Japanese minimalist futons: Great for your growing baby, child and teenager too!

Okay so I’m being a little glib and facetious in my title but I truly believe this.

WE BOUGHT OUR BABY BUN A MINIMALIST FUTON

We didn’t buy Baby Bun a crib, we bought him a 100% cotton Japanese-style futon made in U.S. with the FULL INTENTION that he would grow into it.

*ahem* It only sleeps one person too, just in case anyone around here in the future  gets ideas as they get older and start having an interest in girls. We are not liberal-enough parents to be all right with a girlfriend moving in and sponging off us, as I hear a lot about at work with other parents who are SUPER liberal and even encouraging such behaviour, but I digress.

Anyway, this minimalist futon bed is great.

STAGES OF THE FUTON FOR BABY BUN

As a baby, he just lay there and didn’t move.

It was great for a new Mommy too. I laid down beside him too, exhausted and totally bleary-eyed most nights and during the day, I napped while he stared a the ceiling and waved his arms and legs…

As he got older and started to sit, crawl, stand, and walk, we had to block off his bed with heavy barriers to stop him from climbing up and over!

Once he starts scaling those barriers, we’ll be removing them completely.

It also serves as a great place for little time-out crying sessions for when he is being fussy, whiny and cranky for no good reason.

(Rule of thumb I learned the other day: age of baby is the number of minutes in time out. 2 years old, 2 minutes.)

STANDARD SIZE COVERS WORK JUST FINE & ARE EASY TO SOURCE

You don’t even need to buy special baby or crib covers.

We bought regular organic cotton bed covers, we also bought a waterproof bed sheet for his future mishaps at night when we are out of the diaper stage… and it’s just so much easier to shop for bedding and linens as a result.

HE OR WE WILL NEVER HAVE TO WORRY OR BE SCARED ABOUT…

Monsters under the bed.

Rolling off it.

Anyone hiding under the bed and scaring him.

Him jumping on his bed like a little monkey because it’s just a futon on the floor. Not much springy-ness there.

WE GET TO PLAY WITH HIM IN THE BED (AND NAP TOO)

In the morning when he wakes up way too early (4 a.m.), I go in there and lay down beside him. He plays around me, on top of me, beside me, we make faces at each other… it’s actually one of my secretly well-loved times of the day.

I complain about the inhumane hour of 4 a.m. (I’d prefer 5 a.m., even 6 a.m.) but I really love that I just climb over the barrier, lay down beside him, watch him guzzle down his bottle in a very cute manner, bestow a billion kisses on him while he’s doing so, and then…. doze off while he plays around me.

As long as he is near me, he’s not crying or fussy most of the time. But if he’s left alone, he cries bloody murder (again, great for timeouts for when he’s being naughty).

WE HAVE A FUTON AS WELL AND IT DOUBLES AS A LIVING ROOM FLOOR “COUCH”

Our family hangout / gathering place has turned into our master bedroom futon.

During the day, we don’t sleep on it, so our bedroom turns into a multi-functional second living room where he runs in, rolls around on our huge futon on the floor.

We hang out with him on our bed, he cuddles with us, he leaps across us lying down, we relax and hang out as a family. That’s also one of my favourite times of the day, when we’re all together and relaxed, listening to the radio or just talking to each other.

I also stack the pillows on there with blankets and make forts.. we play Mommy Monster where I hide and then leap out to tickle him until he can’t breathe; and he hides behind Daddy while I sneak up and tickle him from behind.

I’m thinking that once we get a house (if ever, with how picky we are) we’ll buy a second futon for the living room so that we have another spot to lay down on and play on during the day, if ever in the event we need to close the master bedroom door or whatever.

It’s kind of nice, and comfortable for everyone to come around, hang out on the floor and play with Baby Bun at his level.

He loves it when we’re on the floor with him, making eye contact with him, and it easy on our body, hands, knees, etc.

WHERE TO BUY A MINIMALIST FUTON

Futons from U.S. sells authentic, handcrafted by a master, made in Japan 100% cotton futon with various covers and styles for a very reasonable price.

I highly recommend them and they ship worldwide except to Australia (don’t have the rights there yet).