Area Rug Under Dining Room Table with 2 Young Kids - Crazy Idea?

If you love the rug, get it- but keep Splat Mats or plastic over it until the kids aren't so messy. If you have grown up guests for dinner or a party you can always uncover the rug for that. But don't risk ruining it when the kids are small. Just put some plastic mats down over it!

A.,

I do the same thing to prevent my kids from scratching the floor in my kitchen. You can always replace the rug, but replacing the floors are more expensive.

Hi A.,
We eat in the dining room too since our house doesn't have an eat-in kitchen. Yes, I have an area rug under the table, and it has gotten a few spots on it over the years. I have a toddler and a baby just starting solids. To save the rug, I put the kiddies on the same end of the table and bought one of those hard plastic office mats that you put rolling charis on. It's perfect! It's translucent so it doesn't stand out in the dining room, and it's so easy to wipe clean after a meal. When the kids get bigger I'll get another mat to put under each of their chairs. I got mine at IKEA and they were very inexpensive. I had tried to put down a clear plastic shower curtain before the office mat idea, but wiping it clean was difficult since it bunched and gathered. The office mat works perfectly, and my dining room is still warm and inviting with the area rug under the table.

The rug under my kitchen table is trashed. I vacuumed it and in the beginning got the stains right away, but I couldn't keep up. I've had it professionally cleaned but it hasn't helped me. I got the carpet when my kids were 4,2 and 1. I should have just skipped it, but I never had the wood floors before and was always used to carpet!

I put one under my dining room table when my 2nd child was born. They are currently 5 and 2. Best investment for my floor in that room. Everythings has ended up on that rug, including paint from their crafts.

I would only do it if the rug can be cleaned easily. My rug was vacuumable, and I could scrub little bits of food off, BUT when my daughter threw up on it, a lot, there was no saving it. I like the idea of using it and covering it with a plastic mat where you'r kids sit and only sit them there

I would keep the rug in storage, personally. That being said, however, if it is a great rug and you really want to use it, there are clear plastic floor covers that you can put under the kids' chairs.

Yes - that's a crazy idea. You should go with whatever is easiest to clean - bare floor.

I would put it away for a few years. A friend of mine with a child a year younger than mine was about to get a rug in her eating area and I advised her against it. She is now very happy that she doesn't have one as little ones fling and mess so much. It won't exactly look great when you have a plastic mat on it and even if you have a plastic mat, the other parts will still manage to pick up stuff. I am so happy with my wood floors at the moment as my little one is a fiend for taking off her diaper and then peeing on the floor - ahhhh

Hi,
I've been going through this myself. I keep thinking that I would love to put a rug under our kitchen table, but then I remember the kids. So far, I haven't found anything that I'm crazy about, so I really haven't had to make the decision.

But, I have thought about using an indoor/outdoor rug. My thought being that it would be easier to clean up if something spills on it. But, you still need to be able to vacuum, and not just sweep. Which might be a pain, depending on the type of vacuum you have.

Good Luck! : )

In case you ever reconsider, we have an indoor/outdoor rug from Ballard Designs under our breakfast room table. You can take it outside and hose it off if it gets too dirty (e.g., yogurt or applesauce spilled on it.) We've had our for 5 years and it looks great and does a super job of protecting the floors. We've also had tons of compliments on the rug.

I would pass on the rug. Hardwood floors are so much easier to clean than an area rug but that is just me.

In my mind it sort of depends on how often you eat in the dining room vs. elsewhere (like the kitchen). If that's your usual spot and you don't have a dog to help with clean-up, I think it sounds like a pain, since sweeping is how we usually deal with dropped food. As long as you don't mind the rug clean-up vs. the hardwood cleanup, I say go for it. It's unlikely to stain beyond what can be cleaned, though you should be ok with that possibility.

i have a 5yo, 7yo and 3 mo and have a rug under my dining room table. we eat at the table for every meal we eat at home, also for snacking since our house is an open floor plan and we can see tv from the dining room. as long as you don't mind cleaning up a little every day and you have somekind of stain protector on your rug. it also helps that i have one of those little green machine rug cleaners. that thing is so easy and cleans up pretty good. my rug still looks beautiful and has survived spilled strawberry/chocolate milk, ice cream, chips watermelon. it also helps to have a darker color rug and we have 2 dogs that get the big stuff. lol

Are you kidding me? Advice for this? Just trust your own judgement and use the rug.

Lots of people we know having dining room rugs. My kids aren't very tidy eaters so I'd be forever cleaning up stains.

My rule of thumb is that I try not to buy anything I can't bear to lose to children's accidents, so if it's light-colored or expensive, I'd pass. But if you're OK with having to do some stain treatment, and it's perfect - why not. Maybe you could put down some sort of plastic protection (like the kind you see in model houses sometimes) under their places for meals until the baby is a little older. Or you could put a little children's table in a corner if it's a big room, away from the rug.