Your parents' home

I moved out of my Mum and dads around 6 years ago, however before me and OH bought our house we moved in with ma and pa whislt the sale went through. (Ended up being 6 months!!) So we both have keys on our key rings and will often pop round unannounced. if they are not in we may even help ourselves to food drinks, whatever's going really ?

They do have a key to mine but only for emergencies and my mum would never dream of coming round and using it.

I can honestly say i do feel like it's my second home and I don't think they would expect anything less.

They still live there and I have a key but I would never just pop by, I find that really rude.

MrMinis parents used to just "pop in" all the time, his dad would even waltz in and put the kettle on- I found that bloomin rude. I would never just turn up at someones house.

When at mum and dads I still ask- "is it ok to have a drink etc" rather than just help myself- its not my home any more, would be rude to start helping myself.

Well i technically have a key to my parents house although its probably at the back of some draw somewhere where i threw it in frustration after trying to open my own front door with it too many times whilst I kept it on my keyring....I would never just pop over unannounced (I don't pop over announced too often either if I can help it)

I would never give my parents a key to my house either as i would not want them just turning up as i'm sure they would!

I still have keys for my parents home despite having moved out 6 years ago. I pop round unexpectedly all the time - they're literally two minutes down the road though.

They don't have spares for ours though - my gran does as she's closest and around during the day so makes more sense for her to keep them.

It's definitely not just a Northern thing walking into your parents house, maybe just not Southern. Everyone I know does the same in Wales. Even at friend's parent's houses. My mum would think I was being really strange if I knocked on her door. I have the key and she has one for mine. I also expect people to just walk in, but half the time we have the door locked so the pups can't jump up and open it and run away. OH has a key to his parents but they have never had a key to ours. We also walk straight into theirs and they do the same at ours. OH hates just walking into my mum's and hates when anyone just walks into ours. He's such a hypocrite!

See if I asked my Mum if it was ok to make a drink she would be really offended or think I was being funny! I still treat their house as my home as do my brother and sister. H is the same in his Mums house. I would think nothing of going in and making myself something to eat and laying down on the sofa with the remote/using the phone etc. My Mum comes into my house and goes straight in the kitchen and puts the kettle on too. I suppose it just depends how comfortable you are around each other etc.

Exactly this, same for my brother and sister, although we dont have keys for each others houses, but if their doors are unlocked I just walk in and vice versa.

I have always had a key for my parents house since I moved out 8 years ago and walk in unannounced all the time, as well as going in when my mum is not there if I need something. I am not sure my mum's twunt of a husband is keen on it but quite frankly I dont care, it is his home, not his house and he has only been around a couple of years ! (Can you tell we don't get on ???)

were perfectly comfortable around each other....I just wouldn't help myself to food or drink in someone else's house!

Sorry, I worded that wrong. Our family just all have a my house is your house thing going on. I wouldn't knock on my brothers door or ask before making a drink in his house either and vice versa. My friends are all the same with their families. Maybe its a northern thing!

haha! and we have established I am a southerner this evening!!

O know plenty of people that do that- I just find it odd, maybe im broken?!

Or maybe we're all cheeky bas*ards!! ?

I would help myself to a drink in my mum and dad's house, but would ask before helping myself to something to eat. At my sister's house I would ask before helping myself to food or drink. Anyone elses house and I would wait for them to offer.

I still have a key for my parents house ...I moved out 2 and a half years ago and my Mum always maintained that I should have a key and my brother should have a key. I only need to knock the door at my folks' house if the door is locked and I've forgotten my key!

Who's just hearted this?

My parents don't live in my childhood home but I do have a set of keys for their new place. They also have a set of keys for ours - when we were renovating they would often ring me and ask if it was OK with us to go and do some painting or strip wallpaper or weed the garden whilst we were at work, bless them. Apparently they went over whilst we were on honeymoon thinking that the house would be in a state and they could do the washing up etc from the chaotic morning of the wedding but we'd actually done it all already. They would never just come over though unless they genuinely thought they were being helpful and they would always check with us first - the honeymoon thing was a one off as we weren't there.

Yes, i still have keys for my mum and dad's home and often call in unannounced and walk through the door with a cheery "only me"!!

They havent got keys for our home but H's mum has as she lives the closest.

Hmmm looks like it's just me then! I'm a believer in "Do as you would be done by" and would hate anyone to walk unannounced into my house. I'd just feel very uncomfortable about it, regardless of how welcome they actually are.

It depends how long I'm staying for. If I'm there for a few days, or a week like I was before the wedding it would have been weird to ask for something to eat or drink each time. Likewise if I had people staying here I'd hate to think they were thirsty in the middle of the night but couldn't get themselves a drink or anything.

i read this as she lives in the closet!!! was thinking 'thats a bit mean!'?

I have a key to my mums and my grans, they both have a key for mine. I use my mums to feed the cat when she is on holiday, I would only use my gran's if I buzzed the buzzer for ages with no answer, and only then it would be out of concern for her wellbeing in case she was unable to get to the door.

I always phone before visiting either of them, so they are expecting me, and I always buzz my gran, but my mum shouts at me for knocking and tells me just to walk in; however, if I was visiting unannounced I would knock.

They don't use my keys, and have them purely for emergency...incase we flood the downstairs neighbour with burst pipes while on holiday, that kind of thing, as we leave him my mums number for emergencies when we go away.

I freely help myself to food and drink at both my mums and my grans, I'd be happy for them to do so at mine but I'm too good a host for them to have to *smug face*