Wilshire has achieved another milestone: He now sleeps in a toddler bed.

Up until the middle of last week, Will slept in a portable mini crib. This past weekend, we wound up picking out an IKEA extendable toddler bed for him.

There are a number of options we also considered and/or tried:

  • Putting Will’s crib mattress on the floor. We did this for a few days. At some point, Will wound up sleeping on his arm and he woke up with a very swollen hand. I thought he’d broken out in hives.
  • Buying a used convertible crib from Craigslist and using it as a toddler bed. No one responded to my inquiries.
  • Buying a traditional twin bed. 

Juan was intrigued by IKEA’s extendable toddler beds.

An extendable toddler bed from IKEA has three lengths: 4 feet (toddler), 5 feet, and 6.5 feet (conventional twin). The idea is that the bed will grow with the child. 

To use this type of bed frame, you have to purchase IKEA’s mattress and sheets. As of this writing, IKEA sells 5 different types of extendable mattresses ranging in price between $49.99 and $149.99. We selected the Nattsmyg, which is a foam mattress that cost $119. It was comfortable, and we expect that our son will be able to sleep on this for the next eight years.

Saving Some Money

We found three areas of savings:

  1. We succeeded in buying a used IKEA extendable frame from Craigslist for $50. Saved $100+ there.
  2. My husband had considered getting an IKEA futon (the Lycksele, $199) or sofa (Klippan, introduced by IKEA in the early 1980s and still decent looking)  Instead, he found this sofa for just $30 at the Goodwill across the street from us in Santa Monica. Savings: $1753. Finally I had wanted a bookcase for Will’s book. There was one from IKEA, the Kallax, for sale also at Goodwill. While it was only $10 less than full-retail, it was fully-assembled and across the street.

Here’s the end result.

New toddler bed!

Total Outlay: About $260.
Mattress (new): $119
IKEA Leksvik Extendable Bed Frame: $50 (used)
Loveseat (used): $29.99
IKEA Kallax 2 x 2 (used): $24.99
IKEA Bedding: $30 (two sets)

Special thanks to my mother, who showed up at IKEA when requested and was crucial in managing Will while we shopped.

Until next time,
Sirinya