How To Choose The Best Mattress For Your Children

A good night’s sleep is always paramount to your next day’s aspirations. In the long run, having good quality sleep doesn’t only affect your performance tomorrow, but creates an impact on your overall well-being. Ensure that you’re getting enough sleep and rest every day, particularly your children as well. Here’s how to choose the best mattress for your children.

Importance of Sleep In Children

Compared to adults, the importance of sleep needs more emphasis on children. An adequate amount of sleep is vital in their development in many aspects of cognitive health: behavior, attention, memory learning, overall mental health, and more importantly, physical health.

Sleep can also affect a child’s weight, growth, heart health, and immune system. A child with insufficient sleep is more susceptible to obesity, depression, and high blood pressure. 

To help children sleep better, parents must provide them with the best place to sleep soundly. Having an excellent choice of their bed mattress will directly impact their sleep.

If your child isn’t sleeping well and enough, it might be time to get them a new mattress as their old one doesn’t keep up well to their sleeping needs anymore.

When finding a mattress for your child, read what customers have to say to assist you in arriving at better decisions. Check mattress reviews, like this review of the Puffy Mattress, to give you a better idea of what to expect for your child’s sleep.

With this in mind, here are five tips on choosing the best mattress for your child to sleep on.

The Size Always Matters

Children’s ages are considered developmental periods, so their bodies don’t stop growing. To cope up with these needs, choosing the right size for your child’s mattress will influence their sleep in the following years.

When selecting a mattress’s size, consider two factors: your child’s height and how long they’re going to use it.

Most children only require twin mattresses, and they’re already big enough for most heights. However, if your child is between the ages of 8 and 12 and plans to keep the mattress until their teen years, then twin-sized, twin XL, and full-sized beds are your best options.

Also, the size of the mattress depends on how many children are going to sleep on it. Based on the number of your children, pick the right size where they will not only fit but allow extra space for them to move around while sleeping.

Prioritize Spinal Support

During sleep, a child’s spine continues to develop. Their neck and spine, when sleeping, should be in a comfortable and neutral position to reduce spinal stress and allow the bone structures to grow without any restrictions.

Since a child’s spine needs support and shape, consider a mattress that is soft enough for comfort, but simultaneously firm enough to stop them from sinking too much, especially if they stay in the same position for the whole night. The best example of this is an innerspring mattress.

A well-formed adult spine becomes flexible and adapted from daily stressors, but not allowing your child’s spine to develop appropriately during its crucial stages will make their spine susceptible to different spinal deformities.

Examine The Quality of Materials Used

Although natural isn’t always better, it goes the other way around in choosing the right mattress for your child.

Besides the size and support provided by a cushion, selecting the correct type of materials will allow your child to sleep more without any irritations. As much as possible, stick to natural and breathable materials rather than synthetic ones.

In fact, the same goes for adults or any age. A person’s quality of sleep will be better off natural fiber mattresses rather than petrochemical-derived, synthetic mattresses that are open to more skin irritations.

Many children with or without allergies find them irritating for the skin and can potentially cause respiratory problems.

Moreover, mattresses harnessed from natural materials, such as organic wool, silk, cotton, bamboo, and natural latex, possess naturally occurring anti-mite, anti-bacterial, and breathable properties. As much as you can, avoid synthetically made ones.

Make it a habit to read product descriptions before purchasing them. If you’re unsure of the mattress’s material composition, read the manufacturer’s specifications and see if these harmful materials exist:

• Memory foam and polyurethane foam
• Chemical flame retardants
• Synthetic latex
• Vinyl

Consider Your Child’s Sleep Position and Style

Children become accustomed to a specific sleeping position and style while sleeping, thus observe what kind of sleeper they are to pick a better mattress for this necessity.

The sleeping style is also an essential consideration in shopping for an adult mattress because your sleeping position is crucial to your sleeping comfort and spine and other bone support.

Depending on your sleeping style or position, listed below are some mattress recommendations:

• Side sleepers: Pressure relief is vital because of its curviness. Softer and thicker comfort layers about 3 inches thick are best for them.
• Back sleepers: They don’t require much comfort layer, thus choose a thinner top layer.
• Stomach sleepers: Sleeping puts too much pressure on their lumbar area so that a softer surface will hyperextend their stomach area. The last thing they’ll need is a soft and thick comfort layer. Firm and thin ones are better choices.

