How many of us shared rooms growing up? Whether it was due to a surplus of kids or a scarcity of space, many children share rooms with their siblings one time or another. Today, many families live in smaller homes or big city apartments, which often makes sharing a room a necessity as your family expands.
But it can be nerve-wracking to transition your kids to a shared room. You might wonder, How do I manage bedtimes? What if one of them cries in the middle of the night? Will either of them sleep? Will I ever sleep? Thankfully, the National Sleep Foundation (NSF) has some guidelines for transitioning kids to a shared room, including:
Respect each child’s bedtime needs—sharing a room doesn’t mean sharing a bedtime.
Let your older child transition to being a big sib first before jumping into being a roommate. The NSF recommends waiting until your baby sleeps for at least 5-6 hours per night. They also recommend setting the expectation with your older child that the baby could wake up in the night, but assure them Mommy or Daddy will come in to take care of the baby.
Embrace white noise. Enough said.
There are also plenty of ways to bunk up your kids, whether it be literal bunk beds, twin beds, or even two cribs. This roundup of shared kids’ spaces shows how cute those rooms can be—though not quite as cute as catching your kids snuggling in the same twin bed or listening to a late-night conversation over the baby monitor.
Scroll down to see 10 of our favorite shared kids’ bedrooms and shop the cute decor featured in each space.
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Read More: 13 Kids’ Playrooms You’ll Want to Copy Immediately