When did you get rid of your playroom?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:1%'er problems. We have a 2 bR 1200sf home, 3 kids. No playroom.

Not helpful.

I find persoective very helpful, actually.

Do you also value perspective?

[Anonymous]

Our dining room is our playroom, since we use our breakfast table to eat. After they’re too big for toys I might convert it to the kids’ study room because I don’t like the idea of them having screens up in their bedrooms, at least until they’re older teens. The way I was raised, a bedroom is for sleeping and reading, and you do the rest of your “living” downstairs.

[Anonymous]

We don’t have a dedicated play room but our living room has essentially become one and luckily we also have a family room so we don’t mind the toy takeover in the living room. Anyway, my kids are 5 and 3 and already I’m doubting we’ll need a “playroom” much longer...they really don’t play w their toys that much. My 5 year old mostly likes to draw/color, do puzzles/board games, and read books now that he learned to read. My 3 year old mostly likes to do play dough, reusable sticker books, have someone read books to her. And they both love playing outside. Bins/baskets full of toys only get played w once or twice a week or when friends come over (which obviously isn’t happening now!) all my kids really need inside is a good table to do their arts and crafts, games, puzzles. I want to get rid of a lot of the toys 😀

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:1%'er problems. We have a 2 bR 1200sf home, 3 kids. No playroom.

With you on this one. To the OP they’ll naturally stop going there but like this poster I have a 1400 sq ft 2 bedroom home so the playroom is the bedroom is the living room.

Btw, we’re planning on more kids, how is your bedroom situation setup? Do they all share?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:At some point my sons will want their own room and I'll need to move the guest room. I'm hoping that day doesn't come while they are still young enough to have a playroom. Just wondering what age your kids were when you no longer needed to have a play room. I certainly did not have one growing up but my kids have so much more junk than I did.

My oldest is nine and still uses the playroom. At that age he sometimes needs encouragement but he definitely uses some of the toys there - magnatiles, snap circuits, trains etc. It really helps to have a designated space all the kid stuff.

[Anonymous]

To everyone who still answers this post in 2020, the original post is from 2013. The OPs kids are probably pretty grown up by now.
And to everyone who talked about this being a 1%er problem - you really don't know the person's situation, so please don't try to form an opinion about the person's entire life just based on one question.
Like they said, they grew up poor and abused and and worked hard to beat the odds to get to a point to where they can now have a playroom for their child. How is this a bad thing?
Also, its not like its Jeff Bezos posting here on what to do with his 15th yatch or anything - if someone dedicates a room in their house to being a playroom, its their choice and it doesn't mean they are filthy rich or that they don't have real world problems.

That said, for anyone who reads this thread in the future wondering at what point kids grow out of having a playroom, whatever their situation may be - I'd say that a playroom kind of morphs with the child/children. It can always continue to be a space where they are creative, where they learn, and where they have fun and build memories - the types of activities simply change over time. Whether you have several kids or one, its about making the room accommodate those activities and creating a space where the kids or even the entire family can spend together.
Our playroom started out as a place with baby and toddler toys where our very young kids could drawn around and explore safely. Toys changed with the years as they kept growing. The key is purging often. But even as kids grow out of playing with toys in the traditional sense, they continue to be creative, whether it is drawing, painting, crafting, reading, building, playing games, learning, or even exercising. The space continues to be a place where they do all these things.

By the way, we too grew up with very little - and carving out this space for our kids in the house was something we really wanted to do while raising a family and prioritized and worked for. Many people have formal living rooms in their homes just for guests for instance - we don't. How you use the space in your home, is your decision - and many homes are built to house and raise families after all, creating a space for that within the home is up to the family.

[Anonymous]

What you need to do is rent a hotel room, and use that for the toys.