to think that you can either have a clean, tidy and uncluttered house OR happy children but not both?

[GreenTeapot]

Or can you manage both? How do you do it?

Good tip Bonsoir re clutter collecting. With children's art I am quite ruthless. I only keep the really good stuff. Very occasionally it gets framed (I have one or two really great items), send some select pieces to grand parents, God parents, doting aunts and uncles (that way you've got rid of it, but it's gone to a good home iyswim), have a wall or fridge where it can be displayed - both dcs have a space in their bedroom and operate a one in one out policy (at least if you've displayed it even for a week you don't feel so bad about throwing it out). You can't possibly keep everything they ever make so the sooner you get a system the better (even I an obsessive declutterer get sentimental about chucking out their stuff).

Ooh - just seen your bathroom bin tip Bonsoir - I'm going to do that now!!!!

i agree with lequeen in so far as I cannot abide people criticising parents who have a clean tidy home ' if its tidy there's something wrong' err no!

I've got a box like that lequeen well actually one for each dc.

i have a lot of children and a vintage suitcase for that stuff!

LeQueen You clean the bathroom when your DC are in the bath
I take it they are not teenagers then ?

Another top tip. Clean the shower while you are in it. Takes hardly longer than just having a shower and a lot easier.

I wouldn't want to be using bleach anywhere near my children...but do tend to clean the loo and have a wipe round the bathroom when ds is in the bath.

You all have a 'bits and bobs' junk and crap drawer/cupboard/box, right?

Laq - that is an excellent tip about the bin liners, I shall do it immediately!

Cleaning the shower while you are in it is a very nasty idea. You need to keep bare skin well away from cleaning products, which are all, to some extent, carcinogenic and at the very least are irritants.

I'm glad my tip is going to be used!

I like a clean and tidy house but at the same time i'm quite lazy so i constantly think of ways to minimize effort (especially in the mornings).

LeQueen - yes thats the way I do it too.

Bonsoir - maybe I should wear rubber gloves?

Oooo I am using the bin idea too! I already have my bathroom cleaning stuff in there. I am shocked not everyone does. I'm a messy bugger and I do so you surely must :o

Bonsoir, microfibre cloths, like e-cloths, clean effectively without chemicals, and although I wouldn't use one for the toilet, thay can be handy for the shower/bath area.

I've got some Method shower spray that I spritz round when I get out of the shower, helps to prevent water marks and smells lovely.

Somebody had asked about the Flylady and I just wanted to say you can google it and there is also a daily thread on here under the housekeeping section.

I have a friend who used to live in a flat and then moved to a large terraced house and she tells me that the big house is so much easier to keep tidy because of the space. In her flat the children and husband would get home, dump their stuff, get out toys and the place would be absolutely chokka. Even a few shopping bags and some shoes would make the place look messy.
So that's my excuse, my flat is too small for my stuff. I don't have a playroom or a dining kitchen, no dishwasher, no tumble drier and two storage cupboards, oh and the toys are kept in the main living area, I have lego permanantly embedded in my feet and my partner works from home and keeps his paperwork everywhere.
If I didn't accept a certain level of untidiness I would probably be miserable
So what was the question?

I always use microfibre cloths, but I find that if I don't use any products in the bathroom/shower that mould grows very quickly in the silicone.

I love Method -only stuff that doesnt make me cough and wheeze.
I got loads of Eco-cloths a few years back when Waitrose had them half price-still going strong .

Another e-cloth user - amazing!

But we also use Ecover products throughout - very few nasty chemicals and if any gets on me (I have sensitive skin prone to excema) it doesn't "burn" me. Also smells nice and means I don't mind cleaning bathroom when DD is in the bath (don't clean the bath whilst she's in it, obviously!).

I do the cleaning at bathtime thing as well. I think the steam kind of 'loosens' the dirt.
I use the old bath water to clean the loo and the floor around it every day because boys generally miss.
Only use soap or shower gel for cleaning and keep two microfibre cloths in the bathroom, the peepee one and the everything else one.
The bathroom is the cleanest part of the house because DP doesn't store his paperwork in there, but I can see him eyeing it up. Hmmm!