It's full of super heroes and toys and fun things. (Don't mind the unmade bed. It's not a strength around here.) It is a perfectly acceptable room for a little boy. Except for the fact that his feet hang off the end of the bed and it's clearly WAY past time to move him from a toddler bed to something a little more permanent.
This is cj's room:
It's full of Mickey Mouse and rocket ships and cows and it is a perfectly acceptable room for a little boy. Except for some reason in the winter, due to tree placement and wind trajectories and an bunch of other sciency things it stays somewhere in the vicinity of 47 degrees below zero from the time the sun goes down till the time it comes back up in the morning.
This is the corner between my kitchen and living room:
It used to be a lovely little corner shelf that held my cookbooks, a couple plants and some candle holders. Now it mostly holds Batmobiles.
This is the floor in my library/office:
This is where all the kids' art supplies live. Oy.
As someone who abhors clutter, all of these things are a bit of a problem for me. At least once a
They don't, by the way. Understand me, that is.
So I've been formulating a plan to reduce the amount of clutter and kids' toys and whatnot that has taken over my very soul, which is also known as the common area of our house. My first thought was to ship the kids off to live-away boarding school for the next 15 years or so... Nah, too expensive. My next thought involved a very elaborate set-up by which I staged a home robbery and all the kids' toys were stolen. But that was scary because then people would feel bad for them and just get them more junk (Aunt B, you know who you are!!!). Then I thought I would just throw away or donate a bunch of their crap, but since zj wails for hours every time I try to throw away the BOX a toy came in, I nixed that one, too. There is not enough vodka in Russia to get me through that one.
Then I hit upon a plan, a plan so brilliant, so wonderful, so magnificent, so magical, that I almost can't even bear to speak it aloud.
So I'll whisper. Here it goes:
*whispers* I will get the boys bunk beds and move them both into zj's room. Zj will have a bed he doesn't fall out of every night, cj will stop waking up with frostbite on his extremities, and all will be right with the world. Then, and this is the best part, so pay attention, *voice is getting louder due to extreme excitement* I will convert cj's room to a play room, complete with art desks, their computer, all their toys from all over the house *practically yelling* AND I CAN JUST THROW ALL THEIR CRAP IN THERE AND CLOSE THE DOOR AND I WON'T HAVE TO LOOK AT IT AND IT WON'T BE ALL OVER MY HOUSE ANY MORE!!!!!
Ahem. Excuse me. I feel better now.
I've gone over and over and over this plan in my head, and it seems sound.
But here's my question.
If this is such a brilliant idea, why don't I hear about more people doing it? What am I missing here? Am I so blinded by the thought of having my cookbook shelf back that I'm not thinking clearly? Pretty much every family I know who has more than one kid and more than one bedroom has them in separate rooms, so clearly that's the norm... WHAT AM I MISSING????
I would go into it fully aware that in a few years - five? ten? - one boy or another might begin to demand some privacy and we would likely have to split them back up again, but I kinda like the thought that my house can change to accommodate what my family needs. Zj's room started out as the most lovely shabby chic guest bedroom with pale lavender walls... sigh... and cj's room used to be a home office, so I'm certainly not adverse to making changes here and there.
So help me out. Help me understand. Has anyone out there tried this? Was it good? Bad? Just ok? PLEASE SAY GOOD.
Because seriously, I'm drowning in superheroes and toy cars here, and any input would be appreciated.
The bunkbed idea, works fine but you must take into account that you will be getting less sleep for awhile as they adjust/play at the crack of dawn/midnight....
ReplyDeleteThe playroom.......................they just bring the crap out where you are cuz who wants to play in a room AWAY from mom!?!?!?!?!?!!!!!!! SIGH and if you shut the door wont it just get colder and therefore no one wants to be in there??
It is the norm for kids to have their own rooms (in America, that is) but it's by no means necessary. I am pregnant with #3 and we live in a 2 bedroom house... you do the math. Bunk beds are awesome, and once the novelty wears off and they start sleeping I bet they'll really like sharing a room. Do it!!
ReplyDeleteMy fiance and his brother shared a room growing up because the other room was where they kept all the guns, duh. They got their own rooms when they were teenagers and it all worked out splendidly. Although, I don't know where the guns went after THEIR room was taken away.
ReplyDeleteI know it sounds like a good idea now, and even for the first week or 2 it will be great. Until the toys flow out of the toy room. No child will play in a play room. They really do need to be right in between you and whatever you're doing. Especially when the little one is the only one home... There's no way he'll keep to one room - if you're not in it. And they seem like very different boys... Wait until your little super hero collector starts yelling, " mommmm... Cj is touching my stuff!!!"... Trust me, this will only end with tears... From everyone including you! Those bins you have everywhere w/ toys in them?? That's phenomenaly organized for someone w/ 2 small boys. And really about as good as it gets in that situation too. I'm personaly just happy my little guy actually uses all the bins and shelves I have designated for his stuff . Lol. Get the little one some extra blankets for his cold room ( my sons room is abnormaly cold for some reason too) and just sit down and have a glass of wine and forget the whole thing. That's what I'm going to go do now, just to drown my own memories of bunkbeds and room.sharing. lol. Good luck with whatever you decide :-)
ReplyDeleteOh dear, oh dear, what to do? Well, I was thinking around spring break time, so I have a little while to decide.
ReplyDeleteHi! I just stumbled upon your blog through Blogher and thought I'd give my two cents on the matter! I have two girls who share a room and it worked out great while they were really little. Now they are 5 & 7 and we have my oldest sleeping in the guest room because they DON'T go to sleep when they are in the same room!! They stay up all night talking and then are so tired the next day. We just can't have them together. When they are in their own rooms they have quiet reading time and then fall fast asleep by 7:30 or 8:00. If they are together, they are up until at least 9:30 or 10:00! BUT - I DO have a playroom and totally understand your need for a place for toys. My advice is to try your boys sleeping in the same room for a while and see how they do before making the big move. :) Hope that helps!
ReplyDeleteErin @ Sunny Side Up