Rudy's Book Nook

My latest home improvement project was inspired by a 25 cent used poster being sold at our local library. It was so cool (and so cheap) I just had to buy it. The poster details the Land of Enchantment (or something like that) with tons of traditional fairy tales, etc. Some are really familiar to me like, The Three Little Pigs, Jack and the Bean Stalk, and The Princess and the Pea, but others are yet unknown- stories like The Seven Swans and The Drakestail.

Anyway, its fun to look at, and it fits Rudy's room colors really well. At first I was going to hang it over his crib or some other adult friendly place, but then I realized Rudy wouldn't be able to examine all the cool details and remember the stories he knows and wonder what the others are about. (I know Rudy's probably not thinking quite so complexly yet, but he'll be telling me fairy tales before I know it, I'm sure. Its amazing how flabbergastingly fast babies turn to toddlers and toddlers turn to preschoolers!)

Rudy has this special corner of his room he's kind of claimed as his personal hideout. It's where he runs if we're playing chase, where he hides if he's trying to be sly about something, where he retreats if he just needs some quiet alone time (which usually lasts about 30 seconds before he's ready to lead another expedition with me as his assistant). I'd already thrown a couple uncovered pillows in the corner to snuggle (or wrestle) with, which he had appreciated, so I thought, "Why not cozy this hideout up a bit?"

I was a bit worried he'd feel invaded upon (I know I didn't like anyone rearranging ANYTHING in my childhood hideouts) but I guess he's still flexible in that regard. Anyway, I taped the poster up as "wall paper", covered the pillows with a quilt cover to turn them into a "couch" and added a box full of some of Rudy's favorite books. Now we read books in our cozy book nook every morning to ease into the idea of being awake (I'm the one that needs the easing--Rudy's usually ready to conquer the world by 6 am.)

Voila!