Keeping house like my mum

WASHER

MrsMW wrote: »

I recently sorted out our photographs and threw away loads. We decided we wouldn't like the offspring looking at some of our honeymoon pictures!! We were in our 50's when we got married and I can imagine the sniggers some of the pictures would have caused.

I scanned all my old photos on to the computer and then put them onto disk so we have no hardcopies of photos in the house (other than my wedding photos), I just hope the dvds will work in years to come (or maybe not in the case of me in a bikini, my children would be embarrassed, my DD would say something like, did the anti cellulite cream you bought not work work then!). I bought an external harddrive especially for storing the photos (£40 I think) as my computer was running slow and I needed to free up some space, but thats full now so I have decided to use the DVD option.

Gigervamp

I wouldn't rely on digital media to store things like photographs and get rid of the real things. The disks only last for a few years so you have to remember to keep making back ups. Technology changes so much, it was only 10 years ago that I stored things on a floppy disk and now a lot of PC's don't have a floppy drive. I've also lost pictures that were stored on CD's because the disks degraded.

Sweetpeanut

I myself try to be organised and neat an tidy, but my DH is another story:rolleyes: he has atool for everything, ask to put a picture up an he goes into a cold sweat:rotfl:. Before we had our girls i definately had OCD, you has to levitate to come into my house, everything in its place an aplace for everything;). Now i like to think it more organised chaos:o. Don't get me wrong im clean (an down an dirty clean not top clean:D) But as quick as i clean and tidy my girls, come in like whirlwinds an before you know it, its a !!!!!!-tip again:mad::mad:. And i definately agree with previous posters, about how we have too much stuff nowadays, only the other day my FIL gave my girls money instead of buying tat off his hols, an my youngest got a baby doll an bath bits for the doll, the doll is now lay on the grass flithy and the bloody dogs played with it more then her!!! this xmas i think my budget for the girls is going to go down alot, because they just don't appreciate the toys, they are more than happy with colouring and pencils or a good cartoon dvd, but one day i will have them both sussed;), my eldest tellls people "mummy's job is the cleaner in our house"!! can't wait till they are older, i'll show em' who's the cleaner is:D:D:D:D.

attentionseeker1

Gigervamp wrote: »

I wouldn't rely on digital media to store things like photographs and get rid of the real things. The disks only last for a few years so you have to remember to keep making back ups. Technology changes so much, it was only 10 years ago that I stored things on a floppy disk and now a lot of PC's don't have a floppy drive. I've also lost pictures that were stored on CD's because the disks degraded.

I had a couple of enormous storage tubs full of photos and didn't want to throw them, so instead I made a couple of photo albums- just picking highlights of holidays, Christmas etc so each album covers a large period of time. Especially with pre-digital photos where you shot a whole film for every occasion, there are loads of photos that are not as good, the same as the last one etc etc that can all be thrown out, leaving you with a kind of 'highlights of your life' thing!

[Deleted User]

oh, I am glad my mum didn`t thow her old photos out as they are now proving absolutely invaluable in trying to trace my paternal roots. I am busy turning them into books for people via a site called blurb

dvds and cds used to be a problem but not now. I got rid of all the cases and filed the cds in lovely matching storage cases on a small shelf. They used to take up acres of room and were dreadful dust catchers

slash69

MrsMW wrote: »

I recently sorted out our photographs and threw away loads. We decided we wouldn't like the offspring looking at some of our honeymoon pictures!! We were in our 50's when we got married and I can imagine the sniggers some of the pictures would have caused.

oh mrs mw that's such a shame i would be gutted if my mum did that (thankfully she's a hoarder lol so that wont happen).. as a scrapbooker i obviously find all the photo's invaluable and love to look back at all of them..

milann

Scrapbooking has a lot to answer to in my house - I'm convinced the hobby turned into 'collecting the stash' rather than the making of the scrapbook. DD's old room has turned into my craft room - but I spend more time 'sorting' it than I do crafting in it - now that's something my mum would NEVER have done or understood - or spent hard earned cah on- but not sure I understand why!!!!!!!. I am learning NOT to buy craft stuff until I've used what I already have and have streamlined boxes of photos - but it will still take me forever to do them all - need more days in a week and more hours in a day to keep on top of everything lol

Milann

Jojo_the_Tightfisted

I couldn't help but laugh hysterically at the thought of my mother's house being clean...

Let's see. Her room. Bed covered in cat hair. Far side of bed never been vacuumed in my lifetime. Can remember as child being told 'don't go over that side of the bed as that's where the fleas live'. Carpet invisible under cat hair. Bloodstain on wall where I fell down stairs at age 7 as tripped on hole in stair runner, trying to escape her. I'm now 36. Hole still in stair runner.

Living room. Cat food bowls on sofa. Sofa seats and back covered with clothes and books and papers. Carpet still stinks of other cat that died 3 years ago. Stuff on all chairs. Coffee table covered in stuff. Stuff under coffee table. TV and PVR on stand next to stand containing old TV and VCR. In front of bureau of papers. In front of display case of glassware, never been seen. Next to bookcase full of books never read. Behind this - cupboard. No idea what's in it. Never seen it opened. Next to huge shelf unit. Under videos, DVDs, ornaments, paperwork. 6 foot high pile of DVDs next to big unit. Old gas fire behind coffee table. Covered in stuff. Next to piles of stuff. Behind this, big cupboard. Seen it opened twice in 36 years. Has distinctive woody smell about it. Table behind armchair. Unable to sit at it. Stuff on window sill. Tins of food and packets of food everywhere. Larder full of tins and stuff. Unable to access as door completely blocked by tins and books and clothes and things. Clothes on back of every chair.

