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Original poster

If you have a 3 bed house and 2 DC

82 replies

ponderingthisthing · 21/07/2021 21:01

Do your DC share a room?

Currently my 1 year old and soon to be 4 year olds have their own bedrooms, which means that we now have no spare room/ study.

Just thinking forward whether to get them to share a room. Would be interested to hear your experience and views on this.

OP posts:
Yellow85 · 21/07/2021 21:26

My 2 Ds share a room and I have to say it been brilliant for us. They are 5 and 7. Spare room is an office/toy room and has allowed us to segregate sleeping and playing which makes for a much easier bedtime. I think we’re lucky if we get another year or so out if it though.

KitKat1985 · 21/07/2021 21:27

Mine have separate rooms. Judging from experiences of when they've had to share a room on holiday, they would bloody keep each other awake for sodding hours if they shared. Also I think as kids get older they need their own space.

Redglitter · 21/07/2021 21:28

Why would you make them share so you can have a spare room. That seems madness. How often do you have overnight guests & how long do they stay.

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Ifitquacks · 21/07/2021 21:29

Well I have 3 children in a 4 bed house and they all have their own room.
I think them having their own space is more important than us having a spare room for occasional guests.

Gladimnotcampinginthisweather · 21/07/2021 21:32

I had to share with my sister and I hated it ( no doubt she did too).

PotteringAlong · 21/07/2021 21:34

We have a 4 bedroom house and 3 children - the youngest 2 share and we have a spare room; it works for us at the minute but we will also split them up when / if they want their own space.

Vodkabulary · 21/07/2021 21:36

Unless you actually need a study or a spare room then own rooms.

I shared with my sister … no choice but when we moved and I got my own box room (not the crime it’s made out to be here) it was amazing!

LizzieSiddal · 21/07/2021 21:36

My two wanted to share until they were around 9 and 6, so we did have a spare room until then.

WeBurnedSoBrightWeBurnedOut · 21/07/2021 21:40

3 bed house, 2DC, own room each.

I grew up sharing with 2 siblings until we each moved out, sometimes it was really fun, others awful, especially as we hit teen years. At the time I would have sold my siblings for my own room.

NaturalBlondeYeahRight · 21/07/2021 21:40

I’m surprised at most of these replies. Mine loved sharing a room (eldest was quite nervous in the dark) and I couldn’t get them to sleep in own room until she was 10/11. No issues at all (teen years are a whole different ball game)

Evianlife · 21/07/2021 21:41

This is MN, so you will scar your kids for life if you make them share a bedroom.

In the real world, if you need the space the kids will cope.

Mine share. Theres a two year age gap. We lived in a two bedroom house initially. Moved into a three bedroom just before covid. The third bedroom is a box room and it's not really fair making one have the smaller room while the other gets a huge (double) bedroom.

I also WFH and need the box room for my workspace. Downstairs is open plan and my bedroom is too small. And besides, I want somewhere I can shut the door on work at the end of the day. It also serves as a dressing room (all our wardrobes are in there), where clothes get hung up in the winter and where the hoover and wash basket live.

OnlyFoolsnMothers · 21/07/2021 21:42

I have an 9 month old and a 4yr old, as the eldest is due to start school they each have a room. If they wanted to share once both in primary I have no issue but I think at this age it’s disruptive as on diff schedules.

mamamalt · 21/07/2021 21:45

My 1 and 4 year-old share currently and love it. We are moving soon to bigger house and they will technically have their own rooms but will most likely still want to sleep in together but rooms will be there for when they're ready to move on!
We have the odd evening of silliness but most of the time they're great!

GalacticDragonfly · 21/07/2021 21:45

The children have a bedroom each. We have an office in the garden. Any overnight guests can pick between the garden room, the sofa bed or the hotel down the road (unless they’d rather stump up the £250k+ it would take to get us an extra bedroom).

TotorosCatBus · 21/07/2021 21:47

My kids shared until the oldest was 8ish?
There were nights that they stayed up giggling but they were reassured by each other's presence when they woke at night too.

Is the 4yo sensible enough not to put things in their sibling's cot?

gollyh · 21/07/2021 21:49

I shared a room with different siblings growing up despite having plenty of spare rooms. 2 of mine share out of choice, I don't get the angst about it when young.

bubblebubblebubbletrouble · 21/07/2021 21:51

Mine asked for bunkbeds and to share 3 years ago (then aged 3 & 7) - has worked well but I will separate them again next year before dd1 goes to high school.

MuchTooTired · 21/07/2021 21:57

Mine shared until they were nearly 3, it was hell every night once they’d got to around 18m.

We moved and they’ve now got their own rooms which is bliss, bedtime is considerably easier and they actually sleep.

I guess it depends on their personalities - if I had x2 of DS they’d happily share as come bedtime they just want to sleep. Two of my DD I’d need two houses never mind bedrooms.

Awrite · 21/07/2021 21:58

Mine shared from 6&2 for a few years. They are girl/boy and we have a 4 bedroomed house with no need for a spare room or office.

The wee one slept better (much better) when we put them in together one holiday so we tried it out at home and it was great - they loved it.

Think the big one was 10 or 11 when they went into their own rooms. Still share on holiday and remain very close.

I was always jealous that my brothers got to share when we were little.

Calmdown14 · 21/07/2021 21:58

I bought a great IKEA bed that pulls out to a big double really easily.
They have their own rooms, sometimes share and go in together when needed for guests

AnotherDayAnotherCake · 21/07/2021 21:59

Own room.

robotcollision · 21/07/2021 22:00

My DC insisted on sharing until they were about 8 years old.

Can you make a corner of the living area into a study or open up the space under the stairs and build in a desk and shelves? (A friend did that and it looked great.)

mindutopia · 21/07/2021 22:00

We have a 3 bed house. Dc have their own rooms. We have a spare room downstairs (extra reception room), but I have always worked from home at least part, if not all, of the week for more than 10 years and I work from the dining table or a desk in the lounge. I also have a desk in my youngest dc's bedroom. I wouldn't keep a spare room for random houseguests rather than given my dc their own room. Houseguests are welcome to sleep on a sofa/floor or we have lots of lovely holiday cottages and a couple hotels nearby.

BlackeyedSusan · 21/07/2021 22:03

Think yourself lucky that you have enough rooms for bedrooms.

AnotherEmma · 21/07/2021 22:04

We have a 3 bedroom house and 2 children, 3.5 years between them, with a bedroom each.

We do also have an annexe with an office / guest room (it has a small bathroom too). If we didn't have that I guess I would want a 4th bedroom.

We might get a loft conversion in future, we'd make a lovely big master bedroom with en suite, and then DC2 would have our room (currently she's in the small box room). That would free up to box room for a study or spare.

Homework isn't an issue yet but it will be in future. And I think there will be times when DH and I will both be WFH (I prefer going into the office but it seems WFH or at least "hybrid working" is here to stay!)

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