Anyone else let things go a bit in the day?

[LittleMonkiesMum]

I feel like I live in a slum until precisely 6:30 when I clear everything away. Just wondering if everyone else keeps things tidy during the day and if the following is indicative of a particulary sluttish attitiude to housework and childrearing.....
DD1 is currently wandering around with a t-shirt on, no nappy, she is wearing and sucking a rubber glove she found in the kitchen, and occasionally watching tv at VERY close range. Her grotty doll is on the changing mat in the dining room with a variety of wipes, cotton wool and nappies strewn over her. There is a partially eaten apple on the floor in the lounge and another zillion items including; an assortment of coloured pencils, some bits of a mixed jigsaws, Daddy's cycling helmet and gloves, my boots, Daddy's shoes, one of DD1's shoes, some glitter from earlier glitter accident, the vacuum cleaner from earlier glitter accident, DD1's jeans, DD2's socks, a few toys, DD2's blanket and fleecy jackety thing, a potty (just in case), a sketchbook, a long piece of wallpaper for drawing on, three different squashy balls and a skittle, a large football, and last but not least DD1's very recent contribution, a big wee with a scruffy towel on top of it! The sofa is dishevelled to say the least and is housing two remote controls, a couple of cushions and two phones. The dining room table has a tray with the remains of mine and DD1's lunch, it's been there for nearly 4 hours, and about 5 A3 sheets of drying 'art'. The kitchen is in a similar state, but has the added charm of a wet nappy on the floor next to the bin, thrown there in order to deal with it later.
DD2 is also having some bare bottom time under her gym in the play pen.
Is it just me or is this normal?

[becklespeckle]

my house is always tidy by 5.30 when my DH gets home - he would get a shock if he popped home in the daytime tho - it is always a state!!! What's the point in picking up after the kids all day when you can do it just once!

[giraffeski]

Message withdrawn

[dueat44]

Just let me get out of my pyjamas and collect DS and I'll give it some thought ...

[ComeOVeneer]

I have the luxury of a playroom and am very strict about all the toys staying down there. That gets tidied up after supper before bath. The rest of the house is clean and tidy. I couldn't leave lunch, wee, nappies to be dealt with until later. Sorry but that would drive me mad. I don't mind clutter of toys, but hygeine issues I am a bit anal about.

[Leander]

Sounds perfectly normal to me, dd and ds are fighting the dog is having a nervous breakdown under the table, there are 2 baskets of washing sitting by the chair a blanket thrown over the couch, toys everywhere yogurt pot and spoon on the table and dd has just emptied a pkt of wipes on the floor.I am just about to have a quick tidy up before dh gets home so it looks a little bit presentable but on the plus side dinner is in the oven cooking nicely

[MorocconOil]

Sounds like our home!Don't really know how you can prevent your house being like that when you have little children. Unless you spend ALL your time clearing up and stopping your kids from playing.

[LittleMonkiesMum]

Thankfully DH doesn't get home until about 7pm, and I always tidy before bath and bed as couldn't handle coming down to that chaos!
COV what are you talking about, I have dealt with the wee, it has a towel on top of it!

[oranges]

I'm like comeoveneer. i don't mind toys (including the plastic spoonsds loves atm) but i work from home and could not stand food, clothes or nappy stuff lying around. and i'm normally a slattern by mn standards.

[fryalot]

sounds normal to me. I am always a bit paranoid about what others will think, though. I NEVER invite anyone round until the evening when things have been tidied away and I get SO embarrassed when the meter man comes and has to come into my house, step over the kids toys, avoid the half painted paintings on the floor, go around the pile of library books we were reading just before he got there and go in the toy cupboard to read the meter! They always tell me that my house is like every other mum's house though.

[ohsmellyjelly]

Message withdrawn

[yomellamoHelly]

Snap. All organisation gone since ds2 arrived 2.5 months ago. Tidy food plates, cups etc. to kitchen and pjs, squares etc. to bathroom defore dh returns and we do a toy tidy-up time with ds1 before his pre-bed wind-down time so it's all clear by 7 - discounting the washing up and laundry of course. But that's not why I'm a SAHM. Thankfully dh is avoiding any comments! Would do more if I felt they weren't going to miss out, though. V envious of child-free friends homes atm.

[Astrophe]

Thanks for this thread! My house is often like this.

Sometimes I have tidy days (usually when we are out doing things), sometimes I have anal days (but I get to the end of those and think "what have I done all day but wander around picking up mess and harassing the children?"), and sometimes I have days so slovenly that DH has to bail me out when he comes home, becuase I get myself in a pickle and don't know where to start.

One thing that would make a huge difference would be to have a bathroom or laundry on the ground floor (why, oh why don't thse weeny english houses have room planned for this nesesity?) - I often can't sort out poo/wee/vomit/potty incidents properly until DH is home and I can get up to the bathroom to rinse out potties, dispose of poo etc.

Oh, and a playroom would be lovely...and a dishwasher too. And a tumble dryer...and ...and

But actually, although the mess gets to me, I firmly believe children should be allowed to potter about untidily during the day.

[DetentionGrrrl]

i pick up DS's toys when he's napping in the day. that's about it. i can't be arsed with tidying all day.

[exbury]

So all those people who admit to only tidying up before their DH comes home - close your eyes and imagine what it would look like if your DH didn't come home until Friday - that's my house this week (and many other weeks)

except he just called to say he is coming home tomorrow night instead. Bugger. That's tomorrow taken care of, then!

[Astrophe]

lol exbury! good luck!