Child Bedroom Organization | ADHD Information
Sigh. On the bedtime time-- if it weren't for the days that she needs to be dragged out of bed at 7, I could be more easily convinced to push it back. After quick research on sleep requirements, it seems that it should be OK for her to have a later time in general. Maybe if she were more consistent about the time she falls asleep we wouldn't have those dragging mornings. I am considering it. But I have one selfish reason that is making it hard-- I go to bed by 9 or 9:30. If she's not in bed until 8:30, I have 1/2 hour "off" from her.Jessica N, I like that idea. Get it clean and give a reward for working on keeping it that way each day. I don't wonder that she can't clean it herself; I walked in there yesterday with a definite plan of boxing books and I was still overwhelmed.
[QUOTE=knittingmom]Sigh. On the bedtime time-- if it weren't for the days that she needs to be dragged out of bed at 7, I could be more easily convinced to push it back. After quick research on sleep requirements, it seems that it should be OK for her to have a later time in general. Maybe if she were more consistent about the time she falls asleep we wouldn't have those dragging mornings. I am considering it. But I have one selfish reason that is making it hard-- I go to bed by 9 or 9:30. If she's not in bed until 8:30, I have 1/2 hour "off" from her.
Jessica N, I like that idea. Get it clean and give a reward for working on keeping it that way each day. I don't wonder that she can't clean it herself; I walked in there yesterday with a definite plan of boxing books and I was still overwhelmed.
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Quite frankly, when I read the bedtime, I had a feeling it was due to you needing "time off"--however, if you put her into bed before it is time to sleep, it is merely telling her you need time off.
She is old enough to be able to use either a computer or a hand held electronic game or a video game of some sort. This is the only thing I have found that keeps my child's undivided attention. Allow the prior to bedtime time that you need some quiet to be the time that she can spend doing that. It isn't right to put her into bed just so that you can have some peace and quiet. Find someone else to help you. Find someone who can come for a couple of hours here and there to give you some peace. Find some other ways to deal with this. (Believe me, I understand what you are saying and empathize, but don't agree with the method.)
In addition, if she is kept up longer, when she goes to bed, she will be ready for bed and tired. She will then have a real time to sleep and will get on a routine easier. Her room won't be trashed either if it is merely a sleep area.
I did what I am advising, and found that the later I kept him up, the likelier he would be tired and ready to sleep. Also, in my opinion, some of these kids don't like getting up no matter how much sleep they have had. So, you may be dealing with this no matter if they have had a full night's sleep or not.
Good luck.
HI, I had this problem for 2 years...
Sometimes, i still do.
I have her clean her room in the morning when on her meds. Sometimes, i have her do it right after school, and when she is up there I remind her make your bed..I might say it 10 times, but finally she does. I also remind her like you want to go outside get it done, and etc. This has helped.
Also, She stayed up at night I got a TV screen monitor and put it in her room..I can see her and hear her. She knows it is there and i can see her, and she also knows that she has to stay in bed, also no night light it took awhile. But now she does nto even know she is missing it.
Our bedtime routine hasn't changed in the last 6 years of my son's life. That consistency lets him know that it's time to sleep. Sometimes he goes to bed later because of a family function or whatever, but the routine always happens the same way regardless of time. In that same vein, he wakes up at 6:30am regardless of what time he went to sleep. Consistency is our key.
About the mess: we follow my mom's policy that I lived by as a kid. "Your room is your mess and your responsibility. But, this is my house and none of your guests will come over when it's a mess. If you want friends over, clean up." Period, no discussion. Since we live in the country, we also do not allow food to be left in bedrooms overnight, so as not to encourage the friendly mice. If the messy room bothers you on a daily basis, can I suggest just pulling the door shut? Also, I would edit the things in her room to a manageable level for a six yo.
Oh, and I have to add, DANG! 6:30 pm is really early to go to sleep! Her body's circadian rhythm and the fact that it's still light outside make it impossible to fall asleep that early. If she gets home from school at 3:30, that's only three hours to enjoy her life at home and wind down from the school day. Adults usually get more after-work time that. It sounds like she destroys her room because she's lonely and bored and unable to fall asleep. I'd keep her up an hour and a half later and really wear her out.
BPQW39602.3457175926Sigh. The room thing. Well, I've got an activity table and bins, lots of bins. Everything in the bins winds up on the floor. It is amazing.
