<p>My class of 2011 college grad appears to be fully self supporting and will hopefully never live in his childhood room as a full time resident again. He took the majority of his stuff but a lot remained. I finally got him to come over last weekend to tackle what remained.
Today I had the walls painted. First time in 16 yrs. he took his furniture so I will need to replace. I think I want to keep it a bedroom. Considering two twin beds for future grandchildren. What have others done with their kids rooms?
Next task. Dealing with the carpet! Try to clean or should I replace. The carpet is heavily stained. Something orange in one spot. Looks like orange Popsicle. Grease spots from when he thought his bedroom was an appropriate spot to repair his bike. Carpet is not wool but was a good quality carpet when installed 16 yrs ago. Is it worth trying to clean 16 year old carpet?</p>
<p>I’d say, start fresh with a new carpet for the new identity of the room. Or maybe go the hardwood & nice area rug route. As to beds… my hunch is your son would first prefer (and use) a double in there when he’s visiting with his significant other. No need to plan for future grandchildren yet - that’s a sure way to jinx things!</p>
<p>Our kiddo’s room is also a guest room. We actually got a double bed. We have a fourth bedroom with a twin bed in it. We wanted one guest room with a double bed for our couple friends who visit.</p>
<p>We have another guest bedroom with a queen.</p>
<p>My adult children’s rooms look like they still live here! We have no need for guest bedrooms as both of our entire families live in the same city. the only guest we have had in the 20 years in this house are the kids friends, my parents once when there house was without power for a couple of days, and my single BIL after his cataract surgery for one night.</p>
<p>My daughter just moved to London so she cleaned out her closet and dresser, leaving some clothing behind, but her desk still has things on it and her bathroom is full of products. My son’s room still has all his sports memorabilia and I don’t see that leaving until he gets married and most likely not even then. Both rooms have queen beds so when they or others visit we are good.</p>
<p>I am guessing the rooms will stay like this until we move :)</p>
<p>I could have written your post, mom60. My son’s room needs a major overhaul now that he’s gone for good, and all I have done is load a few things in boxes from his bookshelf. I need to paint the walls, replace the carpet and buy some new furniture. I wish he’d take his old stuff, but I’ll have to find a good home for it elsewhere. I also need new blinds.
I’m going to put in a double or maybe a queen in the room, as we also have another guest room with a twin. I definitely am replacing the carpeting. We have carpeting in the other bedrooms and hardwood everywhere else, but I still like the carpet in the bedrooms. It’s also relatively inexpensive to replace.
My kid is getting married in August, so it’s unlikely he’ll be visiting for any length of time, but I’d like to make it a welcoming place for him and his wife in the future when they do visit.</p>
<p>My daughter is graduating college this year, and I just got kind of teary reading these posts. First time.</p>
<p>no need poetgirl–D is 29 and has been in and out is most likely out for the future but there is still a good 30% here that she cannot take yet…</p>
<p>Both my sons’ rooms still look like they did when they lived here full-time. We have a 4th BR that functions as our guest room, and actually it’s the room S1 and his gf use when they visit since his room only has a twin bed. If he comes home alone, he uses his room. </p>
<p>I’d really like to remove the wallpaper borders in their rooms, which they each picked out when they were around 7yo, and then repaint. S1 went through alot of stuff after he graduated from college. He didn’t take much, but alot of his things are in boxes in the closet, not cluttering the room. OTOH, S2’s room still has piles of stuff on every flat surface in his room, other than the floor. I’m not sure if I’ll wait for him to go through his stuff or just box it up myself.</p>
<p>Poet girl- both my D’s bedrooms are still intact. Oldest has left the nest for good but still has a lot of her stuff here. Youngest is still in college. I think the difference between my S and D’s is that they updated their rooms as they grew up. S on the other hand had a bedroom that still had Legos and matchbox cars in the closet. Posters on the wall that came from the book fairs in elementary school. Certificates taped to the wall from day camp at age 9.
The push to do something came because when my S moved into his own apartment 7 months ago he took his bed. The room was left with a big empty space and posters and such left on the walls and a hutch filled with toys and various junk.And a pile in the middle of the room with stuff he didn’t take. I am embarrassed I left it for so long.
