My daughter is 4yrs old. She finds areas around the house to make her "nest"... obviously she is a pack-rat and with my O.C.D. it drives me nuts. This is a condensed version of what her nest usually looks like.

Ive already picked up several things before taking this photo.

...is this normal???

LOL!! I have a 6 y.o. and an almost 4 y.o. and YES, it is normal! My older daughter doesn't do it so much anymore, but she had commandeered the downstairs shower as her little clubhouse for a while. Every so often we'll find a pile of toys under the dining table, where both girls had been playing house.

Actually, your daughter's nest is a lot neater than those of my girls. Count yourself lucky!

Playing House!! I do try to limit my 7 year old to her own bedroom.

I've got some of the same stuff as you, the furr-real cat, magna-doodle and oh the doll clothes....Has she wanted to cook yet?

I don't know about a toy nest but I remember I used to like to go into the yard after the lawn was mowed once the dead grass had dried a little and make a pile of the grass and lay on it thinking of it as a nest. I must have been about 4 or 5. I think my parents tried to confine my biggest toy messes to my bedroom too. Teresa

5 yr old Chloe spends lots of days at my house. She has her own toy chest but still brings a backpack and a huge suitcase full of stuff for every visit. I think you're really lucky, cause Chloe's not a nester. Her stuff is scattered throughout the entire house, every room, in the pool, the bathtub, garage. Nesting is a good thing!

Hi Paula -

I don't know if it's normal or not, but being a person who has a severe problem with clutter, I'm just going to throw this out there as food for thought.

Some people seem to have a need to have a lot of their stuff around them to reassure themselves that they have a place to belong, that they have some control (OCD, only manifests in the opposite way that you experience it - like anorexia and MO can often be symptoms of the same thing, just expressed in different ways).

Some people are BO (born organized) and some people have to learn those skills. Maddening for the BO people, to be sure!! And so often they seem to have children who "just don't get it". lol

A site that I've found helpful is www.flylady.net - you can read more about those of us who have clutter problems and releasing issues.

This may have nothing to do with your daughter, but it's always good to know, just in case.

When my sons were that age, they'd drag out their sleeping bags and drape them over our big formal dining room table. It made a wonderful fort. They had all kinds of "survival" equipment in there....flashlights, pillows, a portable radio, snacks, walky talkies. They'd "radio" for lunch and I'd make it and "serve" them in there. They'd invite me in. (This was when I was still skinny! LOL) I loved those fun, innocent times.

Wow, I can't wait for grandkids!!

Oh yes, that is a norm. My youngest girl is now 18 and her room still looks like a nest!

Oh goodness do not get me going on teenagers room. I think the health dept would condemn our house! The only thing I can say is there is NO food in there. Yeah my 14 yr old is still like that. When she goes to bed at night, it all has to be on her night stand. tissues, water, chapstick, benedryl lotion, flashlight, notebook and fluffy pen,cough drops, container with 2 tylenol and a snotty nose pill, picture of her and friends, extra pony tail holder. When she does not feel good so she sleeps in the living room on the lazy boy all this comes with her. you should see when she spends the night at a friends house it takes two trips to the van. And visa versa when a friend spends the night. Everything in her room has stuff stuffed in it. purses, boxes, etc and all this stuff needs to be around her. Enjoy smile, shake your head because there will come a day when it is all gone no more clutter and you will so miss it and wonder where the time went.

OH!!! I am laughing SOOO hard! My daughter is 5 1/2 and yep...this is normal at my house! (as if that tells you anything)

But, here's a cute story...When she was around 2 1/2 I went back to work (like a dummy, that lasted less than a year!) and so she was in day care, and loved it!

One evening after she had gone to bed, I started picking up toys from the kitchen floor, then I froze and actually looked...she had started from one end and went around the room, first a blanket, then a doll, then another balnket, and when she ran out of blankets she used tissues and pieces of paper and when she ran out of dolls she used toys...she was recreating nap time at day care, each child lined up with their own mat and blanket. I was floored at her creativity!

Now that she's older, she likes to dress up like the girls on the videos (Barbie, etc.) in fancy dresses and dance around like they do, and act it out.

It's aggravating to have STUFF everywhere, and I mean everywhere, little piles in corners, all of that, but don't let your OCD get the best of you, or her!!!

That pic is so sweet.

Okay, I just showed that pic to my daughter and she went (gasp) Ohhh! with a smile and stared...then she said, "Can I have all that for Christmas? Please?" She just thought that looked like the best fun!

When she goes to bed at night, it all has to be on her night stand. tissues, Water, chapstick, benedryl lotion, flashlight, notebook and fluffy pen,cough drops, container with 2 tylenol and a snotty nose pill, picture of her and friends, extra pony tail holder. When she does not feel good so she sleeps in the living room on the lazy boy all this comes with her. you should see when she spends the night at a friends house it takes two trips to the van. And visa versa when a friend spends the night. Everything in her room has stuff stuffed in it. purses, boxes, etc and all this stuff needs to be around her.

How funny!

ALL of that - EVERY night???

...what we have to look forward to! LOL!

Thanks everyone, I guess this really is normal!

How about Polly Pocket? Any of your girls discovered Polly Pocket yet?

Man, I am sooooo glad I had a boy! Throw him a pair of jeans, a tshirt and his skateboard or bike and he is happy as a clam!

My little girl is 5 and might I say a prissy 5. She thinks everything she owns should be pink. She loves playing dress up and anything with feathers. You know like a bowa! She loves jewlery/beads/makeup/etc... HIGH MAINTANANCE FOR SURE!!!!

Jamie, do you have a little Paris Hilton in the making? LOL

Too cute!! - I think its normal for sure. When I was a kid I needed all my stuffed animals in bed with me till I was about 8. I need everyone in their spot. Did I mention that I had 32! But i knew exactly which one was missing everytime I snuggled into bed. Usually one of the dogs had one. I was a very sloppy child & teen. Now I am a professional organizer ( part time) & keep an EXTREMLY organized & clean home-Go figure;0)

That's soooo adorable. And it's perfectly normal. My grandaughter is in that stage currently. I love it.