As I was watch my kids flop, flip and climb all over the furniture I realized why my parents never had anything nice. It might have been nice at one point, but well it doesn't last long. I have decided as a mom you have two choices, the first is to have a nice but very livable home. So no glass vases or crystal sitting around and no $4000 sofa. Your second choice is to have all of the nice beautiful things you want and go just insane worrying about them getting broke.
Now some may say, just don't allow your kids to climb, jump, etc. But I know I am not alone. I took a survey on the
babycenter.com recently. The question was: "Do your kids jump on the bed?" When I took the survey almost 9,000 people had voted and a whopping 90% said yes.
So while I take pride in how my home looks, I am waiting a few years to get that new sofa and the fancy dining room table I really want. Hey, life is hard enough and I need all of the help that I can to stay sane as it is. So jump away my kids! We are only young once.
I definitely agree! This is my "kid friendly" furniture. When they are grown up and moved out then I'll get some grown up furniture. Although, we sort of found a good compromise for us. I got the sofa and dining set that I wanted but they are microfiber, so easy to clean. We also paid the $70to get them each treated with scotch guard. RC Willey has a guarantee with that service. It's a 7 year warranty that if you can't get a stain out they will send professionals to come clean it for you. We have had to have them come once when taco grease wouldn't come out of our dining chair cushions. Interestingly enough, it was neighbor kids who put the grease there, not mine. Wow, that was a long comment. :)
ReplyDeleteWhen Kristin was an infant, I climbed on my bed and started to jump on it--this is all on video mind you--as I was jumping I said, "You should not jump on the bed." and what happened next? Well being six feet tall I hit the light fixture. As I rubbed my head, I said "And that is why!" Kids will jump on the bed whether you let them or not because they are kids.
ReplyDeleteYou are totally correct about that, but it is a phase. Kids eventually get out of the phase where they need to jump on everything/climb on, over around, through everything, etc. We have been delaying some purchases for 8 years because of that fact, but now that the twins are 5.5, they are less destructive and can respect certain things.
ReplyDeleteWe purchased a nice table and chairs for the dining room and the kids respect it because they know they are only allowed on it at certain times for certain activites. The list of times they are allowed on the table are so extrememly few, they mind themselves. Trying to get them to respect the daily use kitchen table, not a chance because they are on it every day.
So, like you said, delay the nice things until your last child gets old enough to respect things and then you can upgrade. Still need to be cautions about daily use furniture (might not want to get the nice family room couch until the oldest is like 7 or 8), but rare use items (dining room table, living room shrine furniture if you have one) you can start eyballing when the youngest is 5 or 6.
Oh, and be certain you are done having kids or if a new one appears, your new prematurely purchased nice furniture is not fit to be sacrificed to the god of choas and destruction. He is alos know as the god of children because he sure seems to rule thier destiny for the first few years!! ;P
and notice, little g, so it isn't techincally blasphemy.