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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To think the child should have the room?

85 replies

YellowDoorYellowFloor · 27/12/2024 11:52

I visited an old school friend over Christmas who I will call Hannah.

Hannah lives in a modern town house-type home- bottom floor open plan living/dining room with separate kitchen, middle floor master bedroom with en suite, 2nd reasonable sized room and a 4th bedroom which is really a box room then on the top floor another good sized bedroom and a fair sized landing area with great natural light.

Hannah has 2 DC, aged 10 and 8. The 10 yr old has the reasonable sized room on the middle floor, and the 8yr old is in the box room. The room on the top floor has a bed in for guests and a desk for Hannah for her hobby (neither Hannah nor her DH work from home).

The room the 8yr old is in is so small literally it’s just a single bed and a chest of drawers- no wardrobe, no space for toys or to play (although he does have toys downstairs)

AIBU to be surprised you’d leave one of your children in such a tiny room when there is an alternative?

(I am aware her house, her choices but I really felt for the child. They are very middle class and the children are clearly loved and looked after but I just thought it a strange way to prioritise space. And no, as far as I’m aware there are no regular guests who come to stay)

OP posts:
comedycentral · 27/12/2024 12:03

I imagine it was their baby's room at some point, and as they are still fairly little, they are still on the same floor. I expect they will have a good shift around at some point. It's not like the kids' room under the stairs like Harry Potter's.

NC10125 · 27/12/2024 12:02

Lots of 8 year olds still have nightmares which they need an adult for, or creep into a parents bed in the early morning. My guess is that they’ve bought a house with that setup with the view that the 8 year old will move upstairs in teenage years.

CatherinedeBourgh · 27/12/2024 12:01

I had a 6 bedroom house with several large bedrooms, both my dc shared the smallest bedroom in the house.

They said it was cozy, and didn't want anything else.

doodleschnoodle · 27/12/2024 11:59

It'll be the different floor. It's an awkward layout. I wouldn't want an under 10 on a diff floor from me for various reasons. Perhaps 8yo doesn't really care anyway? Some kids don't really play much in their rooms till they're older, so maybe the 8yo happily plays elsewhere and just uses it for sleep.

DragonGypsyDoris · 27/12/2024 11:58

Not your circus, not your monkeys.

TotallyTwisted · 27/12/2024 11:58

Is it really so hard to work out that they don't want an 8yo on a different floor from the rest of the family?

MumChp · 27/12/2024 11:58

None of your business but yes we would do rooms different.

SometimesCalmPerson · 27/12/2024 11:57

They probably want to be on the same floor. These new build townhouses are completely impractical for most families.

TickingAlongNicely · 27/12/2024 11:56

Lots of parents dont like small children on a different floor.

And lots of children get attached to their bedrooms.

BobbyBiscuits · 27/12/2024 11:54

Well, why don't you tell her you think that. In front of both her daughters. 🙄