You will be able to see the dirt on white cabinets and can wipe them off. I have always had white trim. Not sure the kids have made them any dirtier.

You can't avoid dirt on any surface with toddlers, but they aren't toddlers for long, and your kitchen is forever. It's unlikely they will do any permanent damage unless you let them run around with Sharpies.

The great thing about white is that you can SEE where the dirt is and clean it up. All you need is a damp cloth and voila it's clean.

The thing about kids is that they grow up. If you want a white kitchen and trim go for it. For easier cleaning go for a simple shaker style cabinet and simple trim to avoid extra groves which will collect dirt and dust.

Thanks all...baseboards are perhaps more of a concern as they seem to run trucks into everything.

The planned cabinets are shaker style...just debating color at this point. Also, white is significantly pricier which doesn't make sense to most wood workers we talk to.

It seems that non-white baseboards hide toy truck damage a bit better.

I'll just warn you that most buyers want white trim. There's also pretty strong paint these days that can withstand most kid damage. But before you decide I suggest you ask a local realtor what buyers are looking for, even if you're not planning to move anytime soon.

By "destroy" your friend means with hellions: ) ?? You can destroy anything. Wood included, and in any stain, btw. Adults have been known to wreck a house.

Designate a rumpus space and stick to it. Use the great outdoors to run off boyish energy . After that, relax enjoy a beautiful home the way YOU want it. And watch out when you have the "friends" over lol.

Your boys won't destroy your white trim, but you will see some dirty handprints. Just use a washable paint (semi-gloss would be my choice) and you can easily wash away those smudges. Use the color you want.

Kids will be kids and there will be some dents and dings in the house, that's life. Minimize them as you can and plan on repainting the baseboards in a few years time.

I have not had much difficulty with my white trim - 4 kids and 4 dogs later. I do occasionally have to clean it and touch it up. My trim was dark stained pine. It was danged up when we moved in. Some pieces I replaced as time went one. The biggest drawback to white trim is that it is usually made from MDF these days, and depending on what is used, can be easily dented. Get a sample of what the builder plans to use and see how easy is it to dent. I found this to be less an issue with kids, and more with furniture movers and appliance deliveries.

I have stained cabinets because that is my preference, though I think white cabinets are pretty. My friends with white cabinets are empty nesters or close to that stage in life. I would continue to talk with friends who have kids. I've seen many wood stained lowers combined with white uppers in the newer builds in my area. Again, it is not just the white, but the material. White cabinets, because they need to be stable to changes in temp and humidity, are usually a combo of MDF and wood or all MDF. Again, get a sample and test it a little. Don't abuse it, but how easy does it ding or scratch? There are different grades of quality in all cabinets. Some wood cabinets have solid wood doors, others have a veneered panel - the solid wood is better and can be refinished if needed. Some white doors feel good and solid while others feel flimsy.

Haha Jan, you make a great point. My husband has broken and torn up more things in my house than both of my kids put together. I love that he helps with the housework, and he means well, but he's just not careful.

As a mother of boys I say do what you want and have white cabinets and trim. Now, forgive me for my mini soap box...I have a background in social work and child development and I feel really strongly that the premise of the question is wrong.

Boys are active and physical. YES.

Boys will destroy things. NO.

I can't have nice things b/c...kids. NO.

Children treat things the way we teach and expect them to treat them. Children can and do appreciate nice/beautiful things. In fact it can make them feel very empowered to learn that they have control over their own actions...

But, yes...from time to time things get damaged and that is OK as long as it is not the expectation.

Off soap box.

The point about the husbands :).... I just put white wallpaper in a stairwell and my husband keeps complaining because he thinks it will get damaged. I told him, then be careful when carrying things up the stairs. Why doesn't he think he can be careful?? I know he can be, but somewhere along the line he learned to think he can't!! Plus, life happens, it won't be the end of the world when it does get dinged.

Another story...I also couldn't figure out why my front door kept getting so dirty until I was cleaning it off and griping and my 21 year old said, well I can't put my shoes on the wall anymore to put them on so I put them on the door! What!!!! He is 6'4" so i get that bending over that far is harder, but sit on the step or a chair to put your shoes on, don't put them on my wall or door! We mothers are never done teaching....

