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For free parenting resources please check out the Early Years Alliance's Family Corner.

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Parenting

Toys in bedroom?

20 replies

NancyDroop · 14/05/2016 15:54

We're just deciding whether to move our two girls into a small bedroom (only beds and wardrobes) or into a big bedroom (beds, wardrobes and all toys).

Could I ask for some advice on the pros and cons of these approaches? I'm worried that toys in room means that bedtimes become tricky, but on the plus side they might play quietly in the mornings (ha!).

I want to avoid the rest of the house being dominated by toys so am leaning towards using the bigger room.

I'm also assuming my two DD's will be happy to share a room for the next 5-10 years, what are people's experiences of this? They are now 2 and 3 weeks old so looking to move them in when they're 3 and 1 yo.

Thanks for any advice!

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skankingpiglet · 14/05/2016 20:37

Watching with interest on room sharing comments as DD2 is due next month. We have the choice of either putting them (eventually) together in a big room, or DD1 has the big room to herself with DD2 in a small single room. I'm thinking together in the big room will be the most fair option DH gets a home office/man cave in the small room but wonder if the youngest will get to an age where a smaller room to herself is preferable to sharing with her sister...

As for the toy thing, DD1 is currently in the small room with a selection of toys and books. She's only 2 ATM, but I don't have a problem with the toys interfering with bedtime. On the nights she doesn't want to go to bed she prefers to shout at us from the stairgate on her door. In the mornings she does the same, although I live in hope she'll start playing with her toys (quietly!) in the morning at some point. Nap time is a slightly different story, and she often gets up as soon as I leave the room and plays with the toys. It can take quite a few goes to get her down... On the upside, she'll also sometimes play when she wakes up from the nap too. I'll go upstairs thinking she's still asleep as no yelling for me (her usual mechanism for letting me know she's awake) only to hear her singing quietly to her teddies or see her sat on the floor reading books.

I know what you mean about getting all of the toys clear of the rest of the house. It is nice having some of the toys contained in her room, although we are currently rearranging/extending our house so we will have a small playroom which will also do the job of removing toys from the living room.

NancyDroop · 14/05/2016 21:51

Best of luck with the arrival of DD2 skankingpiglet! My DD2 arrived 3 weeks ago and it is already lovely seeing the interaction.

Speaking of bumps, bumpity bumping for traffic!

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KatyN · 14/05/2016 22:19

My 4.5 year old has all his toys in his bedroom. He has an ikeA storage thingy but he can easily get to the bottom who sets of toys. We tend to have one box downstairS and take it up when he wants to play with something else downstairs. However he's just as happy playing in his room.
Also r bedtime, he rarely plays with toys at night. His room is dark but also he's knackered. He might potter round for 10 minutes if he's really awake but other than that it's never been a problem

NancyDroop · 15/05/2016 08:46

Thanks KatyN. Leaning towards toys in room definitely.

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WhenTheDragonsCame · 15/05/2016 08:57

My youngest 2 DDs share a room and have their toy box with larger things in there. Games and smaller toys like playmobil are downstairs in an ikea unit.

Mine are 7 and 5 and have shared a room since before DD3 turned 1. They have occasionally complained about each other but I think they prefer having someone else there.

They have the largest bedroom in the house.

MrsJoeyMaynard · 15/05/2016 09:02

My DC don't share a room, so can't comment on that.

But we have toys in our DC's bedroom. They don't usually try to play with toys at bedtime - as with a pp, they're usually ready for a rest by then.

They will play with their toys when they wake up in the morning though.

