5 Tips for Dealing With Your Teenager's Bathroom Habits ~ Thyme for Cocktails

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #GiftOfPhilips #CollectiveBias

Keep your teen and your bathroom holiday-guest ready with these 5 Tips for Dealing With Your Teenager’s Bathroom Habits

Having a teenage boy is a unique experience especially when dealing with bathroom habits. The kid has his own bathroom, but it also doubles as the guest bath when we have company over, which is often during the holidays. He is responsible for keeping it in company-ready condition which can be a challenge sometimes.

5 Tips for Dealing With Your Teenager's Bathroom Habits Click To Tweet

Most of the time he doesn’t have too much of a problem keeping his bathroom clean and company ready, but between studying for finals, spending time with friends, his first job (eek!!) and the approaching the holidays it hasn’t been at the top of his list of priorities. After a few tense conversations I decided to address things head-on.

After a lengthy conversation together we came up with these 5 Tips for Dealing With Your Teenager’s Bathroom Habits. It was a great convo plus an opportunity for me to hear his side of the dilemma.

~ Be quick and don’t be wasteful ~

One of the biggest issues we have had lately is the amount of time the kid has been spending sequestered away in the bathroom. I am all for taking the time to pamper yourself but taking 2 25+ minute showers a day is excessive. We talked about the amount of time he has been wasting, not to mention the water! We agreed he would keep showers to 10 minutes max. He likes to listen to music so we decided on 3 songs max while he’s in there to help him keep time.

~ Be conscious of other people ~

It hadn’t occurred to him he was running through all the hot water in the morning, making it tough for the rest of us to take a hot shower. Luckily Paul and I work for ourselves which means we have flexible schedules, but during the holidays when we have company staying over it makes things uncomfortable for them. The same goes for not leaving wet towels on the floor or his grooming accessories strewn across the countertop.

~ Stay organized ~

I took the lead on this one and admitted my fault in the situation. As he has gotten older and amassed more bathroom paraphernalia, i.e hair products, shaving accessories, etc he hasn’t had a place to store everything. Our guest bath is limited on storage and most of his stuff won’t fit in the medicine cabinet. We picked out a nice basket where he can keep everything so it isn’t an eyesore for company.

~ Clean as you go ~

I am a big believer in kids doing chores and learning personal responsibility. It was how I was raised and has always been a constant at the casa. The kid has had to clean his own bathroom since he was old enough to manage a toilet brush… It’s his mess not mine! lol

It’s always easier to tackle a chore a little bit at a time, cleaning as you go will cut down on a big overall cleaning. When he was younger we had reminders and aids to help him learn and stay on track. As he got older those things went away because he developed his own routine to cleaning.

Now that he is even older there are more things competing for his attention. We talked about it and agreed a checklist would help keep him on track now that his schedule is so full. It hangs on the inside of the medicine cabinet where we both know he will see it as a reminder. You could even laminate it for young kids so they can physically check boxes off throughout the week. Customize it out so that it reflects what your kids need to clean each day!

~ Be respectful of your teen’s privacy ~

This tip is for the parents. He pointed out, that rather approach him about this concern so we could talk it out, I had been simply invading his privacy. Knocking on the door half through a long shower, barging in while he was brushing his teeth to roll my eyes and pick up wet towels, etc…

I’m sure I am not the only parent to lose perspective on how quickly our kids are growing up. It’s tough to see our babies get so big, it is even tougher to learn how to talk to them. He will be 18 in less than 10 days and he does deserve the right to privacy, no matter how long it takes him to shave and do his hair before a date!

~ Free Customizable Bathroom Cleaning Schedule ~

Walmart is a great place to stock up on all kinds of holiday supplies to keep your teen and bathroom in holiday ready condition. When I recently saw the Philips Norelco Multigroom 3100 I knew it was the perfect set for the kid. He doesn’t have enough facial hair for a full-on electric shaver but still needs to keep himself neat for JROTC.

~ Give the Gift of Philips ~

The All-in-One Trimmer has 5 attachments to help him keep everything trimmed and looking good for the holidays. Paul and the bestie liked it so much they have requested their own sets for Christmas!