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do your kids ever sleep on the floor? air mattresses?


OnTheBrink

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You can see my thread trying to figure this all out here:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=579260

 

Basically, we're in 2 rooms for 2 people each. There are 4 of us - me, husband, daughter (7), son (3.5). The rooms are side by side, but not adjoining. The balconies, however, are adjoining.

 

We can either sleep me and dd in one room and dh and ds in the other room. Or, we can convert one room to the "sleep zone" and the other to the "family room".

 

If we do that, we are thinking of pushing the two twins together (to make a king, right). And then the kids could just sleep on the floor on duvets or something. Or air mattresses.

 

What do you think? Have you don't anything like this?

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That's a great gift but what a decision to make. Can you fit 2 air mattresses?

 

I would be talking to the inlaws (is that who is paying) and BEGGING them to switch the cabin to one that holds 4. Unless they expect you and your hubby to sleep separate. Maybe THAT's what this is about...lol. :eek: ;)

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Well, really, it's important to my MIL that we are all right there together. We joined in the plans late and the other rooms were already booked (in a row like that). I don't mind the set up having two rooms. The travel agent actually recommended it. She said it would be less expensive than a suite, plus we'd actually have extra room. Since our kids sleep with us anyway (especially in unfamiliar places), it's fine with us.

 

I was just wondering what's the most comfy for the kids:

sleep with mom or dad (but not other parent and sibling)

sleep on an air mattress

sleep on a sleeping bag/duvet

 

And, since we'll have the two rooms for 10 days, we can change our mind if our first plan does't work out. For instance, if we start out all sleeping in one room, we can later split into two rooms if that works best.

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OK I'm am going to say this here because I can. LOL You just don't spend that much time in your cabin this is ridiculous. We are going on a cruise in 47 days and part of the goal is to spend time with friends. We are on Deck 2 and they are on Deck 8. Who cares? (They weren't on the last cruise of the let's rock the boat :eek:) We will see them all the time because you just don't spend that much time in your cabin unless you are dressing or sleeping. Well maybe some people do but most don't so isn't comfort more important?

 

I know I know family relations are more important and in-laws can be very difficult.

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We are on Deck 2 and they are on Deck 8. Who cares?

 

Sorry OTB but that's what I was thinking too. :( When we cruise with family/inlaws, we could care less what deck everyone is on as long as we all have cabins that fit each family.

 

Actually, the further away the better as far as I'm concerned...lol. ;)

 

But I know what a pain inlaws can be and you are just trying to make the best of a situation that was handed to you. Like you said, it was a gift. And I guess you can't knock the gift horse in the mouth. But maybe you can convince the gifthorse to trade in two cabins for one...lol. :p

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I just cruised with my DH and 3 kids. We had 2 cabins as well that were not connected. It is real simple. My DD and I shared a cabin and my DH and 2 boys shared the other. We were only there to sleep and shower. Besides it was nice having some "girl" time with my DD(8yrs). I would not want to bother with air matresses and stuff on the floor. Make it easy as possible.Enjoy:)

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How big are the children? I know the oldest is 7.Could she fit in one of the kid air matress/sleeping bag combo things that are so popular? They have Tink, Princesses and Bratz. The little boy could and they have Cars. I am not sure of the other ones, just recall those. We plan to use them at the hotel as the little ones will not share a bed (two 4yr olds). In the cabin, we are putting the upper bunk mattress on the floor by the sofa for them. I also have to agree with Cruisinmama on this...I would talk with my husband first then together talk with his folks. Save some money, transfer the booking to a mini suite, Everyone in one cabin, worries solved and LESS money spent. More money for fun things in port. I give my family cruise gifts alot and I would have no issue with thme coming to me honest and open to discuss such a move/savings. The extra could go to a OBC if not refundable.Just something to consider.

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On our recent cruise we tried to "swap" two staterooms for the Family Suite and since we were past final payment, there were all kinds of penalties and hassles that made it not even worth it.

 

One thought: go to google and search for Ready Bed - we bought one for DS when we shared a house in Italy with friends and were short some beds. They're pretty small, light and packable and depending on the size of the kids, kind of fun. The Tuscany bed was Thomas the Tank Engine (he was 3.5 at the time) and he's since graduated to Spider-Man. He loves it and we've used it a lot since - both away and at home. Two of them should fit in one smallish checked bag - and not take up much floor space at night, plus pack away easily in the morning.

