My husband never picks up his dirty clothes. Is it wrong for me to let them pile up, or should I pick it up?

Question

Even for sanitary reasons for my children?

Answer 1

I am probably totally wrong but if you have asked him to pick up his things and he just won't it calls for drastic measures. He is acting like a kid who expects you to be a Mommy, so I think all is fair.

Try placing some holes in the toes of his socks, washing them and putting them away. When he starts complaining make some funny comment that your socks never get holes but you put yours in the hamper...so maybe the house mouse is eating his socks etc....he may take the hint if he has to go buy new ones a few times. If that doesn't work make sure a few of his favorite things disappear.

After all he can't go to work naked, he will be forced to shop and men hate that.

Answer 2

Put your husband a dirty clothes hamper beside his side of the bed .. so your kids can't see his clothes if they are on the floor.

Wonder what your husband would do if you just left is clothes where he dropped them .. forever?

Lots of things are done for the kids sake. Kids pick up habits from what they see.

If you pick them up because of the kids .. you will have to continue picking them up for many years.

And .. sanitary is also a big consideration.

However - it might not hurt to let them stay for a very, very long time .. just once ... and see what transpires with him.

It could get interesting. Especially if he had no clean clothes to wear because all of his dirty ones were where he last left them.

This is your decision .

Answer 3

My husband and I have been around and around on this very subject for the past 6 years. When I was not working, I did not mind to do all the housework, including picking up his nasty, dirty socks and underwear!

However, when I started working full time, I put a stop to that real quick. If I work just as many hours as him, go to bed earlier than him because I have a longer commute than him, then there is no way in heck I'm going to spend all my time picking up after him! Like someone else said, I'm his wife, NOT his mother!

Several months ago, I went on strike for 2 weeks straight. I did not wash his clothes or his dishes! I did not pick up his trash! NOTHING! I even took it as far as to wash towels and hide them from him so that he couldn't use the towels I had washed and folded! Of course, we don't have children so the situation was a little different! All our friends and family were well aware of the situations so I felt no embarrassment if they stopped by the house. As a matter of fact, they would give him heck over it, only in a good natured way, and he finally literally cleaned up his act. He still forgets from time to time, but now all I have to do is ask and he'll pick up his things!

Answer 4

Try putting a laundry basket where he normally drops the clothes.. if that means quietly putting 25 in the same room so be it. he'll get the hint. haha.
Try telling him that you would appreciate him picking up after himself a bit, so you can clean the house quicker and be able to do other chores. Make sure you leave a laundry basket in the bathroom, one on the side of his bed, on in the closet, so wherever he is, its available. Men are not constantly thinking of your feelings 24/7 so that will remind him.

If you dont have a job and stay home all day, then just remind him, and pick them up and give him a break. Maybe had a hard days work.

Answer 5

Tell your husband that he has to start helping. Just talk to him and tell him he has to start picking up behind himself. It is not cute to walk in the room with a pile of dirty clothes on the floor. Say something like" Honey , come here .. look.. humm are these all your clothes... maybe you should pick them up and put them in the washing machine" If you can leave your clothes in the floor may I can too. May we all should leave our clothes in the floor because that what your teaching our kids. I'm just a sarcastic person but maybe he will get the hint

Answer 6

My sister who by the way just got married 2 months ago but has been living with him fo 6 years now has been going through the same thing. They have no kids so last week she just let it pile up, day after day it got worse and worse and he didn't pick it up. She ended up doing it! LOL

My hubby did it for a while too but I just kept asking him to pick up after himself because it's not a good example for the kids and I don't want them throwing their stuff everywhere so eventually he just started doing it. He'll still leave socks sometimes but it's not as bad.

Good Luck! =)

Answer 7

It's one of those battles you have to decide how to deal with. With kids involved, you just need to deal or you won't ever win the battle. Before you had kids is when you needed to deal with this. He's still a slob and it's too late. The more you nag him the worse it will get. Pick up his stuff but ask him nicely if he could just help out more. He probably won't after all this time but it doesn't hurt to ask, not nag. Pick up some Dr. Laura books about marriage. It will help you a great deal.

Answer 8

HEDDA - YOU MADE ME LMAO!

I say, go ahead and pick them up. Then discuss it with your husband during a quiet time when it is just the two of you together.
My husband once broke a bowl in the kitchen when we were first married. He didn't clean it up. So I decided that I wasn't going to clean it up either. That dang broken bowl sat on the kitchen floor for 2 weeks until his mother came for a visit. She asked me if I knew about it.
I said, "Of course I know about it. Your son broke it and didn't clean it up and I'm not going to either!"
Well I did end up cleaning it up because I got embarrassed with my own childishness. I realized that just because my husband wanted to act like a childish donkey, I didn't have to as well.
We've been together for 9 years now. All is good. No more broken glass on the kitchen floor!

Answer 9

Let them pile up for about 4 days and then ask him when he is going to pick them up.

Answer 10

on advice from my mother-in-law, leave them where they lay. I went through the same thing with my husband when we got married 12 yrs. ago and when I said something to his mother she blamed herself because she always picked up after her 6 kids and she said leave them. when they run out of clean clothes they will learn to pick them up themselves. my hubby took off his socks in the living room and left them knowing i would pick them up, because i cannot stand things out of place. well, i left them laying there for a week and when he asked where his socks were i pointed to the floor and he picked them up and washed them that night. does not leave anything laying around anymore. of course he got mad for a while but he got over it. To make matters worse, you had to walk by the washer and dryer to go to our bedroom..GO FIGURE!!!! He also tried it here too in our new place, washer and dryer by bedroom, except he would put them on the floor in the bedroom. I put a clothes basket in there and told him the first time his stuff went on the floor instead of the basket he was on his own! No Problem.. I was married to a man for 18 yrs. who was a god send in the cleaning department..so I could not handle this new adventure. Took it for a while, but got fed up. I don't even excuse him getting drunk. Last time he got drunk, he puked all over the bedroom..I slept in the living room, and by goodness he cleaned up his own puke the next A.M. and where ever he missed a spot I was quick to show him...Train him and train him good, sweetie. You are his WIFE, not his MOTHER~!
Also, about the children, I don't think sanitation has anything to do with it, unless he works for the garbage or sewer company, then if that is the fact then he needs a lesson in sanitation and how it affects not only himself, but the rest of the family as well. If this is not the case all he is teaching them is how to be lazy and that Mom will always pick up after you. NOT GOOD!