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I’m a Pinterest Mom (And I Am Totally Okay With That)

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Any given afternoon at my house is often filled with crafts and activities. You can find my daughter and her friends dying eggs with Kool-Aid or exploding soap in the microwave just to see what happens. My daughter has followed suit with her own youtube channel, and I love every second of working on that with her.

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There’s been a lot of Pinterest backlash lately. (Seriously Huffington Post, why do you hate Pinterest so much? Do you want to come over and make altered clothespins with me?)

Other moms talk about how they are done making their kids’ lives magical or how they don’t understand where we find enough time to plan the perfect birthday parties with matching printables and gift bags full of more than just junk that gets lost in the backseat of the car. How “Pinterest Mommies” are making the rest of the moms feel bad, and how we should all just stop and let our children play out back with some sticks and mud. pinterest mom

And if your kids love sticks and mud, and you don’t like crafting, then you should do just that. Seriously, if that’s what made me and my daughter happy, I am sure we could reduce my crafting budget by one metric crapton, and maybe we could even use our kitchen table again since it wouldn’t be covered in glitter and sequins.pinterest moms are awesome

But we don’t craft to make you feel bad, we don’t always craft to get hits to our blog. (Sometimes we *gasp* don’t even take pictures of the stuff we make!) We craft because we love it. We LOVE looking at our finished bows made from duct tape and giving friends special ponytail holders we made ourselves.

This isn’t new for me. My mom had an entire cabinet in her kitchen full of every possible crafting material you could ever think of, and she and I spent hours and hours at the table making Christmas ornaments for new neighbors or hand sewing our Halloween costumes. Not because someone told us that’s what made her a good mom, but because that’s what my mom enjoyed spending her time doing.

I spend most of my days on the internet since I work here and all, but when I need a break, to recharge– I don’t do it with a camping trip or a hike, I do it with ribbon and hot glue. To me, looking at a finished craft after giving all my time, energy and creative brain power is exactly what I need to decompress after a busy day.

And now, now that’s my job. I make my living painting my nails or making Unicorn Poop Cookies. And I love it.

Maybe you like numbers, so you became an accountant, but I like making bows, so I do that all day instead. This doesn’t mean I am trying to compete with you, or that I want to make you feel bad, because honestly I don’t care if you aren’t doing science experiments in your kitchen or making your own board games. In fact, I need you to be good at that stuff. I am terrible at it. TERRIBLE.

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I think the real question is why do you think I would care? So you invited my child to a birthday party without a theme, do you think I even noticed? Do you feel like I am judging  you because you didn’t print out coordinating printables for those balloons? The answer is no. I seriously didn’t even bat an eyelash. I am grateful that you invited my daughter to the party. (And that cake you got at the bakery is totally adorable. I can’t decorate a cake to save my life.)

Why? Why must we play these games in this competitive world of mommyness?

Instead of viewing this as a competition, how about you just understand that these are my strengths. I have a lot of weaknesses, and I am sure you are way better at sports, or finance, or fashion than me– and that’s what makes you special.

Seriously, remember that. You are special because you are you, but I am special because I am me, and if that means I spend my days elbows deep in flocking, then that’s my deal, not yours.

Oh, and when I sent your daughter home with the hairbows we made? I didn’t do it to upset you, I promise. She just really really liked them.

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4 Comments

  1. Well said, Jamie. I wonder why parents, women especially, are feeling so put upon by what others choose to do. Now, if say, a room mom wanted all the other moms to contribute time and money to something SHE wanted to do for the class, I might be a little upset. But doing what you enjoy doing with your kids is your business and no skin off my back.

    1. @Nicole, Exactly. This is my first year NOT being room mom and it’s actually a little hard for me to step back and let the other mom do it all her way, but it’s SO MUCH less work for me! Thank goodness for moms that want to help when I can’t in WHATEVER thing it is they want to help with!

  2. Yes, yes, yes!! Couldn’t agree more! I loved art before my kids and I love it now. We all have our own talents and of course our children will be a part of those. I think having a crafty mom is the same as having a baseball fanatic dad. But, no one says “stop coaching the kids, it’s too much pressure on us who don’t coach!”
    Thanks for sharing the other side of this Pinterest hate.

    1. @Melissa, oh my gosh that is SO TRUE. When I see another parent that wants to coach the kids, I am like “Thank you for doing that! There is no way I could teach them to hit a ball!” I don’t stare her down and talk about how she’s making everyone look bad by doing all that coaching!

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