Small bedroom, bad mum?

[tashakg89]

So I've got a (small)three bed house and ever since I moved in there five years ago I've had horrendous anxiety over the little bedroom, it is 5'11 by 6'9, the second bedroom is fairly small too (9'10 by 7'9) although I'm ok with that size and is plenty big enough for my six year old. My four year old is in the tiny box room and I feel constant guilt and daily anxiety about it. I can't afford to move and won't be doing so for another 4-5 years but I just want to enjoy my house and I can't as I feel like everyone's laughing at me and thinking I'm a bad mum for putting him in a such small bedroom.
I'm constantly on Rightmove too comparing it to other box bedrooms and it really is the smallest one I've ever seen.

What do other people think? Does anyone else have children in tiny bedrooms?

@IamtheOA not heard of them before il have a look. Thanks

That space under the bed would be wonderful for a den.
Are you a member of the fb group DIY on a budget? If you join, there are loads of examples of tiny kids' rooms and all the great things people have done with them.

Op my bedroom door opened outwards it wouldn't have worked otherwise xx

What's in the tall boy? If clothing can it be stored elsewhere? Just to free up more space.

I'd make it cosier under his bed. Like a little den! Ikea do £3 spice racks that you can paint (or leave unpainted), secure to the wall and store books in (or other bits).

A kallax type unit on the wall could be good too with some boxes (such as dronas range from ikea) which hold a lot of stuff and can be fixed the wall.

I'd add a curtain to make his den a hideout and would probably add some fairy lights too.

Does he like snuggling in blankets? Add a rail to the wall to fold one over. Does he have any favourite costumes? Add some hooks to the wall or back of door to hang them.

The key is to make use of every area so for his room that would be under his bed and the wall opposite.

You could also buy kids door organisers but actually hook them onto the wall instead and store some more bits in there. Things that let his character shine!

What about raised beds? Ones that are built on dressers or Kallax units ( again, pinterest)

My youngest is in the box room and loves it! I mentioned maybe moving the other day and she looked panic struck and started on about refusing to leave her cosy room! Don’t stress, your children have a roof over their heads, their own room and a parent who loves them so much they’re worried about their bedroom sizes!

Ours is a bit smaller than that

Fits a single bed and a bookcase. Ds who is 16 is just pleased that he has his own room now and doesn’t have to share with his younger brothers

His older brother had it until he moved out in his 20s

I had 2 in bunk beds in a room that size.

If you can afford it, the best thing I've ever seen in a box bedroom is where they went into the loft to make a loft space big enough for a sleep mattress and had a storage ladder going back into the room. That left room for a desk and a proper wardrobe and a little bit of foot space in the actual room.

Don't feel bad about it! Your kids are looked after and have everything they need. Don't stress about the size of a bedroom!

We had to move in with my parents recently and my dd had the box room which justfit a single bed and a tiny bedside table. All of her clothes had to be put in our bedroom in drawers.

It doesn't make you a bad mum at all. You should be proud that you are providing all that your children need

Hardly crappy parenting having kids sharing a room. Some people need to look at what crappy parenting actually is!

Most houses have a box room. It's a sales tactic when first built - a way of saying 3 bedrooms when it is, but only just! My youngest son chose the smallest room out of all the bedrooms in the house. Personally in your case I would have a lower bed as my son treats his bed as playing space.

Hardly crappy parenting having kids sharing a room

I was asked by house viewer if we intended all our children - as there wasn't enough bed rooms

There were two big doubles - one shared between our two DD - and a single sized room rather than a small box where DS was and a massive downstairs space and decent garden - it was one of the bigger houses on estate.

Some people really do believe kids sharing is terrible.

That looks lovely and cosy!. Maybe some fairy lights and a little den under his bed?.

I lived in a tiny room, literally had to have a custom bed and mattress because it wasn't big enough to fit the length of a single bed. I lived in there from 6 months old to 22 years old and loved it. It was my own space and taught me how to be tidy (no option no to) and keep only what i needed. Don't feel guilty it really doesn't matter, i had a fantastic childhood and never cared about the size of my room!

Thanks everyone I really do feel so much better for posting on here. And thanks for all your ideas. Defiantly going to get fairy lights and a bean bag!

My daughter has a portion of our room that we've divided off by using a wardrobe and chest of drawers, she loves it and loves her "room" . Kids don't care about these things, if he's well fed and has all he needs then that's all he'll remember

Handsoffmysweets

I don’t particularly think there’s anything wrong with a couple of kids sharing a room, it’s where there are lots of children squeezed into a room with no space or privacy that really isn’t ideal.

I'm sure our parents/grandparents generation would disagree! Most families were very grateful to have a decent home and wouldn't care about sharing, it's all they'd have known. It's a relatively new thing for families to be small enough to allow siblings to have separate bedrooms

One of my sons is in a TINY room but it doesn’t bother him in the least. My other two sons share a room! If anyone should be looked at for bad mum it should be me!

My littlest is in a tiny room too, he couldn't care less. Lots of kids have to share he is lucky.

When I moved in my house it was a 2 bed, we’ve converted the bigger room into 2 bedrooms & my DD has the smaller room, it might sound big 11ft x 6ft 4 but we can only put the bed in a certain way & it has to be custom made, we did get a carpenter in to put a wardrobe over the stairs for her to save room, I’m more concerned about the size of my living room 13ft x 12ft it’s tiny especially when have 7 people in there but we make do, currently saving up for a conservatory for extra space x

Many people don’t have a third bedroom and children have to share with their siblings so having her own space is not a bad thing. Even if it’s tiny it’s better than nothing for sure. Have you considered the children sharing a bedroom and using the third for a toy room perhaps?

I used to live in one bed flat until DS was 3. I couldn’t afford anything bigger. Me, Oh and the 2 DC live in a 3 bed house now. the 3rd bedroom, my daughters room, is quite small and an awkward size. Can literally fit a bed, wardrobe and a few toys in there but she only really sleeps in there.

Don’t beat yourself up!

Our dd had a very tiny bedroom so we built a high bed with wardrobe and den underneath. She also had some extra space downstairs that was hers for toy storage.