We are considering on buying a 2 story home and my concern is having small children upstair and me downstair. Currently we have a 4 year old and 17 month old and plan on having another baby in the next year. Right now we are all on one level and the 4 year old ends up in our room usually once a night having to pee (sneeze, needs a drink, you name it we have heard it). The 17 month old is sleeping 12 hours in a crib though the night. The house we are looking at has 3 bedrooms and den on the 1st level and 1 large bedroom and bonus room upstairs. The master is downstairs. I am concerned with putting either of the kids upstairs for fear they fall down the steps in the middle of the night. I would love to hear from other moms who have small children upstairs.
Ideally I would want the 17 month old's room to be upstairs because she is a girl and it is the largest bedroom, huge closet with a bathroom. The 4 year old is my stepson so we only have him every other weekend and 1 week night on opposite week. Downstairs I want a playroom and nursery so that leaves me with one kid down and one kid upstairs.
Why not put both kids downstairs for now and have the playroom in the big room upstairs, or even in the den. When you daughter needs the bigger room, she will be older and you won't have those worries.
We have a 2 level house and our master br is downstairs while the other rooms are upstairs. We converted the downstairs den into a nursery/play room for my son until he was a little over 2 and we put him upstairs in his own room and the loft area is his playroom. He loves it! As long as the room is decorated with things that interest them and you spend time together in their room, they transition well. He doesn't mind coming down stairs to look for us when he has to pee or needs something. We also have a monitor in his room in case something happens, he can always call out and we'll be there. He knows this as well. Our loft area is open and he can see the downstairs.....the whole house. Something to consider (we also can look up and see him playing). We plan to have other children and will be downstairs until 18mo-24mo. and they will move upstairs. It's great as they get older.....messes stay upstairs and they have "privacy".
Good luck! My neighbor had their daughter upstairs when she was 17mo. and did well too.
I'm not sure about room placement our master bedroom/bathroom is on the top floor w/the other 2 rooms...BUT I would like to caution you about the rail (if you have one) that separates the living space and the stairs? We have one in our California Split and I had raised 4 kids in this house with no problems with the rail at all...then I had my last baby (only girl out of all boys, figures she's the one with all the injurys) and she slipped thru the openings in the railing and fell about 7 ft onto the hard tile entryway when she was about 1 yrs old...scariest thing I have ever had to go thru thus far...
Hubby weaved a piece of pliable wood thru the slots...doesn't look very decorative but works from keeping her slipping thru, that's for sure...and when she finally gets too big to fit thru we can just pull it back out and no harm done to the house or the rail!
You will go upstairs and downstairs 1000 times a day and night!! so think about it.....i would try to find a one story house
You'll have 3 bedrooms downstairs, so you can each have one. Don't put the boy upstairs while you and the baby are downstairs. He'll feel left out.
Just keep the kids on the same level as you until they get older. Your baby (17 months) will not need the huge closet OR her own bathroom for several years.
I have a 2 story house and would much prefer a split/multi level!
