Making the Bed

Dressed up as Belle and playing with Chip

Yesterday, I made my bed.  May not seem like a big deal but I almost never make our bed.  I told myself that I would make more of an effort to make our bed because I wanted Y to start making her bed, I figured it could be her first "real" chore.  So I made our bed while she was playing in the living room but I never mentioned it to her, I wanted to see her reaction without pointing it out to her.  So a bit later when she walked into our room she said, "Hey, you made your bed mommy" and then she promptly ran out of our room and into her own. 

Because of the location of the baby monitor I could hear that she was rustling her sheets and after what seemed like quite a long time she came to get me so she could show me her handy work.  She took me to her room and she beamed with pride.  I gave her big hugs and big high fives and told her how proud I was of her.

Fast forward 24 hours.

This morning when I went in to change Q's diaper Y began to make her bed and I watched her do it.  It wasn't perfect but it doesn't need to be.  What's important is that she's learning responsibility and she's learning to do it on her own.  I will give her a few tips here and there but for the most part I'll let her continue to figure it out on her own because I love that huge, shy smile that comes across her face when she realizes that she's done something and she didn't need anyone else's help to do it.

I'll also add that this morning I had not made my bed, but Y fixed that!  After she finished with her own she marched right past me and said, "OK mommy, now it's time to make your bed."  And with that I laid Q down on a blanket on the floor and we made my bed together!

Bedding

Twin size bed...check.

Twin size mattress set...check.

Twin size bedding...check.

Twin size (waterproof) mattress protectors...

We're one step away from from having everything we need to set up Y's new big girl bed!  The original plan was to wait and set everything up until May or June.  Which was mainly why I wasn't in a huge rush to get the necessary materials to set it up (mattress, box spring, bedding, etc.)  However, we've been finding everything on sale so we've gone ahead and bought it all, much sooner than we anticipated.  It also means that we have no room for anything in our coat closet right now because it is housing a bed frame, bed rails, mattress, box spring and as of today, an entire bedding set - the consequence of not having a basement. 

I've already told you all about the bed which we purchased from JCPenney.com.  Well a few weeks ago we went to Art Van when they were having a mattress sell and got a pretty good deal on a really good mattress set.  (Note to self:  next time buy a bed that doesn't require a box spring, they drastically increase the price paid).  And tonight we bought  the bedding set at JCPenney.  I was looking for something in a polka dot print (big surprise) because I really wanted it to match the rest of the polka dottedness (no, that's not a real word) of the room.  Now the only thing left is to buy waterproof mattress protectors.  I figure we'll have to buy at least 2 but seeing as I know absolutely nothing about them, I'm trying to do some research and figure out what type/brand works the best.  So if any of you have any experience with a certain brand that has worked for you, please let me know.

But yeah, here's a picture of the bedding:

We didn't get the curtains or the pillow.  We did consider the pillow but they don't
carry it in store and when we priced it online, they sell it for $20 and I am NOT
paying $20 for a throw pillow!  I'll make a pillow before I pay $20 for one.

A BIG, Big Girl Bed

As of now Y sleeps in the crib which has been converted to a toddler bed.  However, with the arrival of a little one this summer the need arose to buy her a new bed because her current bed will revert to being a crib again.  Fortunately, B and myself both agree that buying a separate toddler bed is a complete waste of money especially since you know they will eventually outgrow it.  So we knew we were in the market for a twin sized bed but wanted to find one we liked at a price we loved!  The idea was presented to us that we could just buy a mattress for her and place it on the floor but that idea didn't sit well with me.  I don't imagine Y being very excited when she's told that she gets a new BIG girl bed and then being directed to a mattress on the floor while there's new baby who gets what used to be her nice comfy crib/bed.  That's just how I imagine it but I could be totally wrong, maybe she would absolutely love sleeping on a mattress on the floor seeing as she did that for several weeks (sans mattress) after our return from being away at Christmas.  But whatever the case may end up being, a mattress on the floor was not the least bit appealing to me aesthetically. 

So even though we are months away from actually even setting up the bed (I'm thinking June) we couldn't pass up the deal.  Now I can't wait to go pick out a cute comforter and sheet sets for it.  The one in the picture is not cute at all, maybe because it screams BOY.  Right now I am debating whether I should stick with the polka dot theme or just head in another direction.  I guess we'll just have to wait and see what's out there.  Hopefully by June Y will be more interested in helping me pick out her new comforter and sheets, but somehow, I'm still not banking on that!

Contrary to the appearance in the picture has a cherry finish which is "darker" than the typicaly cherry finish so it should blend with the current furniture quite nicely!