How much do you use your baby's nursery?

[ohButtons]

We are TTC and looking for a new house with space for a nursery. We've found a house we like. It has a medium-sized room upstairs, with wonderful views. It is the best room in the house, but too small to be a proper bedroom.

I was thinking it could eventually be a nursery. But I don't know if people end up spending much time in nursery rooms? I guess the baby would be mostly sleeping in it, but we could also use it for feeding, playing etc. Or is it best to keep the nursery as a place for sleeping only, so that they associate it with sleep, not excitement?

I guess I am over thinking it, but I'm the sort that has to be able to imagine where everything would go before I know if it is the house for me.

Babies aren't supposed to sleep in a seperate room from you.

So the best thing to use it for with a child is a playroom

Used it for nappy changes from the start and from six months for sleeping and night feeds. Don't play in it.

Eventually the child will grow and the "nursery" will become their bedroom. I did most of the might feeds in DD's room when she was a baby, so DH could sleep, so used it a fair bit. I also found feeding in a chair much comfier.

We set up our second bedroom as our DDs room but she didn't use it until past 6months (I think that's the current recommended age) and now as a toddler she doesn't play in there, all her toys are spread through the living room and garden. I would keep it as a study space

Think beyond babies. Where is this toddler/child going to go? Do you only want one child or more? A child needs a bedroom. It can be shared but they need a place to sleep that isn't with mummy and daddy.

We have a changing unit / chest of drawers and have always kept clothes and nappies there, so did all nappy changes in her room. That's pretty much all except sleeping though. All the books are in DD's room too. Downstairs is swamped with toys, the last thing we need is nappy changing stuff as well!

We never bothered with a nursery. I slept in the spare room with DS1. Even now he has his own room he only sleeps in it, he prefers to play in the livingroom.
Ds2 will go straight from our room in with Ds1 so no nursery this time either.
It's a personal thing I think but I never really saw the point!

Sure, the baby would sleep in with us for a while and then move to their own room. Like nightandthelight said, we might use it for changing and night feeds in the mean time.

I guess the same question applies to toddlers. Do they use their bedrooms for much except sleep? Probably not.

Could use it as a study I guess ...

Never had a nursery. But at about 10 months both children moved to their own bedroom. Second bedroom is quite big and they play in there all the time.

Toddlers generally play downstairs in the day, but the bedroom is good for playing at certain times like in the morning if they wake early, or whilst you shower ( can put stair gate on door to keep upstairs). It's easiest space to keep most books and teddies etc also as they take up space downstairs. And can keep some toys in a cupboard and rotate with things downstairs so you don't have everything in living room

Want - children don't have to have a seperate space. Mine are now primary school age and we live in a one bed flat, both child sleep in the bedroom with Dh and I.

We lived in a 2 bed house when ds was born and we all slept in the nursery together because it was on the same floor as the toilet (our room was the attic) and a lovely room. We played in that room a lot too as our downstairs was quite small. Now we have a 2.8 year old and a 14 month old and both have a bedroom. They only really play in them whilst I get a shower now, but we have a playroom downstairs so might use them more if we didn't. I'd imagine it as a toddlers/small childs room-dd was in with us until she was one.

DS uses his room for sleeping and changing only. I guess he's too little to play there on his own, plus we have a seperate room that is a play area.

The room is a decent size, nicest room in the house, it would also be a nice study/computer room.

Separate, sorry

We used ours from birth to store all her clothes and general stuff. She slept there from 6 months. She's now 2 and apart from changing her when having a bath we do everything else downstairs. We are lucky enough to have a small play room and that's where we do nappies, get her dressed etc.

Our nursery was used for night feeds and changing in the beginning and is now where DS1 sleeps, drinks his bedtime milk and gets his stories and is where we store clothes in wardrobe and shelves for both DSs. It'll be some time yet before I feel happy with DS1 (21 months) playing in there alone, and a lot longer until DS2 (2 months) can join him!

When DS2 is old enough he'll move from our room in with his big brother. We're lucky enough to have the room as I do think it's important that they have a room there is theirs, especially as they get older.

Depends on the way you use your space. We didnt have a nursery as such, we had an office/ guest room that we cleared out and put a cot in. Before 6 mths i used it to store the baby stuff and occasionally change nappies. After that it was his bedroom
And we'd play etc there, but we were all on the one floor so it was a bit of a play/chill room too.

Don't have one.
DD1 (11) has her own room.
Ds(2.5) and DD2. (3m) sleep with me!
DS 'has' the box room, but it is just where his clothes and lots of other junk is stored!

DS 11 months has a bedroom which is sizeable. Holds cotbed, wardrobe, plenty floor space, a play tunnel that leads to his pile of toys and a race car ball pit with balls. Also an IKEA poang. Used for sleeps, changes, and about an hours play in the morning and half hours play pre bath and bedtime.

He has a playroom downstairs with ride ons, rockers, activity table, canopy etc so larger bulkier stuff - this doubles up as guest bedroom as and when.

So bedroom is what he uses loads and is an adult sized double bedroom as we thought of toddler/teenager when we set him up there.

DD is 2.5 and could have lived in a room the size of a shoebox (apart from a storage issue) until about 3 months ago when she changed to a bed.

Before then she never spent time in her room except to sleep or be changed.