To think most houses aren't 'visitor ready'?

[Pandrawerschangedmylife]

Got friends coming to stay this weekend. MIL just phoned to speak to DH, I explained he'd taken the kids out so that I can get the house sorted (change bedding, put the hoover round, clean the bathroom etc...) She sounded very surprised and made a comment along the lines of the house being pretty untidy if I need a few hours to clean it, as she just cleans hers as she goes (of course she does, there's only two of them living in the house!)

AIBU to think that most houses aren't tidy enough for overnight guests? There always seems to be things to sort and put away. Or am I actually living in squalor without knowing it?

I tidied my house up earlier. My dad came round for tea and asked me how much it would cost for a cleaner to sort my house out 😑

We spend an hour or two preparing for visitors staying overnight, mostly my MIL. But I have to admit I can’t imagine spending several hours preparing for her visit.

Inviting guests to stay... a few weeks ahead... is just about the only way we galvanise ourselves into finishing DIY etc and getting the house visitor ready😬. Pretty much a mad panic if we only get a few hours notice even from family (apart from siblings) we aren’t dirty just habitually untidy... every single one of us... which is why it is such an issue! Having said that it’s not just our household, having your house Mother-in-law proof is a real thing in my extended family 🙄

Mine was visitor ready at 2pm today, then we had a gang of weans for a birthday party. Now it looks like a street after a parade/party/riot. I could use one of those wee street sweeping vans to help me clear up.

I suppose it’s still technically clean under the debris. I did spend all Friday afternoon scrubbing and a bit of this morning buffing it up to receive the hordes. I think this may be a cultural thing - if guests are coming you make a bit of an effort, use the good teacups and the fancy towels and generally push the cleaning boat out. Normally my house varies between “just cleaned it” and “a bit disheveled”.

How clean is ‘visitor ready’?

Well if a visitor was to come and sit in the living room for cup of tea etc it's always tidy as DH is a bit of a neat freak.

Please don't look too closely at the dust on the shelves and the dog hair on the carpets though! And given the hygiene habits of DH and DS I'd need warning before anybody was to go to the bathroom.

We don't have spare room for overnight guests apart from DS's mates who sleep on the floor!

I’ve got 3 children and a dog, my house isn’t visitor ready even when I’ve tidied for 2 hours!!

Sorry but f your mother in law and her opinion ! I Would definitely need to spend a few hours tidying and cleaning before having guests over and I don't exactly live in a pig sty however I refuse to have my home 'visitor ready ' 24/7 .Tell her you just have higher standards than her .

We sometimes invite guests because it forces us to clean a bit deeper than usual and deal with piles of things that have otherwise become invisible to us. Don’t get me wrong, I tidy the downstairs daily and the upstairs at least weekly, but we have two five-year olds who continually churn up the house with surprising inventiveness.

My Aspergers husband keeps my home full of crap and unfinished so I can never invite anyone here. Having other people in the house makes him ill, therefore I live a very isolated life....be careful what you wish for.....

We're never visitor ready. We use social events / overnight stays as a good reason for a blitz, otherwise the house would probably be a permanent tip.... The spare room is my laundry room so I have to plan not to wash stuff the day before people come, then clear away the airers, make the bed etc. Plus the children leave so much stuff everywhere it takes a few hours to hide enough away to look tidy. I clean and tidy various rooms day by day, but if people are coming you need to have them all done at once, which does mean a bit of a blitz. But I'm not the most house proud, it has to be said - I keep the kitchen and bathrooms clean but everywhere else might have a bit more dust and clutter than I'd like.......

Mine is practically always a tip.

I consider mine to be. I can't be arsed worrying about what somebody thinks of my bathroom. Main problem is I can never remember if I changed the bedding after the last guests or not. If in doubt I just wash the pillowcases. No one's complained yet.

Downstairs only ever 5 or 10 minutes from being visitor ready. Upstairs looks like laundrette crossed with a crack den.

Just had visitors for the weekend - it took a month of frantic activity/DIY to get ready - finally feel I am embracing Marie Kondo.

Sounds annoying. We are rarely visitor ready as I dry washing inside at this time of year and hate having washing around the place when visitors come (no one needs to see my Bridget Jones knickers). Also me and baby regularly make a big mess in the living or dining room with crafting or something.
Pre baby I was usually fairly visitor ready (apart from last min mad dash around house to make sure no knickers on bathroom floors). But I still liked to give the place a good once over when I knew people were coming.
You MIL sounds rude and annoying. Sounds like the type of snarky comment my mum or stepMIL would make (both of whom are retired, have no kids at home and have cleaners 🙄🙄🙄)

Er, no... Only time our house gets cleaned is when we have guests I. E. Twice a year.

My house has been called 'lived in' a few times.

We're selling our flat at the moment. Trying to keep it immaculate for viewings when I work really long hours and DP has a 2 year old at home is absolutely no fun for him!

Yes, if we are having visitors, there will be a flurry of last minute panicked tidying - nothing too bad; just coats, toddler toys etc. Def not showhome ready when we aren't selling!

I love alone with my tiny dog and my house is always a mess. My guest room however, is always made up and tidy.

If I know visitors are coming I'll make sure the loo is cleans and the dishes done, maybe vacuum (I hate vacuuming so it's an actual chore for me). Most people don't care and don't use my bathroom anyway

Ha ha. I frantically tidy up when and only when I have visitors.

I would really hate it if we lived somewhere where people “popped in” unannounced

I have just had visitors. I wasn't ready!

Mostly it is visitor ready but only because it’s just the two of us for now so the second bedroom’s always just prepped for the next overnight guests.

But your MiL sounds like a delight :P

Mine would make snarky comments about how she’d always dust the house everyday etc.. (when we first got married). I’d feel bad for a minute before I remembered she has a cook and a twice-daily cleaner and didn’t work outside the house while I have no help and work full time.

For a brief space in time between getting all of our beds into the house and getting cats, we were 'visitor ready' at all times in one bedroom.

We'd strip the bed directly after guests, make it up again, then be ready for the next lot. We'd go in the room to dress each day, and clean once a week, but otherwise nice and tidy.

Then the cats arrived. First we went down to leaving changing until just before new guests since the cats liked to sleep upstairs with us but not in our bedroom, and we could clean off the hair etc before people came. Then after vomiting incidents, the bedding is stripped too and stored under the bed, and the bed is covered in blankets/mattress protectors.

I'd say we're not too bad though. About 30m would make us guest ready for one bedroom, about an hour for both.

I mentally divide up visitors into People I Wouldn't Dream of Tidying Up For (best friends from up the road who drop in), People I Tidy Up For (friends and relatives I don't see often and who make arrangements to visit), People I Pull All the Stops Out For (clients, business contacts, MIL!)