I love this girl room, big enough for 3.
It's funny, but one of the many things strangers ask me when they find out that I have 10 children is "how many bedrooms do you have in your house?" Then many times they want to know if everyone HAS to share a bedroom. Gasp......how could a child be asked to share a bedroom in this day and age, especially in America!!! Well, yes, most of my children do share a bedroom with a sibling and I actually think it's good for them. I loved sharing a room with my sister who was 7 years older than me. I think if we had not shared a room then we wouldn't have been nearly as close, especially given the age difference. I don't even remember either of us ever complaining about it. I do make sure that my children have time and space to themselves, even if they are sharing a room. So, to answer the question many have asked, our house officially has 5 bedrooms. We also turned the study into a bedroom and at one point we had the bonus room a bedroom too. So for a while we had 7 bedrooms, but now we currently only have 6 : )So here is the current line-up........
Master Bedroom
Downstairs bedroom (originally a study) is my older boys' room when they come home from college.
Middle boys' bedroom (13 and 11 years)
Little boys' bedroom (3 and almost 1)
Small girl room (17 year old alone)
Bigger girl room (9, 7 and 5 years)
When both my older boys were home and not yet in college, they each had their own room. At that point we had made the bonus room a bedroom too. I do try to give each child their own room when they hit the teenage years, if at all possible. My current 13 year old hasn't complained yet or begged for his own room, so I'm leaving things as is for now. I know we are blessed to have a large home for our brood, but we have really been creative in the past with rooms. I do love the way all my kids love to be with each other, especially in the evening. I think they would all be so lonely if they had their own rooms!
We try and do that same thing....give our older teens their own room. It doesn't always work out that way but it's a goal. Usually by 16 they have their own space. We have one son due to leave home this fall and his room is already being begged for :-)
ReplyDeleteIt's always neat to see how other arrange the children and I agree, sharing is better for them.
We also give our babies (about 6 months) their own room. We find it helps them sleep (and me too) longer. Till the next one comes along and then they get to share too :-)
~Cinnamon
Yup. Our kiddos share bedrooms too & I think it's good for them. We have 3 small bedrooms & 4 children. So, one BR is our 'master' and the other 2 BR's has 2 boys each in them. And, when we feel cramped I remind myself of 2 things...
ReplyDelete1. We really don't spend a whole lot of time in our bedrooms! We do someday want to buy a larger house & where I really want the space is in family/living areas...shared spaces.
2. Our tiny house was originally built and owned by an Old Order Mennonite family (similar to Amish - no electricity, used horse & buggy). They had 9 children that they raised in this house! Granted, they had an additional bedroom upstairs (we turned what was a 4th upstairs bedroom into an upstairs bath). And, the parent's used the small room downstairs that we now use as a computer room/office/playroom as their bedroom. So, technically they had 5 bedrooms. They made it work!
my kiddos share rooms too and they love being together! :)
ReplyDeleteLove this! It's so counter-cultural these days but it is much more in line with how families have lived historically -and the benefits abound! Our kids all still small -the oldest is 5 and all four of them share a fairly small room. Baby(14mo) no longer nurses at night so he has joined the older 3 in their room. He has the crib, our oldest(boy) has his own twin bed and our girls(3&2) share a twin bed sleeping foot to foot. It's tight and we've had to get creative with clothes storage but it's working well for us. Our house is up for sale and we hope to soon have enough space for a boy room, a girl room and an extra room for space to grow!
ReplyDeleteLoved seeing your bedrooms! I think sharing rooms with a sibling is a great character building experience! :)
ReplyDeletewe have never been privileged to have enough space to give our older teens a room to themselves. In fact, in our last house, we had all 6 boys in the same bedroom!!! the oldest was a high school senior at that time! Now, the house we are renting has 5 bedrooms -- the most we've ever had and the 6 boys are divided into two bedrooms.
the only person to ever have a room to themselves in our house has been my oldest adult daughter, who is 26 and lives with us while teaching in a christian school. (Christian school teachers don't make enoough to live on their own, especially if they still have loans to pay off!)
I think it draws them closer also. Your kids'rooms look great!
ReplyDeleteAt our house...in one room, I love hearing my boys (8 & 12)in conversation as they are falling asleep.
In another, I watch my youngest two girls (20mo. and 4) quickly becoming best friends and a comfort to each other in the night.
In fact, I kind of wish my 10.5 yr. old girl had a roomate. Personally, I think she is the one in the bunch who is missing out!
We have 4 and the 2 girls have a room with a bunkbed and a trundle and the boy has his own room (Kenli still sleeps with us :) With that said, they all love to be together and every night I find all 3 of the olders in the girls room IN THE SAME BED! I think they stay up all night talking :)
ReplyDeleteI have not been blogging for awhile. I hope you will stop by. We are expecting in September and that seems to be biggest question. Lol love the post!! will try to stop by often!Marla
ReplyDeleteWe have 9 children with 2 more coming in July (or sooner). What do you drive? and How many bedrooms do you have in your house? are the most asked questions. We have learned to tell people that there is always room for one more. That is so true, they can share beds or sleep on the couch if needed. We have a bedroom home but is really doesn't matter. It is so sad that it matters so much to others.
ReplyDeleteIm so glad I came across this post. I have 3 children, 2 boys(9 &6)and a girl (3). We live in a 650sq ft 2 bedroom apartment and we gave the larger room to our kids. We are hoping to have 2 more and the new additions would go in the same room.
ReplyDeleteI cannot stand people questioning where my kids sleep or how I shouldn't have more. Bedrooms are for sleeping and being in a small space im always forced to take them out for new adventures. My 3 are super close and love how well they play. I think room sharing is awesome.