Dear Colette,
As a Mother how do you deal with all of the projects and art work that children make in school? I can’t even see the front of our refrigerator anymore, yet I have difficulty parting with any of my children’s masterpieces. Any suggestions?
Curator Mama
Dear Curator Mama,
Trust me, I’m sure Picasso’s Mother tossed a ton of his artwork along the way! When my girls were in preschool they too brought home volumes of oversized paper with random paint splotches. After making the appropriate, encouraging comments like, “Ooh, you certainly used a lot of green in this picture” or “Tell me more about this,” the artwork would get placed in our large wicker basket that collects a week’s worth of newspapers, school bulletins, etc. On Sunday, it’s in the garbage. Each daughter could pick one picture to have displayed on the refrigerator. When they brought home a newer love, the old art got regulated to the basket. On the rare occasion when they couldn’t decide which one to keep, I would put one on top of the refrigerator “for safe keeping” which eventually found its way to the basket. If anything unusual or spectacular came home, I would let them put it in their special plastic box. At the end of the school year, they go through their box and get to keep their three favorite items. As they have gotten older, they have a bulletin board in their playroom and tack up their treasured pieces. Without any prompting from me, they remove the older work and replace it with the new when inspired. If none of these ideas thrill you, take a digital print of the artwork and create a CD for each year. Easier to keep, and your memories will be colorful.