For parents who live in a small house (less than 1,000 sq ft), how do you make it work? I need advice!?

Question

Thanks for reading this. My husband, two year old daughter and I live in a small, 900 square foot, 2 bedroom house. The rooms in our house are the combination living/dining area, the kitchen, two bedrooms and a bathroom. We are expecting our second baby in March and I'm kinda stressing about how we're going to find the room because it already feels like we have outgrown this place with just one child. For example, we have very little storage space - just the 2 small bedroom closets. We don't have a lot of furniture or stuff (I hate clutter so I like to minimize it) and right now my daughter's toys are stored in her room around along the walls. How do you make it work? Moving is not an option (my husband doesn't want to move from this house at all, nor does he want to add on). I really need some advice for kids sharing a room and for making raising 2 kids work in a small house! Thanks for your time and God bless!

Answer 1

sounds like us.

first i optimized thier closet space. i bought this thing with compartments for toys and put it in in their closet. with 2 more small shelf things on either side. that way they opened the closet and all they could get to was a lill cubby of toys. then in the corners behind them i could store stuff we didnt use or need at the moment.


i use boxes/baskets on the shelf in the closet to help organize blankets and other things. once when we lived with the inlaws for a short time and we were all sharing a room, i used these interlocking stackable fruit basket type things (in the kitchen dept at the store) and put things in those on top of our dresser. i also use baskets in the bathroom closet to organize my stuff, and the kids stuff.

i also put some toys under their beds (like their toy trucks...they like it its like its their own personal garage)

when we had an even smaller room for them we didnt have enough room for a large dresser so i used those plastic rolling drawer things with like 5-6 drawers and put them in their closet. i could put shoes on top of them and put socks underwear, diapers pull ups, bibs, or even things like pacifers and such in those and then i could save space in the room for their toys and beds.

i've even used those plastic drawers on wheels that roll under your bed for storing blankets and things

good luck. best this is the get creative and search out the organization isles at the store. you'll get great ideas.

i kept the baby in a porta crib in our room for a while then moved him to crib in their room. and i have bunk beds waiting for when they're both a little older.

btw somehow my brother in laws family rasied 6 kids in a 3 bedroom house then when grandma moved in they added a room.

Answer 2

I know exactly how you feel. My husband and I live in a small, two bedroom townhouse and we have two girls. I'm just glad that they're both girls right now though I don't guess it really matters when they're small. Right now, I have a bunk bed in their room and the two year old sleeps on the bottom (with a safety rail) and the six year old sleeps on the top. I'm lucky enough to have a coat closet so everyones shoes are kept there and the bottom of their closet can't be seen for the toys. We have bins in there, but often things are just thrown in there. I also keep a large canvas bag downstairs that we throw toys in and when it gets full, it's taken upstairs and emptied.

When my youngest was a baby, we kept her bassinet by my bed. We also had her crib in our room but since she hated her crib, we ended up co-sleeping. When she was ready to move into a toddler bed, that's when we got the bunk beds and the safety rail and got rid of the old double bed that we had been using for my older daughter.

I will tell you that the one problem we do have is that all the toys get mixed up and sometimes there's an argument over ownership. My older daughter solves it by keeping the one or two toys that are special to her in the bed with her. Otherwise, it really isn't a problem. You already have the right idea by eliminating as much clutter as possible.

Could you afford to get an outside storage building? It might help with the overflow.

Answer 3

First, I would say that it's not fair to have the older child share a room with an infant. until the baby is sleeping all night. After that, they can share a room as long as the older child is EXCELLENT about picking up small toys.

My mom was one of 5 kids, and they had a small house with 3 bedrooms. 50 years ago, this was normal. They didn't have tons of "equipment" for babies, and kids did not have nearly as many toys as kids have these days.

I have a friend who has 5 kids (2 sets of twins + a singleton). She has a 2 bedroom house. The kids have the larger bedroom with bunkbeds. One wall has shelves from floor to ceiling with small, labeled plastic bins to hold the toys.

Do you have a backyard? Make it the primary play area. Spend lots of time out of the house at parks and museums.

