Why I Couldn't Remove the Changing Pad From My Coastal Living Room
For years, a changing pad sat on the console table in our coastal living room.
At one point, it was one of the most-used items in our home. It was where countless diaper changes happened, where tiny feet kicked, and where I spent years caring for two little boys who seemed to grow up overnight.
But the truth is, we hadn't needed it for months.
My youngest had long outgrown diapers. The changing pad had stopped serving its purpose well before I was ready to let it go.
Every time I walked past it, I told myself I'd remove it soon. Next weekend. Next month. After I reorganized the room.
But deep down, I knew the reason it was still there had nothing to do with decorating or decluttering.
It was because removing it felt like acknowledging something I wasn't quite ready to admit:
That the baby years were over.
As parents, we expect the big milestones. First words. First steps. The first day of school.
What catches us off guard are the quieter moments. The ones that happen inside our homes when an ordinary object suddenly becomes a marker of time passing.
For me, that moment was finally removing the changing pad from our console table.
Gray changing pad (Amazon). This Bumbo changing pad is coastal decor-friendly, comfortable for baby and so easy to wipe and clean. This would be a must-add item to a baby registry for me.
Coastal white console table (Serena & Lily). This hand-painted linen console table in Chalk was the perfect size to fit the changing table and store diapers, wipes and creams in the drawers.
Natural-wrap white ceramic table lamp (Sold out on Target. Ebay has it). This was a fast solution to redesign the console table after I finally took off the changing pad. I think it works well in the space for now and was a great price point.
Cube ottomans (The Inside). These ottomans come in handy for extra seating in our family room. We ordered the Cornflower Classic Ticking Stripe, but there are over 65 patterns to choose from.