AITA for not letting my kids use our second bathroom?

A Redditor with a wife and two kids explains a household conflict involving bathroom use and cleaning responsibilities. Frustrated by their young son’s poor aim, they want to limit their kids to one bathroom (the one the wife uses) unless they take more responsibility for cleaning. The wife disagrees, believing the kids are too young to clean a bathroom properly. Read the full story below.

‘ AITA for not letting my kids use our second bathroom?’

I have a wife, two kids, and two bathrooms. My wife only uses the turlet upstairs and everybody else uses both of them but the majority of the time, the first floor shitter is the primary.

I clean the bathrooms including toilets and my wife does not. I’m okay with that but I know I’m not making a mess or missing and I don’t think my wife is missing either so it’s gotta be the kids, mainly my younger son.

He is almost 7 and has been using the bathroom long enough to have better aim. I want him to clean it this time so he can learn to not be gross. My wife doesn’t want them cleaning the bathroom because she thinks he’s too young to do that but she also doesn’t use the more common toilet to see how dirty it can get.

I said I would clean both of the toilets again this time but the kids can only use the bathroom my wife uses and can’t use the other one. In my head, this will help with cleaning in the future and my wife will hopefully agree that the kids need to clean up their mess.

Just a side note, we’re not gross. I clean pretty regularly and my son actually loves cleaning. He’s just pretty short and rushes to the bathroom sometimes and pees on the seat sometimes. It’s not like they’re shitting on the floor. I’m just picky about how clean things need to be.

Here’s how people reacted to the post:

Is-this-rabbit −  7 is plenty old enough to know how to aim and clean up any spills. Having to clean up after himself will certainly improve his aim.

nijmeegse79 −  NTA. But why not teach them to sit at home?. There are several benifits.

Due_Good_496 −  If you sprinkle when you tinkle be sweetie and wipe the seatie 🤣🤣🤣

kuluvalley −  I raised 3 boys, 2 step sons, & often my 2 nephews. Built a house with 2 bathrooms and designated one as adults only. There was grumbling but oh well. Decades later my grandsons started coming to visit (in a different house) and after sitting in their pee on the toilet seat I remembered why I hated sharing a bathroom with little boys.

Also the smell gets bad after they’ve peed on the floor near the toilet enough times & cleaning to eliminate that is challenging. Don’t care if I was TA nor do I think you are. NTA

wlfwrtr −  NTA Your wife is probably aware what happens in second bathroom and that’s why she only uses the one upstairs. Have you tried putting a small step stool in front of toilet for son?

Large_Effective_812 −  NTA, but umm your wife, my siblings and I were doing age appropriate chores since we were four. I knew how to do the laundry by seven and the dishwasher.

Chores are life skills kids need to learn and your wife is off base here with her son who should be able at 7 to cleanup after himself and she is doing him a great disservice by not teaching him age appropriate chores. Especially for his potential wives it’s 2024.

My sister was making family weeknight meals by 15 and I was doing all family laundry by 13. My other sister liked outdoor chores she raked and mowed. It wasn’t about chores it was about doing what we liked chore wise so we could relax as a family. It’s the family house. 

Slightlysanemomof5 −  Logical consequence, sit down or aim better. If child 👦 doesn’t aim child gets a lesson in cleaning the entire bathroom as a consequence. Then when child is in bed you disinfect again if you are worried about germs. Children are more capable than most people imagine it just takes time and effort to teach children.

Though children hate cleaning they will appreciate knowing how to clean , cook, do laundry etc when they move out. FYI. My children were cleaning bathrooms, doing dishes, fixing simple meals and laundering their own bedding by grade 1. It’s not perfect but they were learning, teach your children now.

scrollgirl24 −  NTA, but I’m not really sure it makes sense? Getting the kids to clean up to learn about the importance of being careful makes sense. Sounds like you have to get your wife on board for something here, either chores or sharing her bathroom.

Why not just cut out the middle man and focus on convincing her about the cleaning? Maybe just showing her the bathroom when it’s looking messy will help her understand vs making everyone change. This seems like the path of more resistance.

citrushibiscus −  Why can’t he just sit down to pee?

Puppiesmommy −  Have him sit to pee. It is insane for males to stand up and try to aim their pee into the toilet.

Is the user being too strict by restricting the kids’ bathroom access? Or is this a reasonable way to teach responsibility and cleanliness? How would you handle this situation in your household? Share your thoughts below!