Goodbye Toddler Dormitory

We have had to say good-bye to the Toddler Dormitory that seemed so cool last Fall...

It turns out that those toddler beds did not last near as long as I expected. There should be a warning label on them or something....

Warning! This bed will not last long if your children are really tall.

Or better yet...

Warning! This bed is not intended for extremely active sleepers: If your children sleep with as much activity as if they are participating in gymnastics class, buy a bigger bed so that they have room to roam.

So, we bought bigger beds this summer. Jersey #3 was pushing the limits of the length of the toddler bed anyway. Jersey #4 was so active in her sleep that she was falling out of bed almost every night.

Then, Jersey #1 asked if she could have her own room.

So, I thought about the situation and decided we would swap rooms and let Jersey #1 have her own room, the smallest bedroom in the house. Then, we would put the younger girls in the bunk beds in one room. Then, we would buy a new set of bunk beds for the boys, and they would share the other bedroom. It was a great plan....

...until Jersey #5 decided to challenge gravity...

He is a climber. He has great physical strength. But, he still has toddler coordination, so he prone to falls. He has no respect for gravity. He thought it was fun to climb to the top bunk of his sister's bed and then JUMP on the bed! (Thankfully, he did not jump off, or fall off).

My heart nearly jumped out of my body. So, I declared that there would be no more bunk beds in our house right now.

That leaves us with a lot less space to work with, because placing 2 twin beds in the bedrooms does not leave much room for toys. Giving Jersey #1 the small bedroom takes away the play room too. I'm still working out those details.

I was happy to find a very inexpensive bunk bed set at Walmart.com. They were running free delivery to our house for the bunk beds and the cheap mattresses I ordered. Since we don't plan to bunk the beds, I was essentially just looking for inexpensive bed frames. It turns out the beds are a much nicer quality than I ever expected from that store. I think they would actually make sturdy bunk beds too.....but I am not testing that theory right now. The new beds are a bit smaller than our current bunk beds, which is a feature I like. Although our current bunk beds are sturdy and well made, they are longer than the average twin mattress, which takes up space....but is probably a feature I am sure to love as the kids continue to grow in height.

Right now, every child has their own twin bed. They are thrilled....

Jersey #1 also has her own room. She is using the bedroom set from my childhood. It was a gift for my 10th birthday. I am amazed it has held up this long. The bed was once a canopy bed, but has become a 4 post bed (with 2 smaller posts) due to wear and tear through the years. There is a matching dresser with a hutch too, and a matching desk.

So far, the twin beds are working MUCH better than the toddler beds. The kids have room to wiggle and grow. We still managed to find Jersey #4 under her bed one night. Apparently she had fallen out of bed in her sleep, and somehow rolled under it. When I went to check on the kids before going to bed, I had trouble finding her. That was quite a scare! Thankfully, that was only one such experience. I really don't see a lot of options for dealing with her level of sleep activity at this time, but at least now she has more room to move.