Conclusion

Children need more sleep than adults because their sleeping hours are the best time for their body to develop into a stable structure. When sleeping, the most critical factor that will affect your sleep is your bed mattress, and the room’s conditions will only be listed next.

With the help of these tips discussed above, ensure that you will only buy the best mattress for your child to keep them strong and help them to get ready for more development.

Tips To Choosing Kids Themed Bedding For Your Kids

Bed time remains a sacred activity for adults because it’s their opportunity to rest after a long day of work. For kids, however, bed time can sometimes be annoying and “unnecessary” and “a bummer” that can ruin their fun. One way you can avert this crisis and make sure they get tucked into bed in no time is if you actually choose kids themed bedding for your kids. This adds an extra layer of flair and excitement to their room that toys and other comforts outside their room can’t exactly offer to them. However, how exactly do you choose a kids themed bedding that is appealing for your child?

It may help your cause to look at a few statistics before going to the store to buy this type of bedding. Did you know that it’s observed that kids tend to have 10-percent larger brains when their moms are nurturing, and that kids feel more satisfied with life when dads are also there for them?

Interestingly, kids that start to understand the benefits of positive thinking and optimism tend to be much happier and have brighter outlooks in life. In fact, kids praised for their efforts will have a much better time coping and adjusting to failure, and kids tend to be more resilient when it comes to facing their problems. With these, we know that kids can get quite unique and creative even at their age, which means we should take the time to choose the things we give them carefully.

Kids Themed Bedding: Which Works For Your Child?

Remember that children are generally energetic and happy creatures, and as such can have extremely high energy levels that are hard to lower unless they get really tired – and this can take quite a bit of time. Getting the right bedding for them from places such as Vision Bedding not only helps motivate them to go to sleep, but can make them look forward to both nap time and bed time – especially if you find the kind of bedding they really love. Here’s how you could do it:

Try to remember what their preferences are

Kids love their favorite icons, heroes, and hobbies on things they own, so try to remember what your child’s favorites are that you can find in the stores. Superhero-themed blankets, or even superhero-themed beds themselves, for instance, can attract children and motivate them to spend more time in the bed. If you really get stuck with making the choice, either ask your child or even bring them to the store so they can choose for themselves.

Always choose between beds your child is comfortable with

If tests are allowed, have your kid try out beddings of their choice so they can better decide which ones they’re most comfortable with. Remind them that what you’ll buy will most likely be their bedding for a while, which means there are “no backsies,” and they need to make their choice carefully.

Choose designs and color that are mind and bland to motivate sleep

Flashy designs and hard colors can sometimes excite your child that they’d spend more time being captivated by the layout of the bed than to sleep and rest. When you choose a design for your child, opt for designs they appreciate but feature solid colors that are mild to the eyes. Lighter colors, pastel shades, and generally less details can help your child focus on sleeping than on keeping their minds extra active.

Be careful when you choose your thread count

It’s true that the more the threads, you’ll get a more long-lasting product because tighter weaves do improve a bedding’s durability. However, some manufacturers use “ply” to increase the thread count. “Ply” pertains to how many threads are wound together in a single piece of thread. High quality beds are often made with single ply, but some manufacturers use two-ply just to increase the thread count. Try to opt for the highest number but in single ply format.

Down, pillows, and duvets need to be changed every now and then

A lot of people tend to be confused as to just what a duvet is. Unlike a comforter, which is often without a cover and comes in a piece, duvets are placed inside a cover. This makes them removable for machine washing. If you do use a duvet, be wary that down fill, feathers, and synthetic have their perks and disadvantages. Feather fills are dense and firm but can irritate. Pure down can be expensive, but is much warmer. You need to be wary if you need to buy new pillows with your child’s bedding too. Identifying pillows due for repair is easy – if a pillow doesn’t spring back when you fold it, it’s time to be replaced.

Be wary of seasonal changes to your bedding

When you choose a kids themed bedding for your child, be aware that some materials used with the bedding do need to be replaced every so often – especially to help them be comfy depending on the season. Cotton percale creates bed linen that’s taut, crisp, and cool; while cotton sateen replicates a silky and smoother “finish” to the touch.