I'm going to clean it all up, and then he can clean it for 10 minutes each day, and maybe for an hour on Saturday. I'll probably have to give reward marbles for the 10 minutes of cleanup or he'll just go up there and play with legos.
Wow that is an extremely early bedtime for a six year old, for any one for that matter. My son has a bedtime of 8:30, he is 5. I give him a melatonin at 8:00, then he brushes his teeth, changes into jammies, a goodnight story and a kiss he is asleep by 8:30 everynight except for fridays. His favorite show comes on and he can stay up until 9:00. They boys wake up at 6:45, my daughter wakes up at 6:30. That is 10 hours of sleep for my boys and 9 1/2 for my daughter. Good luck.I do also agree that pushing the bedtime back a bit has helped. I would make it very clear that bedtime is bedtime, and there is no getting out of bed once she is in it, unless she needs to use the bathroom. (And make THAT even more clear by saying "to use the toilet, not play--and not over and over again." She will do the "I'm thirsty, mom" thing to be able to get up as well. Make sure she knows this isn't allowed either and that she needs to have her water before she gets into bed.) Once you are in bed-it is time to sleep. If you can't sleep, you still can't get out of bed. You simply wait until your body is ready to sleep. (Maybe counting sheep?)You must also be diligent about expecting that she will try to get out of bed. Walk in on her when she thinks you won't. Tell her to get back into bed. Warn her that if she does it again, she will get in trouble, insert age appropriate punishment here.
Prepare her for the changes WELL before you make them. Sit her down and say, tomorrow we will be doing things differently. We will be moving things into your new play area! Won't that be exciting! (Make it like a good thing.) Make some area of your main room (or wherever you can) be "Karen's Play Area"--make a sign, etc. Get creative so that she knows you aren't punishing her, but making it a special place for only her. (You don't want them to have low self esteem, and you also need to be creative in making them think something negative is a positive.)
Then the next day, when she has nothing but a bed in her room, explain to her the "New Bedtime Rules." These won't be fun, and are to be no joke. Tell her "you are going to be allowed to stay up an extra hour, (half hour, whatever) BUT once it is bedtime, it is bedtime."
Lay down the law then. Make sure she understands that you are very serious by using slow, controlled speech and making sure she is looking at you while you are talking. Have her repeat after you the rules one by one. (Can you tell I have some experience or what? Jeez) Make them simple and few.
It will take time and patience. But my son is not allowed out of bed once he gets into it. (except for the bathroom, or extreme thirst) He will toss and turn, but he isn't to be playing or walking around.
Let us know how things go. (And if you actually decide to take my advise or not.)
Also, Will has a TV in his room. He gets to stay up an extra 30 minutes or so and watch it IF he stays in his room WITHOUT playing after it shuts off. If not, the next night he loses some time, depending on how often he got up.
"... she takes the sheets and mattress off the bed to make it more "comfortable."
This comment makes me thing that she has issues with the fabric and possibly with her clothes. You might to give her the oldest softest sheets (or buy secondhand ones) to use on her bed. Many of our children have tactile issues.
"Her bedtime is 6:30-7; she falls asleep typically at 9-9:30. Someone asked if I think she is getting enough sleep-- I am sure that she is *not.* She either wakes up early-- like 6:00, meaning she got very few hours of sleep, or she needs to be dragged out of bed, meaning that she has not had enough sleep for the night. "
My son and I are ADHD and I can tell you that 12 plus hours of sleep is too much for us. I would be exhausted from that much sleep. Even at 9:00 pm, she is getting 9 hours of sleep. She may not need as much sleep as you do. Both my son and I function on 6 hours of sleep. Is she geting enough physical exercise durng the day to make her tired? Try getting one of those little trampolines for her to jump on, it will burn off LOTS of calories. Sign her up for a dance, karate or something like swimteam to help her be tired enough to sleep.
I understand about your telling me extremisms-- the girl *is* extreme, so that only makes sense!
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Maybe she could do quiet time in her room on her own 8:30-9 PM: looking at books, listening to books on CD, listening to music, playing with toys that'll keep her calm, etc. That way, you could have some time to yourself before she falls asleep, but you're also not asking her to get into bed way earlier than her body is ready to go to sleep?
