Is everyone's kitchen as hectic as mine? (Photo)

[harlacem0507]

A little bit outing but I wanted to know if people can relate to this hectic kitchen of mine! It gets cleaned and tidied every day but most things I can't seem to store anywhere as have very little storage in my house, but honestly, does this kitchen seem 'normal' or very unorganized, messy, chaotic etc? Because I'm not sure if I'm being overly critical to myself for having a kitchen like this or I do in fact need to seriously organise it better! (The white blob is my son!) For context I have a husband and 3 children aged 13, 7 and 15 months and work part time.

Nope, I would say it's linked to individual preferences.

I feel uncomfortable in an untidy and clattered home. So I spent my time cleaning and tidying instead of spending hours on MN! 😝

Totally off thread I know but do you mind me asking where your kettle is from I really like it 😄

Hey OP, it’s messier than mine but mine isn’t pristine. It also probably a quick fix: everything binable in the bin, all food back in fridge or cupboard, dishes in the sink or dishwasher, bike somewhere else, a big basket for toys to get chucked into. Your floor looks v clean and nothing wrong with drying clothes in there. It’s cluttered but not dirty.

Anyone older than a little toddler has to help tidy.

I’m sure many of us have been there with small kids and work and mess. Doesn’t mean it’s a permanent thing, this too shall pass.

You need to get off mumsnet and clean your kitchen.
I'm sure many of us do!
But here we are instead, being sociable & opinionated & having a break!
I'm a bit of a clean-freak, I admit; unfortunately my nearest & dearest are the opposite; we have learnt to turn a blind eye to each other's foibles.

Are there any mental health issues or special needs at play?

I'm very house proud and that kitchen would give me anxiety.

Your kitchen isn't dirty, Op. Your floor is absolutely spotless. It's just clutter and things just discarded abd left where they were last used..We have a shed now for the bikes etc but when we lived in our other house there was no room outside for a shed. At one point, I hsd a bike, scooter and skateboard in thr hall!! Wasn't ideal but they looked quite neat tucked against a wall. Could you do that with the bike?

Too messy for me. I have a small kitchen and I love a gadget but have spent ages getting the aesthetic right in there! It does look like it just needs a decent tidy and it would be fine - and get the bike out of there!

No it definitely isn't dirty it's untidy and unorganised but you can see it's clean, a quick sweep of the work top putting stuff away/bin and it wouldn't look half as bad same with the table.

Have you got a tumble dryer or could you get one to save the big clothes drying rack or have some more storage near the table wall?

Why is your table at an odd angle to the wall? Move it so it's at a right angle, then have 2 chairs on each side. High chair at the end for the 15 month old. It will feel a lot tidier.

Is that a stand alone shelf or clothes airer ?

Well if its any consolation, my daughters a student nurse and comes home and is absolutely burst after placements and does nothing. She doesn't put her rubbish in the bin, do her dishes, put her clothes in the washing basket. So I doubt youl be the only one who has no energy left for the house after a shift. It's a mentally, physically and emotionally draining job especially with how much the NHS is struggling just now.

Behind every immaculate house is a very dull woman

Or, you know, any adult who finds it less effort and more rewarding to tidy and clean little and often?

It looks like a fire hazard.

Where do you eat?

Not normal for me or anyone I know – a kitchen like that would have me assuming a nervous breakdown or someone in the house very ill so routines had collapsed. Even after ADHD DP has cooked – he would absolutely put a tea towel on the hob and recycling on the counter instead of the box underneath – it doesn’t look like that. Sorry!

Find another spot for drying washing, for the bike, for the bike helmet, for anything non-kitchen. Tidy as you go: any recycling we have that needs washing out goes straight in the sink while we’re prepping meals, so it’s out of the way. Stuff for the bin goes in the bin – I’ve never been able to fathom the halfway house mindset of putting something for the bin on the counter, then moving it later.

That's kitchen diner? Don't see any oven or sink... Are you sure

I think it's fine unless it bothers you but it sounds like it does (and it would bother me too TBH - a lot - but I am quite tidy).
Please can you post another pic when it's tidied up so we can all breathe a sigh of relief and admire your lovely kitchen (looks like you've got really nice worktops under all the Ella's pouches etc)

Mine looks similar after I've just made a big meal, apart from that it's too small to have room for bikes and toys. It wouldn't just stay like that, we'd clean it up either that evening, or the following morning at the latest.

I think maybe it would be a good idea to separate the kitchen from the other living areas. Bikes should be either in an outdoor space or the hallway. You can get hooks to hang them on the wall. If your children are bringing toys into the kitchen to play whilst you are in there, tell them they need to take them back out again when they are done playing.

My kitchen never stays tidy for long but I couldn’t deal with that amount of stuff in there.

I would take out the stools, how often do you need the extra seating? If it’s not every day then they can go. Having to use the table for seating will also motivate you to keep it clear.
The bike needs to go outside, it’s obviously causing you stress and it’s not really hygienic either, Amazon have big plastic covers for bikes kept outside very cheaply.

Keep toys out of the kitchen too, if you need to have baby in the kitchen with you occupy them with a toy or activity they can have on their high chair.

I also don’t have a tumble dryer so I can sympathise with the washing, we have ours in our dining room and it drives me insane. A heated airer and a rack that hangs over our stairs banister has helped too.

The ovens in the picture I'd imagine the sinks behind her and not in view. What do you mean are you sure 😂

The tidy picture you have posted later in the thread is lovely and calming but I would not let the cat sit on the table 😳

Why would it be your job to fetch the bike from the shed? Surely your son can do that himself! There’s no way I’d keep a bike which has been riding through mud and dirt in my kitchen and I’m not particularly fussy.

My kitchen is much smaller than yours so I have no opportunity to keep washing, a table or anything else in it 😊

Your floor must be so dirty if you put the bike there every day. It’s just odd.

I would have a nervous breakdown.

Why isn't the lid of the butter replaced immediately, and the butter put back in the fridge. As for the bike, the dropped soft toy and kitchen table ........

Pick it up and put it away.

What would you do if someone dropped by?

Ha! Put things in the bin as you go OP, put things away when you’ve used them, then there’s never a big clean up operation required. That kitchen would drive me to distraction, but it could be blitzed in 5 minutes flat- 10 if the washing’s dry enough to fold (and take upstairs).