It’s hard to believe but many pieces of our nursery, including our crib and changing table have been set up for 8 years now. When I was registering years ago and designing a nursery, I only thought about it as a place my tiny baby would sleep for a year or so before moving onto a bed and more of a “kids” room. I never imagined she’d use the nursery and then 3 more babies would too. I also was pretty confused as to how to design a nursery without knowing the gender of the baby. I thought I had to have it all set up so I picked a whole, very specific, theme, and set everything up. My oh my have I learned a lot about nursery design and furniture since then! So after 8 years, here’s what I learned, here’s what we still have, still love and what we’ve replaced:

Disclosure: This is a sponsored post on behalf of The Motherhood. As always, all opinions are my own.

Tips for creating a nursery that lasts:

1. Start off Neutral! Even if you know the gender of the baby, I’d recommend starting off as neutral as possible. We didn’t know the gender ahead of time with any of our babies but I always think if I DID know I may probably would have gotten a very feminine crib (our first was a girl) and a lot of pink. Well if I had done that, I wouldn’t be still using the same furniture and many of the same nursery items 8 years later because I went on to have boys too. For the rocker, crib, changing table, lamps, shelving, etc try and stay neutral.

2. Register for some neutral items: Whether you know the gender ahead of time or not, register for a bunch of neutral items that you can use over the years. You’ll always need back ups (picture how many sheets you’ll go through the first time someone gets the stomach bug!). Plus, light grey and yellows tend to match with most nursery themes. Some of these items to stock up on: sheets, blankets, changing table pads, bath towels

3. Add a book shelf and books to the nursery/ registry! I recently helped host a shower for my cousin. She had registered for an adorable bookcase and requested books instead of cards. I bought the bookcase as her gift but also used it as shower “decor” for everyone to put their books on. It was cute, fun and something she’ll use for years to come. The bookcase we bought for the nursery years ago is now jam packed with chapter books – that’s how well it’s grown with the kids!

2. You can tie in a color once the baby arrives with 3 simple things:

Sheets, changing table cover and throw pillow. If you don’t know the gender of the baby ahead of time, it doesn’t mean you have to have a totally gender neutral room. Create a room that you can add in some different colors based on the gender. I think the easiest way to do this is to add the colors in the sheets, changing table pad and a pillow for the rocker. For example: for the boys nursery, I did a lot of yellow, green and orange. If Miles was a girl, I would have added in some pinks and since he was a boy, I added in some navy. It made it more of a “boy” room very quickly with the navy and it matched perfectly with the yellows and orange tones already there.

After 4 babies and 8 years of a nursery in our home, here’s what we are still using vs what we updated:

Still Using: Crib, changing table, mattress, bookcase, baskets on the changing table, changing pad insert, sound machine, blankets, mattress protector

What’s new: sheets, changing table covers, rug, rocker (I did’t have one for the first 2 babies), more storage, some updated decor on the walls

After back to back baby girls in the nursery, it’s been fun updating it to be more “boy”. We even have crib sheets with cars on them now! These cute car sheets are from one of my favorites: Parent’s Choice. The brand’s “new and improved” products honestly are just as good (if not better) than a lot of the top brands but at a fraction of the price.

The Parent’s Choice Mix and Match bedding line has so many cute options for adding in some color using sheets and a changing table pad cover like I mentioned above. Then the line also has some great gender neutral options to stock up on too (also mentioned above). You can pick up the Parent’s Choice Mix & Match Bedding in store at Walmart or get them delivered to your door with free shipping. There are a ton of options online. The line includes receiving blankets, crib sheets, changing pads, baby blankets and nursery sets. Most of the items are priced less than $13 and they are so soft. Being that it’s a “mix and match” line, there are so many ways to start out neutral and add in colors after the baby arrives. I also love that the sheets come in sets of two. I currently have 2 in cribs in the same room, so this is a fun way to buy a pack of sheets that are different but coordinate.