Here we go again...

My second baby is due at the end of September and we have just finished moving our toddler into his new "big boy" room with his new "big boy bed." We bought a used toddler bed at a thrift store, which solves any off-gassing issues (although this bed was made entirely of solid wood, there was a dark stain that I can only assume was rather odoriferous when it was first purchased). He did take with him his No-Compromise crib mattress, the one I've gone on and on about. The recap: the No-Compromise crib mattress by Naturpedic is free of PVC/vinyl, PBDEs (toxic fire retardants), dust mite barrier, organic cottn, meets all standards, fits all cribs (and toddler beds), and is just all around wonderful. From one of my earlier posts about this mattress:

Crib Mattress
This one is easy. No-Compromise Crib Mattress. This one is widely available; I recently bought one as a baby gift for my sister-in-law off Amazon. They are PVC/vinyl-free, utilizing polyethylene instead (food-grade). They do not contain noxious fire retardants found in most crib mattress; instead the compay uses a fire protection system (detailed in exhaustive detail on the website) that is free from those possibly carcinogenic toxins. This is an expensive mattress. There is no question about that. But for me, it was what I splurged on because it gave me peace of mind. Maybe I didn't get that ridiculously expensive diaper bag, and I guess I didn't buy all the wall decorations and nursery accessories that I might have otherwise. But this mattress was, to me, far more important than any of those other nursery furnishings. One note: I noticed at Babies R Us that Serta is selling a "safe" baby mattress. I'm glad large companies are taking note of the dangers of polyurethane foam mattresses; but be sure to read the fine print and note if these companies are still dousing their mattresses in fire retardant.

Anyway, the new baby needs a new mattress, so I just ordered another No Compromise crib mattress, though this time I ordered their new "seamless" crib mattress--it was the same price but is more of a square shape and doesn't have the high side seams that my son's mattress has. I don't really see any advantage to this, but I thought I'd mix it up a little. I also decided to buy a No Compromise bassinet mattress this time around. My son didn't like to spend any time in the bassinet but I'm hoping my little girl will. I ordered both from Baby Earth, which offers free shipping.

In other nursery news, I've decided to repaint and will be using Olympic no-VOC paints (available exclusively at Lowes) as they are cheaper than other no-VOC paints and I have used them successfully in the past.