what does your MUM regard as normal household practice that you DONT

[WilliamGray]

washing rice

turnign matresses

Oh if we are doing MILs then

Monday washing day CHECK

Obsessive airing of items and airing cupboard full of odd socks belonging to her children who left home 20 years ago CHECK

Manically fiddling with the lighting in any room. Lamps on and off with each and every activity, "Oo you are reading so you will need these 15 lights off and these other 7 on" CHECK

Storage of cabbage water etc in small, stinky tupperware pots in the fridge and never using CHECK

My mum

Ironed y fronts
washed clothes pegs
Insisted on wearing petticoats at the correct length
Listened to radio 4 whilst ironing everything possible along with the y fronts
Always opened the oven door with her glasses on so they steamed up and she couldn't see - every singles time!

Made the most wonderful meranges and they had to stay in the oven over night

What wonderful memories

always said everything happened for a reason

My mum also saves the meat juices (brown on bottom, white on top) in the fridge! She has a special jar for them omg!

god my mum is obsessive-she thinks i am a lazy slatten - everytime she comes to stay she goes over the house saying this is dirty etc. SO i do the 'but i work, have a toddler and have frankly better things to do with my time' line. She retaliates' well kate, i had three children,worked full time and still managed to keep the house clean and tidy'

I LOVE reminding her about sue the cleaner who used to come twice a week!!!

dusting and ironing.
turning mattresses (must be from the same school as Cod's mum).

hospital corners on sheets - I forget how to do them and just make a fold and squish them under the mattress. My mother does them properly.

my mum doesnt do much in the house tbh, but shes only 44.
i always remember her cleaning the wall up the stairs - she was obsessed about it.
she had/has LOADS of tupperware!
the dishcloth used to be my old vests from when i was little!
oh, and matress and pillow protecters, with a plain pillowcase on top, and then the proper pillowcase on top of that.

My mum has summer and winter curtains too. My dad rinses cups under the cold water tap, which of course doesn't clean them properly and the next time you go to use a cup it's still got a brown rim around it. Feeks

nuffin

shes as much of a slattern as i am

My mum also has a fine collection of Pendelfin.

And not to mention Royal Doulton Ladies with her name, my name and dd's name. She keeps tell me to put them on display when she's gone. Dh says they will be on display alright - in the attic.

My MIL can beat all your mums into a cocked hat.

She had FIL make her a little gizmo so that when she mops the kitchen floor she can mop under the fridge too.

She hoovers her loft twice a year.

She makes little frilly curtains from oddments of material to attach over the wall hooks that you hang your teatowels etc on.

She sews loops onto towels, flannels and teatowels so that they don't fall off the hook.

She has a schedule for cleaning (despite the fact there's only FIL and her living there and half their rooms never get used.)

She is bonkers.

But she has a very clean house.

he makes little frilly curtains from oddments of material to attach over the wall hooks that you hang your teatowels etc on.

PMSL

my mum is obsessed with not opening curtains in case the sun fades the carpets. You go into the house and it always feels like the middle of winter.

She also has a love affair with bleach and anything that doesn't move fast enough gets bleached.

She hoovers twice a day and cleans the kitchen floor on her hands and knees, because a mop leaves it too wet. That said, once she's cleaned the floor after tea, she doesn't go back in the kitchen til morning. I think she may need some mop wringing lessons!

Irons everything that comes out of the dryer including tea towels, knickers and socks ffs!

Sets the breakfast table every night before going to bed.

Cleans the kitchen work surfaces with bleach.

Puts the smallest amount of leftovers in enormous tupperware containers that then take up all the space in th fridge.

MIL wraps stuff e.g. lettuce and individual carrots in kitchen roll hen puts them in the fridge.

Sorry but I'm more of a slob then my 2 grown up DDs their houses much tidier then mine ..but I do have a scruffy 15 year old ds messing mine up ...well thats my excuse anyway

Irons everything that comes out of the dryer including tea towels, knickers and socks ffs!

Sets the breakfast table every night before going to bed.

Cleans the kitchen work surfaces with bleach.

Puts the smallest amount of leftovers in enormous tupperware containers that then take up all the space in th fridge.

MIL wraps stuff e.g. lettuce and individual carrots in kitchen roll hen puts them in the fridge.

Cleans fridge and oven once a week
Irons absolutely everything
runs a bowl of washing up water if you use so much as teaspoon..
Uses saucers with mugs
Aks me repeatedly how I keep on top of my housework/washing/ironing when I work FT - I guess it's my fault as I usually mumble something vague in response (she lives a long way away...)
Cleans brass - again with pants!
When visiting you get asked if you've got any washing that needs doing even though you've only been there 5 mins. Like I'd take a suitcase of dirty clothes.... (actually I think I'm missing a trick here...}
Still uses a carpet sweeper even though it is much use as running the cat backwards and forwards over the carpet...
When we were kids we were given jobs to do, but we never did them properly apparently so she always did them again.

I too am a slattern when it comes to housework but strangely DH is much like her. We have nearly divorced on several occasions due to my "filthy" habit of leaving a dish to soak in the sink. Completely beyond me why it should upset him THAT much - thank god we now have a dishwasher...

My mother is OBSESSED with laundry. She practically grieves if the laundry basket is empty when she arrives - it's the first thing she checks - and always proceeds to look for dirty socks under the sofa and dirty teacloths in the playhouse (my dd uses them as blankets for her dollies). Now I like to plant secret stashes of dirty laundry for her to find, just to see her face light up bless her.

same as Maidamess's mother regarding laundry: mine soaks, boils, washes, hangs out to dry, THEN rolls (very laboriously) all the clothes to be ironed in dampened t-towels - it takes such a loooonnnggg time it makes me want to scream with frustration - "just iron it fgs"...some things get starched then it gets aired again "because otherwise we'll get arthritis"

somehow the invention of central heating, tumble dryers and steam irons have totally passed her by ....

she also has one handbag to match each pair of her shoes according to colour so; one black, one brown, one navy etc etc and empties them out and polishes them once a week on a Friday afternoon

she re-washes J-cloths

and rinses out plastic bags and re-uses them

and unplugs EVERY single electrical appliance in the house (except the fridge/freeer) before going to bed at night, such as kettle, microwave, toaster, TV, including every lamp in the house and locks every single internal door and every single window. If you are first down in the morning it takes 30 minutes before you can break in to the kitchen and boil a kettle ... AAARRRRGGGGHHHHH

she also has wierd lace squares under her dressing table mirror and on top of her chest of drawers which she washes and starches once a week .....

It's because they need to make themselves busy. That's all it is.

If my mother gets new wine glasses or whatever, you know they sometimes have a little sticker on with the make etc, she PAINTS IT OVER WITH CLEAR NAIL VARNISH so it won't wash off.

Has anyone mentioned excessive carrier bag hoarding? Mind you, quite fashionable now. But when I lived at home if she made sandwiches for a trip out, they were in an old carrier bag.

Bleuggh

What's the problem with washing cloths?!

All the things that my Mum does that I don't are things I think I should do. Like use a teapot and have a crochet doily under a vase of flowers on the dining table.

xx

My mum sticks down perfectly adhesive envelopes with about half a roll of sellotape, 'In case the postman gets any funny ideas'

And if she ever sends me anything (even a Boots 2 for 1 offer voucher, she rings, leaves messages and won't rest until she knows I've received it.(And thanked her profusely, of course)

Nowt wrong with washing cloths -

we should be following suit for enviromental reasons

• I just never get to it

nor do I save little bits of soap and squish 'em together like my mother does

oh the list is endless ... she drives me stark-raving bonkers tbh ....