainsley LOVES it!

Here's another Mimi creation that Ainsley is obsessed with...

Cut paper and oil pastels and here's my mom's blog for more creative ideas

Mimi's owl gifts are why her first words are "owl" and "hoo". She'll be in her room screaming and crying and I'll walk in, she'll stop, point to her mobile and say "owl". Really, Ainsley? Is that what you wanted to tell me? Too funny! Her vocabulary is really expanding now, though it's mostly just repeating what we are saying rather than actually understanding the words. She has definitely made the owl connection though, that's for sure... She just loves them!