Comment: Guerilla Scrapbooking

So my daughter’s preschool has a requirement that each parent make a “memory book” for their child’s year in school. This is not revolutionary, but to require it is an interesting twist.

I tend to throw pictures together of my kids in generic albums, without embellishments or captions, and call it a day. The kids seem perfectly happy with this. They love anything about themselves. (Who doesn't? I mean, if we're being honest.)

But there are some people who are way into scrapbooking, and find it fun to preserve memories with lots of decorative touches. Fair play to them.

I was just musing on it, because I’m on the other end of the spectrum. While some of my friends are making incredible, beautifully detailed pages that stand alone as works of art, I was using kiddie scissors tonight to cut out captions from the school newsletter to TAPE into my daughter’s book. That’s what I mean by guerilla scrapbooking. That’s revolutionary. And I’ll tell you why.

Because in today’s uber-hyper-super-mom culture, it is strongly suggested that we do everything plus more for our children in order for them to optimally thrive. If you like making scrapbooks of your kids’ adventures, rock on, that’s awesome. But for those of us less inclined to do so, we shouldn’t feel that our children are less loved because we choose not to use those funky scissors that make scalloped edges. I mean, I’m moving in four weeks. I don’t have time for scallops.

So my half-assed attempt at my daughter’s scrapbook shouldn’t bring me shame, but obviously it does, a little, since I doth protest too much.

What does it mean?

Too much pressure on mothers to do everything perfectly.

Let’s all cut each other some slack (with whatever the hell kind of scissors you want.)