Katelee's Big Girl Bed!

Yes, it's true.  Shocking, I know, but true.  My very big, grown-up little girl still sleeps in a crib! But she loves her crib!  And so do I.  And when you don't need the crib for another baby, and when your child never tries to get out of the crib on her own, why mess with a good thing?

We decided, however, that when we take down the crib for the move, we won't set it up again.  I will probably cry.  When we first put up that crib, I expected it to be a fixture in our home for the next decade or so ... but life goes on.

Anyway, a year or more ago a dear friend in my ward mentioned she was trying to get rid of a twin-size bed frame.  She no longer needed it now that her youngest son had left on his mission.  She said she was giving it away for free, but it would need some work.  Now, it really wasn't that bad, but I still wish I had taken a BEFORE picture, so you could see how different it looks now.  

When it was given to us, it was a brown wood color.  It was sturdy but definitely well-used, marked with the usual signs of 18 years loved by a boy: nicks, a few watermarks, engravings, some candy stuck on in one place, etc.  

We started working on this project months ago, and have been really slow about getting it done.  Thanks to Gerald, however, who has really focused on it this past week, it is now complete and ready to use!  

We sanded it, primed it, added bead board to it, and painted it white.  I think it looks fabulous and will fit just perfectly in Katelee's sweet little girl room.  Here is the finished product:

You can see where Gerald added the bead board to the front and back.  I think it is the perfect touch and makes all the difference.  

He also added bead board in each of the little cubbies at the foot and head of the bed.  I love it!

Now I am just anxious to see it all put together in her cute new room.  We have darling new bedding to put on it and plan to fill the cubbies with her stuffed animals and dolls.