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Bunk beds scary?

Ok, hang with me on this one. Daniel is 22 months old and I'm 7 weeks pregnant with baby number 2 (I was pregnant earlier this year but had an mmc). His bed is the bottom bunk of bunk beds - the top bunk can be removed to form its own single bed, and at the minute is dismantled underneath his bed. When #2 arrives they will be sharing a room. We've been talking about putting the second bunk on for a while now to get him used to it; he'll be in the top bunk when Sprout (what we've called our baby) needs a bed.

I know its very soon to do it, but our reasons are that its going to make the room a lot darker, and his bed a lot darker, so we want him to be used to it - and we want Sprout to be used to it as well. Daniel went into his own room and cot at 5 weeks old as he was too big for his moses basket and the cot wouldn't fit in our room, so if the same happens with Sprout they could be sharing a room together quite quickly.

Still with me?! Our thought was to get Daniel used to the top bunk being there (but him still sleep in the bottom of course) before the upheaval of the new baby arriving and suddenly having a cot in his room as well - and therefore when Sprout goes into the room with him, it will be there and 'normal' for it to be there, rather than something that appears later and is scary (cot will be beside the bunkbeds so was worried if we suddenly put it up when Sprout was 6 months or a year old he/she might think it was a looming menace... Daniel thought that with a book case when he was 6 months old and we stayed at my MILs... what a week that was!)

Are we thinking about this too much? Should we just forget it for the moment? Does anyone have little ones in bunk beds and had to do something similar? I thought it would be easier to do it now rather than leaving it until a couple of months before the birth and me being too heavily pregnant to help do it (holding bits in place, not lifting, I promise!). Anyway, enough from me! Opinions please... thanks ladies xx

Replies

  • I think it's a good idea to put the top bunk on now to give him a chance to get used to it, as you say it will change his view from the bed and might unsettle him a bit so best to do it before bubs comes along.

    Is the kids room really small? I just ask as my girls share a room and I put Lily into a toddler bed and Evie in the cot so it works out quite well. Evie went into the big cot in Lily's room at about 3 months when she was sleping through. If you have room for the 2 single beds then you could leave Daniel's bed as it is and have bubs in the cot, then when bubs is old enough for a bed have them as 2 singles or make them into a bunk.

    Evie is 2 years and 4 months and she's still in her cot, she can't climb out or anything so she's staying in there for now.

    xxx
  • Its not really small, but because of the way the bunk beds are formed they are slightly larger than a standard single divan, as the mattress sits within the frame rather than on top of it if you see what I mean. So they are a little more chunky than normal. I could fit them both in as singles, but there would be very little room left over for wardrobe or a chest of drawers - there are 2 windows in the room and an airing cupboard so wall space is limited.

    We didnt actually consider putting them in as 2 singles though so might be something to map out on the floor before we go ahead with the top bunk.
    Daniel ended up in his bed at 14 months, but needed to go into it from about a year as he is a very tall kid and kept turning sideways in his cot and getting wedged :\( Which is why we skipped the toddler bed as didn't think he would be in it very long! So we're looking at things in terms of the next baby needing to do the same - which I know might not happen at all and Sprout could be still in the cot until 2 or older, but knew I had to think about the possibilities.
    Thanks for the advice xxx
  • Probably not much help, but my niece and nephew share a bedroom and have bunk beds. They are 5 and 3 (nearly!) and the youngest is on the bottom bunk. They have been in the bunk beds for about a year now. I know the both "play" on the top bunk!

    J x
  • Could you put lights or glow in the dark stickers or something on the bottom of the top bunk so Daniel can look up at it iyswim? Might not seem so dark and looming maybe then??
  • Oh thats a fab idea lambchop!! Never thought of that; he'd absolutely love it!

    Good to know that younger kids are fine on bunk beds though MummyJoo - espec with you saying the 3 yr old plays on the top one as if new baby follows Daniel's pattern he will be sleeping on top bunk by 3.5!
  • Hiya
    You can also get tents for the bottem bunk. My boys love them. Only prob is they fight over the bottem one now. I put some posters (bough them from the library...3 for ??5) of stars, dinosaurs and trains. I put them under the slats so that the boys can look at them rather than the mattress. Also, I bought one of those battery lights that you stick on the wall so they can press it when they need the loo. I was scared of them falling down the stairs half asleep needing the loo. I also got a drinks holder that was from my pushchair. I nailed it into the wood to hold their drinks on the top bunk.

    This summer was the first time I have used them (we have house in UK and the room is so small only bunks would work) the boys are 4 and 6. They were totally fine about it.

    Good luck

    d xx
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