We have just a few more months left before our baby girl is born so we are getting rooms rearranged to make space for baby #4! Many lovingly joke that we need a bigger house for a forth child! But instead I see it as a happy challenge to fit all our kiddos in two rooms while still feeling spacious and pretty. The key I am finding is a lot of purging! But, honestly, less toys and more intentional organization proves to be a blessing as we learn to be content with just the things we truly love and have room for.
After every birthday and gift getting holiday, I am finding that I have to go through toys again. It results in getting rid of a few things to make room for the new stuff. It is a difficult task to let go but I know that having a less cluttered home is worth it. We donate and give away our things, knowing some other kids will get to enjoy them. And while our wonderful family continues to lovingly spoil our kids, it helps Brent and I to not have the need to buy them so much. We usually get them one gift for birthdays and holidays and then save our money for experiences instead.
For our big kid's shared room, all three kids will be sharing a room in a few months, after our youngest turns two. In order to get all three kids in one room, we purchased a bunk bed for the two oldest. The bunk bed can be taken down and be two separate twin beds. The plan is that once the baby is older the girls and boys will each share a room - each with two beds as we had before.
We love the bunk bed! It is sturdy, matches the other bed well, and looks great. But with the bunk bed came a new weight of heaviness to the room. We kept all the furniture in the same placement but I found that making the shelves and baskets feel more spacious was key to making this room not feel so crowded.
I also wanted something more toddler friendly over the single bed. Our little guy gets into all the things so switching out some soft animal busts for the frames was important for safety. I told the kids they each get an animal head to represent them in their room. They love these friendly little animals and it was just the right amount of decor to fill the space without overwhelming it.
The unicorn is from Target from a couple of years ago that you can still find on Ebay. The elephant and lamb can be found at Target or Amazon (at the time Amazon was cheaper).
Our daughter's basket of stuffed animals used to be next to her bed but it made the space feel crowded. So by finding a different corner to tuck it away, gave just a little bit of empty space between the book shelf and bunk beds. It took me a couple of weeks to figure it all out, but the more open space, the less crowded everything felt.
I even had to resist the urge to stuff a ton of stuff under the beds. They do have storage bins under there, but it is pushed back far enough so you can't see them.
I also emptied two of the white bins on the book shelf to make room for our youngest's clothes and diapers. This meant toys and books had to get condensed.
I make a quilt for each of my kids for their weekly photos the first year. They all are different but have grey and navy in them. Once they transition to a twin bed, the quilt gets added. All of their striped comforters are from Ikea. The boys have airplane sheets that I love. And my daughter has some polka dot and striped sheets. We also love our twin mattresses. The grandparents sleep on the kid's beds when they visit and they all rave how comfortable they are!
I kept the decorations really simple for this bookcase in the corner. It holds their piggy banks and then a few decorative pieces. I try to hide all the toys in bins and baskets while pretty books and book edges are on display in the metal see through baskets.
My kids are obsessed with their stuffed animals and I will admit to be quite a sucker for really cute quality made ones. The rule is, once their basket is overflowing, we have to get rid of a few. And really this has meant that I needed to stop buying them all the cute stuffed animals I wanted for them. Because they end up loving the mass produced animal ones the best anyways! They have a beautiful collection so it is time for me to reign it back. They just look so cute tucked in to a stocking or Easter basket!
I printed each of the kids in their hooded towel to hang up on the walls. They each have a different one and I just love this collection of photos so much.
We are a big fan of our okay to wake clock. They have to stay in bed until it turns yellow and then it gives them thirty minutes to play and get dressed before it turns green and they can come downstairs. While they can get a little crazy in there at times, the time alone together every night and morning has been so bonding for their relationship. I love having them share a room and it is a gift to see how their relationship has grown because of it.
We moved our play kitchen in here awhile back in order to make more room downstairs. I find that it gets played with more in here anyways. While it is another thing that takes up space, it is a beloved toy that I have been happy to make room for. And next to it is where I tucked the third stuffed animal basket that would have been next to the bunk bed and bookcase.
The last change I made was to switch out my daughter's bows for their growing hat collection. I moved all our daughter's hair stuff to the bathroom so that their hats could be on display instead. Plus there is room for their backpacks to be hung without hats all over them. These backpacks are their play/travel backpacks that they can pack themselves and take with us places. We have separate backpacks for school and ones in the car with activities for when we go out to eat.
It feels so good to have their room reorganized and ready for this upcoming season. I will admit I am a little nervous about our soon to be two year old in here with his crazy siblings! But I know the time together will make it all worth it.
