I’ve been talking to some of my young mother friends, and we’ve stumbled upon a tired family truism that, like all parenting discoveries, may be old news to you but revelatory to the new parent:
A new couch improves your life by 150%.
We finally found said new couch in Salem, but before I get to that, let me tell you about our old couch.
Our old couch came from a second-hand store in Iowa City and, at just two seats wide, was small enough to fit in a tiny student apartment. You might call that a love seat, but when it’s all you’ve got, you, too, might couch your phrasing a little differently. Ours was grey and lovingly cat-proof and it got us through six seasons of LOST. But there wasn’t a whole lotta lovin’ going on there.
Old Grey Couch couldn’t stand up to late nights with the baby, though. After two months of periodically sleeping on the couch with our little lamb, my husband and I started to look a little crumpled, so we went looking for a replacement at our usual stops for consignment furniture, including Encore Consignment in Salem.
Adam fell in love with a couch there. It was purple and plush and probably would have taken up our entire living room. He named it “Grimace” and was sure we’d catch it when its price dropped to 250 bucks two days later.
On the day we went to pick Grimace up, he was gone — snatched up by a lady who had arrived an hour before the store opened.
For the next few weeks, we made some sad trips to Portland, where we connived with lesser couches and were lured, however fleetingly, but the prospects of a new couch. And Adam continued to talk about the fabled purple Couch That Got Away.
A new couch! We haven’t bought anything but mattresses new… but considering the beating our old grey couch took in the four years that we had her, we began to consider the idea more and more. It would be our first major furniture purchase as a married couple.
Being stingy recyclers, we were feeling kind of torn, so we started to tell ourselves stories about why one might settle for something new.
There was that time when we pulled grey couch out of storage and found a dead mouse under a cushion…
So yes, we found a couch. We found it on sale 55% off! — at Kuebler’s in downtown Salem. It’s a Broyhill, it’s firm and plush and perfect and supportive.
It’s the midnight parenting these young parents needed — and it was totally worth it.
****By the way, Adam has the baby on his head because this is a proven position to combat the Dreadful Wails.***
we’ve been dreaming of a new couch for a while now… I’ll have to check out Encore Consignment, thanks for the tip! ♥
Ah, so you’re going for the used couch… just make sure there aren’t any dead mice under the covers. Encore always has good stuff, but we bought the new one at Kuebler’s. Happy hunting!
The *new* couch looks great but I feel sad about Grimace. I too make rapid but deep connections with inanimate objects and I feel Adam’s pain. I hope the new couch eventually gets a name….
I don’t know why but that picture of your husband and child reminds me of Michael Jackson holding the baby over the balcony. For kicks, you should check out the couches and recliners at the La-Z-Boy in Salem. They have models with fold out drink holders and back massagers. Very modern.
I haven’t had a newborn in 19 years, but I remember the exhaustion like it was yesterday. Good for you….you made it a priority and took care of business.
Congratulations, Emily, on that couch! You are absolutely right–you never need new and comfortable things more than when you are the parent of a new baby. During that phase of my own life, I had grim, old stuff…and it colors my memory of that whole period decades later. And not in a good way.
My husband and I have always loved buying second hand, but when our baby arrived things definitely changed. Firm and comfortable furniture should be mentioned as a must in all baby books!
Hey, another new baby! In Salem! How do I find these people without going on MomsLikeMe?
I’m really surprised that this post inspired so much congratulations on our consumer choices. But it sure does make me feel better about shelling out so much dough. Thanks, all.
When my boys were young I joined a MOMS Club here in town.
Here’s a link to Salem’s chapters of this national organization:
http://www.southsalemmoms.com/
http://www.westsalemmoms.com/
I was the first of my friends to have a baby and so right away I found myself at home bouncing, rocking, nursing and counting the hours until another adult was off from work and able to visit. What a joy to find other Moms (with children approximately the same age) wanting to get together. Playgroups, day outings, brunches – it gave me somewhere to go and meet others in my same (sleepless but happy) boat. It also introduced me to some like minded ladies with whom I would have never met otherwise and still call ‘friend’ today.