Camp Creek Press

I've had good luck at Ikea if you're looking for a new one. They range from basic to having a desk/bookshelves setup underneath. The others that I've seen are really expensive, but they can be found at Pottery Barn kids, etc. online.

It's sad when they need their own space. If I were to put a small fridge in my teenager's room, then I'd literally never see her. I guess it's all part of the growing up and out into the world process.

We separated our two a few years ago. I think my daughter would have liked to stay together, but my son wanted some space. He would still invited her to "sleepover" once in awhile however - but not lately. When you make the change, you might want to leave room to still "sleepover".

Can they still share the desk area?

thank you, sarah - i was looking at the ikea ones online and they looked a tetch flimsy. we definitely don't want to spend a lot of money - we'll probably only use it a few years - but i might look around at least for designs to possibly copy.

i understand what you're saying about the fridge; i'm afraid if my husband gets one for the basement, we may never see *him*. ;^)

and hi, other sarah! :^D yes, i think my youngest would perhaps like to stay together, too, but the big one is ready to have some privacy. i suppose that is part of my sadness - till now they have really done everything together, and i know my younger son is going to be a little sad when his brother flies the nest a bit before him. aw. and no, they won't be sharing the desk anymore, partly because they are both getting so big and spreading out so much, they each want more space. they're tired of banging elbows! so .. alas .. change ..

hi! i'm a student teacher and sometimes-reader of your blog. is there a college remotely near you? oftentimes in college towns you can go to a local hardware store and they'll have free plans for lofts. my father built me a loft bed when i was younger that was very straightforward & simple to make. what was nice about mine was that a whole sheet of MDF (see below) is larger than a twin-sized mattress, which meant i had a nice little nook for a small lamp and books :)

essentially:
-a rectangular frame of 2 x 4's
-3 to 4 2 x 4's spaced evenly along the middle as crossbeams
-sheet of MDF on top
-2 x 4's held together with bolts, MDF attached with woodscrews, i believe.

hope this helps! thanks for posting such wonderfully creative & inspiring things in your blog.

we have an ikea one, bought second hand from a student...i would have to admit it is a bit flimsy, but works well enough. maybe craigslist would have some options floating around out there? after we gave our youngest a bed in the room with her sisters last week, my middle daughter decided she needed her own bed as well. it is our oldest who is sad to be sleeping alone. everyone else is so happy to have their own space. i need to spruce up the loft so my oldest can enjoy her space and make it a bit more her own rather than feeling that empty nest syndrome so much....

abbi, thanks! actually we live right next to a college town, so i'm going to check that out. and what do you mean *sometimes* reader?! lol ;^) thank you for the instructions!

sj, oh no - even kids get the empty nest feelings. ;^) this feels like the biggest family shuffle since we disassembled the crib that lived next to our bed and the boys got their own room. i mean nook.

oh yes, i think so lori, even children. i remember after both my brothers left for college our nest felt so empty...just my parent and i...

the shuffle and children moving beds/rooms/nooks and such, that feeling that it brings of change, makes me want to do everything possible to find more and more intrests to lessen the empty nest syndrome i am sure to feel one day [although it isn't soon, i know time will fly and i don't want to be caught off guard....too bad anyway] :) that's coming from one hopeful momma.

it's hard to express to new parents how quickly the time passes - how fast you are out of that baby stage, then that toddler stage, and on and on. we try to soak up every good thing that is happening now - the good things about each age. it's hard not to always be grieving the stage that has just passed.

love yr style!

My husband built a loft bed for our son, and it really wasn't too complicated. He took bits and pieces of plans he'd seen online. One fun thing that we did (although your boys are a bit older) was to add a sheet of plywood and a shelf to one end, and it serves as a puppet theater/store/restaurant/bank window, etc. We love it. Here's a set of plans that he took a few ideas from...

http://familyfun.go.com/decorating-ideas/building/feature/famf0502_proj_loftbed/famf0502_proj_loftbed.html

thank you, amy! :^)

and thank YOU, ellaminnowpeas amy ;^) - the link is great! the puppet theatre/dramatic play window is such a great idea. unfortunately i guess jack is too old for that. :^( somewhere in my office i have that issue of Martha Stewart Kids where they did the pegboard desk area under the loft bed - that is what i have in mind - hopefully we can build it! :^)

Just a thought on the loft bed. My girls shared a room until high school. They had awesome oak bunk beds we made them. And being the type of Mom who insists that the beds get changed at least weekly, that top bed was a bear to change. And when I put the responsibility on them, as in, if you don't change your sheets, well, you're the one sleeping on the yuck that builds on the sheets - well, the sheets got changed more infrequently then I'd have like or when I could not stand the thought of those sheets any longer and tackled the job myself. And you have boys. Just a thought.
Oh, I love, love, love those green chairs by their desk. :)

deborah - ha! - that is actually some advice i've gotten from a couple different people - how difficult it is to change the sheets. i love the "and you have boys." dum-dum-da-DUM. lol

if we build it ourselves, maybe we can make the ladder a little wider so i can use it to reach up there; i'm pretty tall so i'm hoping it won't be too much of a job. maybe i'll just set it up like a giant kleenex box and put, like, 12 cheap fitted sheets on there and just remove one every week. ;^)

and thank you re: the chairs! i have a serious chair-collecting problem. i may need intervention soon.

Hi Lori,
it's so fun to read that you're upto separating too. We have till now a big family bed for all four of us, but will have when our renovation has finished separated bedroom for kids and parents.

hi karin! :^)

yes, it is a big change, and for us it has happened in steps. the boys moving into their own spaces feels like a big move to me - i wonder if they realize how different it will be!

i hope your renovation is going well!