A Sporty and Neutral Shared Boys Bedroom

From sounds of stifled giggles way past their bedtime, silly or surprisingly deep conversations, to catching the older brother reading to the younger, there's something pretty special that happens when kids share a room. Don't get me wrong, there's still more fights than I'd like and at times there's not enough space for the both of them, but I'm relishing this time and one day they'll look back and remember these times fondly–at least that's what I keep telling them.

When we moved in, there were enough rooms so the boys didn't have to share, but we wanted them to continue to bunk together. For one, Luke could keep an eye on his younger more mischievous brother and we could also use the extra room as a guest/office. While we still wanted it to be a room for boys, we were leaning towards a more sophisticated and neutral design this time around. In our last home, the boys' room had lots going on–gray and white striped walls, a DIY platform bed, a chalkboard wall–nearly every trend you could imagine. For this space (and the entire home), I wanted rooms to be much more simple and serene. It probably has something to do with all the chaos that two wild boys and busy schedules bring.

We painted over the blue walls with Benjamin Moore Revere Pewter and painted the dark blue ceiling, closet doors and trim in Benjamin Moore Simply White, a creamy, warm white. The neutral greige walls and white ceiling make the room feel clean, bright and quite a bit larger.

We built the beds using plans from Jennifer Largesse at Build - Basic and utilized a few things we had around the house like the metal shelving unit and dresser from Ikea. Then we threw in some cork boards so the kids could display their artwork and a couple bug pillows for good measure. We also replaced the dated ceiling fan with an updated model from Hunter.

Source List: Walls (Benjamin Moore Revere Pewter HC-172); Trim, Closet & Ceiling (Benjamin Moore Simply White OC-117); Beds (DIY | Home Depot | Build - Basic); Bedding (Ikea | Bjornloka Duvet Cover); Dresser (Ikea | Hemnes 3 Drawer Chest); Rug (West Elm); Drapes (Pottery Barn Teen | Suite Ribbon Blackout Drapes); Kids Table and Chairs (Ikea | Sundvik Table & Chairs); Cork Boards (Ikea | Vaggis Noticeboard); Ceiling Light (Home Depot | Hunter Conroy 42" Ceiling Light Fan)

This simple paint color update we've made, from the all blue room above to the more modern, neutral and versatile room, will grow with the boys and allows us to make changes to the room later on down the road without a bunch of work.

DIY // Faceted Baby Mobile

It's amazing how much stuff you can acquire with the sole purpose of keeping a tiny little baby entertained.  We have a rocker, a vibrating bouncy chair, a play mat and about a million little jingly, rattly and straight-up noisy toys.  So it's funny that with all that gear Cal is most content just laying in his crib and staring at his mobile.

And boy does that make me happy.

DIY // Wooden Alphabet Wall Art

Did you catch the boys' shared room tour a couple weeks ago? You might have caught a glimpse of my latest DIY project.  I've long been a fan of letter decor in children's rooms.  I've even pinned a few inspirations here, here and here.  So it was only a matter of time before I tackled a project of my own.

I picked up the white 6" MDF letters, a staple gun and some velcro from Jo-Ann Fabrics and Craft Store.  Each of the letters were on sale for half price and I used a coupon for the rest - grand total: around $60.

Baby & Toddler // Kids' Shared Room Reveal

Luke and Callaghan's room is well on its way to being a finished space.  The painted striped walls and painted chalkboard wall are still hanging tough but we made a few changes to make it more suitable for two kids.  The addition of the DIY loft bed allowed us to open up some flooring space.  If you remember from our children's shared bedroom inspiration post, we initially wanted to place the crib underneath but we just weren't comfortable with how tall the loft bed would have had to be.  So we scrapped that idea and decided a play & work area underneath would be better all around.

DIY // Loft Bed Book Storage

We're a family of book lovers.  Both sides of our family are readers which is one of the reasons why we fell in love - that and crosswords...and beer.  We have boxes and boxes of paperbacks and hardbacks upstairs that are just waiting to come out of hiding once we build a couple of built-in shelves for the living room.  It's not surprising, either, that our boys' room is overflowing with storybooks.

Reading is our one and only bedtime ritual that has stuck and now that Luke is getting older he's joining in on the action.  After we read to him he usually insists on reading to us.  He's got The Spooky Old Tree and SuperMan down pat and improvises pretty dang well on any other stories.  After storytime is over he usually crawls into bed and falls asleep "reading" to himself.

To keep his favorite books close I added a little bookshelf to the inside of his loft bed using a Bekvam spice rack from Ikea.  This spice rack is SUPER inexpensive (only $3) and is the same natural wood tone as the loft bed.

Kids' Shared Room // DIY Loft Bed

Things have been going pretty great since we brought home our newest little boy (knock on wood).  Big brother has taken to sharing his Mama & Daddy pretty dang well but sharing parents isn't the only thing Luke has had to get used to. Being tight on space, a shared kids' room was a given.  So Luke's toddler bed got the boot and was replaced by a new DIY loft bed and the crib.

