Q: I'm looking for ideas on how to separate toys in a shared room. Our boys (2 1/2 and 6 1/2) share a room and the younger is constantly getting into/ breaking the older one's toys and lego creations. I've thought about some lockers (IKEA PS red locker) or other closed storage for special items. Mostly I value the shared toy experience and cooperative play, but I do understand the desire to have some special things that are your own. Do you have any suggestions?
Sent by Michelle
Editor: I can't recall this question coming up before which surprises me as it seems like it would be a very common problem. Readers, have you encountered this and come up with a good solution you can share with Michelle?
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We'll be encountering the same issue in our new place. I'm leaning towards each girl having her special shelf for toys she doesn't have to share. If it's left off the shelf it becomes a toy that they have to take turns using. Crossing my fingers that that will do the trick!
What about a shelving unit that is high enough that the 2 yr old can't reach it, but your 6 yr old can?
If you got adjustable shelves, you could keep moving things upward as your 2 yr old grows.
I grew up with 2 sisters, and we each had a dresser for our clothes. The bottom drawer for each of us was our "special drawer" where we kept love notes, favorite toys, etc. And we knew that we weren't ever to snoop in each others' special drawers, or ours would cease to become inviolate!
I saw this on a previous Ohdeedoh post and thought it might work: http://www.ohdeedoh.com/ohdeedoh/secret-basket-good-idea-110853.
Or you could go with any locking case, or even a lockable display case for the Legos masterpieces.
What we have done in our shared bedroom is to have "special" shelves. The younger child's shelf is the lowest, and the older child's shelf is higher. Any toys that are on the floor (even if they are special- this helps in remembering to pick up after themselves!) or in common areas are fair game. But anything on the special shelf is off limits. We've been doing this for 3 years now and it works really well.
What we did when our kids were that age is that we bought a bunk bed. Our big kid (daughter) slept in the bottom bunk, and our little kid (son) slept in his crib/toddler bed. We had a piece of MDF cut that fit the top bunk, and we put our daughter's dollhouse and all her miniatures up in the "playloft." Her things were contained up there, and she could retreat there when she needed a break. Worked like a charm.
High shelf, low shelf. It works really well, actually - especially if it can't be seen, no temptation and forgotten about.
We struggle with this over visiting friends and cousins more, actually. Now we have a moment before visitors arrive where we put any special toys we don't think we can share into the parents bedroom temporarily, and nobody plays with them.
(Except one bright little friend who has realized all the 'good stuff' is on our bed and sneaks into our room each time she comes over to check it out!)