Davis's Gray, Green, and Mint Toddler Room

When we found out we were pregnant with little boy #2 we knew that changes would have to be made to our oldest bumpkins room.  The boys are 2.5 years apart but Davis was still securely sleeping in his crib.  I credit this in large part to the fact that our crib was handmade and has a very 'large' presence.  I honestly don't think that the idea ever crossed his mind that he could get out of it! I knew that the crib would be needed for our newest baby, but I'm a sentimentalist and couldn't bear the thought of 'taking it away' from Davis.  I loved decorating his nursery and suddenly it seemed that it wasn't just moving him from the crib, it was redoing his whole room.  It didn't end up being a whole room redo, but we did make some changes in there that have worked really well as we've gotten into the toddler years, and if I'm honest, I actually love his room more now than I did as a nursery.  I never did a nursery post of his room on this blog but we were really honored that Apartment Therapy picked it as a feature on their website.  You can see pictures of the nursery at this link.

Green, gray, and mint kids room.

 Most of the room stayed the same but the crib was replaced with an antique toddler bed.  The bed was made by my great-great-great grandfather in 1885 for his twin sons.  The bed is quite sturdy and has been updated with a modern mattress.  We feel so blessed that our son gets to have such a unique piece in his room.  (This bed has been used by many people in our family including one of my brothers.)

Antique toddler bed, made in 1885

The dresser was a Craigslist find.  I answered an ad with no photos and was taken to an old man's attic.  It wasn't at all what I was envisioning and I have debated about replacing it many times.  But Chris really loved it and after we changed the room into a 'big boy' room it seemed to fit in so much better.  I do think that at some point the drawer fronts will be repainted white again. 

The boys rooms are close to each other so we thought it would be nice to try and give them a bit of a flow.  We ended up finding the Waverly Lovely Lattice curtain panels in both navy and green.  

The art work above the bed contains a vintage camera (a nod to our artwork), a painting aquired through my senior art show painted by a fellow student, 2 vintage prints, and a Fleetwood Mac record (Bare Trees).  

The changing table was taken out and replaced with a table and chairs.  I honestly dreamed of having an art station in this room before he was even born.  I love having all of his masterpieces around our house.

Kids art station

We live in an older ranch house.  That means that we don't have fun nooks or extra closets.  This closet has turned into a favorite spot in our house that is functional and fun.  Shortly after our son was born Chris installed these shelves into a shallow recess in the closet.  They have served us very well (this kid is a massive reader).  The pillow was something I made for Davis that ended up in here.  I used silver craft paint and carved a stamp from a potato and willy-nilly stamped the walls.  We have spent many moments together in here snuggling, reading books, and laughing.  What a wonderful little spot it has turned out to be.

How did you decorate your kids rooms?  Did you know exactly what you would do before you started or did it evolve over time?