Stuff all out on back porch. Old furniture in garden. Collapsed shed full of stuff. Old tubs, pots, boxes, wrapping plastic, smashed fish tank (I have scar from age 9 from this tank, where I stood on it in garden, not realising it was there). Rusty metal things. More stuff round side. More stuff going rotten, including furniture. Possible to see marks on wall where she pinned me to the wall and threw lighter fluid over me and then set fire to it.

Closer inspection of front room will probably reveal the metre long stick she used to wallop me and the dog with, along with the iron she used to tell me she would mark me with if I told anyone about anything that happened at home.

Before anyone tries to say something about her being ill and needing sympathy, forget it. She's always been like it. She came from a well to do family, had a good marriage. She had no reason to be so nasty. She even got a job for a while as a dinner lady at my school, !!!!!! - and they knew what she did to me. One of my brothers had been on the at risk register, but they did nothing about me - she convinced them that it was all a misunderstanding. She learned - every injury I had was patched up at home, including those needing stitches.

To me, there is no excuse for filth and dirt. I don't have a palace by any means. I will not spend all my time cleaning, when I would rather study or listen to my children's music practice. I only get the polish out about once a month or two. But my place is not dirty. If I go to a home like the place I grew up, I always wonder if they hide the same secrets as my mother did. I'll bet that a clean house is a rare thing for a social worker to step foot in when rescuing an abused child. Not unheard of, but less frequent than a hovel.

So, if you believe that it doesn't really matter what your home is like, and that everyone will just see you for the person you are - be warned.

slash69

milann wrote: »

Scrapbooking has a lot to answer to in my house - I'm convinced the hobby turned into 'collecting the stash' rather than the making of the scrapbook. DD's old room has turned into my craft room - but I spend more time 'sorting' it than I do crafting in it - now that's something my mum would NEVER have done or understood - or spent hard earned cah on- but not sure I understand why!!!!!!!. I am learning NOT to buy craft stuff until I've used what I already have and have streamlined boxes of photos - but it will still take me forever to do them all - need more days in a week and more hours in a day to keep on top of everything lol

Milann

milann, i know exactly what you mean about ''collecting the stash'', but me and dd 15yrs have challenged ourselves to not buy anymore untill the new year and by then we have to have done at least two lo's per week to use up existing stash an dto take part in any cc's and challenges on another forum..
my mum doesn't really understand how i can spend so much on it or have so much and nor does my sis but it's me she rings when my little nieces have a school project or easter hat to make as shhe hasn't anything or any ideas lol

slash69

Jojo_the_Tightfisted wrote: »

I couldn't help but laugh hysterically at the thought of my mother's house being clean...

Let's see. Her room. Bed covered in cat hair. Far side of bed never been vacuumed in my lifetime. Can remember as child being told 'don't go over that side of the bed as that's where the fleas live'. Carpet invisible under cat hair. Bloodstain on wall where I fell down stairs at age 7 as tripped on hole in stair runner, trying to escape her. I'm now 36. Hole still in stair runner.

Living room. Cat food bowls on sofa. Sofa seats and back covered with clothes and books and papers. Carpet still stinks of other cat that died 3 years ago. Stuff on all chairs. Coffee table covered in stuff. Stuff under coffee table. TV and PVR on stand next to stand containing old TV and VCR. In front of bureau of papers. In front of display case of glassware, never been seen. Next to bookcase full of books never read. Behind this - cupboard. No idea what's in it. Never seen it opened. Next to huge shelf unit. Under videos, DVDs, ornaments, paperwork. 6 foot high pile of DVDs next to big unit. Old gas fire behind coffee table. Covered in stuff. Next to piles of stuff. Behind this, big cupboard. Seen it opened twice in 36 years. Has distinctive woody smell about it. Table behind armchair. Unable to sit at it. Stuff on window sill. Tins of food and packets of food everywhere. Larder full of tins and stuff. Unable to access as door completely blocked by tins and books and clothes and things. Clothes on back of every chair.

Stuff all out on back porch. Old furniture in garden. Collapsed shed full of stuff. Old tubs, pots, boxes, wrapping plastic, smashed fish tank (I have scar from age 9 from this tank, where I stood on it in garden, not realising it was there). Rusty metal things. More stuff round side. More stuff going rotten, including furniture. Possible to see marks on wall where she pinned me to the wall and threw lighter fluid over me and then set fire to it.

Closer inspection of front room will probably reveal the metre long stick she used to wallop me and the dog with, along with the iron she used to tell me she would mark me with if I told anyone about anything that happened at home.

Before anyone tries to say something about her being ill and needing sympathy, forget it. She's always been like it. She came from a well to do family, had a good marriage. She had no reason to be so nasty. She even got a job for a while as a dinner lady at my school, !!!!!! - and they knew what she did to me. One of my brothers had been on the at risk register, but they did nothing about me - she convinced them that it was all a misunderstanding. She learned - every injury I had was patched up at home, including those needing stitches.

To me, there is no excuse for filth and dirt. I don't have a palace by any means. I will not spend all my time cleaning, when I would rather study or listen to my children's music practice. I only get the polish out about once a month or two. But my place is not dirty. If I go to a home like the place I grew up, I always wonder if they hide the same secrets as my mother did. I'll bet that a clean house is a rare thing for a social worker to step foot in when rescuing an abused child. Not unheard of, but less frequent than a hovel.

So, if you believe that it doesn't really matter what your home is like, and that everyone will just see you for the person you are - be warned.

oh jojo reading this made me so sad,what an awful childhood you and your brother had, i am sorry and really dont know what to say so sending big hugs .xx