Thursday Thoughts: Do you share a toothbrush?

Over the past few months of travelling our family has adapted to a pared down lifestyle. Camping, in particular, has encouraged us to take simplifying to a whole new level. A few examples: we often all share the same water glass throughout the day to save washing up, we share baths/showers, we even share towels (keeping two on rotation for all six of us), and we’ll re-wear soiled clothes to avoid the laundry pile from growing too quickly. Not that any of us were overly fussy before this trip started, but we’ve definitely become more relaxed on the road (I actually don’t remember what it’s like to have clothes that smell clean!!).

It’s a good thing I grew up on a farm and don’t mind a bit of grit. We’ve tried to bring our kids up this way too, encouraging them to explore and play and not worry too much about dirt or germs.  But I can’t help thinking about our friends and families who prefer a more ‘hygienic’ lifestyle. What would they think if they saw (or smelled!) us now?!

And now for a confession: we even share a toothbrush! We have one electric toothbrush with us (with one head), which we all share.

I never gave it a second thought until I was tidying up the van earlier this week and it occurred to me that some people would find this to be absolutely disgusting. Michael has a brother who won’t even share toothpaste out of fear that someone else’s toothbrush may have touched the paste. Imagine how cringe-worthy he would find our toothbrush sharing! : )

I guess I’ve always been quite relaxed about this. When I was little, my siblings and I would use my mom’s toothbrush if we went on holidays and forgot to bring our own. In fact, I still use my mom’s toothbrush when I’m visiting her and don’t have mine handy. She’s just my mum, after all. In London the kids had their own toothbrushes (or colour-coded heads for the electric toothbrush), but during our travels it just doesn’t make sense to carry around so many different brushes. And none of us seem bothered to share.

So… where do you stand? Is it disgusting? Absolutely revolting? Or would you (do you?) do the same? Please share!

Courtney x

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