So this was the picture two nights ago. Two toddlers passed out after an evening of fun, and one less sleep-able bed in the house. You see the grandparents came by with an early 2nd birthday present for Sydney; a dresser/mirror and twin bed set. Very cute, nice flower wood carvings on the head and foot board, mostly wood, and full of very stinky adhesive fumes (that pass US law standards but gave me a headache and made me feel sick to my stomach.) And no mattress or bedding.

We had been hoping that she would keep her crib converted day-bed for a bit to get used to some new freedom, and learn to not roll out. And we have some other big budget purchases we are planning this year and thought we might purchase a new big-girl bed, mattress, and bedding for her next year. So when a new bedding set was dropped at our front door, we set it up, and then panicked…are we going to be able to afford an eco-friendly mattress and bedding set?

Eco-friendly mattress would never have crossed my thoughts had it not been for very mindful, and thoughtful bloggers out there reminding me each day that our home, earth, is special, unique, and non-renewable in a whole sense, and that each family should learn to treat her with loving care.

Well, eco-friendly mattresses are expensive!! Conventional poly-filled, flame-retardant chemical saturated, adhesive fume leaching mattresses can run from $250-ish up to the thousands. Eco-friendly mattresses are constructed with Real latex, the kind from the tree, real wool that has its own natural flame retardant properties, no chemicals needed, and organic cotton coverings that don’t use pounds of pesticides that pollute our waterways and kill off wildlife. These, wonderful beds cost $900 and up for the mattress and then another $200 or so for the solid wood base, sustainably harvested, mind you.

And then the bedding. I searched the Internet for organic cotton sheets (pesticide and chlorine bleach free), down pillows (naturally hypoallergenic), and down comforters, oh so warm filled with something from nature, not made in a factory. Expensive, expensive, expensive. I am sure we could buy a polyester bedding set for a few hundred dollars, made of plastic and chemical dyes that would tear, loose it’s stitching, feel like sandpaper, and be tossed out in a few years. But even after the January White Sales, the more eco-friendly bedding cost more like $600.

Since we weren’t prepared for an almost $1800 purchase this birthday, we just decided to take down her bed, and set up the non-eco-friendly crib for a bit until we decide which bedding to purchase and have saved up enough cash to do so. The night before we put up her crib again, she slept with Oppa. Soundly…to wake up happily at 6:04 AM.

In my heart of hearts, I just couldn’t bring myself to buy a poly-based mattress that I knew was so toxic to our earth. I guess it is just because I was thinking about it…$1200 over a 10 year+ use, isn’t that expensive, and is certainly a very small investment to keep our earth and our bodies healthy.