Needing Jesus
Storey slept in a crib until I was too pregnant with Rue to physically lift him without throwing out my back (which happened anyway 50 pounds later). This was the fall of 2015, he was 5. He was and is not yet capable of the responsibility it takes for an individual to get in bed, stay in bed, an use the bed appropriately (rest, reading, SLEEPING)... I had been wracking my brain for years before this day came. It was unchartered waters and I was completely alone.
Clearly he needed to be "contained" somehow. When left to his own devices, Storey will play alone for hours. Stimming on a bead toy, banging on the piano or enthralled with anything that lights up and plays music. Having full access left me with no doubt that he would rarely sleep except for periodic naps on the floor. That is no way for a little boy to live.
My dream bed for him is The Hannah from www.kayserbettenus.com which costs thousands and thousands of dollars. All of the specialized beds do. I needed Jesus. The carpenter. I had sketches of the perfect safety bed for my growing boy to be out of harms way and bored enough to sleep. I could provide measurements, preferred finishes and the building materials.
It was time to stop doodling and click on Amazon.com to order the one thing that made the most sense. A tent. Hello?!? Pretty smart. And affordable. We went thru a number of trials and errors. Either the twin mattress didn't fit snug enough and left too much floor space (he preferred the hard cold floor to soft comfy mattress) or the closures weren't strong enough to keep him in. The day I set up the Privacy Pop was a really good day. One of those days I'm reminded that things are going to be ok and we are going be better than fine.
His mattress fits perfectly, the zippers are super durable and there are venting flaps. Storey gets pretty excited at bed time for the ritual of his Twilight Turtle night light and his sound machine on the drum beat setting and a rubber shark to chew on. He giggles when I tuck his blankets around him tightly like a burrito, zip him up, tell him "Mommy loves you so much" and turn out the light.
Recently he's started to figure out the zippers and they were held together with a bread tie and now stronger bailing wire. The adventure continues and the search for modifications is never ending. Whether you have a neuro typical kid or not we grow and morph and are challenged. I'm up to the task and welcome it.
A master carpenter is welcomed too.
