Matthew has slept with me every night since he was born. Some people think it is crazy; others just know me and shrug it off. I don't mind him sleeping with me at night, but the naps during the day have proved to be a bit stressful. Since Matthew has become proficient at rolling and pseudo-crawling, he makes me nervous when I put him down for a nap. Sometimes he naps on our bed- other times he naps on the kids' beds. But how can I relax when I keep thinking that he is going to roll onto the floor? This anxiety prompted me to take action! I asked Damien to take the crib down from the attic. It was time. Sure, we don't have much extra room here- but Matthew's actions have caused me to take action. He got the crib down and even put it together.
Afterwards, he asked me, "Lisa, where is the crib mattress?" I thought and thought until it dawned on me that Claire had it in her Princess toddler bed. Now the crib was up, but we had to decide whether to go out and buy a new crib mattress or to buy Claire a 'Big Girl Bed'. Damien wanted to go and get another crib mattress, but I couldn't see blowing $60- just to have a third crib mattress in the house (Michael is still happily in his toddler bed). So, after 15 minutes of trying to convince Damien to get Claire a new bed- I did.
I worried if Michael was going to be jealous and we even offered to get him one, too. But just as I thought, he was content to keep his room the way it was. Plus, he is really excited to share a room with Matthew and he thought his room would be too crowded with a bigger bed. Point taken. I researched a bunch of places which sold twin bed sets and Damien and I set out on our mission. Heather stayed back home with the kids so we were off on our errand with Matthew. Thankfully, the first place we went to had a great deal on Twin Sets and we bought the bed. When we got home, Claire was beside herself. She couldn't believe that this big bed was hers! I went upstairs and began dismantling her toddler bed. With a concerned look she came up to me and said, "What are you doing?" I answered, "I am taking apart your little bed to make room for you big bed." She stopped for a minute and hugged her little bed. The tears started falling and I knew this was going to be a harder transition than I had first thought. "But I will miss my bed. My bed will miss me!" I reassured her that it would be okay. "Can Emily have my bed?" (For those of you that don't know, Emily was the girl name we had picked out for Matthew. Since I had a boy, Claire is confident that the next baby in my tummy will be a girl. She still brings home drawings from school with Emily in our family portrait. No pressure!) Knowing that giving the bed to Emily if she ever is to be would reassure her that moving to a Big Big Girl bed was the right thing to do- I told her that we would save it for Emily.
I feel like it was just yesterday that Damien and I made the decision to move Claire from her crib to her Big Girl Bed. It was such a big step for us and when I look back at pictures, it just hurts my heart that she was so little. I am so proud of Claire and the little lady she has become, but part of me just wants a few hours with that wiggly, chubby little girl. I know that I need perspective on this because in 2 years from now, I know I will wish Claire was as small as she is today. Life with three kids is busy but it is times like these that remind me
to l
ive each day to the fullest.
Matthew has slept with me every night since he was born. Some people think it is crazy; others just know me and shrug it off. I don't mind him sleeping with me at night, but the naps during the day have proved to be a bit stressful. Since Matthew has become proficient at rolling and pseudo-crawling, he makes me nervous when I put him down for a nap. Sometimes he naps on our bed- other times he naps on the kids' beds. But how can I relax when I keep thinking that he is going to roll onto the floor? This anxiety prompted me to take action! I asked Damien to take the crib down from the attic. It was time. Sure, we don't have much extra room here- but Matthew's actions have caused me to take action. He got the crib down and even put it together. 
Afterwards, he asked me, "Lisa, where is the crib mattress?" I thought and thought until it dawned on me that Claire had it in her Princess toddler bed. Now the crib was up, but we had to decide whether to go out and buy a new crib mattress or to buy Claire a 'Big Girl Bed'. Damien wanted to go and get another crib mattress, but I couldn't see blowing $60- just to have a third crib mattress in the house (Michael is still happily in his toddler bed). So, after 15 minutes of trying to convince Damien to get Claire a new bed- I did.
I worried if Michael was going to be jealous and we even offered to get him one, too. But just as I thought, he was content to keep his room the way it was. Plus, he is really excited to share a room with Matthew and he thought his room would be too crowded with a bigger bed. Point taken. I researched a bunch of places which sold twin bed sets and Damien and I set out on our mission. Heather stayed back home with the kids so we were off on our errand with Matthew. Thankfully, the first place we went to had a great deal on Twin Sets and we bought the bed. When we got home, Claire was beside herself. She couldn't believe that this big bed was hers! I went upstairs and began dismantling her toddler bed. With a concerned look she came up to me and said, "What are you doing?" I answered, "I am taking apart your little bed to make room for you big bed." She stopped for a minute and hugged her little bed. The tears started falling and I knew this was going to be a harder transition than I had first thought. "But I will miss my bed. My bed will miss me!" I reassured her that it would be okay. "Can Emily have my bed?" (For those of you that don't know, Emily was the girl name we had picked out for Matthew. Since I had a boy, Claire is confident that the next baby in my tummy will be a girl. She still brings home drawings from school with Emily in our family portrait. No pressure!) Knowing that giving the bed to Emily if she ever is to be would reassure her that moving to a Big Big Girl bed was the right thing to do- I told her that we would save it for Emily.
I feel like it was just yesterday that Damien and I made the decision to move Claire from her crib to her Big Girl Bed. It was such a big step for us and when I look back at pictures, it just hurts my heart that she was so little. I am so proud of Claire and the little lady she has become, but part of me just wants a few hours with that wiggly, chubby little girl. I know that I need perspective on this because in 2 years from now, I know I will wish Claire was as small as she is today. Life with three kids is busy but it is times like these that remind me to live each day to the fullest.
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