For years I have had a no-shoe rule in my home. In the Western world, it’s not uncommon for you to wear your outside shoes, inside. So, trying to implement this into having visitors was a little tricky at first. The reasons behind leaving your shoes at the door isn’t just a thing about being polite, it’s backed by science and after reading this you’ll likely realize why you should leave your shoes at the door, too. In this blog, we definitely lean in on our crunchy side, and mamas, trust me, embrace this part.

Let’s talk about why.

On any given day, you walk into a gas station, grocery store, or sidewalk. You pick up plenty of bacteria on your shoes. Let’s just talk about a public bathroom to start with. Even if you didn’t enter into a bathroom yourself, many people around you have. Carrying along with them like rent-free tenants on their shoes, E-coli and C-diff, MRSA, and the list goes on. We mindlessly carry that right into our homes and onto our floors. Later, you walk barefoot into the living room pick up those rent-free buddies, and carry them into your bed with you.

Sounds delicious right?

This is just one angle as to why it’s so much better for your health to ditch the shoes at the door and asking those who visit your home, to do the same. For me, I really leaned in on asking if my guests wouldn’t mind taking their shoes off once my daughter entered the picture. I knew I’d have a crawling baby on the floor and the idea of her having some stranger’s E-coli on her skin just gave me the biggest ick. Fast forward to her having eczema and oftentimes broken/open skin due to the severity of her flares. I really leaned in and wasn’t afraid to ask. After all, your home, your baby, your rules. There will be people who just disrespect your wishes outright and diligently wear shoes in your home, or make it awkward altogether and there’s just not much you can do about that besides hoping that someday they realize it’s just common decency.

They don’t have to agree or understand and whatever they do in their home is their choice. As for you and yours, do whatever you feel is best mama.

There will of course be times you rush into the house with your shoes on, or host big parties with a lot of guests and it’s just not feasible to ask everyone to ditch the shoes. Or try to go down the list and explain why you really love having a shoe-free home. Remember, this is about balance between modern living and crunchy life.

That’s what carpet & floor cleaners are for.

My absolute favorite thing of all time is my Tineco hard floor cleaner, Tineco iFLOOR 3 Breeze Complete Wet Dry Vacuum Cordless Floor Cleaner and Mop One-Step Cleaning for Hard Floors Having this makes cleaning up after guests come by so easy and having it for messy meal times is worth every single penny and if this ever breaks, I’m getting another one. It’s saved my sanity being pregnant, not having to bend down with a big belly and pick up all the tiny pieces of food before mopping changed the game for me. For my carpet, I use my Bissell cleaner and let me just say, having animals in the house. This carpet shampooer has proven itself a few times. BISSELL TurboClean, Upright Carpet Cleaner, Pro Max Clean & Protect + Oxy Urine Eliminator Formula Included, 3952

No matter what you choose for your home, shoes or no shoes. Do what you feel is best for you. There’s zero shame in either choice. I love having a home, that is as clean as possible so I can walk freely, have my feet on the couch, have beautiful white rugs, and not worry about my baby girl having her hands and toys in her mouth after being all over the floor. It’s the comfort, and peace of mind for me that I’m controlling what I can control and leaving the poop at the door. Literally! Let me know how you run your home, and why it works for your family in the comment section! I would love to hear your perspective.

Until next time!

Kinda crunchy mama.