to think that you should at least hoover before having a kids party?

[allaboutme]

I'm probably being a middle class snob, but have just taken DCs to a birthday party at a boy from school's house.

The cream carpet was black with dogs hairs. There was dog hair in the party food.
There was a washing bin overflowing with dirty underwear all on the floor in the bathroom.
At one point my DS dropped his dummy and it was so dirty when I picked it up, I stuck it straight in my bag!

On top of that there were only fizzy drinks on offer - i had to ask for something non fizzy

and the house stank of smoke. Birthday boys Mum nipped out for a fag a couple of times during the 2 hour party.

AIBU to think they could have at least hoovered or tidied a little bit before inviting 15 kids and their parents round???

The OP didn't say the house was filthy, just the carpet was covered in dog hair. Who knows, maybe the hoover had broken. Anyway the amount my black lab is shedding at the moment is unbelievable - I hate to think what my floor would look like if I had a cream carpet!

As for dog hair in the food: are we talking the odd hair or two, or half a dog?

Fizzy drinks: maybe they could only afford some fizzyt dirnks and not a whole range of squash and juice too. They probably thought that if people don't want fizzy drinks they can help themselves to water from the tap.

Smoking: Well it is their house. At least the mum went outside to smoke.

So, OP, YABU.

I think if you have invited people and their young children to a party you should try and make the house presentable before hand.

Hide the wash basket, wipe the surfaces and hoover the carpets! DONE!! Not too much hassle surely?

Im never going to win any award for being a domestic goddess, but if I have invited people round I would make a bit of effort for them.

I don't think its snobby not to want your child rolling around in a load of animal hair, let alone eating it!

I know someone who lived like a complete slob, really dirty and messy, she had her children taken away on the grounds of neglect, she was given 48 hours to sort out her home before they would return the children.

Surley maintaining your home to a decent standard is part of being a parent?

Ah but, Riven, did you hoover in your dd's ear?

I forgot to answer for the case of the dirty washing.

Maybe one of the kids had pulled it out all over the floor and the poor mum had no idea and went into the bathroom when everyone had gone and was mortified to see her dirty knickers on the floor!

Something similar happened to me once. We were having a barbecue and there were lots of black bags on the landing to go up into the attic so i threw them into my bedroom and shut the door.

It wasn't til everyone had gone that I went up to the loo and saw that the bedroom door was wide open with the unmade bed and heaps of black bags in full view

OP, make up your mind. Were you disgusted by the filth OR by the woman not having made more of an effort beforehand? Maybe she's not as terrified as you of what the Joneses might gossip about her. She might be happy in her skin and with her status and not really give a stuff about your opinion.

BTW - i'd keep quiet about your DS having a dummy. It's not enough...middle class, you know?!

yanbu

YANBU, hairs in food is truly vile.

Maybe I grew up in a parallel universe, but in my world the posher you are the less you care about dog hair. The working class kids I was at school with all came from immaculate homes and wore gleaming white socks.

Us kids from the houses with books and plants in came to school dressed as tinkers and had to literally dig through mess to get any of our toys or books off the floor. Pets ran wild and yoghurt grew fungus in forgotten corners.

WTF is this idea that people have clean houses becuase they can afford cleaners? Garbage. The houseproud mums of my childhood did it all themselves and would have died if there had been a dog hair in the food.

My mum looked down on them for their hygeine obsession and said things about germs and immune systems etc. Basically my mum couldn't be arsed cleaning but it looked better to call it a political stance

YANBU. hoovering takes 5 mins. I work a 4 day week and don't have a cleaner or any other help and two kids and can still hoover every few days whether I have guests coming or not. It takes minutes. yuck at hair in food.