In every family home, it’s there – the door to the room that you dare not open. Because you know that if you do, depending on the age of the occupants, you are either going to trip over a toy car, dolls, and pieces of paper, or clothing, makeup, or footballs strewn everywhere. This is your children’s bedroom, and because you are so busy working you have absolutely no time to be on top of it.
Most moms, whether working or not, will tell you that getting the kids to keep their rooms tidy is one of the hardest parenting tasks. A lot depends on the child as well. Some kids are more orderly by nature and will not allow their rooms to get too dirty or untidy. But other children seem to be lacking that perception of the discomfort caused by excessive mess and clutter.
In the home of a working mother, it may be even more difficult to inculcate this perception because you are just too plain busy to keep after your children. After a day at the office, you have just about enough energy to help them with the homework, and still being a schoolgirl at heart you are more afraid of the teacher’s wrath than the mess in the bedroom.
So how can you keep the mess in your children’s room somewhat at bay in terms of the design of the room?
- First of all, when you design your child’s bedroom, keep it simple. If you don’t have too many objects lying around, there will be fewer things to keep in order. And the same applies to furniture.
- Don’t double your child’s bedroom up as a store room for unrelated items. That can also become a great source of mess.
- Every object needs a home. Therefore, you should have a large box and/or cupboard for toys and games. You might even prefer to keep these items out of the bedroom and in the den or a separate playroom, depending on the size of your home.
- Without going overboard, make your child’s room a place that they might want to keep tidy because it can be a pleasant place to live in. For example, choose pretty wallpaper, pretty curtains, and nice area rug. Kids’ rugs come in all kinds of designs and colors, and if your child wants to be able to see it, he or she will work a little harder to make sure the wood flooring, if you were wise enough to add this, is not full of junk. Carpets are great in cold climates, but if you can stretch the budget, quality laminate or natural wood is perfect for kids rooms.
- Design the bedroom with the help of your children. Choose the colors of the walls and furnishings with them, and pick the wall decorations and bedding with them. This will make them feel more of a pride in their bedroom.
- When the seasons change, find some time in your busy schedule to go through their clothing. Be ruthless and throw out tattered, faded clothing and give away anything that is in good condition but is now too small for anyone in your family to wear.
- Make sure that every child has their own personal shelf or drawer. This will also develop positive feelings towards their own space.