Oxford sheets are heavier, making them more fit for climates that are generally colder. Jersey fabric is the same with what’s used with shirts, making them soft but clingy. Cotton-poly blends tend to be simple to care for, but sometimes they can get stifling and scratchy. Flannel, while warm, can peel with constant usage. Try to check what your child is most comfortable with, so they won’t be uncomfortable when it’s finally time to go to bed.

The Takeaway: Special Kids Themed Bedding For Your Special One

Choosing the right bedding for your kids can be challenging, especially if you know your child can be picky when it comes to their personal tastes and aesthetics. Interestingly, this doesn’t exactly mean choosing a fun kids themed bedding for your kids is impossible. In fact, given the above tips, it’s very much possible for you to be able to find the right kind of bedding your kids would very much appreciate. Remember, it’s all a matter of finding a balance between what your child likes and what you think can help tuck them into bed. After all, the bed is a place of comfort and resting, and as such its design should still be appropriate for its purpose.

What is a domestic goddess?

No, I’m not talking about the long, dark-haired English home cook who made a squillion out of basic cooking skills by writing cookbooks and appearing on her own cooking shows (who I do love by the way) but rather I’m talking about the every day, 21st century woman. What defines them and what is a domestic goddess?

I feel like breaking out into an Oprah chant saying “you’re a domestic goddess, you’re a domestic goddess, you’re all domestic goddesses” because every woman, whether they live alone, partnered or with or without children, you’re all domestic goddesses.

No longer does it refer to the 1950’s housewife who stayed at home and polished the stove, cooked everything from scratch and welcomed home her grumpy husband with her hair perfectly coiffed, lippy on and slippers and pipe in hand. Those days are definitely over.

The Good, The Bad & The Ugly

The good part about being a woman today is that we can have it all. We can have children, go back to work as soon or as late as we want, not go back to work, take up tertiary studies or stay at home.

We have the choice to do whatever we want with full support from our partners, if we have a partner. We can decide to work from home. We can give our time generously to volunteering in our children’s school or an aged care facility. We can work part time if we want to. We have a choice.

Up until say 30 to 40 years ago, we didn’t really have a choice. It was a given that if you got married, you were expected to have children and stay home to look after them. This also included managing the household, keeping it clean, doing the laundry and preparing all the meals.

That was my dream and one that I fulfilled but it certainly wasn’t ‘dreamy’. It was bloody hard work. It still is with 2 ‘nearly’ teenagers but I wouldn’t have it any other way. It was my choice and one that I’m happy I made.

I worked part-time during that period too, I kept house, I cooked, I cleaned, I volunteered, I nurtured and I might have found 5 minutes during that time for me too. I’m now running my own business from home all while still caring for my family.

The bad is that we seriously can’t do it all. Something has to give. We can’t keep on top of the housework, folding the laundry, we rely on takeaway food to feed our families or, in my case, my health and fitness is put on the back burner.

Not that I was ever ‘high maintenance’ but I always took care of myself, I was (what I call) a ‘normal’ size and I gave myself regular pampering. That was before, of course, children.

Women of the 1950s didn’t have the internet, they were focused on their home and family and probably had time for a regular visit to hairdressers. Nowadays, we all spend time on the internet. It can be part of our business or our ‘down time’ and generally how we keep in touch with everyone and everything.

Not that that’s a bad thing. We can choose to be interactive on social media or not. The internet is a valuable tool for researching information and one I’d be lost without now.

Now for the ugly. Our expectations are so high. We feel like failures if we can’t keep on top of the housework or laundry. We don’t do enough physical exercise doing our housework (our 1950s grandmothers and mothers didn’t go to gyms to work out, they kept fit and slim by working in the house and garden) and to comfort ourselves, we rely on food (well, that’s my case) or alcohol.

We go to work (or work in our businesses at home), we ferry our kids to every after school activity imaginable because we want to give them what we didn’t have and we might have time for our partners (if you are partnered) when you fall exhausted into bed at night.

We compare our reality with what we see on the internet. Interior designed homes with not a thing out of place. Perfectly matching decor and kid’s rooms that look gorgeous but don’t look like a child has ever been in that room.

