One of the questions I've gotten several times lately is "where is Monroe going to sleep?" Of course it's generally phrased as "where are you going to put him??" LOL.
Right now we have 3 bedrooms that we are using for the kids. Three kids are in one room, two in another, and Lynae is by herself. For now that is working quite well, except when Kristopher gets up at 6am and turns the lights on and the radio and wakes Brianna :). And when we had Patrick, when he would get up at 4:30 and turn the lights on and be ready to play! (yes, we used tape on the light switch for a few days in there and Patrick learned to go back to sleep for a bit LOL!)
Now we're looking at 'adding one more' and inevitably the bedrooms will shift a bit! Right now we're thinking about putting the 3 girls together, the 3 younger boys together, and putting Kristopher by himself in what is now Lynae's/guest room. My hesitation with that is the idea of putting Brianna and Lynae together... because Brianna loves Lynae! Sometimes... a little too much :)
We are also considering whether we will use Emma's bunk for Monroe (at least for a little while) when he first comes home. Emma has been 'trying out' Brianna's bed when she's not in it and will go in there and wait to be put in it in the middle of the day! Emma has come along SO MUCH since we first decided to make her a bed, but I am still not sure she could do with "just" a side rail. If we did move her over, we would probably cut the legs off of the bottom of the bunk bed, lowering it to the ground. We'd also add a few other supports such as attaching the ladder better (right now from the bottom bunk you can just push it and it moves away from the bed) and possibly adding another 'bar' on the headboard so she can't get stuck trying to wriggle out there. Otherwise, if it's lowered to the ground, it should be fairly good... even if she managed to get out. Then the question becomes whether the other bed in the room is also 'safe' from her.
On top of that bunk? Well, little miss Monkey herself that loves loves loves to be on the top... but a foot closer to the ground! I'm trying to figure out whether it would really work for Brianna to be on a raised bed or not. She has a side rail so she doesn't fall out of bed, but she has the ability to get down whenever she wants. When she's on the top bunk, we'd need to be sure she still couldn't fall out of bed even if it's lower to the ground. Some suggestions have been a 'staircase' going up the end of the bed with big steps and a rail, or a ladder to go up and a slide to go down-- since climbing down is what she's not very good at. We're still tossing that one around.
Looking out 6-9 months, we have 3 kids in cribs right now. Micah, James, and Lynae. By 18/24 months I imagine that Lynae will be ready to be done in a crib, much as Kristopher was. Brianna wasn't much older, around 30 months. The boys are both still 'comfy' in their cribs and definitely more SAFE! But what's the next step for them? And how can we incorporate the knowledge that they'll need something different in a not-so-long time from now into our current plans? After all, we hope to have Monroe home before Christmas (PRAYING!!) but that is still almost 5 months from now and that 6-9 months idea isn't so far down the road.
I really like the idea of giving Kristopher a bit of his own space at least for a little while. A place he can have his Lego's and knights and games and books and not have to worry about anyone else getting a hold of them. Right now he and Brianna share and it's a good setup (she won't eat his toys but does get in to them!). I also like the idea of continuing to have a place to offer to guests that stay overnight (including the occasional babysitter, you know, so we can go for our adoption for a bit!).
So... the "where are you going to put him" question, though it's 'easy' to say "with the little boys" is really a bit more complicated when you add in the whole what-kind-of-bed-will-everyone-need-in-6-months thing!!
Any ideas or suggestions? Low bunks, home made beds, and bed rails are at the top of the list at the moment :)
Our girls have a double over doubel bed (that is NOT what I am suggesting for you)...instead of a ladder, they have the staircase that goes at the end of the bed. It is Kylie who sleeps up top, so it wasn't an issue of HER safety, but an issue of "what if Patrick or Jessie climbs up, they need to safely get down". This option has worked GREAT, as it allows them to easily get down when they get up (which they are not supposed to do)...the other added bonus to this style is that each step is a drawer, expanding our storage space int he room! Let me know if you want pics and I can email them to you ;)
ReplyDeleteI babysat for a family and they had a daughter who was too big for a crib, but needed extra sides to stay in bed, so they bought a day bed with large sides and turned it to face the wall, so she couldn't get out! It was the perfect thing! The little girl couldn't fall out, but it was a twin sized bed. Hope this helps a little!
ReplyDeleteI don't know how serious you are about the 'slide' idea for a bed, but I think those aren't too great.
ReplyDeleteA one yr. old little boy I babysit LOVES to climb up the slide on his big brother's bunk bed, crawl around on the bed, and then slide back down...that's scary!! (I have to keep the door closed)
But with Brianna needing a safe way to get down, the slide might be a good idea for you guys after all.
Praying you can get Monroe by Christmas--he doesn't have time to spare!
Okay, what about putting Monroe (what will his name be?) in with Kristopher? They are closer in age. Monroe will not get into Kristopher's stuff and that leaves you two other rooms to play with for the other kids. I suspect from what you write that bedrooms will be a revolving door kind of thing for the next couple of years.
ReplyDeleteThe day bed turned to the wall may be a good option for Monroe. You will need to meet him to get a good sense of his needs/ Good luck. Ellen
Oh i hear you on eating lego. we have that problem and our on really misses out
ReplyDeleteok what about a single bed with a trundle under? Brianna on top it wont be high off the ground. Sorry no real help I like the day bed idea
Ok, so. I just typed in "Patrick" in your blog-search-bar and read through all of the posts' where Patrick was at your house! Good to see that he generally did pretty good! But I feel like I have a better idea of little things to watch for. :)
ReplyDeleteFor now- I guess I better go tape the light switch so he doesn't wake up Micah at 4:30am. :)
So glad you blogged about it all! :D