Will's Loft Bed

Will's been begging for a loft bed nearly every week for the past three years.  He has a fairly small bedroom and could use the floor space that a loft bed would provide.

However,we've been putting him off for three years for one simple reason: he still sleeps like a toddler.

For those of you who may not be aware, toddlers, at least from our experience, sleep rather aggressively by moving (kicking, flinging) their bodies ALL THE TIME, ALL THROUGH THE NIGHT, and fall out of bed A LOT. 

At age 9, I still never know what position I'll find Will in if I check on him when he's asleep. 

• Head at the foot of the bed
• Pillows on top of his head
• Blankets all on the floor
• Him on the floor (still asleep)
• Sideways on the bed where his head is up against the wall and his feet are dangling off the side.  

We don't even bother putting a top sheet on his bed anymore because it is a foregone conclusion that it will be un-tucked and wrapped around him or on the floor by midnight. One day about a year ago I decided that I would no longer be a slave to the person who decided everyone should have a top sheet on their bed. It was a bit of a Scarlet O'Hara "as God is my witness" moment.

However, we decided it was time because it had been a while since he had fallen out of his bed and, honestly, if we didn't do it soon, he would be too tall for a loft bed anyway.  

Here's the cover of the 15 page (two-sided) instruction booklet:

Weighing in at around 150 pounds, that's 30 pieces, not including the two rows of fasteners that went along the mattress support rails. 

Naturally, I decided to document the process.

For those of you unaware, this is Scott's "quit taking pictures and help" look. I ignored the look, at least for a little while.

 Will was a super helper on this project!

 

Now the fun really began.  Every mattress slat had to be fastened to the one beside it, in duplicate.

Nearing the end with the addition of the desk and shelves.

The existing fan and light fixture had to be removed for fairly obvious reasons.

Scottie made a trip to Home Depot and quickly installed a nice flush mount fixture to replace the old one.

And yes, I did insist that Will line that side of the bed with pillows as falling out of bed prevention devices.

To be honest, we're still worried about him flopping right over that rail. The double bed mattress he already had is deeper than most, so the rails are not nearly high enough in my opinion. I'm looking into some rail extensions to put up there just in case.

Typically, there is little that tests the bonds of marriage and familial kindness like a task that starts with the phrase "Assembly Required."  However, we managed to complete the bed in less than two hours and there was no profanity involved. I call that a win!

Now this is the face of one really happy boy!