 

It's a gift, so if it's too much of a hassle to swap it out, improvise, maximize, and enjoy!

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One thought: go to google and search for Ready Bed - we bought one for DS when we shared a house in Italy with friends and were short some beds. They're pretty small, light and packable and depending on the size of the kids, kind of fun. The Tuscany bed was Thomas the Tank Engine (he was 3.5 at the time) and he's since graduated to Spider-Man. He loves it and we've used it a lot since - both away and at home. Two of them should fit in one smallish checked bag - and not take up much floor space at night, plus pack away easily in the morning.quote]

 

 

This is a great idea. I forgot that I have a Dora Ready Bed and DD2 (3) loves it. I could bring that w/us and then not worry about her sleeping on or more like rolling off the pullman and that way DH or I don't have to sleep up there. I really wasn't looking forward to sleeping w/DD every night, I'd probably end up w/bruises all over! :D

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I would either:

 

1) Split parents up and sleep with one child each

 

OR

 

2) One parent sleep with kids - since the kids are small, all 3 should fit fine in a king. And one parent sleep in the other room - a vacation within a vacation! You can trade off who sleeps with the kids each night. Also, perhaps once the kids are asleep, maybe there could be some visiting of the other room via the balcony. :rolleyes:

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2) One parent sleep with kids - since the kids are small, all 3 should fit fine in a king. And one parent sleep in the other room - a vacation within a vacation! You can trade off who sleeps with the kids each night.

 

Oh my! That is the best idea yet!!! I haven't slept in a bed by myself in college. I'm not even sure what that would be like! Could I get a mindless magazine and some chocolate, do you think?

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We always get two rooms for our family of four, even though our kids are young. DH refuses to share a tiny bathroom with 3 females! We've found that it doesn't cost much more than 4 in a room, and is always less than a suite.

 

We did two side-by-side balcony rooms on our last cruise (kids were 6 and 10) on the Diamond Princess. As you probably know, you can open the connecting door on the balcony. Not as good as truly connecting rooms like we get on Celebrity, but workable. DH and I split up so that the kids were not unsupervised. On the plus side, we had twice the space and two bathrooms! Plus I had 7 snore-free nights, LOL.

 

--Junglejane

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So your MIL would rather have her grandchildren sleep on air mattresses and pay for two rooms for 10 days then have your room be away from hers? :confused: Sorry, I just don't get that. I wouldn't let my kids sleep on an air bed for more than a night or two. Those things go flat like you wouldn't believe. I also wouldn't let my MIL dictate the details of my vacation regardless of if she's paying for it. But that's me. I can honestly say that I would rather not go on the cruise than deal with MIL's "conditions". Sorry you have to deal with that.

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So your MIL would rather have her grandchildren sleep on air mattresses and pay for two rooms for 10 days then have your room be away from hers? :confused: Sorry, I just don't get that. I wouldn't let my kids sleep on an air bed for more than a night or two. Those things go flat like you wouldn't believe. I also wouldn't let my MIL dictate the details of my vacation regardless of if she's paying for it. But that's me. I can honestly say that I would rather not go on the cruise than deal with MIL's "conditions". Sorry you have to deal with that.

 

You sound soooo much like me! That's probably why I am always in trouble with the inlaws. LOL! ;)

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So your MIL would rather have her grandchildren sleep on air mattresses and pay for two rooms for 10 days then have your room be away from hers? :confused: Sorry, I just don't get that. I wouldn't let my kids sleep on an air bed for more than a night or two. Those things go flat like you wouldn't believe. I also wouldn't let my MIL dictate the details of my vacation regardless of if she's paying for it. But that's me. I can honestly say that I would rather not go on the cruise than deal with MIL's "conditions". Sorry you have to deal with that.

 

But I have stated that it's OK with me! It doesn't matter that it's not how many of you would want to do it. It's honestly completely fine with me. Perhaps I'm a bad mom (for letting them sleep in air mattresses or sleeping bags). My question was not whether or not my MIL is a good person. My question is not whether or not you would like to travel with these specific arrangements. My question was just: if you had this arrangement, how would you make it work for your family?