Here is what we do - it works great for us right now.We don't allow any toys, only Lego's, in ds's room. The rules are simple - everything must be off the floor (except furniture, of course) and clothes in the hamper before he comes down
for breakfast. If he does, he gets screen time for the day (TV, computer, Wii). If he doesn't, no screen time. It is his choice to make his bed, if he does, I pay him a quarter. If he doesn't,
he gets nothing. This has made the mornings much less confrontational.
At bedtime, we put him to bed and if he doesn't give us problems while being put to bed, he gets 30 minutes with his lights on (we use a timer to remind him when time is up). If he gives
us problems, we either reduce the time or take it away. If his lights are on after the 30 minutes, he loses the privilege for two days.
It works because it is simple, the consequence is immediate and clearly knows up front.
It's not selfish needing some time to yourself every evening before bed. I think it's necessary. I get up VERY early for work - 4:30. So I also need to go bed by 9:00-9:30. My kids got to bed at 7:30 (6 year old) and 8:30 (13 year old). They have to be up by 6:00 and it's works for us. I personally think 9:00-9:30 is late for a 6 year old, but whatever, that isnt the point. We do the same thing every night. Dinner, baths, then tv for half hour (for 6 year old), then in her room by 7:15, we have time for a story and lights out. This way, I can clean up, change my own clothes and do whatever while she watches her 1/2 hour of tv, then we do the bedtime thing and I still have 1.5-2 hours to unwind myself. We do this every single night during the school year. WE had the battle about getting up once in bed and all that, but being consistent works. Of course my 6 year old doesnt have ADHD, BUT it also works for my child who does and always did. It took longer to "get it" that bedtime was bedtime, end of story, and even still we go through phases where she continually gets up, BUT overall it works and they both do fairly well getting up in the mornings. My DD with ADHD isnt as easy or simple to get moving and out the door as my other daughter, BUT it works. My deal with her is when she easily GETS up and out she can have a later bedtime, but until then I dont care if shes 13, school nights it's 8:30.
Separate issue here. Do you feel your child is getting enough sleep? My son needs help sleeping or else the hyperactivity keeps him up. You may want to try melatonin.I still do not understand your statement about her being awake after her bedtime. Does this mean she won't GO to bed or she is IN bed but not asleep?I have a 2 bedroom apartment. It is not spacious. However, if I could turn back time (that is a song, no?) I would take everything out of his room. He would have a bed to look at and nothing else. My son has issues with falling asleep as many kids like this do. This will also help get your child out of the insomnia trap. (Racing thoughts, perhaps.) If you ask any sleep specialist, the bedroom should be only for sleeping and is called "good sleep hygiene."
As far as her bringing things into the room after you have removed them: it will occur, continue to occur, no matter what. The part of ADHD that is involved is the action prior to thought. Taking something where you happen to be going, is a normal thing for even you or I. These kids don't remember the talk you had about "keep food and drink at the kitchen table" or "make sure to put away XXX when you are done." They do then think, they act then think, they move then think. We think first. You might even want to take it a step further: keep her out of the room until it is bedtime. (Actually keep the door closed.) Make the main room the play room, or your room, etc. At least then you are in charge of what goes in and out, and where things are to be put. You will always need to help this child to organize and clean. No matter if she is on meds or not.
Honestly, my son is on meds, and his room can be described at times as a serious case for child protective services to intervene.
There are no lists that work. No routine done over and over again to remember and go on "autopilot" like the rest of us. My son is 13 and if I offered him a million dollars to clean his room all by himself, he wouldn't be able to do it. It is like asking a child to carry a car over their heads. I have given you what sounds like extremisms, but it is truly the best way to help her. She will be able to sleep better, and you will be able to show her how to clean up, and be able to monitor her activity much more closely this way. Any mother that has found chewed up paper, or the remnants of food/drink stashed under the bed or behind the dresser----or INSIDE the dresser, (that has been broken from constant foot on open drawer, while sitting on bed watching TV) can attest to the sneaking in "contraband" that will occur!
I hope this helps or that you find something that does.
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this is not any advice, but Yme's statement about not her son living in a garbage bin just to not lift a finger made me laugh. For a LONG time my daughter slept in her sleeping bag on top of her comforter because it was easier to pull that off the top in the morning and roll it up and shove it under bed rather than make her bed 
. She's as inventive as she is messy!
There's a song by the childrens singer Laurie Berkner called "I'm a mess". If anyone gets a chance listent to it. We laugh hysterically as my 6 year old says it was made for her older sister, calls it "her song" .
