Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Child-safe in minutes.

Meet the Other Phone.
Child-safe in minutes.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
Housekeeping

Find cleaning advice from other Mumsnetters on our Housekeeping forum.

Original poster

How do people keep their houses so immaculate when they have children?

75 replies

Sparkler1 · 12/08/2006 14:25

Just popped in to see a friend of mine who has two dds. Her house is totally imaculate, not a speck of dust and everything in it's place. Even the garden looks like she hires a gardener. Green grass with edges that look like they've been cut using a ruler, beautiful flower pots.
How does she do it?
As for our house it has that "lived in" look to it and the garden looks like a children's playground.

OP posts:
twinsetandpearls · 13/08/2006 14:39

janeite our front room isn;t child free but it is the only room not designed for children, so we ahve a cream wool rug,cream walls, glass and candles. Dd comes in the room but she knws that she doesn't bring her toy in and that it is a special room.

I think it does children good to learn that your whole life does not revolve around them and they ather are things they should not touch.

It means that if people do pop around uninvited there is always one room that is looking fab.

Gobblunarcharsky · 13/08/2006 14:49

Mine is pretty clean and tidy because I don't really like mess. I wouldn't describe it as immaculate though! Definitely not!

The children have their own playroom so the toys are all in their - I make them take them back in if they start migrating to other rooms although I do let them do a huge train track out into the hallway etc.

They are not allowed in our lounge generally - they come in there sometimes but on the week days when I'm at home with them, the door to that room is shut and they just don't go in. Ds3 climbs on the television stand and our TV is big and was very expensive. ANyway, there is nothing in our room that they haven't got as they have a big enough TV, video, DVD player and Sky TV.

The garden always looks pretty tidy but we have a gardener and I always tidy toys away into the summer house at the end of the day - would never leave them all lying around.

Having said all that, Jools doesn't think I'm strict enough where they eat biscuits, take juice (i.e into the playroom!) etc. So I'm not that obsessive

Gobblunarcharsky · 13/08/2006 14:50

'all in there' even - eek, never preview!

Original poster
Sparkler1 · 13/08/2006 15:26

I am totally that some of you don't let your kids into your lounges. Ours is home to all. Do understand that it's nice to have a room to go that's clutter free. That's why we have a spare bedroom which we use as dds toyroom and try to keep things up there as much as possible. The dining room has boxes of dds arts and crafts stuff in it too as they use the dining table to do their drawing, painting, play dough etc.

OP posts:
southeastastra · 13/08/2006 16:06

oh to have a playroom and a lounge for adults only

Gobblunarcharsky · 13/08/2006 16:06

My kids have their own lounge. As I said, they've got video, dvd, sky, hundreds of toys, sofas etc. It's huge - they don't need to trash my lounge! Why have that lounge open to trashing when they've got the rest of the house to go at? Perfectly sensible if you have a 1 yr old who likes to climb and TV and furniture that cost a lot of money.

Each to their own though! Some people can't be arsed to tidy up and I don't get that either!

twinsetandpearls · 13/08/2006 16:07

Sparkler1 suppose it depends on what room you ahve. Dd has a bog bedroom with plenty of spacve for her and her toy. She used to ahve a playroom but that has become a dinng room again but she still uses that room if she wants to play games or do art craft up at the table.

We have catches on all our doors not only to keep dd and her friends out of rooms I don;t wann them in but also the dog and our front room is locked and tends to be out of bounds. I see no harm in that, it encourages her to do things other than watch the TV. Dd also has lots of friends round in the day so again I lock some doors so I can control the mess.

If Dd and her friends want to watch a film together they can go in the front room but no drinks or cakes. Although occasionalli I do relent on the popcorn if I am felling nice. But otherwise there is no need for her to go in that room.

nutcracker · 13/08/2006 16:09

We had friends and there kids round last night after we'd all been to a mutal friends party. We hadn't planned their visit so our house was clean and mostly tidy but definatly had the 'we have kids' look to it.

Friend said she felt so relaxed at ours because she could put her feet up and pretend she was at home .

Alot of their other friends have houses that are like show homes and she said she hates it cos she daren't let her kids even sit down lol.

twinsetandpearls · 13/08/2006 16:11

southeastastra we used to love our playroom but as dd has got older she plays with less big toys if that makes sense so needed less room. So we had a hige move around in the house and her playroom becae the dining room again which I think benefits family life more than a playroom, my large study and craft room had to go and this became dd bedroom and now I have the boxroom as my study and I sew downstairs.

Dd bedroom allows her similar playspace as her playroom to be honest and she likes having a nicer bedroom and we don't ahve to eat in the kitchen.

