Kids sharing a room

[Trousersareoverrated]

We have a 4 bedroom house. 2 of the rooms are very small doubles and 2 are a bit more spacious. Currently DH and I have a large room, DD (2) has a small room and DSD (11) has a small room (her choice- it has the nicest view). The other larger room is a spare room/study as I work from home.

I’m now pregnant and we are starting to think about getting a room ready for the new arrival. My initial thought is to move DD into the other large room, buy bunk beds and make that into a room that the 2 little ones can share for a few years so we can still have a separate spare room/study. The age gap will be roughly 3 years and I was thinking that room sharing would be ok until DD is about 6ish or possibly longer if they are both girls and happy with the arrangement.

Has anyone had experience of small children with a 3 year age gap sharing a room? Is it a nightmare or perfectly manageable?

“I am thinking about this now as DD is still in a cot but is nearly ready for a ‘big’ bed and I’d like to get her settled in that before the disruption of a newborn comes along so I will need to buy the bed itself soon.“

Just checking you know you cannot safely put a two year old in the top bunk (and personally I’d not even have bunks in their room at two, they’re likely to climb up anyway). The minimum age for a mid or high sleeper is usually specified as six. But perhaps that wasn’t what you meant.

My two have just started sharing (DD5 and DS3). We have a four bed but trying to free up space for another home office. Will only be for a few years but they seem to like it so far. I shared with my brother until I was 8 and loved it!

My 2 girls still share a tiny box room and just get on with it (age 12 and 10). I would say sharing was more of an issue when younger as they messed around at bedtime and the younger one woke the older one too early. But since about 5 and 3 it's been fine. Thinking now they need more space but more to do with tiny room rather than sharing.

When we were kids there was four of us (so age 9,8,5 and 1) and bedrooms were a communal merry go round 😂

There was bunk beds in a couple of the rooms and we'd just sleep wherever to be honest. Even though we all had our own rooms. My youngest brother would bedshare with whoever would have him and my 5yr old sister slept with my parents most nights (until she was 8).

Only issue was when me (eldest) and sister were forced to share - the four year age gap was too much as she'd deliberately destroy my possessions and ruin things.

I've got a three year old dd and expecting again so am hoping that they'll want to share at ages 5 and 2 for a few years. Just for the fun of it.

Bunk beds are a long way off. Once they are 6 and 8 you can think of bunk beds. Before then your eldest will be too young for the top bunk. I wouldn't even have bunks in the room until they're 6 and 4ish at the earliest as that's just asking for trouble with a climber.

Get your elder DD her big girl bed, but not bunks. You can make the call on bunks down the line if they want to keep sharing, but want more floor space.

Cautionary tale here. DSs (1 and 4 then) very happy to share but night owl DS2 talked to his animals for an hour at bed time, keeping lark DS1 awake. Lark DS1 then still woke at 6, waking DS2. Neither of them got enough sleep and it was an all round disaster.

[quote Trousersareoverrated]@WitchesBritchesPumpkinPants I am thinking about this now as DD is still in a cot but is nearly ready for a ‘big’ bed and I’d like to get her settled in that before the disruption of a newborn comes along so I will need to buy the bed itself soon. Also it’s a lot easier to decorate and rearrange a room without a baby around. Of course the baby will be in our room for the recommended 6 months at least so the actual sharing won’t start for some time.

Good point about safety but the cot we have is pretty deep. DD certainly wouldn’t be able to reach in and move covers around - and dd was in a sleeping bag til she was 2 so I expect the baby will be the same.[/quote]
Well, personally, I wouldn't put a baby in with a small child. I know of too many 'accidents' where the older one was trying to 'help' & things ended badly, sometimes VERY badly. (Cuddly toys, duvets, blankets, toys being lobbed into the cot or the older one climbing in, or pulling the baby over the side). I won't go into details as they're enough to give people nightmares.

I'd get a bed for DD's current room, keep using the small room for an office and deal with it when the time comes. 6 months after the baby comes is a lifetime in terms of DD, if you want to move her.

But that's just me...you do what makes YOU happy 🌷