10 Tips for Buying Your Childs First Big Boy Or Girl Mattress

Transitioning your infant from a crib or youth bed is important and can play a very big part in your little one’s health and development. Here are our tips on finding the right first mattress for your child.

1. Choose The Right Size – Twin and twin extra-long are both great choices for little boys and young girls. Your child will have as much sleeping space as each adult has in mom and dad’s king-size mattress. Providing you have the available space you may also want to consider full or queen-size beds for added comfort and growth.

• Getting The Correct Support For Your Little Girl And Boy – Visit the store of choice and allow your child to test mattresses for comfort and support. Depending on your child’s communication skills and age they can tell you which mattresses feel best, but keep it simple this one vs. that one and then eliminate the least favorite and so on. Do not overwhelm them – you may have to assist in the final decision.
• Don’t Buy Merely On Price Alone – Higher prices don’t automatically translate into better quality beds for the kiddos despite the fact the absolute cheapest prices almost always translate into poor quality and yes even worse support. The solution is doing your homework and researching construction, focusing on support and feel, and finally be prepared to pay a realistic price for that quality, support, and comfort for your little one.
• Will The Mattress Also Be Used As A Guest Bed – Couples with small kids who are often just starting out occasionally find themselves using their child mattress as the guest bed. Prepare for friends and family with a larger mattress size that can handle grown-ups. Consider full or queen size or even a daybed with trundle and again be sure the mattress can support adult weights, this will ultimately save you money when your child grows up and breaks 100 pounds themselves.
• Know What Building Material To Look For – Look into the bones of a bed using an x-ray of sorts. Salespeople, internet research, and talking to others are great ways to get an inside look at brands and see how the composition of various construction materials performs over time. Foam density, ILD, coil count, a gauge of steel, mattress thickness, box spring, platform, or foundation are just some of the countless things you can look into and determine what mattress may best fit your needs.
• Choose The Correct Firmness – Firmness is not always about being hard as a rock however your child’s bones and spine are growing, and with that said most pediatricians recommend firmer mattresses to encourage good bone growth and spinal alignment which comes from the good inner core of a mattress. A sleep system could utilize high-density foam, coil springs, or even latex rubber as its core support but don’t be afraid to add a plush or pillow top surface to the mattress surface to make the bed comfier reducing the pressure that will make them uncomfortable and disturb sound sleep.
• Set A Realistic Budget – While many people walk into a store expecting to pay 100.00 or less for a decent mattress set, others believe they have to spend thousands to get premium quality, value, and comfort. The fact is there are high-quality mattresses available at reasonable prices. $250.00- $500.00 is not unrealistic. Perhaps more for specialty beds like organic and latex rubber.
• Focus On The Mattress First – A huge mistake parents often make when buying their child’s first mattress is spending too much money on “decorative furniture” which can ultimately reduce the amount of money they have left to spend on a mattress set. This could be a costly mistake that compromises comfort, support, and yes even quality.
• Don’t Give Your Child A Hand Me Down Mattress – Need to save money? Consider used garage sales or hand-me-down furniture to help save money. We never recommend a used, worn, unsupportive mattress it is an unhealthy choice for anyone but especially a growing and developing child.
• Consider The Various Kinds Of Mattresses Offered – Waterbeds, Memory Foam, Coil Springs, Air Beds, Latex, Wool Mattresses, Organic, and Adjustable are just some of the many different kinds of mattresses that you can choose for your child.

We would love for those of you who have been down this road before to take a moment and help out others who are just beginning their big kid mattress buying journey.

Photo by Sean Dreilinger- “Passed out on the floor after a hard night of partying in sequoia’s crib”