The reality is a home is lived in. Kids play with toys. Kids make mess. The dust and crumbs on the floor pile up, the dishes are undone, the laundry hamper is overflowing and you have just as much to fold and you look at it all and say “I’ll do that tomorrow” as you stumble into the shower and fall into bed at night.

I’m here to tell you it doesn’t have to be like that.

Don’t be hard on yourself

Let’s be realistic. If you want to work full time, don’t expect to be able to spend time keeping your home in pristine condition. If you do have children, teach them the responsibility of helping. It is, after all, a team effort and you’ll be teaching them life skills.

You are a domestic goddess! The fact that you have decided to take the path you have, whether that’s career or stay at home Mum, single career woman or widowed grandmother living alone, you are the domestic goddess of your domain and you run it the way you want to.

How to be a Domestic Goddess in today’s world

If you’re too tired to cook, learn how to be prepared with quick easy meals that are either already made in the freezer or quick to make.

If you can afford it, hire a cleaner once a fortnight to do the basics.

Don’t buy anything for the home unless you know you can take the time to dust/clean it. Look at magazines and the internet for inspiration but don’t put yourself under any pressure to have that style or keep it in that condition. It’s just not real. A home should be a safe haven for you and your family and a place to be comforted.

My husband only said the other night “why do we have all those cushions on the bed and have to take them off each night?” You know, that question. I just replied that I like it. If I like it, I know I have to put them on the bed each morning when I make it and take them off each night. If you don’t have time to do that, don’t have them.

Define the ‘hot spots’ in your home like the kid’s school bags, your handbag, car keys, mail etc etc and find a place for it all. That’s where everything goes as soon as you walk in the door. You’ll feel more organised, there’ll be less clutter in open view and you can sort it when you have time.

Keep a small sewing kit in an easy to access spot and sew that button on or fix that hem straight away. Teach your children to do that too.

Look on the Internet for DIY solutions. It might be more time consuming but it is rewarding to think you’ve fixed something yourself. If you learn to sew, you can make your own curtains, cushions, clothes. If you know how to use an electric drill, you can hang pictures. Teach yourself some basic house maintenance.

By managing your time well, you’ll find that you can do those things you’ve always wanted to do in your spare time. Pamper yourself, read a book, binge watch your favourite TV shows, play board games with the kids.

Don’t plan your days off doing the housework. CAYG! Clean as you go. That’s how I manage to stay on top of the housework. The only planned housework days I have are every second Saturday morning for 2 hours when I get the kids involved to do a proper ‘clean’ of their rooms, washing floors, dusting etc. I do not want to spend my time cleaning. Life is too short for that.

Having been a ‘clean freak’ for many years before kids, I tried to do it all when my kids came along but I just about had a nervous breakdown. I learnt to accept that I can’t do it all. I was allowed to let the house get dusty. It was, after all, my domain. I managed it. Everyone was well fed, neatly dressed in clean clothes, bathed and most importantly, loved.

I might’ve been busy cleaning the shower when my toddler came up to me crying. I’d stop what I was doing and comfort them. You can’t get that time back, ever. The shower didn’t get cleaned straight away but it eventually got cleaned.

Don’t be hard on yourself. You are a domestic goddess, someone who manages their ‘domain’ the best way they can. Remember, find ways to make your load easier. Life is definitely too short to be worried about whether there’s dust on the furniture or the floor needs sweeping. If you like a clean floor, sweep it. Make it part of your evening routine.

Be realistic about the time it takes to do these jobs. I swear, I take no longer than 10 minutes to fold the laundry on the same day it comes off the line. That’s not from having any super powers or being a magician. That’s just one of the things I like doing because if I don’t, I finish up with baskets of laundry to fold. And don’t worry.

That has happened over the years. I’ve got sick, the kids have got sick or there’s just been too much other stuff on. It eventually gets folded. Don’t be hard on yourself.

So for all the woman in the world who want it all, you are a domestic goddess. Make the claim and be proud of what you do. We are so truly blessed to have the modern conveniences of the 21st century compared to those women of the 1950s, we can blitz through those things that are high on our priorities and take the time out to enjoy the things that are important to us.