ICanSeeForMiles · 15/05/2016 09:12

I moved house when my two dc shared a room, it was so horrific I was desperate for an extra room
There's 3 years between my two, and when the inevitable accidents during the night when toilet training, trying to strip beds without waking everyone up, if one dc had a nightmare, if one wanted the door open or closed, if one was ill etc etc, it made sense to move.
They're both brilliant sleepers in their own rooms now. Wrt toys, they both have toys in their rooms and an adjoining toy cupboard down their wee hallway and they don't even look at them after they're tucked in. (They're 4 and 7 now, btw)

Cakescakescakes · 15/05/2016 09:16

I would wait and see about sharing. We planned this but it would have been a nightmare. Boys are now 5 and 2.5 and neither are good sleepers so still in seperate rooms. They still sometimes wake each other up through the walls so I can only imagine what it'd be like in seperate rooms. Also ds2 needs to go to bed earlier than ds1 so I would have to try to sneak the older one in and then expect him to just quietly go to sleep without waking ds1 ( who is a light sleeper). So wouldn't work for us. Maybe give it a while and see how things pan out.

Cakescakescakes · 15/05/2016 09:17

I mean what it'd be like NOT in seperate rooms

NancyDroop · 15/05/2016 14:47

Thanks everyone. It sounds like toys in room is most likely ok but that sharing a room is hit and miss.

I'm tempted to try room sharing as my 2yo is a deep sleeper but it will be a while until I figure out how DD2 sleeps.

One reason to try sharing is I expect a lot of tge toys will be larger shared toys.

Thanks again for your replies!

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Cakescakescakes · 15/05/2016 22:21

My boys play in DS1's room as its bigger and has most toys but he sleeps in his own little box room which was the nursery.

NancyDroop · 16/05/2016 13:45

Cakes since the toys are in one child's room does he feel that they are his, rather than shared between the siblings?

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Cakescakescakes · 16/05/2016 15:29

No that hasn't really been a problem so far. He's generally happy enough to share as that's the way it's been for ages so they are both used to it. He has big rugs etc on the floor in his room to play on so he understands it's a play space. I keep a few small toys in ds2's room and bring them out as and when he wants them. We only have a handful of toys downstairs (very small living room).

Cakescakescakes · 16/05/2016 15:30

And as ds2 goes to bed earlier and also still naps then DS1 gets plenty of time to play alone in his room too without his brother around.

Misty9 · 16/05/2016 23:26

We had no toys in the bedroom for ds as when we put him into a bed it was a nightmare and he used to trash his room if bedtime got heated...

Now he's 4.5 it seems to be safe again and dd, 2, has a lot of toys in hers too. More because we have way more toys than when ds was an only!

Congratulations :)

MsMarple · 17/05/2016 00:04

My sons share a small room with each other and a load of soft toys, but all their other toys and books are in a larger room. It works well for getting them to bed without stress and I think it makes a nice peaceful sleeping environment for them. It also saves arguments about which toys would go in which room!

BackforGood · 17/05/2016 00:18

I'm also assuming my two DD's will be happy to share a room for the next 5-10 years

Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha

I mean, I know if you have more dc than rooms then they have to, but siblings , as a rule, do NOT want to share a room with their siblings if there is an option not to.
I know many families where walls have had to be built down the middle of rooms, or barriers made with wardrobes, or other furniture. I don't know of any families where siblings have said "please let me share with..."

NancyDroop · 17/05/2016 11:16

BackforGood I am worried about renovating a nice room for them only for that to happen...

I think I'm getting the message that we'll just have to try something, I can't really try to guess their preferences yet. Doh.

Thank you for your various responses!

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Misty9 · 17/05/2016 23:49

My two have requested to share at 4.5 and just turned 2. We just can't do it yet but may well do in the next year or so.

Kiwiinkits · 18/05/2016 00:02

My DDs share a room; they are quite close in age (17 months between them) so they go to bed and wake up at the same time. They've shared since they were born and are 5.5 and 4 now. They seem to be happy to share. I've never had any comments from them to suggest otherwise. Most of the toys are in their room too. They often play together for about 20 minutes in their room in the morning (until a disagreement breaks out). So, it's working well for us.

Their little brother has his own room; my plan is to give my eldest dd his room when she starts asking for it.

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