We have a claw foot tub that doubles as a shower. Our house was built in 1923 and the claw foot tub fits the style of the house and I love its size and depth. It also doubles as a shower and, until we completed renovations last year, this was the only shower in the house. As someone who loves her shower, I can honestly say that using this shower was one of the least pleasant experiences in my day. It had a shower curtain – actually three shower curtains – that wrapped around the entire bath. The curtains had to hang inside to stop the water from dripping on the floor and when the heat came on, the air pressure would force the curtains to move in and stick against my body. It was claustrophobic and uncomfortable and only became more and more of a problem as I grew more and more pregnant.

Now we have a beautiful shower upstairs, fully tiled with a single pane of glass acting as a shower screen and no shower door. It’s like heaven.

The only question in my mind right now is where should our guests shower? My brother and his fiancee are visiting in a few weeks and I am trying to work out the living arrangements. Do I give them the entire bathroom downstairs so they have their own space, shower curtains and all? Or should they use our shower which is directly off our bedroom and a little less private but a much more pleasant showering experience?

These are the questions that are keeping me up at night. Not the economy or the war in Iraq – it’s all about bathroom usage.