This week, my son and I will be working on a special feature wall in his teen bedroom remake. With him gone over the weekend, I decided to roll up my sleeveless summer sleeves and dig in DEEP, morphing his room from cute to cool.
It's quite a process, this age leap.
No box, drawer, or bin was left unturned. My boy is worse than I am when it comes to a slight hoarding addiction. He's in between kiddo and young man, so he still likes everything. But sadly, everything just can't fit.
See the two top bins to the left of that wall unit? They house some of his first baby toys. You know.. in case we get babies visiting.... :D I raise my hand to say that was my choice to leave them there. So you can only imagine how many age groups are going on in this room.
Cool... remember cool now, mom. Ok, so all the old game systems are staying. Here's gamecube tucked neatly away for when mom can convince son to play a REAL video game. We also have Nintendo 64 and Super Nintendo. You know.. real game systems! (I'm so not a fan of Playstation but it is what it is these days)
Bag after bag was packed for the dump and thrift store. Some things even went to the curb which neighbours happily emptied for us by this fine AM. Right down to a wheel chair I had planned to use as an office chair that no longer fit. Wonderful!!!!
But it was also a bit of a sad experience. I sighed lots as I unearthed all these treasures deep inside bins. Some super heros and the big bin of Thomas the Train and Hot Wheels still remain, but I know their days are numbered. Or at the very least, will one day land in the attic so they can be handed down to my son's own kids should he desire.
Ok, think cool, not cute...
But even my son agrees, some things simply cannot go. Froggy, we shall find a home for you and make you cool!
Because there's still a tiny bit of cute kid in all of us, no matter what our age is.
All boy's 2011 room updates to date can be found HERE.
Have you recently gone through a similar transition?
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Hang in there Froggy! :)
ReplyDeleteYou are a super cool Mom with a super cool kid so I know this room will be Cool Personified~!
ReplyDeleteSo happy that Froggy is still loved!!! He is so cute :)
ReplyDeleteWanting to grow up into a cool guy's room is a heartbreaker for any Mom. Her little guy is getting closer to being on his own. Perish the thought. Froggie can go incognito wearing sunglasses and a little coat sitting on a shelf to keep guard over him still. Glad others could use the stuff and keep it out of the landfill.
ReplyDeleteDon't despair Mom! Those hot wheels will be played with again My oldest boy is 37 and due in for a visit this Thursday with his 2 girls...ages 2 and 7. Guess what was requested I pull out of the saved toys from his childhood? Matchbox cars. The littlest grand girl loves to play with them. I am delighted. There were no saved tonka trucks so this Grandmamma went out and bought some this past week. I remember when I did the same thing you are doing now. It's bittersweet but you will love the change. :)
ReplyDeleteDonna take the hot wheels and put them in an old blue fruit jar put a hole in the lid and buy a lamp kit ( from Walmart) and make him the cutest....oops....the coolest lamp for his room.
ReplyDeleteThat's what I did for my son many years ago. That way it's still cool but he can
take them out if he feels the need. Get a cool shade for it too. I so remember those
days when we went from cute to cool and yes it breaks any mom's heart. I remember painting stripes all around the ceiling and after he moved out it took several coats of white paint to cover up all those dark stripes. Enjoy him now because they grow up so quickly.
I'm facing this same issue, my son just turned fifteen and still has a closet full of toys that I can't seem to deal with. I'm looking forward to seeing what you do! Lead the charge.
ReplyDeleteAwwww....I have a little girl but my heart was right there with you as you made these decisions. I cannot imagine giving up Froggy either! :-)
ReplyDeleteWee!
ReplyDeletesounds fun.
I'm intrigued.
Pat
I can't wait to see how it comes out ~ I am sure it will be an awesome room!
ReplyDeleteOh, some of us never outgrow our toys! There's nothing wrong with that and don't let anybody tell you otherwise. Froggy stays.
ReplyDeleteOH do I ever know exactly what you are going through! Our youngest who just turned 13 has been in a "cool" room for some time as he shares it with his 16 year old brother. However we still have bins filled with legos, matchbox cars, and various other cute toys. I know the finished the room will be completely cool when its done!
ReplyDeleteExcited to see your reveal...I always struggle with this one! We recently updated our 11-year-old's room...and he definitely wanted COOL and NOT cute. Themed rooms can grow old too...so how do you keep it trendy/cool without being too trendy?
ReplyDelete