Literally, my son would sleep on a bed with no sheets or blankets rather than pick them up off of the floor where he dropped them. I am starting to lose my mind with the "laziness coping" that goes on!
He will pick up dirty clothes off of the floor to wear rather than do laundry. He won't even go into the other room where mom has done the laundry, and they are folded on the couch, just waiting to be put away.
Yme!39598.5922222222About the not sleeping: We do a bedtime routine with stories, brushing teeth, etc. She gets into bed, she is tucked in, the parent doing bedtime leaves. She gets out of bed and .... well, does any number of things before falling asleep. She plays with things that are in her room or gets things from out of her room, she rips up paper into tiny pieces to make "projects" with it, she takes clothes out of drawers so she can built forts with the empty drawers, she takes the sheets and mattress off the bed to make it more "comfortable."
Her bedtime is 6:30-7; she falls asleep typically at 9-9:30. Someone asked if I think she is getting enough sleep-- I am sure that she is *not.* She either wakes up early-- like 6:00, meaning she got very few hours of sleep, or she needs to be dragged out of bed, meaning that she has not had enough sleep for the night.
I understand about your telling me extremisms-- the girl *is* extreme, so that only makes sense!
Do you think she may be doing these things because she just isn't ready for bed at such an early time?
Both of my kids go to bed around 9:00 and get up around 6:30. Now that school is out, they are going to bed later and still getting up fairly early.
My daughter is as-yet-unmedicated (we are waiting for an appointment). Maybe (she said hopefully) I will see a difference when that happens?The cleanest her room ever was was when all the toys and books were in a playroom, her dresser was in the hallway, and her closet was kept locked. We have since moved and don't have a playroom, don't have room in the hallway for a dresser, and her closet doesn't have a door. She likes to drop the hangers on the floor so she has room to swing on the bar. I think my best bet is to remove as much as possible, just so there is less raw material to make a mess.
I feel your pain -I am sooo burned out from trying to keep my DS room picked up. I like Yme!'s suggestions. I have almost given up although my DS is older than your DD so we don't have the toy messes to deal with so much anymore. When DS was younger I had labled containers for his toys AND a toy box where things could easily be tossed in - at least they weren't in the floor. Occassionaly DS and I would go through and put things from toy box into appropriate labeled bins. The "toy box" worked well for both of us. I still keep a basket in a corner where I can just "toss" the things he leaves laying around the house. I can't stand clutter. Good luck!Thanks for your answer!
By "up late" I mean that she stays up for hours after her bedtime. A sticker chart worked for a week to keep her in her room, but no longer. I'm sure the stuff in her room is a distraction, but she leaves her room looking for things, also. My bedroom and a bathroom are on the same floor as her room, and has taken things from both of those rooms into hers. One night I went to brush my teeth before bed and couldn't find the toothpaste because she had taken it into her room.
We don't have enough rooms for there to be a designated play area that is out of her bedroom. I am looking around now and thinking about how I might be able to carve out areas in a common area like the living room-- although I admit I am afraid of the mess "leaking" into that room. (Who am I kidding? It's leaked already-- I mean "leaking more.") I think it would be best, though, if she had very little in her room, like you say.
In the summertime, Will sleeps on top of his comforter with a small blanket to keep from losing the sheets and everything else..It worked well last summer, the winter was terrible, but we're back to the summer routine now.. It works for the most part..
I just spoke to his psychologist about the bedroom thing this week. I have tried to overlook the mess in there but just this week I found trash everywhere. Empty plastic bottles, paper wrappers, just garbage that he has found at the ballpark.. GROSS.. I was very upset about it but the dr didn't seem to think it was such a crisis. He asked me to stop calling his things trash and junk beceause they were important to Will.
But it is..TRASH..
Anyways, I have already taken out almost everything in his room besides clothes, books and one bucket of cars but slowly he would go downstairs and bring things back up.
He suggested that we pick out a container together (not one the size of a TV box that Will wanted ) and let him choose, within reason, what he keeps. Once the box is full, he needs to decide what needs to go before he can add to it.
Will was very agreeable at the dr's office, but we haven't attempted it yet at home..
