Untraditional sleeping arrangments

[crazyeight]

I have been seriously considering switching up the entire bedroom areas. We have the new traditional house with a large master bedroom/bathroom combination with walk in closet and then 2 smaller bedrooms for kids. We don't use our bedroom for more than sleeping and it seems to be a lot of wasted space. I still want to leave all closets the way they are (we use our but the kids are just storage) and still use the MB for us adults and the guest bath for the kids. But the idea is to put the kids convertable cribs in the Mast BR on opposite sides of the room and put all their toys into that room as well. Then convert the larger kids room into our room (gotta measure and see if a queen will even fit!) with minimal items (lamps, nightstands). Then I wanted to use the extra kid room for a convertible guest/me space room. I have a desk that i hardly use but need for paperwork, a sewing/craft desk (that needs replaced) and a cart of fabric plus a filing cabinet that I would love to have out of the living room. I REALLY would love to get one of those futon bunk beds so that it can be a functional couch and double guest sleeping quarters. I really am not sure if everything will fit quite right...hehe.

Has anyone done this? Its kinda breaking up the bathrooms and i don't want the kids in the master bathroom at all (its one of those annoying "open" floorplans so only the toilet has a door) but they knock baby gates down. And I would also need to put a chain lock on the master closet so they can't mess it up either.

Any ideas, thoughts, suggestions?

[mightymoo]

We have locking doorknobs, the bathroom style, with the push button and the hole on the other side, and we just keep the little 'key' (a metal thing you can put in the hole to pop the lock) on the top of the doorframe, so we lock the doors from the inside and just close it, then pop the lock when we need to get in. Only works if you have a regular doorknob though.

[IncaMama]

hmm. i was with ya until the master bathroom thing. so you want the bathroom to be off limits but there's no door to it from the bedroom, and you can't put a gate up? i don't see how you could "enforce" the non-use of a bathroom if there's no door and no gate. maybe i misread?


otherwise, i'd definitely make the biggest room the kids' room...but i'd probably just let 'em use that bathroom too.

there must be a way, though. i'm all for nontraditional sleeping situations!!

[crazyeight]

our closet doesn't have a lock on it but all the other doors do. there is no door to the cabinets in the master bath or the shower. the toilet is able to be locked out but thats not the problem. my son has climbed on the counters before! i also don't want them getting into our stash of adult daily stuff we use.

i know there has to be a way. i don't really want to put a large door in the bathroom are though.....

[IncaMama]

Originally Posted by dhinderliter

our closet doesn't have a lock on it but all the other doors do. there is no door to the cabinets in the master bath or the shower. the toilet is able to be locked out but thats not the problem. my son has climbed on the counters before! i also don't want them getting into our stash of adult daily stuff we use.

i know there has to be a way. i don't really want to put a large door in the bathroom are though.....

yeah, i agree there has to be a way! hm. would a curtain deter them? LOL

you could probably change the doorknob on the closet to have that lock.

but the bathroom is the sticky point. if there's no door there and a gate isn't an option...could you have a basket/container of the off-limits stuff way up high? or are the counters/cabinets such that the climber could get to 'em easily?

gah! there must be a solution!!!

[mightymoo]

Could you install a door? If there is room to do it, it wouldn't be all that costly, or you could it yourself, etc.

[Ruthla]

So let me get this clear: You have a door on the master bathroom, just not a door separating the toilet from the shower, dressing area, etc? So you want to keep the master bathroom closed to them while they use the rest of the room?

My biggest concern is: what if you need something out of the closet or bathroom while they're sleeping? Can you get to your stuff without waking them?

What I would suggest, instead, is to set up your crafts/paperwork area in a corner of the master bedroom and keep the kids' rooms alone, or possibly to set up one room as the kids' sleeping room and the other as a playroom, instead of having all the toys in the same room as their beds,

[PatienceAndLove]

Originally Posted by Ruthla

What I would suggest, instead, is to set up your crafts/paperwork area in a corner of the master bedroom and keep the kids' rooms alone, or possibly to set up one room as the kids' sleeping room and the other as a playroom, instead of having all the toys in the same room as their beds,

That's what I was going to say!
I am a big believer in bedrooms being sleeping rooms, not play rooms.

[minta]

What I would suggest, instead, is to set up your crafts/paperwork area in a corner of the master bedroom and keep the kids' rooms alone, or possibly to set up one room as the kids' sleeping room and the other as a playroom, instead of having all the toys in the same room as their beds,

I was going to make the same suggestion. Aside from the practical problems associated with trying to keep the kids out of certain spaces, I don't really like the idea of saying, "Here's your new bedroom...but you're not allowed to touch the bathroom, or the closet, or..." I think if it's important to you to preserve certain areas as just yours, that you're better off creating an entire master suite where you can have all your own stuff and pursue your own activities. (And I'm not having a go at you here, BTW -- just saying why not go ahead and make this area a true sanctuary if you'd like to?)

Then I'd do a shared bedroom for the kids, and a combined playroom / guestroom.

[IncaMama]

Originally Posted by minta

I was going to make the same suggestion. Aside from the practical problems associated with trying to keep the kids out of certain spaces, I don't really like the idea of saying, "Here's your new bedroom...but you're not allowed to touch the bathroom, or the closet, or..." I think if it's important to you to preserve certain areas as just yours, that you're better off creating an entire master suite where you can have all your own stuff and pursue your own activities. (And I'm not having a go at you here, BTW -- just saying why not go ahead and make this area a true sanctuary if you'd like to?)

Then I'd do a shared bedroom for the kids, and a combined playroom / guestroom.

yeah, i like that idea too. the last thing you wanna introduce is a power struggle/conflict w/constantly trying to get them out of your master bathroom space, kwim? and i like sleeping spaces to be separate from play spaces. we don't really have toys in our kids' room. we have books and dress-up but that's it.