Comments on: How to Keep Your Floors Clean when you have an infant and a toddler (I’m not telling you, I’m asking you…)

By: Jinxy

Jinxy — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 14:57:14 +0000

I have laminate in my kitchen but have no suggestions yet. I just won a Vroom and am really excited to try it out.

By: Cindy

Cindy — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 00:25:31 +0000

I answered your poll. I let my kids snack all over the house but in their rooms. There is nothing worse than crumbs in a bed! Yuck! If it is a messy snack then it is in the kitchen only! We Have three meals a day but only snack occasionally. If we have done a lot that day or the kids are seeming hungry. We don’t have designated times for snacks but it is not every day either. We are a fly by the seat of our pants family!
We have linoleum in the kitchen, tile in the bathrooms and entry way and carpet everywhere else. I use pine sole and a mop in the kitchen. It is OK. I did have the Swifter Wet Jet but I also didn’t like it. I vacuum all the time. My 6 month old is crawling everywhere and the floor has to be clean. If it is not food on the floor it is little pieces of paper from my other three little artists. I vacuum a lot!

By: Andrea

Andrea — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 20:01:07 +0000

I use the Swiffer and it’s fine! =)

By: Lisa

Lisa — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 15:52:57 +0000

I have hardwood floors downstairs, laminate in the kitchen & laundry room & carpet in the bedrooms. Usually I use the Swiffer Sweeper with wet cloths on the hardwood & laminate. It’s just so much easier than mop/bucket. My problem with it is the smell as well. I bought 2 boxes of Lavender/Vanilla and haven’t finished it. The smell is super strong & makes me dizzy when I’m done cleaning. I have to open the windows to let the air in. I have no clue why they make it so strong, I wish they had a fragrance-free option!

I’m thinking of getting a Dyson for the carpets simply for the fact that my current one is often clogged with my long hair (apparently I shed like a cat)…I hear Dyson is fabulous because it doesn’t lose suction but the $$ is making me hesitate.

By: Mary @ Parenthood

Mary @ Parenthood — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 15:32:01 +0000

I took the poll but keep in mind my answers will likely change as Elizabeth gets older :)

We have a maid of sorts… I run her almost every day, particularly right now when I am losing copious amounts of hair (apparently after you give birth all your hair falls out. Why didn’t anyone ever TELL me this??)

I would love a steam vac too, although I’m not sure if it is compatible with our hundred year old hardwood (the wet jet swiffer isn’t). For the moment we mop using a swiffer and the pre-moistened pads, but I’m not excited by this.

By: Blessed

Blessed — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 06:24:09 +0000

Well, I vacuumed goldfish crackers up out of the middle of the living room floor this morning so… pretty much we snack anywhere we need to – except that I don’t allow food “down the hall” which means – in the bedrooms or the bathroom or the hall closet… we eat in the living room, dining room and kitchen!

My floors get cleaned as needed – for big spills and things like goldfish crackers spilled on the floor and then I try to really clean the floors once a week, but usually am happy if that happens once every two weeks!

By: Madeline

Madeline — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 22:30:37 +0000

How terrible is this? I rarely clean my floors. I mean I they look fine, but they are by no stretch of the imagination clean. There would have to be two of me to accomplish that. I have two rooms with carpet, and they get vacuumed once a week at best. The rest are tile, and I just spot clean when there’s a spill.

By: Jenny N.

Jenny N. — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 19:18:02 +0000

I have the Electrolux Pronto 2-in-1 and love it. It’s a cordless stick vacuum and handheld all in one. A cordless vacuum is a total must-have once kids enter the arena.

Please share the results of your poll. I’m very curious!

By: Nini Lettner

Nini Lettner — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 15:18:41 +0000

Like you, our living room and dining room are all in one space, although ours is most likely much smaller. All meals, breaksfast, lunch, and dinner are eaten at the table. I have a 2 year old who is allowed to eat snacks in the living room area, but only in one spot, by the ottoman. She is not allowed to eat or drink in her room at all. If she spills food, makes crumbs, etc. she has to clean them up. I make sure she knows that she has made a mess and ask her to pick it up before she moves on to play, go outside, to her room, etc.

We have carpet in most of our house, so I vacuum quite often, especially with our 8 month old moving around on the floor so much. Our kitchen and bathroom have tile and the grout is so deep the Swiffer doesn’t work well. I can’t stand mopping…feels like the dirt is just getting repositioned in a more visible pattern! I vacuum the tile, then I actually clean with paper towel and floor cleaner on my hands and knees. It is not fun, but it is such a small space that it is easy to do and faster than mopping. If we had a bigger place and more tile/hardwood I think the Swiffer would be my friend!

By: brandy

brandy — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 14:26:43 +0000

i have 3 under the age of 5, and i ask myself that everyday. just like you my hubby is andry when i let my kids eat in the living room. we have put a rug underneath the kitchen table to avoid getting the carpet dirty, and we sweep and mop constantly