Diane that is funny about the sleeping bag. I might just make all my kids do that. Lollethy proud mom39598.6926967593am unfortunately in an internet cafe to write this, I havent disappeared just computer broke down. after months of not looking on the site am delighted by this topic, I would love some ideas for my eleven year olds messy, dirty room, he has ´masses of crap in thiere and wont part with any of it, uses his floor like a rubbish bin, his clothes never see the drawers and he has no idea about only dirty clothes going in the clothes basket ( so I confiscate his clothes to make him appreciate this but he is happy to not get them back). we are lucky to have space but would be so pleased if someone could give me an idea for organising all those little bits of crap that you accumulate as a child which feel important. Perhaps we ought to have a box called 'bits'. but it would be as big as his room. also, I have ads too so I go into our bedroom and see the equivalent on my side of the bed but it is the medicated version so I do get on top of it now and again. will shut up here, do answer me if you have an idea as I plan to come back to this internet cafe, it is quite reasonable. Thanks for being there you lot!this is not any advice, but Yme's statement about not her son living in a garbage bin just to not lift a finger made me laugh. For a LONG time my daughter slept in her sleeping bag on top of her comforter because it was easier to pull that off the top in the morning and roll it up and shove it under bed rather than make her bed . She's as inventive as she is messy!
There's a song by the childrens singer Laurie Berkner called "I'm a mess". If anyone gets a chance listent to it. We laugh hysterically as my 6 year old says it was made for her older sister, calls it "her song" .
Immediately after the room was done, we had her clean it each day. At first, it was easy-- a few papers to recycling, dirty clothes in the hamper. But since she tends to stay up late "playing," it didn't take long for the mess to become so huge that it was too much for her to pick up.
I can see some easy solutions. For example, she has several shelves of books, but doesn't really read in her room that often-- so I can take most of them out and either store them and "rotate the stock" occasionally or shelve them elsewhere in the house. But short of removing everything from her room and making it look as spartan as a prison cell, I'm not sure what I can do to make it better. Ideas?
Let me add that I am OK with a certain level of "mess," and I am fine with respecting her space and her decisions on how to keep it and all that. But things are getting lost in her room and it is dangerous to walk into it because you have no idea what sharp objects may be underfoot.
I am laughing that a number of people read this post without replying as the bedroom mess is the worst.
However, why is a 6 yr. old child up late? Do you mean after you put her to bed she doesn't fall asleep or she just is awake and playing?
Solution: remove everything not essential for sleeping and dressing. Everything else goes into a play area. Literally the bed, sheets, pillow, dresser with clothes, and nothing more. Toys go elsewhere and aren't allowed in the sleep area. It is THAT difficult for these kids to deal with "order" and "organization" or anything that resembles cleanliness.
I have a 13 yr. old boy who would live in a garbage bin, just so he didn't have to lift a finger to clean.
I am very serious when I say that a bedroom for these kids needs to be ONLY FOR SLEEP. It is due to what mess we are talking about, but also due to the problems with insomnia that they have. Do not allow her to play in the room she sleeps in. It will help her body to realize "it is sleepytime" when she goes into the bedroom.
These are things I have learned the hard way. Hope this helps.
[QUOTE=Yme!]Honestly, my son is on meds, and his room can be described at times as a serious case for child protective services to intervene. There are no lists that work. No routine done over and over again to remember and go on "autopilot" like the rest of us. My son is 13 and if I offered him a million dollars to clean his room all by himself, he wouldn't be able to do it. It is like asking a child to carry a car over their heads.
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Wow, I've been a lurker here for awhile. I pop in sometimes just to remind myself I'm not alone and that others are going through the same things. I was at my wits end tonight finding yet again, garbage under his bed, closet, places that took more effort to hide than to take two steps to the garbage can. But as I walk into the scene ds (12) throws something into the hamper. Much to my surprise (or not anymore) there were ants in his room, which he decided that he would drown with green paint (the open paint bottle which he had just thrown into a half full hamper). After all these years I was surpised to find myself more disappointed, sad and just wanting to throw in the towel. I know it's not that bad, but I cannot tell you, years and years and years he still does this. I was bad and didn't check for three whole days, going on his word (bad me, should known better, why do I always give him the opportunity?!).
I know it's his impulsiveness. The ants came for the garbage and hidden food. The ants were to be killed with paint. But he didn't/couldn't think ahead about why the ants were there or that he would have to help clean the paint now saturating the carpet, floor, blankets and clothes? UGH, I'm just so frustrated and I know it could be so much worse, I really just needed a place to vent.