We used plans from Ana-White.com and adjusted them slightly to better fit our room.  Rather than an angled set of stairs leading to the platform, we replaced it with a short vertical ladder.  We also increased the height of the bed to allow for another bunk in the lower section for when Callaghan outgrows his crib.  Plus, we added handles to the bed which made it easier for Luke to get up and down.

Nesting // Big Brother Bag

Baby #2 has arrived - October 25th to be exact!  And big brother Luke is so excited about his baby brother, Callaghan.  To make the transition from a family of three to a family of four easier on our 3 year old son we did what any amazing parents would do....bribed him with gifts.  I created a Big Brother Bag for Luke from his baby brother using the good ol' wear, read, want, need method.

1 // Tote Bag - This DIY monogrammed tote bag is the perfect size for Luke to take to school and he was pretty stoked that it was personalized with HIS letter "L."

2 // T-Shirt - There's something about these "Big/Little Brother" t shirts that make me all warm and fuzzy.

Kid n' Play // DIY Lego Puzzle Book {Downloadable}

Let's be honest - working on DIY projects with kids around is nearly impossible.  They either want to "help" or they have other plans for how they want you to spend your afternoon.  For those times when I need to get something done busy projects are a life saver and they sure beat sticking an iPhone in my little one's hands.

Legos have been around for decades and are a favorite among both kids and parents.  A Lego Puzzle Book, which I first spied over at KidsActivitiesBlog, is a perfect project to engage kids in an activity that they highly enjoy which means plenty of uninterrupted project time for Mama, too.  It may require a little help at first but once they get the hang of it it's a perfect independent play project that develops important math and problem solving skills.

A few months back I laid out a few of Luke's Lego creations on white copy paper and snapped a few photos.  I finally got around to creating the puzzle book which was as simple as printing off the photos onto cardstock and stapling the book together.

Move Over Big Brother: Shared Bedroom Inspiration

With less than four months until baby #2 makes its arrival, I am in full-fledged nesting mode.  Our kitchen/nook is nearly finished and will be the perfect space for our growing family, however we still have work to do on Luke's room.  He's going to be making some room for baby brother (yay!  we're having another boy!)

I love the idea of shared rooms where the boys will laugh, fight and bond together - although, the kids may not agree.  At one time growing up, my sister, brother and I all shared a room.  It was always a disaster with our ninja turtles, barbies and matchbox cars cluttering the space but some of the fondest memories were made in that overcrowded room.  How will we make it work for two children that will be roughly 39 months apart in age?

Our plan is to build a bunkbed which will give us maximum amount of floor space perfect for playtime.  The bed will also transition from baby to big kid as our newest little bundle grows so the top bunk will be reserved for Luke and the bottom bunk will be replaced by a crib during the first year.  Here's a few of the inspiration shots that have me doing the truffle shuffle which is pretty much the only dance I can manage at this point.

{VIA}

{VIA - Roberto Gil Furniture Design}

Pumpkin A'Plenty - 6 Ways to Put That Pumpkin Decor To Use

Now that we're fully into Christmas decorating season, what are you going to do with the leftover pumpkins that survived the fall?  Luckily, I have six ways to keep them from rotting on your front porch.

1.  Roast The Seeds

Who doesn't love baked pumpkin seeds?  Cut the pumpkin in half and separate the seeds from the membrane.  Rinse the seeds and allow them to dry on a paper towel.  Spray a baking sheet with oil, spread out seeds evenly, sprinkle with salt and bake for 10-20 minutes at 350 degrees.  Store seeds in an airtight container.  Regular ol' pumpkin seeds a little too boring?  Try these tasty takes on the classic - cinnamon & sugar, ginger-orange zest, spicy and cheesy.

{VIA}

Before & After: Bland Nursery to Hip Big Kid Room

The old adage "time flies" is ringing true this week.  Luke transitioned from his crib to a big boy bed after he started scaling it like he was climbing over a pebble.  I figured that his room might as well get a big boy update as well so I turned to my good ol' friend - Paint.

 
I broke out some painters tape and two gallons of OOPS paint from Home Depot one in a semi-gloss white and the other in an eggshell gray and painted large stripes on the walls.  Once I got the gray on

Pinterest Challenge Summer Edition: Good (re)vs. Evil Kid's Cape

Guess what time it is????  YEP!  It's...

Jumping up and down?  Me too!

The lovely ladies, Katie from Bower Power and Sherry from YoungHouseLove along with the equally lovely Kate - better known as Centsational Girl and Michelle from the blog Ten June are the hosts for this summer edition.

DIY Kid's Felt Board

I'm always trying to think of activities to keep my little man entertained.  He's at that age where he's starting to get into pretend play.  Something I remember from growing up was a felt board.  I thought this was the perfect way he could express his creativity and it could also be used for learning activities.

Not only is it pretty simple to make a felt board, but it is also pretty inexpensive too.

Supplies:

Kids Crafts: DIY Foam Animal Masks

We're headed to the Oregon Zoo in a couple weeks.  I love experiencing the zoo with kids.  They're just so excited and so in love with every single animal.  I don't love the expensive gift stores, though.  So, to ward off the wallet-busting trip I made these adorable and inexpensive animal masks which could take the place of any of the expensive crap sold at the gift store.  While my boy was a little too young to help out, this would be a perfect craft to share with your kids.