I am going to call a carpet cleaner and see what they think. I considered wood floor but I have wood in the hall and I don’t want to match it. Plus as Moonchild mentioned carpet is relatively inexpensive.</p>
<p>I am beginning to think the hurricane of 2006 did me a favor. The wall between the worm’s room and the bath got soaked, along with the carpet in his room. The room got stripped. It took 6 months to get rid of the mold. So, the worm was consulted about colors, and new rug, wall, paint done. Only grown-up pictures were put back. (My sister, the super cleaner, had long ago gone thru the room with the worm, so no baby items there to be thrown.)</p>
<p>What was nice is that a guest can be comfortable there, and the worm could bring his g/f, with no embarrassment.</p>
<p>His original furniture: Canadian maple, clean lines. Karastan blue berber carpet, full-size bed, blue quilts.</p>
<p>change the carpet, don’t waste time trying to clean it.</p>
<p>poetgrl - Don’t get teary yet. Ds seem to be more sentimental and expect to always find their room at home. Mine would be quite offended if we changed things. Like I disowned her or something. I am just hoping that when she gets married (no boyfriend at the moment so not on the horizon), she will relinquish her claim on her room. When DH and I talk about moving, she looks panicked and asks where her room will be.</p>
<p>Hi mom60-
If you have a guest room already in your home, why not make this room more reflective of you and/or your husbands interests/hobby?
Should you decide to keep his room, his “room”, then the idea to remove the carpet and replace with new carpet is a good one. Afterall…16 years with a stain…time to let that puppy go!
As far as twin beds versus queen or full…may be a bit premature to be thinking twin beds…your son only graduated 2 years ago…and unless he is seriously dating someone at the moment…you most likely have another 5-10+ years to go before he settles down. Most college grads wait longer than our generation did.
Great to hear your 2011 grad has his own place/job.
~APOL-a Mum</p>
<p>I am heartened to see so many others with intact children’s bedrooms. Sadly, mine weren’t updated. S1’s actually has everything from age 9 to 24–think framed preschool picture, Pinewood Derby car, 4H ribbons, little cutouts that the cheerleaders decorated for the boys’ lockers. S2 has same, matchbox cars, stuffed animals.</p>
<p>That paragraph really should motivate me, but my house is huge and I can’t even keep up with the rest of it and the 5 acre yard. Plus, working on S1’s wedding and that’s much more fun. Oh heck, what’s a few more years?</p>
<p>I am a 2011 college grad and am just working up to going home and cleaning out my room for my parents. I moved back home after college and moved out again the following January, but had moved in with a boy and wanted my room left in tact in case I needed to come back… mom had no plans for it anyway yet. Now that we are getting married mom wants the room, and I want to give it to her-- I have for a while. I am going to go clean it out myself and am thinking we’ll repaint it for her, too, if she wants to redecorate, to repay her for letting me keep my crap there for a year. It was nice knowing I had a safe place to go back to this first year out on my own.</p>
<p>Food for thought, now that wedding bells are ringing in the near future mom is fantasizing about putting my old crib back in that room for grandkids. You won’t need a twin size bed for a long time, and nobody but child sized guests will appreciate them. I’d set up the room for how you’d like to use it now. My old room is becoming an office, so the office can finally move out of the master bedroom… until my mom wants to put the crib back. :P</p>
<p>P.S. The kids in my fiance’s family are 25, 28, 31, and 36 or so, and FMIL’s house is OVERFLOWING with their stuff still, she begs everyone to take something home with them every time they visit. You don’t want to live like that!</p>
<p>After our son and daughter had established homes of their own, my husband and I were determined to do something about their old bedrooms. It took a whole day, but we removed every item from their bedroom closets, dresser and desk drawers, bookshelves, wall decorations, etc. and piled it all in the middle of their rooms. </p>
<p>The next time they were home, they sorted through their piles and every item either went in the trash, went home with them, went to Goodwill, or went into a box in our basement. </p>
<p>I actually think they enjoyed the process … Good memories!</p>
<p>I would definitely install new carpet (or other new flooring).</p>
<p>For anyone planning to convert a child’s bedroom into a future nursery just remember that many of the cribs we used for our own children no longer meet safety codes.</p>
<p>Well, good luck to everyone and thanks for the reassurances.</p>
<p>There was just something about these posts which really made my daughter’s new life seem very real to me.</p>
<p>Not ready for the bedroom clear out, yet, though she isn’t coming home and we are moving away from here. </p>
<p>Workinprogress, she actually did say, 'I don’t want my room to be one of those generic guest rooms when I come to see you guys, though." So, we will move her childhood stuff, teen stuff, actually. I suppose this is nuts, but I don’t care, yet. :)</p>