My daughter co sleeps with us. In India, since most young kids do that, I am not majorly worried about her. However, she is nearing six and space on our king sized bed is just starting to become a little squeezed. I spoke to a friend and she said that her three year old also co sleeps with them. She is not so worried but since they are in the US, the pressure on her is immense. My hubby and I have talked about getting our daughter a bed of her own. In the chicken coop sized apartments of Mumbai, adding two beds in one bedroom is a near impossibility and neither she nor we are ready to move her into her own room yet. And so the discussions remain discussions, we agree on the merits and voice out our concerns but nothing gets done. Come dusk and we climb on the same bed and wake up each morning with limbs resting on each other’s faces.
The other day I was wondering about the need for her to have her own space. Currently, her bed and clothes are in one room, her toys in another and books in the third. Due to this, she has no sense of keeping things at their rightful place and getting rid of clutter. On an average day, my living room resembles a toy store given the amount of blocks, jigsaw puzzles, dolls and teddy bears strewn about.
I then seriously sat down thought getting her a tiny room of her own. I was hoping it will probably inculcate a sense of responsibility in her to keep it clean and well organised. It might also spare me the embarrassment of being a poor house keeper every time someone drops by unexpectedly. I began to think about how I would do up her room and cute themes came to my mind. I even looked online at a few portals like Homify to know what is available out there. And then, with the shrill ringing of the telephone, I was jolted back to reality and left the dreams for another day.
awww her reason to sleep with you is so adorable 😀 I guess as she grows older, slowly she would understand what you are talking about. My uncle’s kids have a room of their own. They are 7 and 10 and are responsible for their toys and books. But I know what a struggle it had been for them to find a space that’s big enough and available at an affordable price.
I agree Rajlakshmi… she will understand and perhaps even demand her own space when she is older… till then… we manage… If your cousins are managing the rooms at that age, it is commendable!
Good day Ankita, Even we were facing the same problem. Discussions & more discussions. Finally we got our carpenter to add a 1foot extension bed of same height & when the matresses are close they wont create a gap. What we should have done was, add wooden railings around 2sides of the extension bed. A friend has done that & the kid sleeps peacefully there. For us, now the extension bed is a bed for pillows to stop the kid from rolling over :p
oops… i loved your friend’s idea… that is a smart thing!
I do not have kids currently but I think bringing up kids and giving them sense of resposibility is importance. My sis in law lives in London and her elder one has her room from 3-4. I will do the same. The little one has her bed in parents room itself. She is 3 and a half. The elder one cleans up after herself and her little ones toys, brushes and keeps her room clean a little bit. I think my sis in law has done a great job raising her independent. Try moving kid to another room. It is good for her future too. IT is a difficult situation though I know. 🙂
wow…this is Awesome Ankita… Kudos to her!!
Mumbai houses are indeed chicken coop and I can understand the pressure these days to make your child independent by.making them sleep in other room. Do not worry, just talk to her about your concerns..she may slowly understand.
My niece used to sleep in my sister’s room but in a separate bed for long.. Slowly she demanded a separate room for self. Kids 🙂
I tried talking to her Ekta and her reason for cosleeping (quoted reason) is that she can cuddle us any time! No one can say no to that now… 😛 I hope she follows suit of your neice soon