Big bed for a little boy

Important lessons: It is possible to have too little paint on the paintbrush, necessitating the time for a second coat, in thunderstorm season. 

The boys will love the idea of painting, but really should just be set up with a roller and a bit of cardboard, because it turns out I hate the idea of dried paint drips. 

Oh, and don't store the mattress (innerspring) on its side behind a couch, because a) the boys will apparently be unable to resist bouncing on it, but will bounce on it on its side and bend the springs and b) it might bend a bit from being stored on its side, and the worst - you'll never be able to tell which option meant that you have ended up with a brand new mattress with a whoomp upwards in the middle, due to the metal frame on the inside being bent. It is, however, still quite comfortable to lie on.

Thirdly, the 3 year old will be unable to grasp that the cot is being pulled apart and put away because he now has a big bed, and will insist that he will need you to put the cot back up because he needs that cot after he has finished with the big bed.

Happily, we can report that he is sleeping just fine in the bed so far. We promised to put the cot back up after he grew out of his big bed if he still wanted the cot.