Growing up.

In a previous post, I talked about my rekindled passion for drawing during lockdown and I wondered how I was going to continue this after things go back to “normal.”

Well, one of the surprising ways this has happened was through a project I decided to take on. It was to transform the boys bedroom.

In a post long ago, I talked about mum guilt and their room has always been a sore point for me. We have either been in rented properties or in the midst of a sale or moving so they never really got a room that was theirs, any trace of personality. I decided that I would draw pictures for their walls of some of their favourite characters from shows they love right now. This grew into buying lots of other things but the key was that they wouldn’t know. It would be surprise.

Before I get into the before and after pictures I also have to confess, that I, as a mother, have been struggling with the reality that my children are no longer babies. That we are in a new phase where, they are learning how to be themselves and navigating the world in new and exciting ways. However, I have ached the days when they needed me so much. It’s so funny when you are in it, you wish they were older and a little more independent but now I miss those days. This is not to say that I feel like I want more of those days, but the stage of babies and toddlers are behind me. It has been for a while, but during this lockdown and getting to know my kids and the conversations we have had about money, friends, how to perservere when things are tough, girlfriends (I know) has really forced me to look at them in a new light.

So, by doing their room, it was also a way for me to acknowledge this in a healthy way. That they did in fact need a space just for them to enjoy or go to when they need it. A space to process and a place to call their own.

Before Pictures:

As you can see, it’s pretty much a bunk bed and that’s it. It is a least clean, even if it is a bit messy.

After Pictures:

Now, it’s a little brighter, with the Teen Titans, Kipo and her gang and Glitch Techs on their wall. They have now got some much needed pegs and shelves, a little rug, bunting and they each have a little light by their beds. All these small things added up to something grand!

As you can imagine, they loved the big reveal. Ben actually called me a liar! To be fair, I did actually lie to him. I said that the pictures that I was painting were for library for the school that I work at and not for them. So he was pretty stunned when he saw them on his wall.

More importantly, they have have truly gained a space for them. They often disappear to it individually or as a pair and just, “hang out.” I have been told several times that I need to be invited into their room and I gently remind them, that I own their room so I can go into it whenever I like. Overall, it has been a great project and it has been wonderful process of acknowledgement.