Life living in a two bed house with two kids

When we moved to Chinnor, we had kids in our sights. And we knew we wanted more than one. But we didn’t even consider going for a larger house.

Property in South Oxfordshire is expensive and this house was in our budget. A three, or a four bed, was entirely out the question.

So we moved here, just me and Matt (and the pets). We brought a beige sofa and a beige carpet and beige rugs.

In 2020, Ida moved in. Matt started working from home. The gym closed.

Suddenly we had a two bedroom house that also had an office and a gym.

In 2022, Martha moved in. And I started working from home.

When our mortgage was up for renewal, we looked to move. But with interest rates so high and me just working part-time moving was impossible.

So we make it work.

Here’s how we manage living in a two bed house with two kids and a dog and cat…

Having a baby and a toddler when you only have two rooms

A baby and a toddler with just two rooms wasn’t an issue at all.

I was so concerned that Martha crying would wake Ida up, but it never did. I think baby cries are always louder to the parent. And her white noise was cranked up.

I slept downstairs in the living room for at least two months. It just seemed to work. It was further from the anxiety of waking Ida and closer to the fridge. Tick, tick.

When I moved back upstairs to the bed Martha naturally ended up co-sleeping with me.

I always thought Martha would move in with Ida at six months (ha!) but it never really happened. They shared once or twice but it always ended in Ida waking Martha up too early in the morning. If we stay somewhere they’ll share a bed, but this always ends in an early start.

Martha is 2 and she sleeps in with me in mine and Matt’s bed. And that works for us.

Two kids in a two bed – tips!

1. Storage – Invest in having the loft boarded. I love the loft. Look online for smart storage solutions for toys and clothes, too.
2. Don’t keep too much – If you have two kids and still have all their baby grows and baby stuff, think about selling it. If you go onto have another you can re-buy it second hand. There’s no point holding on to things when you don’t have the space. Also you might go to use it again only to find it’s been eaten by mice or mouldy.
3. Don’t over buy – It’s so easy to buy kids toys. They absolutely ADORE them for a whole FIVE minutes. Well mine anyway. The girls don’t actually have many toys. Just babies, lego, barbies, and a few games. Too many soft toys.
4. Bunk beds – Bunk beds are a huge space saver. Just make sure the person who’s going at the top doesn’t need tickling to sleep or doesn’t still get up through the night. You know, you can even get a three bed bunk bed. Or a bunk bed with a trundle bed. If you and your partner are in the biggest room, think about moving to the smaller one. The kids are likely to want space to play or do their homework when they’re older. I’m sure if we’re still in this house when the girls are older, we will swap.
5. Get creative with nap locations – If you have two kids close together in age, and both still nap, or if your family life is loud. Get creative. Choose the quietest spot in the house. Martha spent most of her naps in the downstairs toilet or the upstairs bathroom. All other rooms were busy during Ida’s lunchtime nap and Matt’s working hours but this seemed to work out okay. Forget the Instagram perfection of other people’s life and enjoy the gritty reality of toilet naps.
6. Get an easily transportable cot – Moses basket, co-sleeper with the side up. You get the idea. Anything you can move about for naps and even for night sleeping if you end up on the sofa.
7. Have regular clear outs – When you’re living in a two bed house with two kids you need to clear out the clutter. If they don’t play with it, wear it, or it doesn’t fit, sell it or give it to charity. I like the one in two out rule. Buy one new thing, get rid of two things.
8. Get a sofa bed for guests – If people come and stay, or if your partner is coughing or just being a knob, they can sleep on the sofa bed in the living room.
9. Think foldable and compact- Foldable dining table, folding kids table and chairs, foldable highchair, small hoover, fold out spare beds. Foldable and compact are your best friends.
10. Go with what works – Go with what works, even if you’ve got an unconventional arrangement with rooms that are part this and part that. Even rooms with a curtain as a divider (we have this for our ‘office’). If you really can’t make it work, talk to your mortgage advisor, local housing association, or check RightMove for a new place. I really recommend Stephan Cork, he’s always been so helpful.

Space saving things we’ve loved

• Chicco Pocket snack high chair – you can take it with you on picnics too, or if you go to a friends with your baby for dinner.
• A round table – Me and Matt have been together 14 years. And we’ve had six tables. That’s too many. After trialing 3 tables in our current two bed, we found a round table saves the most space. We also considered benches as they’d tuck in, however not ideal for working at.
• Sofa bed – Our sofa is a bed too. This gives us an extra place if we have guests (my mum!) or if Matt comes in late from filming a wedding.
• Ottoman bed – This is a must. We store lots under the bed, mostly unseasonal clothes, and currently a cot bed!
• Shelves in the bathroom cupboard – This opens up more space to store things and keeps it tidy
• Loft boarded – I love the loft. I love switching on my loft light and sorting through stuff up there. Having half the loft professionally boarded cost about £1000 with a ladder, but it was so worth it for the storage we get
• Ottomans everywhere! – Our coffee table is also an ottoman for storage. Currently home to Martha’s dolls.
• Dyson cordless – I actually don’t love this. I think it’s a good vacuum, but I think it is too much of a lockdown throwback for me. The noise of it reminds me of spending months at home with Matt vacuuming every hour. It does save space though!
• Shelves – We don’t have a huge amount of clutter, but we do have a few shelves with books on
• Drawer organisers – Draw organisers mean I can see everything in the girls drawers. They don’t have a wardrobe, so having this set up means I remember what they have. I sound like a super organiser here, but please don’t be fooled. I am good at organising the girls clothes, but just don’t look at mine. Or my tupperwear drawer. Honestly, how does anyone sort that?

How we manage living in a two bed with two kids

Living in a two bed with two kids has challenges, and you certainly have to police what comes in the house. And be ruthless with what goes out.

We’ve recently moved the living room around and it’s opened up the space. If there are any easy switch arounds you can do to save space, do it!

We have a kitchen, living room/dining room, and two double bedrooms. One bedroom is very big with two windows so we have split off part of it with a curtain. This gives Matt a little privacy when he’s on calls for work. Me and Martha share one room, Matt sleeps on the floor in Ida’s. It’s working at the moment. Who knows for how long!

I’m starting to feel the size of the house now, and I know it won’t be long until we are looking for somewhere else. Kitchen diner, garage, office. Yes please.