AIBu in thinking that a house can never be really clean unless

[breathing]

Everyone in the house pitches in? I believe that ultra clean houses must have some degree of cooperation from the family. Like, for example, not being lazy fuckers and leaving spat toothpaste in sinks, wee on seats and dishes and plates in rooms?

Ok the gleaming part os only because i have some furniture polish

WRT to Ex's mum, no-one else in the house does anything. And I mean nothing - her teenage GC will stand in front of the fridge and say 'nan get me a drink from the fridge' and she will stop ironing/vacuuming/washing the skirting boards and get it for them...None of them put so much as a cup in the sink or even hang up their clothes. Hence why when I met my Ex he expected me to run round after him, and was seemingly incapable of doing anything himself.....

I think that she keeps it so clean by a) cleaning/doing housework for in the region of 8 hours a day, every day. Literally every minute she is at home(works pt). And b) because there are no children living there - most of the adults are out for part or all of the day.

Ex told me that when he was a baby his mum put him in his pram/playpen in the garden all day while she cleaned, or when he got a little older (age 4 onwards) he was sent out to play all day every day so he didn't make any mess indoors!

That's how to keep a house spotlessly clean but it's bordering on ocd and certainly not how I would want to live.

God that poor woman hatesponge

My house can never be really clean until my computer breaks down...

I do have a friend whose house is so clean you could perform surgery in any of the rooms and any given time.

She even cleans all the doorhandles daily with alcoholic wipes (and her kids are always ill).

She is however very very dull tbh.

My kids are made to help out but my house is still a shit tip

My mother was the same, she'd kick us out into the street to play from 2 years old and that is how she has time to do her hair and clean up.
I prefer that my children are a safe were I can keep an eye on them and b not constantly nagged because we've rebelled and all have cleaners.

surrveys the mess of a living room that ds trashed this morning. thinks bouncing ferret has a point...

MNHQ-why havent we created a medal emoticon for fabby yet?.

breathing, I know , its a bit :(. She's a lovely lady but her life is that house - my DC when they stay over can't get up before 9.30 so she can get some cleaning done first...

My mum always kept our house v clean and tidy, (much more so than mine ever is!) she used to clean and defrost our fridge weekly for example, and always would wash up all pots and pans before she ate her dinner but equally my dad and I were trained not to make any mess and tidy up after ourselves.

I am still messy tho. Think I may get a cleaner :)

I tell you what if I did as much housework as my house needs I would never stop. My kids too small to do much right now, though they tidy their own rooms with my help and pick up after themselves, laundry, crockery etc.

I do think that when there are small children around if one of the partnership does not pitch in then the partner that is left with the house shit work and childcare is on route for a nervous breakdown. The sheer back breaking work required to raise a couple of kids and keep a home going to a high standard cannot be underestimated. It is not easy and I dont care what anyone says. My ex never lifted a finger in 8 years and I did actually end having a breakdown for that and other behaviours from him.

My Mum goes on about my standards and compares them to hers (I hoover, polish, clean toilet daily and kitchen is always washed up and tidy straight after meals) but she forgets that from the age of 8 onwards I was doing nearly all the housework while she worked full time.

I think its bloody shocking when one person is expected to provide domestic service for other adults. My ex MIL is one of these, she never sits down either, thus I am labelled lazy by her and my ex and their family because I am not like this.

Sorry that turned into a rant but this is such a bugbear of mine.

pink4ever.

Try four little boys . Having cleaned for an hour this morning they took the four big bottles of paint I had bought and painted the floor, the table the walls and a few other things all in the time it took me to unpack the rest of the shopping...

Two hours later the house is clean but if they EVER do that again im leaving!

Wait - am I missing something? If they treat her with such contempt that they can't even get themselves a drink, why the hell has she let it get to that stage? Not a poor woman - a very silly one, surely?!

Yes I totally agree.

A tidy house depends on cooperation and some basic rules.

I also think it is very very important that children keep all their toys in one room and not leave them everywhere.

We do not have a suffocatingly tidy house but the rules are:

1. No one wears shoes in the house - ever.

1. Everyone tidies their own bedroom.

1. Everyone puts laundry in the laundry bin.

1. Toys stay in childrens own room - not allowed anywhere else.

1. No children allowed in dining room or drawing room without an adult.

1. No children allowed in bedrooms during day.

1. Food is eaten at the table.

1. Everyone leaves the house for 2.5 hours so I can clean it thoroughly once a week.

" Everyone leaves the house for 2.5 hours so I can clean it thoroughly once a week."

Yes essential. My ex would never do this though because the kids were "too hard work" for him to manage on his own with them. WTF can you do with a man like that?

Don't you get your DC to bring their plates out? My 4YO puts his on the dishwasher when he's finished eating. I think you have to train them young. He also helps me fold sheets and duvet covers.

Having said that he wees on toilet seats and I found peanut butter smeared over the mirror the other day so he's not perfect. I like a clean and tidy house but I really don't like cleaning and tidying and I resent having to tidy up after other people (even if they're only 4)

I can't be arsed to have a spotless house. DH and DD do do their bit (well, DH does), but the dogs are No Help At All.

YANBU. But it doesn't always happen here, I need to toughen up a bit on my lot! Mine is a clean(ish) tidy(ish) home. I want my kids to like living here, not feel like they're living in a school dorm.

No offence fabbychic but I find it difficult to believe a word you say as you come out with some complete rubbish.

I think it is easy to keep you house clean if you have very little 'stuff', minimalist living if you like.

I try and keep as clean and tidy as possible but put enjoying my life ahead of having sparkling surfaces.

Dull women have immaculate houses and all that.

Agree with SmallClanger. Currently sitting on a cream sofa liberally spattered with muddy pawprints, admiring cream carpet with similar adornment. Perhaps cream was not the best choice especially given my sloppy standards

Whoever mentioned hoarding husbands was dead on the money, too. Why does he need to keep so much stuff?

my house is clean enough to be healthy and dirty enough to be happy, when my kids were growing up i trained them to clean up after themselves put toys away before bed etc, bedrooms stayed tidy as i threatened to throw away anything on the floor that was not supposed to be there ie beds and wardrobes they knew i meant it aka tidy rooms kitchen and front room got tidied and cleaned when they were in bed so it started the day tidy result three kids one working mom and a clean house

No children in certain rooms without an adult? Blimey - don't like the idea of that at all. Surely, homes are for the whole family? And if they are not allowed in their bedrooms in the day but can't bring toys out of their rooms, how do they play? Rules like that seem to suggest that a perfect house is more important than happy children - sorry if I've got it wrong but a couple of those rules seem positively Victorian.

My house gets a full clean upstairs and downstairs once a week. It takes hours and looks lovely when it's finished. Then the bloody kids & DH turn up and by the day after it looks like I never bothered.

I'm considering making them all live in a tent in the garden.

I find it hard to keep a clean house even when everyone chips in ! Teenage stepsons take dishes out , clean work surfaces after them selves , take all their belongings upstairs , hang up coats and puts shoes away , clean their bathroom and bedrooms once a fortnight . DH does the washing , dishwasher, bins and our bathroom , I pick up the cooking , polishing , vacuuming and all the bits men don't seem to notice , and we have a cleaner for two hours a week , and the house is never like a show home . Find it very depressing . Think its down to our very large 7 stone German Shepherd who loves muddy puddles .

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