Rachel, I could not agree more! I had two children and white woodwork; it survived quite well. DD has two boys now 15 and 17 and she has white woodwork and kitchen cabinets painted a light color; no problems.

You one allows children to run around the house like wild things and just "assumes" they will destroy everything, then I can promise you they will. It's a parent's job to TEACH a child respect for things! Unfortunately, very few do these days.

Only you know your parenting style, but I can promise you that toddlers put their sticky little hands on everything, so surfaces will be dirty whether or not you see the dirt. Wiping their hands from time to time and not allowing them to careen through the house with Sippy cups filled with juice, will also help.

Sticky hands, yes. Where does it all come from?? Probably their noses...ewww...wait until you find your first booger wall...

But don't get me on my sippy cup rant.....Some call me opinionated ;)

I have had wood trim, I have had white trim. I also have 3 boys. My opinion is that white trim is higher maintenance. I frequently have to wipe it down and repaint it every couple of years. With my wood trim, a good cleaning and it's good to go.

I do agree on just because you have kids, doesn't mean your house is torn up and I don't get it. I have family member who will move into a house and destroy it in a year. Fingerprints, wall stains, bad drywall patching, ruined floors. They move every 3-4 years. I've lived in my house 15 years, and NEVER has looked anywhere close to as bad as their homes get.

We had white cabinets when my two boys were toddlers.....so easy to clean, so easy to see dirt and I loved them....kitchen was so bright and clean looking. No problems with the boys banging into them or making nicks in them. Do it if you want to. I would paint my white again if I had the chance.

Get painted poplar not mdf.

Rachel, l LOOOve your soapbox! Nobody expects kids to sit like mummy's! But dear God you would like to be able to take them somewhere and not hold your breath for two hours?!

It's not hard! Running is for outside, food stays IN the kitchen unless Mom says okay to dry snacks in the family space. As to the rest? Kids love to help when they are little so begin now. Even a toddler cam get toys into an open basket ! A five year old can help set a table and help clear,

And ALL of them can endure a thirty minute ride in the car without a liquid or any food! Yes. All lol

Im off my box too despite all under forty will declare me off my ROCKER ! Except for one thing: One unified parental voice and it is the LAW:)

Well... if you get white, make sure it's actually wood and not MDF so you can repair it pretty easily. :)
I had five babies in 4.5 years (Irish twins at the beginning and identical twins at the end, LOL!) and I agree with those who have stressed child training. In very glad I worked extremely hard to teach my kids to be gentle with our belongings. (My kids are 20, 19, 17, 15, and 15 now) They were never perfect, and we did have to repair a couple of walls, and I chose my battles when they were little (I wouldn't allow hubby to have a recliner until they were all school aged at least, I was just sure they'd break it and he'd be upset, LOL!) and I didn't allow them to run their trucks into the baseboards (my last three are rough and tumble boys) but I did allow them to chuck foam balls around the family room, so it wasn't like we lived in a museum even though we always had nice stuff.
One thing I'm glad I did with my toddlers is that I had them always "helping" me clean. If I was cleaning in the kitchen then my kids got slightly damp rags that I handed them and they were instructed to "wipe down" the cabinets/appliances/baseboards.... whatever, I'd assign them to wipe a specific area each time and I'd praise them like crazy for helping so well! My kids honestly loved it when they were toddlers/preschoolers. As they got a little older they got to help with more complicated tasks. It worked well by keeping them in my line of sight, giving them something productive to do, keeping them from tearing up the house out of my sight (thus making more work for me) and we got to have wonderful conversations together while everyone was pitching in to help... plus they were actually getting trained to help out and they learned to appreciate taking care of belongings. I'm so thankful for older, wiser moms who taught me to involve my little kids like this.
Ps, I had a lot of white woodwork and a lot of stained woodwork during this phase of my kiddos' lives... I think the white woodwork held up better because it got cleaned more often.

i dont allow my husband to vacuum the kitchen. the rest of the house, yes, but he is always bashing the back end of the wand against my cabinets. he knows he's outlawed, and he knows why....