Big Boy Bunk Beds

We just put the newly 3 year old Griff to sleep in his big boy bed.  Specifiically, the top bunk of his bunk beds.  In his new room.  But I'm getting ahead of myself....

For Christmas, Griffin was very excitedly asking for a big boy bed.  We had considered asking Santa for a trundle style bed, but Santa's elves like Ikea and the day they went, the trundle bed wasn't in stock.  However, there was a really nice set of pine bunk beds right next to the floor model trundle bed.  Vicki and I had been thinking about eventually putting both kids together in one room and using the other room as a playroom and/or guest room - so this seemed to make sense.   Plus, consider the sleep-over potential.

In the dark of night on Chirstmas eve, Santa delivered Griffin's beautiful bunk beds direct to his new Big Boy room, which was still covered in spackle and not really in "move in" condition.  Interestingly, there are 64 plastic pegs (2 per slat) that require hammering in to complete the assembly.  Not sure how the elves did that so quitetly all between 8:30pm and 12:00 midnight on Christmas eve.  Magic, I guess.

When Griffin woke on Chirstmas morning, he repeatedly said "I CAN NOT believe it!" about his beds.  Even though this is a quote from Quincy, a character on Little Einsteins (a TV show he likes), it was very rewarding to see the wide eyes and have to coax him down off of the mattress-only top bunk to go open the rest of the presents.

We painted the room a few days later.  "Cloudless" - which is effectively neon blue.  Think Lisa Turtle's tights from Saved by the Bell.  We didn't like it for the walls in Griffin's room.  L.T. pulled it off, though, especially with her yellow leg warmers.  But I digress.

So we painted it again last weekend.  Argyle blue.  (Thanks Dan Baker!)  This time we liked it.  So did Griff.  The VOC's wore off this week so the room is paint-stink free.  Today (Griff's 3rd Birthday) we put the light switch and outlets back together, pushed in his dresser (on its side to fit through the doors), moved his crib into his big boy room (just in case) and made both beds.

Griff chose the top bunk.  Like father like son.

Did you know that the big boy beds have the same set of rules at Griffin's sleeping bag which he got for Christmas from Grandma and Grandpa Hendrix?  The rules are simple:
1.  No getting out of bed/sleeping bag once you get in
2.  No whining in bed/sleeping bag
3.  The third rule of bunk beds is you DO NOT talk about bunk beds.  Just kidding - that's not one of the rules.  But you can imagine it would be a pretty good joke with Griffin if he had seen fight club.  But he hasn't, silly - he's only 3!  Jeez.

So we read stories in the chair: Mixed up chameleon, "Good for you (a sesame street manners book about new foods), and Dragons love Tacos (a favorite of mine and Griffin's - worthy of its own post).  Then he climbed up the ladder with me spotting him.  Then we tucked in our sweet sweet little man and rubbed his back for 30 seconds.

The view in the monitor is classic:  since its pointing at the top bunk from the foot-end, Griff looks even smaller in there than he actually is.  I estimate he is about 1/3 the length of the beds in normal sleeping position.  1/2 if he stretches out.

But we know our little man is getting less little by the day - so we're trying to cherish every moment we get with him.  "Two" is gone.  Hello "Three"!