Both sets of grandparents want a turn staying with us, and we have one spare room

hazel_pool_119721 Sept 2026

Our son is under a year. My parents stayed with us for two months after he was born. Now my partner's parents would like to come for the festival season, and my parents have already said they'll come back in the winter 'to help'. We appreciate the help, and the baby loves the attention. But the flat has one spare room, my partner works from home two days a week, and we haven't had the place to ourselves for long since he arrived. How do other people handle this without anyone feeling like they got the shorter visit? We'd like a plan before the dates get decided for us.

4 comments

violet_lantern_514121 Sept 2026
We did a rota after my younger one was born: my mother for six weeks, then my in-laws for six. The overlap weekend when both were in the house was the hardest part, so we avoided it the second time. Agreeing the weeks in advance helped. Nobody felt they had to defend their turn.
- hazel_pool_119722 Sept 2026
  the overlap weekend is exactly what i'm trying to avoid. six and six sounds civilised. not sure my parents would hear 'six weeks' as anything other than 'a minimum'
pebble_quilt_933721 Sept 2026
Ammachi stayed with us for three months when my son was a baby. The thing I would do differently is talk about the kitchen and the baby's routine before she arrived, not in week two. Once they settle in, every change feels personal.
- hazel_pool_119722 Sept 2026
  kitchen talk before arrival. noted. my mother reorganised our kitchen in the first visit and we still can't find the colander
umber_hammock_615722 Sept 2026
My mother lives with us, so we've only done the visiting in-laws part. Two weeks is the sweet spot. After that everyone gets polite in a dangerous way 😄
silver_camera_43823 Sept 2026
Reading this with some dread. We're expecting, and nobody in either family has brought up visits yet. I'd like that to last a few more months.