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I would either:

 

1) Split parents up and sleep with one child each

 

OR

 

2) One parent sleep with kids - since the kids are small, all 3 should fit fine in a king. And one parent sleep in the other room - a vacation within a vacation! You can trade off who sleeps with the kids each night. Also, perhaps once the kids are asleep, maybe there could be some visiting of the other room via the balcony. :rolleyes:

 

 

Don't forget though that even w/twins pushed together you have that middle part where they come together that may not be comfortable to sleep on. So fitting 3 to the bed may not work. But I really like the idea of sleeping by myself (at least for a few nights) away from DH's snoring :D

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And then the kids could just sleep on the floor on duvets or something. Or air mattresses.

 

What do you think? Have you don't anything like this?

 

But I have stated that it's OK with me! It doesn't matter that it's not how many of you would want to do it. It's honestly completely fine with me. Perhaps I'm a bad mom (for letting them sleep in air mattresses or sleeping bags). My question was not whether or not my MIL is a good person. My question is not whether or not you would like to travel with these specific arrangements. My question was just: if you had this arrangement, how would you make it work for your family?

You asked what we thought and I told you. I wouldn't allow my kids to sleep on air mattresses for 10 days. It's a public message board. You added the info about your MIL, so I added what I thought about that as well. You're paying (well someone is) for 4 beds, why would you have your kids sleep on the floor?

 

My kids use those air mattresses (when there is no other bed for them to sleep in). But we only use them for a night or two. They are not very durable. They go flat very easily. I can't image how they will hold up for 10 days.

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Oh, sorry for the confusion. Yes, I was interested in your opinion about the mattresses. I meant that I was OK with having 2 separate rooms. That seems to be upsetting a lot of people, but I'm fine with it.

 

We've used an air mattress for a week once. It was never a problem. We just reinflate it each night. It's super easy to do!

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Nancy,

 

I have yet to cruise, but I understand your reasoning about the kids sleeping arrangements. We have five kids and like to be together too. I think if it were me and my family, I would plan to have a boys room and a girls room. I would have the balcony divider opened for ease of visiting - and I would see how it went. I wouldn't bother bringing air mattresses and pumps etc. I could even see putting both kids to bed in one room - having some "alone" time with DH in the other room, and then transferring the littlest one back later. My kids are very moveable when asleep - especially the little ones. Or, just plan on having an adult and one child in each room and bring the air mattresses anyway - I bet they don't take up much room. Then, see how it goes when you get there. You can change it around later if you want to. I wouldn't worry about it.

 

Anyway, that is my thought on your situation.

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I wouldn't take along air mattresses. If you want to put the kids on the floor, just take the mattress off of the beds you aren't using and put it on the floor in the other room. The cabin steward would probably even do it for you if you ask, or they may have a cot that they can bring in for the kids. They're very accommodating, and will go out of their way to make you comfortable. Many of them even have families of their own and kids that they don't see for months at a time, and so I know they always pay special attention to mine--waiters too. Some cabins will have a couch even, or a sleeper sofa or sleeper chair--ya never know.

 

Anyway, I wouldn't stress about it much. If your kids are like mine (mine are older, but we still have bed issues), they will want to try a different sleeping arrangement every night. :rolleyes: My 8yo DD is sometimes scared on a bunk, so we pull off the mattress and put it in the floor. And by the end of the cruise, she's so tired that she gets really grouchy at night, and demands to sleep on the floor. On the carpet. With no pillow. Whatever.:rolleyes: After she goes to sleep, I manage to get her up into a bed.

 

If it makes you more comfortable and makes the kids happy, then I would suggest that you pull off the two mattresses in one room and put them on the floor in the other room for the kids (or have the steward make some arrangement for you). Then use the other room as an extra changing room and TV-watching-while-someone-else-is-sleeping room. The extra bathroom will definitely come in handy, as well as the extra closet/drawer space.

 

I like the idea of swapping off the kids and having a room to yourself too! But we tried that once, and both kids wanted to share a room with me--not dad.:( I can identify with the no-snoring thing! DH usually sounds like a freight train. And my 12yo DS makes a funny humming noise when he sleeps that he's done since he was born. The two of them make for a noisy night.

 

You'll have fun, no matter what arrangements you end up with! And your in-laws are your family, and you're the one that has to live with their son. So I would just do what I could to keep the peace, if you don't think they would take kindly to your room-changing requests.

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Wow - lucky you! What a generous gift. Personally, I wouldn't want to mess around with air matresses (more to pack, will make the room more crowded when they are in use, not as comfortable, etc). I would go with your 1 adult and 1 kid in each room, with easy back and forth via the balcony.

I'm sure it will be wonderful however you do it - have a wonderful cruise!

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