How one couple share out the household chores

Dec 12 2006 By The Journal

Neil Nevens and his wife Sharon describe themselves as a "traditional" couple when it comes to household chores.

The pair both work full-time as police officers but Sharon does the bulk of the shopping and cooking, with Neil helping out occasionally.

Sharon does a weekly supermarket shop and then makes smaller purchases at local shops such as the butchers.

Neil's main chores are those he calls the "traditionally male" jobs such as gardening and cutting the grass, odd fix-it jobs around the house and putting out the bins for collection. Neil, 38, and Sharon, 37, grew up in Northumberland and live in Ashington with their two children Lucy, six, and four-year-old Grace.

Sharon said: "Neil will do the shopping but I always give him a list - otherwise I never know what he will come back with.

"I like to buy healthy food that will last us for meals throughout the week."

She said it was important to her to make sure the family ate healthily. "Neil has high cholesterol and needs to watch what he eats," she said. "Both children have packed lunches and I like to buy healthy, tasty snacks for them to eat.

"I'm very concerned they get their five portions of fruit and vegetables a day. Every day I like to cook a dinner with vegetables like roast meat with broccoli, sprouts, peas and potatoes."

Neil said: "I suppose you could say we are quite traditional and as the mother of the house Sharon likes to make sure that the children get the right things to eat to remain fit and healthy."