But if I had a bigger house with 3 reception rooms I would have a kids lounge again.

southeastastra · 13/08/2006 16:11

years ago people had front parlours for special occasions

twinsetandpearls · 13/08/2006 16:14

nutcracker you are so right, before dd came along and I was married to my psycho ex husband my house had to be perfect. That included ironging all the bedding on the beds after they had been made, scruubing the house everyday from top to bottom, tins all facing the same way in cupbards, magazines fanned equally on the coffee table, cushions perfectly plumped and placed. Friends have said that as lovely as our apartment was they used to feel uncomfortable in it, and it never really felt like home.

My home now always has a lived in look and everyone comments on what a lovely atmosphere it has as they walk through the door.

twinsetandpearls · 13/08/2006 16:15

My mum is always lauging about her parents parlour that she only ever saw at Christmas and high days. Apparantly it was used that little that the heating wasn't even connected in there.

Gobblunarcharsky · 13/08/2006 16:15

Ditto Twinset - if they are having a 'cinema' treat they can watch our TV which is huge.

I've also just bought catches today to go on 2 rooms upstairs - I've already got make up all over my carpet and bed from ds2 and ds3 so I don't want them or their friends 'playing' in there. I don't want them in the office either where the computer is. Ds1 is 5 and I'm not worried about him but ds3 climbs up on the desk, stands up at the windows etc - it's dangerous apart from anything else.

nutcracker · 13/08/2006 16:15

Crikey Twinset, that must have been a nightmare.

twinsetandpearls · 13/08/2006 16:17

Gobblunarcharsky I am amazed the lids come to our house for a cinema experince we have a battered old 17 inch tv video combe that only shows a clear picture in the centre. But the kids still turn up, will be getting a new TV in a few weeks though ahve been saving for ages and dp and dd are so excuted!

twinsetandpearls · 13/08/2006 16:19

nutcracker now I look back I wonder how and why I did it. We did have cleaners to help but when I stopped work to have dd foolishly I decided I coudl do it myself and I used to be doing clenaing in the early hours of the morning.

twinsetandpearls · 13/08/2006 16:20

Gobblunarcharsky the catches are also quite good if someone breaks in as they could end up trapped in a room and having to make a lot of noise to break the door open. This would give us time to call the police.

Bucketsofdinosaurs · 13/08/2006 18:10

LOL at Gobblunarcharsky's kids having a tv that is 'big enough' for them Just sounds funny.

speedymama · 14/08/2006 12:58

DH is a tidy freak. If I get a book out and leave it for 2 minutes, it will be back on the book shelf.

DTS are tidy too. At 2.6 years, they will tidy things away. They even have their own dustpan, brush and duster each!

My friends cannot believe it when they see it!

kerryanne · 14/08/2006 14:07

I would describe myself as Monica from friends...I have a cupboard which is an absolute mess!! everything goes into it.....I used to be spotless and must say i do like to keep the house clean but as by baby gets older we are finding out front room is not a living room any more but more a play room!! I dont mind now...I used to be obsessed with tidying up as my baby played but now i have learnt to let her make a mess and have fun!! I clean up now when she goes to bed!! her 'mess' is what keeps her happy!! and if there are no tears then i am happy too

EvesMama · 14/08/2006 14:10

my last house(9 years old, one through rrom then arch into kitchen plus 3 beds) was always immaculate!..moved here!!!............3 separate reception room, kitchen, 3 bedrooms, cathroom..massive hallway.....i dont know how people manage!!!!!!!!!!...im polishing and hoovering for the third time in 4 wks!..and yes..i DO have fluff between my walls and skirting boards

EvesMama · 14/08/2006 14:11

oops..we do not have a room specifically for people called 'cath' we do however have a bathromm ..b..b..bathroom

Tinker · 14/08/2006 14:15

Put your house up for sale. This is the tidiest mine has been in 13 years.

bubblepop · 14/08/2006 14:40

oooh im always interested in this! a friend of mine has a beautifully kept home but her kids arn't allowed to eat in the lounge, when they were toddlers she quickly got rid of the sandpit because they kept walking sand into the house! her house is really so immaculate that i actually feel uncomfortable going there with my kids incase they drop a crumb or something. i feel much more at home with a new friend who hardly does any house work and the place looks like a bomb's hit it! . my house is somewhere in the middle, its not immaculate and there are toys and stuff lying around, but i always make sure the kitchen work tops are clean and the bathroom is sparkly with clean towls.i get fed up when the kitchen floor is sticky, thats one of my pet hates. i draw the line though at hoovering more than once a day, once its done thats it till the next day. when the days over i just want to relax and unwind, i don't wanna be up and down cleaning after the kids have gone to bed, thats my time! i reckon it takes an awful lot of hard work to keep your house beautifully tidy with kids and anyone who does manage it must be literally cleaning and tidying all day long until they go to bed at night to keep it that way, such a waste of energy!

MadamePlatypus · 15/08/2006 10:09

Green grass with edges? Whats green grass then?

Anyway, I think bubblepop is right, you can keep a house immaculate if you are following your kids around with a dustpan and a cloth all day long. Some people do actually enjoy doing this. However its not really necessary - its just how they choose to spend their time.