The bed is solid wood construction, has been completely refinished in a cherry finish and is very sturdy. It will work up until a child is 3 yrs of age if they want, so that gave us plenty of time to get a toddler bed, etc… I have the mattress with it as well and all of the original paperwork/instructions. It has a step rail on it that lets the front side down and 4 levels for the mattress to be raised/lowered. It also has castors on it so that it can be moved around easily for cleaning/relocation in the room. There has never been a re-call on this bed according to the CPSC.