Kids
need an oasis from the “world out there”
to find their balance and return to their center.
Even if they share a room, your children can have
a bedroom that facilitates rest, recharging, daydreaming,
creativity, and quiet time. It doesn’t
take a decorator to create a soulful bedroom.
Try one of the following:
*Allow your child’s room
to be a safe base for soulful exploration. Give
him a choice in color, fabric, and furniture.
Allow her to decorate the door with silver paint,
if she so desires, or collage her closet with
images she loves, cut from magazines.
*Make sure your child can reach
important things. If not, invest in a sturdy
stepping stool.
*If your kids share a room ensure
that each has privacy--bookcases or rice paper
panels to divide the space is one solution.
*Create a bed suitable for reading
with a safe, well-placed lamp and comfortable
reading pillows. His association with books
and reading will be a good one. A nine-year-old
told me, “I like to read in bed because
it is my safe, cozy place. I know I won’t
be disturbed and I feel all tucked in and nice.”
*Hang sheets from the ceiling
on all four sides of your child’s bed if
she wants a cozy, private, snug nest. Purchase
curtain rods from the hardware store that screw
into the ceiling. Sew tabs on the sheets and hang
them up for a low cost, royal canopy bed.
An eleven-year-old has the perfect retreat
from a world that’s spinning out of control,
“I have drawn pictures of my dream bed since
I was four-years-old. I finally have it.
I wanted a bed with curtains all around it so
I could close them and no one would see me. Now
I have yellow curtains hanging on all sides of
my bed and my dog and I snuggle in for the night.
I look forward to that cozy place all day.”
*Use natural fabrics in bedrooms.
Synthetic materials used in night clothes, sheets,
or duvet covers are hot and cause lots of static
shocks.
*Buy or make some scented eye
pillows for every bed in the house. Silk
material is the most luxurious, filled with dried
lavender and dried lentils or rice.
*Don’t get rid of the rocking
chair when your child has outgrown his nursery.
Many a child has needed a gentle rocking “Just
like when I was a baby.”
*Invest in a storage system for
the closet or create your own out of baskets and
bins. Kids have a better chance at creating
order when everything has a place.
And what about your bedroom?
So many parents have told me that a serene and
orderly bedroom was pivotal for creating balance.
After all, it’s the first and last space
you see each day. A mother of three was experiencing
insomnia. She greeted each morning worn
out, only to lie awake again each evening. I suggested
she move her desk out of the bedroom, it was piled
with work she brought home from the office.
She did so, and she also established a few de-stressing
evening rituals after the children were in bed
such as a hot bath, soothing music, candlelight,
and journal writing. That was just the tonic
she needed to fall asleep.
Balancing Tips
*Soft lighting, sheets in soothing
shades, gentle artwork all contribute to the sense
of ease in your bedroom.
*Invest in a good mattress and
comfy pillows. Since we spend one third
of our lifetimes in bed, shouldn’t it be
as comfortable as possible?
*Lavender placed near the bed
does a great job inducing sleep. You can
buy dried lavender at most health food stores
or drop lavender oil on a cotton ball and tuck
it behind your pillow. |
