Please talk to me about bunk beds!

[emmalala]

Hiya, I don't often post here but we just received bunk beds and are wondering if they can work for us. Our kids are 6 & 4 and although they are comfortable falling asleep in separate spaces, they keep each other up for HOURS in the bunk beds!! This is our first week and so far it's not working well, last night I bumped them back to their own separate beds and they went right off to sleep.
It would be really great for all of us if they can use the bunk beds. But I wonder if they are developmentally ready or what. So far we have just made sure that bedtime comes when they are really exhausted but still they stay up forever.. I can't tell if this is just the novelty, but so far it's just not working. Help!

[3girls1boy]

When they fall asleep right away, are they in different rooms or just different beds?

My first thought would just be to stay with them until they fall asleep and keep reminding them that they have to be quiet. Maybe you could let them whisper together for 15 minutes or so, before you enforce the quiet time.

My 10 year old (who shares a room and a bunk bed with her 7 year old sister) is reading over my shoulder and she suggests, "Maybe they should have different bedtimes."

Jeanne
mom to DDs 13, 10, 7 and a half, and DS 4

[mamaduck]

Mine are 9 and 5 and do better in their bunk beds (which we just started doing) than they do in separate rooms, because the little one gets spooked being all alone. The big one has zero tolerance for goofing around though. He likes to read his chapter, turn off his light, and go to sleep. Simply will not engage in fooling around.

I don't know that it would work out at all if they were closer in age.

[emmalala]

Thank you so much! Your suggestions are very helpful.

They are both asleep because I stayed in the room for a while, singing to them, although not until they were completely asleep since the 18mo wasn't ready for bed and wanted to climb into the bunks with them. Can you believe she can climb the ladder!?!

Also maybe because they spent the whole afternoon at the beach

The different bedtimes idea is also great, thank you for that, we will work on getting that to happen. They've been in synch for so long, I quite forgot they could be different. Thank you, Jeanne's ten-year-old!

Yes, having company is part of the reason for wanting to have them in bunks - until now, a grownup always slept in the room, but as our family grows, it changes... bittersweet!!!

[~*max*~]

We have bunk beds out of necesity. And we have had a lot of fooling around too Sometimes for well over an hour, just talking, playing, being silly - it would actually be quite cute if I weren't trying to get them to sleep. We finally found something to help - we let them each listen to music w/headphones when they go to bed. They are so focused on the music that they do not pay attention to each other and peacefully fall asleep.