Things I Love Thursday - Ikea extendable bed

When it came time to move KK out of her crib, I got very stressed. I was already pregnant with JJ and could not figure out how we were going to fit two kids into our tiny second bedroom. I knew the only option would be to get a toddler bed. I was pretty sure, however, that my abnormally tall daughter was likely to outgrow a toddler bed before we were ready to move into a larger place. (I was right.) (That happens sometimes.)

Enter the Ikea extendable bed. Ikea must have a lot of moms creating products because they have some genius ideas. This bed starts out the length of a toddler bed, but extends all the way to the size of a twin. It just slides apart to whatever length you need and you add cushions that are about a foot long to extend the mattress part.

Here it is at the shortest length, which we used for a year:


We recently extended it a foot because, as much as I tell her not to, she keeps growing. Here's what it looks like now:


It's so perfect for us because, as you can tell, we cannot fit a twin bed in there:

These are the best pictures I could get of the room without removing a wall, which, incidentally would solve our space issues. Unfortunately, I'm sure the strata would not support us moving into the staircase next to our apartment. (Take a guess at how much I love having my kids' room right next to the building's staircase!)

Another thing I love about the bed is that it can hold an adult's weight. You purchase the wooden slats that go under the mattress separately and they are very thick and strong. It is nice to be able to cuddle in bed with her when we tuck her in at night. I've heard that a lot of toddler beds aren't made to hold an adult's weight.

For sheets, we first used a stretchy crib mattress sheet when we had the bed at the shortest setting (the bed is a little wider than a crib). Once we extended the bed, we used a twin fitted sheet and tucked the bottom end under the mattress (which is the extra cushion), anchoring the corners where the two cushions meet.

Anyways, that's the bed I love right now... and hopefully KK doesn't grow more than a foot in the next year! While I try to keep my daughter from growing any more, why don't you pay a visit to Things I Love Thursday at Diaper Diaries to find out about more great products.