So, I really wanted to say that I can totally relate to you Yme! Lol, our sons are close in age and we both live in the lovely state of AZ. Everything you said is so true and I can totally relate with! Anyways, thank you all for helping me remember I'm not alone!
not having much luck in this internet cafe,
relieved to hear that the 'uncomfortable' complaint is obviously normal for some ADDERS including my son, very annoying when at 11 oclock at night he is still lying there with his legs in the air, got different blankets out of the wardrobe which feel softer, stripped off , his pyjamas are scratchy although he has had them for three years.
The rubbish on the floor and under the bed is difficult, this behaviour says to me, I treat myself like a rubbish bin me. Also relieved to have found someone who doubts the University clinic diagnosis that he is a lovely boy with fussy parents, have checked the Hallowell book and diagnosis based on test results alone can easily be wrong, dont know which page, its in their somewhere, just before the list of questions to ask yourself to see if you need a diagnosis, and another bit before that.
Am on avoidance tactics here, have it myself and need to get jobs done, anyone had an success with Hallowells suggestion of pattern planning, dont want to try it because it sounds like a stright jacket, what do you think.
Ahhhhhhhh...I needed to read this topic today. After both trying out others' ideas and coming up with umpteen systems on my own for my son to clean his room (and having each and every one of them fail eventually), I feel like pulling out my hair. It became so stressful that I decided to just leave him alone about it for a while, and you know that the mountain of mess grew exponentially. So, he's been chipping away at it since the school year ended...very slowly chipping away at it while doing a lot of feet-dragging, talking back, whining, yelling, and freaking out. Today, when he started yelling at me, I lost my temper and yelled back at him. I feel horrible about yelling. He has an anxiety disorder, and he panics when people yell at him. Anyhow, after I removed myself from the situation and took a time out, he came to apologize, and, after I apologized, too, we had a talk about the "room" situation and about how he's old enough to come up with his own system. He started to freak out again, but he left to calm down and came back with a short cleaning list and said that he'd like to only take care of the first item on the list today so it doesn't seem so overwhelming.Now, I'm just sitting and practicing some deep breathing (and praying). Even though I'd rather not have this stress, I feel very fortunate to have a place where I can go and see that there are other people who understand exactly what my son and I are going through.
Thank you!
jade23
hahahahahahahaha- there really is no solution to the bedroom thing. I have children that range in age from 32 to 6. I have been there, done that, laughed and cried over bedroom destruction. One son is adhd and is 8 y/o and one is 30 w/aspergers. ALL my children had bedroom issues. Some are collectors, some are hiders, some are destroyers.
By this time, I have figured their room is their space and if it doesn't smell and isn't dangerous I can live with it. Jon peepees everywhere in his room. Yesterday we cleared everything out and carpetcleaned while Jon used a magic eraser sponge and cleaned off crayon, pencil etc off his walls. Every picture that had glass over it has been broken. Hubby laid down the law on the peepee. Jon uses his dresser to climb up to the top and turn on wall mounted tv as he loses his remote. You know those ledges that are built into some rooms to look fancy and just collect dust? Jon has climbed his bookcase and hidden up there.
Clothes? they are everywhere, usually full of pee, and he changes 10x's or more per day. He rips them into shape so he is comfortable in them. buttons- off, hems ripped. I have taken to purchasing all t-shirts and take out the labels. Pants and shorts need to be elasticized because he rips off buttons. shoes? 20 pair and he can't find any. food wrappers have gotten better since we now lock the pantry and refrig.
But even my non adhd children can't keep their rooms and clothes clean. When I was a kid I kept my room pristine and scrubbed my floors. My mom told me she never knew a child to be neat like I was.
So- I just laugh about it and let them do what they want. It's easy to close the door and not see the mess. jon usually goes and wears a different shoe on each foot. I think I once told everyone here he went around one day with a laundry basket on his head. He was proud of the attention he got at the mall with that one. After a few hours he tired of it and took it off. I don't think Einstein had a clean room. I mean, look at the way he never combed his hair and look at his clothing.
I let them be the characters they are. BTW- jon has a sleeping bag and while he used it all the time when we first got it for him he rarely uses it now.
So- try to relax and know that in 15 yrs your child will not be there and you can have your home the way you want it. Bet you will be bored, though.
Randy