Do you have a garage? You may want to keep some of the toys stored out there and rotate in about 1/3 of the toys each month.

Remember, houses are MUCH larger now than they were in the past. People have gotten used to expecting lots of space. Kids do not need the huge quantity of toys that we tend to buy for them.

Look at the bright side: you are spending less on your mortgage than you would for a larger home, and if you train the kids to put their things away, you can clean the house top to bottom in an afternoon!

My house is pretty big. Stuff tends to accumulate to fill the available space, and it takes me an entire day to dust, vaccuum, clean the bathrooms, mop, etc. if I want to do a good job. I'm not complaining that we have plenty of room, but part of me misses having a small apartment that I could clean completely in a few hours!

Answer 4

Well one thing you can do in the bedrooms are downsize the size of your beds. Toddler bed for your daughter and a queen for the two of you. Also you may need to downgrade on the toy collection. Another suggestion would be instead of getting a crib, use a playpen. We did for our third because our second was still in the crib. It worked out great for us. Also when the kids are older you can get bunk beds. But if you end up having a boy and a girl then you'll eventually have to get a new house but not for another 5 yrs or so. I'm just trying to throw out suggestions. I know it can be hard and a little cramped but it can work out. It's better to have a small house and be able to afford that comfortably than to upgrade and have more stress with the finances. I agree with your hubby. You'll be fine it will work out. Congrats on baby #2.

also if you aren't real big on bunkbeds you can get a trundle bed, it slides under the one bed that way you wouldn't have to worry about kids falling from climbing or sleeping in bunks. A daybed trundle would be great for saving on room !

Answer 5

Since its your house you can make little tweaks to help with storage. In your daughters room I'd add shelving to the walls and I'd make it pretty abundant. Use full the full length of the longest wall if possible and make them double decker. Maybe your husband is handy enough to do it himself. This way you can put the toys up off the floor and free up enough space for a second crib, and eventually play space. When the kids are old enough for beds then bunk beds have worked well for many families.

If you have a garage look into turning the rafters into a storage area and store all seasonal items up there when not in use..ie summer clothes in the winter, and holiday items in the summer. Also store anything at all that you arent currently using and will fit.

I hope that helps!

Answer 6

your husband is going to have to either move or build on especially if you are carring a boy this time, you can only have kids of oppisit gender in the same room for a short time once they are 6 or 7 they will need there own rooms. if you are carring another girl it won't be such a big problem. our house is quite small with 2 kids it can get a bit crowded sometimes but we just get on with life without worring about it cause we can't afford anything bigger. I was one is six kids and we grew up in an average size 3 bedroom house we just didn't know any different. you'll manage

Answer 7

You will find a way. We live in a three bedroom have 3 kids and are planning one more in near future. You just try to use as much space as you can and it sounds like you are and keeping it clutter free. Eventually you may need to add on or move when You out grow your home. My two daughters share a room. It's small and crowded but we make it work. Remember you don't need a huge house to make a home and raise your kids.

Answer 8

Just continue to keep all the toys, etc. in storage boxes to cut down on the clutter so you are not tripping over things. Get two single beds when the kids are older and are sharing a room. There may come a point in the future your husband starts feeling cramped in the space and decides it is time to move to a bigger place. You will have to also teach them to put away their things when they are finished with them so the room doesn't look like a disaster area.

Answer 9

You can make do in a small space but you have to use every inch and buy furniture that does double duty as storage. Bunk beds eventually will work for children sharing a room. In the beginning it will be crowded with baby things but as the baby grows there will be less "equipment" you will need to step over. Add shelves, hanging racks,closet organizers,use the attic for storage if there is one, make sure everything is organized and if you dont use it, get rid of it.

Answer 10

well for me my second stayed in r room til he was 12 months. we were in the same situations. but we own it (its a duplex) each floor had two bedrooms,live,kitchen and bathroom. So we just made into one big house. now we have 3 kids and one on the way with a five bedroom 2 bath house. It was tuff but we handled having are second in are room for a year,u could always have the two kids share a room when baby starts too sleep thew the night.