Separating the boys bedrooms was the best parenting decision we ever made. Or perhaps it was more that letting them share a room in the first place was the worst parenting decision we ever made, I’m not sure which. Either way the recent bedroom makeovers have created a much more peaceful bedtime routine. and the tiddler, who turns into something resembling the hulk when he doesn’t get enough sleep, is starting to return to his normal, adorable, cheeky, little 5 year old self once again.
However, despite the room separation being great at bed times they are now trying to convince us that a shared games room will be the ideal compromise so that both bedrooms remain private and ultimately tidy whilst they have a shared room they use (trash) when their friends come over. Both me and their dad are, currently, standing our ground and saying a firm no to this idea, simply because they already take over most of the house and I can’t possibly hand over yet another room to them. But it did get me thinking…..
When they are smelly teenage boys I would rather be the mum that lets her boys hang out in the house with their mates instead of being the mum that is worried sick because her teenagers are god knows where doing god knows what but I don’t want a lounge full of sweaty teenagers. So perhaps this games room will be a goer in a couple of years and if so the attic would make the perfect space. It’s pretty big up in our attic and we have space for a proper staircase to be installed so we could create a real useable room like the ones Live in Lofts create. That way the boys and their mates would be out of the way but safe and if we added in a couple Velux windows I could de-teenage-smell it in seconds.
Winner.
So with this in mind I have already started to look at loft conversions, a Velux window, and an attic staircases, just don’t tell my husband! I must admit I was pleasantly surprised at the prices compared to what I had self estimated plus I found these super cool Velux window blinds in a Star Wars theme which the boys would love and they are black out blinds so maybe putting them up their now isn’t a totally bad idea because, you know, sleep is pretty cool too.
Hmmmm maybe they boys are right on this one and it’s time to persuade daddy now.
Wish me luck.
Post update – I wrote this post when the boys were 5 and 7, they are now 8 and 11 with a 1 year old daughter in the mix too. I am pleased to say we have stuck by are guns and they have had separate bedrooms ever since but we are now even more set on getting a Live in Lofts than we were before. Whether this will be the games room or an extra bedroom we are still undecided but if we do stay in this house instead of moving in the next 12 months going up into the attic is a very real possibility.