My three-year-old daughter and I have co-slept for most of her life, but we’ve reached the point where we need our own space. I need to reclaim my bed and segment out some neutral space in our home, and my daughter needs her own space too.
We are currently living in a large studio apartment in an old Long Beach building with unique features typical of the area. The closet is huge. It’s like a little room. It sits adjacent to the bathroom and has lots of storage and space for seating.
It’s so cozy that houseguests have stayed back in there.
It’s an awesome space.
Then last week I decided to transform it into a personal space for my daughter.
Here’s how it looked before I started:
I transitioned the raised area under the hanging clothes (my daughter calls it her “stage”) into a play area and a place to store her stuffed animals and larger toys, as well as her favorite bedtime book and flashlight.
The space along the closet floor fits a toddler mattress, and provides enough free space to open the bottom drawers.
We will be decorating the walls with artwork she creates at preschool and home. We’ll also be browsing the local thrift shops and yard sales for potential wall art. Grandma sent her the bunny garland which hangs from the cabinet above the hanging area.
And just a few days ago, my neighbor discovered and delivered a brand new upholstered kid’s chair that was left outside on our block. Long Beach is great for finding stuff by the curb and in the alleys. The chair was in pristine condition with the tag still attached. My daughter loves the chair, and it fits well in the space.
This was a fun, quick, easy, low-cost project. The only expense was the toddler mattress. Total time spent was about 1.5 hours.
My daughter keeps telling me she loves her new space. And I’m loving my new space too.
wholistic caregiving 