Creating a Calming Nursery Environment with Very

With a new baby in the house, creating a calm environment and getting everyone into a new and settled routine is key. Whether this is your first baby, or your fourth baby, there will be some changes in the house and it is just as exciting to get the baby’s space and nursery ready with all of the little things you both need to feel settled and organised.

You can find so many of the essentials and also some wonderful baby gift ideas that you will need for your baby at Very and here are a few that we chose for Baby James to help nurture a calm environment and encourage his development.

Baby Toys

One of the best baby toys that you can invest in for your baby, is a good quality play mat like the VTech Little Friendlies glow & Giggle play mat, shown above (Available for £50 at Very)

Having the space to move around freely on the floor and explore their bodies and movement abilities is key for babies, whether they are at the stage of enjoying tummy time and learning to control their head and neck, like James – or whether they are starting to roll around or crawl. This unrestricted space to explore gives babies confidence to trust their bodies, and with lots of colours and patterns to look at, textures to explore and hanging toys to grab at this helps to keep them engaged and happy. Hopefully all of their hard work engaging their brains and little bodies will help get ready for a good night’s sleep later!

Soft toys are another great item for babies, and something that they may treasure for many years to come. This Mamas
& Papas Welcome to the World Zebra (available at Very £16) is a classic, just like one my eldest Z had when he was a baby.

Soft toys give comfort to little ones with their soothing texture and can become a beloved comfort item as they grow.

The VTech Roar and Explore wheel (available at Very for £10) is engaging for little ones with lights, buttons to press and lots of entertaining songs and melodies. This toy can even be attached to a pushchair or car seat using the secure strap – this can be a life saver on the go, as many babies crave stimulation and something fun to look at on the go. My daughter N was so much happier when she had toys available in the pushchair, and already Baby James is similar.

Using a toy like this is also a simple way to keep your baby entertained and happy during nappy changes.

Sleeping Environment

Whether your baby is still sleeping in your bedroom, or has moved over to their own nursery, keeping a calm and peaceful environment definitely helps for all of you to get a good night’s sleep – something which is very valuable to save your sanity.

We chose Mama’s & Papa’s fitted sheets and dream pod sleeping bags in a super cute hot air balloon print (both available for Very for  £21 and £34.99). Sleeping bags are brilliant for safe sleep while your baby is under 12 months, and I always found they give me the peace of mind of keeping baby a nice temperature, comfy and cosy with no risk of any blankets coming up towards their head.

For once he gets a little bit bigger, we chose the silent night cot bed duvet cover set in a printed stars pattern (£20 at Very)

Having a good quality baby monitor is also super helpful, especially once your baby starts settling upstairs a little earlier in the evening or once they move across to their own bedroom. We chose the VTech 5″ Pan & Tilt Video Monitor With Night Light And Projection (available for £100 from Very)

Having the night light and projection show is brilliant, making it a multi purpose device to help soothe and relax your baby as well as giving you the ability to keep an eye and ear on them while they sleep.

Baby Clothes

It’s important to choose soft and comfortable clothes for babies, that allow them to move around freely, not feel restricted and feel nice and soft on their delicate little skin. All of these clothes shown here are from Very, and we organised them in baskets and hanging wardrobe space in his nursery to help keep everything tidy and easy to find. With the amount of clothing changes that babies can go through each day, having everything quickly to hand definitely makes life easier.

For James we chose plenty of sleepsuits and vests as these are so easy during the first few months, we also got him some little tops and hoodies to keep him warm as he gets a little bigger. These are all soft cotton and feel really nice and comfy.

Baby James is very happy with all of the essential we found for him at Very.co.uk and I know we can continue find many of the things that he will need as he continues to grow!